(04-22-2017 09:43 AM)MplsBison Wrote:  

(04-21-2017 08:19 PM)johnintx Wrote:  That would make four bowls in the DFW Metroplex, plus the FCS championship game:
Cotton - Arlington
Armed Forces - Fort Worth
Heart of Dallas - Dallas
Bowl Formerly Known as Miami Beach - Frisco

DFW isn't a bad location-I spent 14 years there. Centrally located (especially for these schools), easily accessible airport, great recruiting. The weather in December can be iffy, as it might be 60 degrees on game day, or there may be an ice storm. You don't go there for the weather.

Frisco turned from a small town to a suburb overnight, as it tends to happen in North Texas. It grew from a population of 6,000 in 1990 to 33,000 in 2000 to 160,000 today. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frisco,_Texas There are plenty of hotels and restaurants. The Rangers' AA farm club plays in a great ballpark next to the Dallas Stars practice facility. In addition, the Cowboys just opened their new practice facility there, The Star, complete with indoor stadium used by high schools. Frisco is not on the list of Top 10 vacation destinations, but it's fine for a lower-level bowl.

The FCS championship has done well there, especially when NDSU is in it with its horde of traveling fans. Toyota Stadium is fine for what this is. If ESPN wants to put on this game, and it's not going to be in Miami, why not Frisco? There are worse places.

Sure, centrally located. So instead of a 3hr plane ride, it's a 2hr plane ride. For me, I'd rather spend the extra time on the plane to go to an actual destination.

Dallas is not a destination, regardless what time of year it is. It's just a place where a bunch of people live, and businesses are located. There's nothing particularly interesting there. And the weather is nothing special in December.

Easily accessible airport?? Huh? Frisco is a pain in the rump to get to from DFW. Way out in the middle of nowhere ... because Dallas is spread out like butter on a slice of bread.

I've lurked on this board for some time, but recently started posting.

MplsBison, I enjoy reading your opinions. I respect your opinion.

You're right on Dallas as a destination. It's nothing special compared to say, Miami. I never claimed it to be anything different. It just happens to be in the American conference footprint, within reasonable driving distance of 5 schools. If you're going to have a lower-level bowl game with 10-15,000 in attendance and 3 1/2 hours air time, a soccer stadium in Frisco serves the purpose. Nothing more, nothing less. For bowls like this, that mainly serve as 3 1/2 hours of filler on ESPN, I like the idea of the Bahamas Bowl, but that's a different topic.

I meant DFW as being centrally located compared to the rest of the country. It's a major airline hub in the middle of the country with direct flights from most cities. Now that the tollways have been extended, Frisco is roughly the same distance from DFW as downtown Dallas or downtown Fort Worth. I didn't realize that until I mapped it, as it was via two-lane road until fairly recently. It's still a lot of sprawl. That's how we roll in Texas, for better or worse.