(02-02-2018 06:24 PM)Memphis Blazer Wrote: I remember the first I've UAB played on a Friday night. Against TCU. There was a lot of bitching and griping about that, if not more. People complaining that it went up against high school games. And TCU wasn't D2, but they weren't th TCU they are today. Just another conference game. It turned out to be one of the highest attended game ever
You are downplaying that game a bit, in my opinion. There are a couple of historical points to make about that game that I think are worth considering:
1. UAB had momentum coming into the game with a 4-1 record and, before that, gained some buzz with general fans in the 2003 season when it almost knocked of two Top 25 opponents in back to back weeks. In addition, UAB had just beaten an SEC team (albeit a terrible one), but it still made news.
2. While TCU was not the same as they are today, I wouldn't say they were just another conference game. TCU finished the previous two seasons with a Top 25 ranking and were considered a team on the rise...even though they came into the game with 2 losses already. This was also the last year that TCU was in the conference. The win against them was enough to clinch our first (and only) BCS ranking ever.
3. It was the primetime game on the main ESPN channel at a time when it actually mattered. I don't agree with Watson Brown when he said that "87 million people watched the game"...but I won't contest the fact that the mid-2000's was the height of ESPN's popularity and having a game on the main network was a big deal, regardless of the day.
Again, if this move was made for the purposes of TV, I can understand it...if not, I don't see why would we choose to play on a weekday night on our own when:
A. It's the season opener.
B. It's a holiday weekend that would help accommodate Blazer fans travel.
C. Auburn and Alabama are both playing out of state.
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UAB’s 2018 Season Opener Versus Savannah State Moved to Aug. 30
