CSNbbs

must be nice! TCF Bank Stadium is coming along according to plan and is on schedule for completion. Also, according to the Sports Business Journal this week (sorry forgot my password or I would link the article) is that the school looks to surpass the $86 million designated as private funding. The additional funds will be used to pay down debt and cover some operating costs. Many corporate donors are contributing seven figure gifts and they don't include advertising rights (which is good of course, another separate revenue stream)! Most are for area naming rights, i.e., entrances, sections, clubs, etc. To top it off, Minnesota-based Dairy Queen is in the planning stages with the university of a campaign to utilize their statewide locations to raise awareness about the new stadium (with certain themed products) and allowing the school to place literature and signs soliciting additional funding contributions. Genius!

Yeah, but that's $86 million that could have been put towards a new music center.

economic conditions must be better in Minnesota than they are here. Probably have more parking too.

All of this construction noise has got to be irritating to the neighbors.

If you look pass the red crane in the middle of this photo you will see the I-35 bridge that collasped last year. I built a Perkins Restaurant in Dinytown right on the campus, great sports town just way too cold for my blood.

Ew, who would want that monstrosity sitting in the middle of their beautiful college campus. And just imagine the overcrowding on campus during games. No thank you.

Another school that is throwing academics under the bus

With the unsurprising announcement of the Fairground Development team and who really benefits at the U of M's expense just continues to make me question the University's administration and what does the Athletic Department really think of football. There's this arch-rival of Memphis and their genius AD that realized what gets you into the big-time of college athletics...football and the commitment to the program. They built this little ole stadium and now, poof it's time for expansion to meet the demand and generate even more revenue. Here's that great vision and 4 other universities seeing the light. Feel free to envy...I do.

U of L Stadium Expansion
FIU Stadium Project
Rutgers Stadium Expansion
New Akron Stadium
FAU Stadium Plan

Sickening to me...Tiger football has potential. If given the right resources (financially, facilities and administration/staff support), it can have the potential to prosper and maybe...make money? That's what gets you into "big-time" college athletics, dubbed the BCS.

I think its hard to compare Memphis with Minnesota. University of Minnesota gets all the state money including corparte dollars from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Huge metro area. They simply have more corporations there then we do. You basically have Minneapolis/St. Paul and thats it. Where we have to compete with Nashville and Knoxville. Our situation is a little different IMO. We still could have raised the money for an OCS but maybe not in the manner they did it.

Sure it looks nice now, but wait until they put up all the lights that go with it.

tigerpikapp Wrote:With the unsurprising announcement of the Fairground Development team and who really benefits at the U of M's expense just continues to make me question the University's administration and what does the Athletic Department really think of football. There's this arch-rival of Memphis and their genius AD that realized what gets you into the big-time of college athletics...football and the commitment to the program. They built this little ole stadium and now, poof it's time for expansion to meet the demand and generate even more revenue. Here's that great vision and 4 other universities seeing the light. Feel free to envy...I do.

But if you go to their board some of them are asking why add 20k+ seats when the current 43k are only 2/3 full. Of course, they did just come off a 6-6 season, so if they get back to where they're only losing 2 or 3 games a year, maybe it will fill back up.

memp600 Wrote:I think its hard to compare Memphis with Minnesota. University of Minnesota gets all the state money including corparte dollars from the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. Huge metro area. They simply have more corporations there then we do. You basically have Minneapolis/St. Paul and thats it. Where we have to compete with Nashville and Knoxville. Our situation is a little different IMO. We still could have raised the money for an OCS but maybe not in the manner they did it.

Oh, I know...it's apples to oranges when it comes to state funding, competition and that BCS welfare check. A $288 million dollar stadium with the amenities of TCF Bank Stadium are more than what Memphis needs. However, if you look at what really made it all work, their feasibility study and stadium justification, it just makes you sick...it's doable for anyone in our situation. Vision versus Excuses, Goals versus Denial...all it takes is a dream and it's slowly fading for Tiger Football.

Minnesota's Vision

Herff Tiger Wrote:

tigerpikapp Wrote:With the unsurprising announcement of the Fairground Development team and who really benefits at the U of M's expense just continues to make me question the University's administration and what does the Athletic Department really think of football. There's this arch-rival of Memphis and their genius AD that realized what gets you into the big-time of college athletics...football and the commitment to the program. They built this little ole stadium and now, poof it's time for expansion to meet the demand and generate even more revenue. Here's that great vision and 4 other universities seeing the light. Feel free to envy...I do.

But if you go to their board some of them are asking why add 20k+ seats when the current 43k are only 2/3 full. Of course, they did just come off a 6-6 season, so if they get back to where they're only losing 2 or 3 games a year, maybe it will fill back up.

Okay, so maybe it's more a demand for potential? With the $72 million dollar expansion to PJCS & the $250+ million dollar new arena, Louisville's showing the fruits of their labors to get into the BCS...and it started by improving football.

fsquid Wrote:Another school that is throwing academics under the bus

Definite blow to the U of Minnesota scholastic reputation.

Ed, Let me know if you ever get up to Minnesota during the college football season. I've had 6 season tickets since 1988. Since I live in Memphis, my brothers use them most of the time. But I can use them whenever I want. Twenty years of tickets and contributions is finally paying off.

Wake up Memphis leaders.
On campus stadium NOW!