(05-12-2022 02:23 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:09 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 11:15 AM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 11:08 AM)Stammers Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 10:36 AM)shere khan Wrote:  Exactly what happened.

RIP Memphis Tiger football.

A $200 million investment that will produce a stadium that will be 10X nicer than UCF, and nicer than Nippert. How anyone can think this is bad, is insane.

History.

When it was built, the stadium was nicer than UT, Ole Miss, Miss State, and most of the SEC. They came HERE to play because it was bigger and nicer.

That won't be the case this time. It will be half the size of UT. Ole Miss and MisStake will still play at home bringing in tons of money and visitors to their campus. A business that became more lucrative than playing in the Liberty Bowl more than 35 years ago. People on campus generates money. Apparently an SEC education is better than ours. We haven't learned that in 100 years.

There won't be an NFL team to lure here this time either.

So what do have?

We have something that will not set a single foot on campus. It will not improve the campus in any way at all. It will not be a revenue generator controlled by the university. It will not increase alumni giving. It won't do much at all.

This is a 200 million investment that at best will keep the status quo. We could have done that with nothing invested.

This^^
Whats crazy is the Mayor just stated the lion’s share of the funding will come from the university?? Why would the school invest 200 million in an off campus, municipally owned facility? Here was their opportunity to change the campus experience & image of the school & they’re investing 200 mill in the Fairgrounds. I think the new president was bamboozled & the long term opportunity squandered. The renderings are wonderful but the school desperately needed to reconnect alumni with the campus, and this decision only ensures generations Memphis alumni never step foot back on campus.

Can the school proper legally invest in this?

I do not know. They footed roughly 1/3rd of the cost to build the Pyramid.

(05-12-2022 02:41 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:18 PM)fishman6581 Wrote:  All those alumni will have more fun in any of the four suite levels than they would walking around Southern.

Have you ever seen how miserably poor the university’s alumni giving percentage is? The fact there is no connection to the school after graduation squanders opportunity that cannot be replaced by a direct mail campaign. Of the roughly 300k living alumni of the school, only 10k donate as much as a nickel, roughly 3%. The national average is 8% & the highest levels are in the 50-55% range; & yes, on campus facilities would help raise those donation levels & help connect future alumni to the school.

Have you seen how the athletic office treats graduates who try to give back?

(05-12-2022 12:04 PM)southpaw1 Wrote:  So...where will we play home games during the "renovation"?

If it comes to that. Autozone park anyone?

(05-12-2022 02:41 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:18 PM)fishman6581 Wrote:  All those alumni will have more fun in any of the four suite levels than they would walking around Southern.

Have you ever seen how miserably poor the university’s alumni giving percentage is? The fact there is no connection to the school after graduation squanders opportunity that cannot be replaced by a direct mail campaign. Of the roughly 300k living alumni of the school, only 10k donate as much as a nickel, roughly 3%. The national average is 8% & the highest levels are in the 50-55% range; & yes, on campus facilities would help raise those donation levels & help connect future alumni to the school.

This is undeniably true.

(05-12-2022 02:45 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:23 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:09 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 11:15 AM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 11:08 AM)Stammers Wrote:  A $200 million investment that will produce a stadium that will be 10X nicer than UCF, and nicer than Nippert. How anyone can think this is bad, is insane.

History.

When it was built, the stadium was nicer than UT, Ole Miss, Miss State, and most of the SEC. They came HERE to play because it was bigger and nicer.

That won't be the case this time. It will be half the size of UT. Ole Miss and MisStake will still play at home bringing in tons of money and visitors to their campus. A business that became more lucrative than playing in the Liberty Bowl more than 35 years ago. People on campus generates money. Apparently an SEC education is better than ours. We haven't learned that in 100 years.

There won't be an NFL team to lure here this time either.

So what do have?

We have something that will not set a single foot on campus. It will not improve the campus in any way at all. It will not be a revenue generator controlled by the university. It will not increase alumni giving. It won't do much at all.

This is a 200 million investment that at best will keep the status quo. We could have done that with nothing invested.

This^^
Whats crazy is the Mayor just stated the lion’s share of the funding will come from the university?? Why would the school invest 200 million in an off campus, municipally owned facility? Here was their opportunity to change the campus experience & image of the school & they’re investing 200 mill in the Fairgrounds. I think the new president was bamboozled & the long term opportunity squandered. The renderings are wonderful but the school desperately needed to reconnect alumni with the campus, and this decision only ensures generations Memphis alumni never step foot back on campus.

Can the school proper legally invest in this?

I do not know. They footed roughly 1/3rd of the cost to build the Pyramid.

Did they? Or did they allow the state to give that money to the Pyramid project? I don't think the money came from the school.

This pisses me off so much I think legal action might actually be a good idea. This mistake should not be easy to make. It needs to be done in full view of vehement opposition.

(05-12-2022 02:51 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:45 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:23 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:09 PM)Marc Mensa Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 11:15 AM)Claw Wrote:  History.

When it was built, the stadium was nicer than UT, Ole Miss, Miss State, and most of the SEC. They came HERE to play because it was bigger and nicer.

That won't be the case this time. It will be half the size of UT. Ole Miss and MisStake will still play at home bringing in tons of money and visitors to their campus. A business that became more lucrative than playing in the Liberty Bowl more than 35 years ago. People on campus generates money. Apparently an SEC education is better than ours. We haven't learned that in 100 years.

There won't be an NFL team to lure here this time either.

So what do have?

We have something that will not set a single foot on campus. It will not improve the campus in any way at all. It will not be a revenue generator controlled by the university. It will not increase alumni giving. It won't do much at all.

This is a 200 million investment that at best will keep the status quo. We could have done that with nothing invested.

This^^
Whats crazy is the Mayor just stated the lion’s share of the funding will come from the university?? Why would the school invest 200 million in an off campus, municipally owned facility? Here was their opportunity to change the campus experience & image of the school & they’re investing 200 mill in the Fairgrounds. I think the new president was bamboozled & the long term opportunity squandered. The renderings are wonderful but the school desperately needed to reconnect alumni with the campus, and this decision only ensures generations Memphis alumni never step foot back on campus.

Can the school proper legally invest in this?

I do not know. They footed roughly 1/3rd of the cost to build the Pyramid.

Did they? Or did they allow the state to give that money to the Pyramid project? I don't think the money came from the school.

This pisses me off so much I think legal action might actually be a good idea. This mistake should not be easy to make. It needs to be done in full view of vehement opposition.

I heard the city strong-armed the university out of that money.

I keep telling y'all there is no bigxii invitation coming. I wish it was but I just don't trust the Texicans.

That said if this renovation isn't enough to garner an invite nothing is. (that is a period.) Personally I would prefer a 12 team tournament to a p5 invite, and this stadium is a worthy home for a program aspiring to inclusion in a national tournament. Hell it is a nicer home than any of the three AAC invitees and half of the current members have. I will be at every game for as long as I am physically able, and going to a stadium like this would put a little pep in my ancient gait.

(05-12-2022 02:46 PM)BIGDTiger Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 12:04 PM)southpaw1 Wrote:  So...where will we play home games during the "renovation"?

If it comes to that. Autozone park anyone?

I had this question as well, and found their answer:

• Will construction occur during a football season? Will the team have to play somewhere else?

In our current timeline, we anticipate construction occurring through the 2024 season. We believe a plan can be developed that will allow us to utilize a majority of Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium during construction, so we do not foresee a need to utilize a different venue.

https://gotigersgo.com/documents/2022/5/...stions.pdf

(05-12-2022 01:58 PM)CRM114 Wrote:  The university cannot afford to build its own stadium. Period. I don't know why it's so hard for some people to understand this. It doesn't take a finance degree to understand that when you struggle to raise money for things like a weight rooms or indoor practice facility, you can't just go build a $250-300M+ stadium on your own. It takes more than a bunch of message board people to finance a stadium. The university probably couldn't raise enough money from this message board and all the other people posting on social media to repave a parking lot, much less build a new football stadium. If the big boosters wanted a new OCS and were willing to pony up, the university would have gone that direction.

Will this ring the bell for the B12? It's hard to believe that all this time and money went into a design without knowing that it meets their demands. I expect there was either direct input from the B12 itself or indirectly from consultants. But I will say that the university will have to do more than roll out pretty renderings. At minimum, the financing will have to be lined up and construction read to start, if this is truly a prerequisite for the B12.

All of this.

Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

(05-12-2022 03:18 PM)Stammers Wrote:  Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

Oh boy.

(05-12-2022 03:18 PM)Stammers Wrote:  Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

Yes on the choots. It doesn't look that incredible to me.

(05-12-2022 03:18 PM)Stammers Wrote:  Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

Simmons Bank was surprised to hear about this announcement today…

(05-12-2022 03:25 PM)griffin Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 03:18 PM)Stammers Wrote:  Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

Simmons Bank was surprised to hear about this announcement today…

(05-12-2022 10:26 AM)MemTigers1998 Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 10:08 AM)tigergreen Wrote:  Will it be enough for a P5?

No

It will be mid to top range for the remaining Big XII schools after TX and OK leave.

(05-12-2022 02:34 PM)poppaslaw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:19 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 01:58 PM)CRM114 Wrote:  Nice design. The seating bowl will still feel like the original LB with its good sight lines, but completely rebuilt suites, media facilities and concourses and an updated, modernized profile.

The university cannot afford to build its own stadium. Period. I don't know why it's so hard for some people to understand this. It doesn't take a finance degree to understand that when you struggle to raise money for things like a weight rooms or indoor practice facility, you can't just go build a $250-300M+ stadium on your own. It takes more than a bunch of message board people to finance a stadium. The university probably couldn't raise enough money from this message board and all the other people posting on social media to repave a parking lot, much less build a new football stadium. If the big boosters wanted a new OCS and were willing to pony up, the university would have gone that direction.

Will this ring the bell for the B12? It's hard to believe that all this time and money went into a design without knowing that it meets their demands. I expect there was either direct input from the B12 itself or indirectly from consultants. But I will say that the university will have to do more than roll out pretty renderings. At minimum, the financing will have to be lined up and construction read to start, if this is truly a prerequisite for the B12.

You seem to overlook the fact that the city has no need of a stadium and also has no means to pay for these renovations either. The city simply has a means to float bonds that the university lacks to dictate the decisions being made. So the city will float the bonds to borrow funding, the university will raise the upfront down payment & pay the interest obligations through monthly/annual rental fees while the city gets rental, concessions, parking revenues along with control - and mgmt fees. Same old story, & the city will tire of its mtc obligations soon enough & our university will be left holding the bag without the benefits over time of having its own OC facility.

The city gave up parking to the university years ago. The UofM handles the sale and they raised costs significantly. I'm sure they make plenty off of it. It just went up again for this year.

Actually 2 years ago for the reserved, parking passes only. The city still collects general parking, concessions, & charges a mgmt fee.

(05-12-2022 03:28 PM)Tiger46 Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 10:26 AM)MemTigers1998 Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 10:08 AM)tigergreen Wrote:  Will it be enough for a P5?

No

It will be mid to top range for the remaining Big XII schools after TX and OK leave.

It wasn't enough to keep the Southern Heritage Classic.

You think it will be enough to get in the Big XII?

(05-12-2022 02:19 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 01:58 PM)CRM114 Wrote:  Nice design. The seating bowl will still feel like the original LB with its good sight lines, but completely rebuilt suites, media facilities and concourses and an updated, modernized profile.

The university cannot afford to build its own stadium. Period. I don't know why it's so hard for some people to understand this. It doesn't take a finance degree to understand that when you struggle to raise money for things like a weight rooms or indoor practice facility, you can't just go build a $250-300M+ stadium on your own. It takes more than a bunch of message board people to finance a stadium. The university probably couldn't raise enough money from this message board and all the other people posting on social media to repave a parking lot, much less build a new football stadium. If the big boosters wanted a new OCS and were willing to pony up, the university would have gone that direction.

Will this ring the bell for the B12? It's hard to believe that all this time and money went into a design without knowing that it meets their demands. I expect there was either direct input from the B12 itself or indirectly from consultants. But I will say that the university will have to do more than roll out pretty renderings. At minimum, the financing will have to be lined up and construction read to start, if this is truly a prerequisite for the B12.

You seem to overlook the fact that the city has no need of a stadium and also has no means to pay for these renovations either. The city simply has a means to float bonds that the university lacks to dictate the decisions being made. So the city will float the bonds to borrow funding, the university will raise the upfront down payment & pay the interest obligations through monthly/annual rental fees while the city gets rental, concessions, parking revenues along with control - and mgmt fees. Same old story, & the city will tire of its mtc obligations soon enough & our university will be left holding the bag without the benefits over time of having its own OC facility.

The university's outlay for this project will still be considerably less than for a new stadium. "Lion's share" of a $150-200M project is still less than 100% of a new one of comparable quality. Also this statement is not true. The city has interest in keeping a facility suitable (capacity wise) for the AutoZone Liberty Bowl and the SHC, which the university would not have built on its own. Plus the city has an interest in preserving major (hopefully P5) college football as a civic amenity.

It's up to the university's legal team to ensure their are contract stipulations preventing the city from just walking away from whatever their obligations are.

(05-12-2022 03:30 PM)CRM114 Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 02:19 PM)Atlanta Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 01:58 PM)CRM114 Wrote:  Nice design. The seating bowl will still feel like the original LB with its good sight lines, but completely rebuilt suites, media facilities and concourses and an updated, modernized profile.

The university cannot afford to build its own stadium. Period. I don't know why it's so hard for some people to understand this. It doesn't take a finance degree to understand that when you struggle to raise money for things like a weight rooms or indoor practice facility, you can't just go build a $250-300M+ stadium on your own. It takes more than a bunch of message board people to finance a stadium. The university probably couldn't raise enough money from this message board and all the other people posting on social media to repave a parking lot, much less build a new football stadium. If the big boosters wanted a new OCS and were willing to pony up, the university would have gone that direction.

Will this ring the bell for the B12? It's hard to believe that all this time and money went into a design without knowing that it meets their demands. I expect there was either direct input from the B12 itself or indirectly from consultants. But I will say that the university will have to do more than roll out pretty renderings. At minimum, the financing will have to be lined up and construction read to start, if this is truly a prerequisite for the B12.

You seem to overlook the fact that the city has no need of a stadium and also has no means to pay for these renovations either. The city simply has a means to float bonds that the university lacks to dictate the decisions being made. So the city will float the bonds to borrow funding, the university will raise the upfront down payment & pay the interest obligations through monthly/annual rental fees while the city gets rental, concessions, parking revenues along with control - and mgmt fees. Same old story, & the city will tire of its mtc obligations soon enough & our university will be left holding the bag without the benefits over time of having its own OC facility.

The university's outlay for this project will still be considerably less than for a new stadium. "Lion's share" of a $150-200M project is still less than 100% of a new one of comparable quality. Also this statement is not true. The city has interest in keeping a facility suitable for the AutoZone Liberty Bowl and the SHC, which the university would not have built on its own. Plus the city has an interest in preserving major (hopefully P5) college football as a civic amenity.

It's up to the university's legal team to ensure their are contract stipulations preventing the city from just walking away from whatever their obligations are.

Exactly what are we buying here?

Is it a lease?

Are we purchasing part or all of the stadium?

Is it a $100 million dollar services contract?

It is real nebulous, but nothing in the governing documents of the university should allow it to just give $100 million dollars to the city.

(05-12-2022 03:24 PM)Claw Wrote:  

(05-12-2022 03:18 PM)Stammers Wrote:  Knowing what I know about Memphis and Memphis politics, right off the bat, it smells like Simmons Bank was in cahoots with someone at the city or politicians to get a sweetheart deal on the stadium as it is currently configured. I would expect them to underpay for the renovated stadium after seeing this. 700k per year is a very small amount for naming rights compared to other similar venues.

Having said that, the project looks incredible.

Yes on the choots. It doesn't look that incredible to me.

What doesn’t look incredible? The rendering? If that’s what you’re talking about, you’re letting your OCS bias cloud your judgment. You don’t have to think it’s the best option to think the planned upgrades look nice. They do.