(07-17-2014 09:12 AM)Strat57 Wrote:  

(07-09-2014 12:07 AM)biguofmfan Wrote:  Please do not get carried away with Houston's shiny new tin can. If Memphis goes this route, they will end up in the same place as Houston. That is, being left out of a super conference in the future.

Tiger fans who want this or any similar type of on-campus stadium are only interested in fan amenities and not what is in the best interest of the program moving forward. If Memphis wants to be in the Big 12 someday, then we are better off making comparisons with teams already in the Big 12 like Baylor or even Oklahoma, not Houston.

Memphis needs to either spend ~$200 - $350 million on Liberty Bowl improvements OR ~$400 million + on a new domed stadium either at the fairgrounds or downtown. 55K seat capacity minimum either way. Anything short of this and the University risks being left out of any super conference.

If lack of funds is allowed to be an excuse, then there is no point in even trying. If fans' short-term desires are put ahead of an aggressive master plan with long-term goals in mind, then no one can blame Fuente when he either fails here or leaves for any job marginally higher on the totem pole.

Most schools already in the Big 12 are looking for any excuse to invite Memphis and Cincinnati. Any last shred of doubt can be eliminated by making a statement that Memphis is serious. Bottom line, going the cheap route like Houston gives Texas another reason to say no. Making this mistake would be a disaster as we would go from being a basketball school to essentially a basketball-only school.

With that said, I am convinced that the new president, Bowen, and Fuente understand this and are willing to get us there with no expense spared. The future seems to be very bright, but it won't be if Memphians are afraid or lack the collective self-esteem to do what it takes and end up settling for something seemingly "good enough."

Finally, someone gets it.

After all these years; we finally disagree on something. You don't need a Ferrari to drive 10 miles to work every day. A $150 million OCS will be nicer than half of the P5 stadiums in existence; more than good enough. Just make it scalable so you can add an extra deck or fill in an endzone.

(07-22-2014 07:46 AM)Stammers Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 09:12 AM)Strat57 Wrote:  

(07-09-2014 12:07 AM)biguofmfan Wrote:  Please do not get carried away with Houston's shiny new tin can. If Memphis goes this route, they will end up in the same place as Houston. That is, being left out of a super conference in the future.

Tiger fans who want this or any similar type of on-campus stadium are only interested in fan amenities and not what is in the best interest of the program moving forward. If Memphis wants to be in the Big 12 someday, then we are better off making comparisons with teams already in the Big 12 like Baylor or even Oklahoma, not Houston.

Memphis needs to either spend ~$200 - $350 million on Liberty Bowl improvements OR ~$400 million + on a new domed stadium either at the fairgrounds or downtown. 55K seat capacity minimum either way. Anything short of this and the University risks being left out of any super conference.

If lack of funds is allowed to be an excuse, then there is no point in even trying. If fans' short-term desires are put ahead of an aggressive master plan with long-term goals in mind, then no one can blame Fuente when he either fails here or leaves for any job marginally higher on the totem pole.

Most schools already in the Big 12 are looking for any excuse to invite Memphis and Cincinnati. Any last shred of doubt can be eliminated by making a statement that Memphis is serious. Bottom line, going the cheap route like Houston gives Texas another reason to say no. Making this mistake would be a disaster as we would go from being a basketball school to essentially a basketball-only school.

With that said, I am convinced that the new president, Bowen, and Fuente understand this and are willing to get us there with no expense spared. The future seems to be very bright, but it won't be if Memphians are afraid or lack the collective self-esteem to do what it takes and end up settling for something seemingly "good enough."

Finally, someone gets it.

After all these years; we finally disagree on something. You don't need a Ferrari to drive 10 miles to work every day. A $150 million OCS will be nicer than half of the P5 stadiums in existence; more than good enough. Just make it scalable so you can add an extra deck or fill in an endzone.

I'm not sure why we are concerned with half of the P5 stadiums in existence. We only need to be making comparisons to 10 stadiums in the Big 12 and $150M isn't good enough.

If realignment wasn't an issue, then there would be no reason for anything other than an OCS. I would agree with everything you, GA, and Atlanta said if this wasn't such a crucial time for Memphis' future. A major investment is required soon, and leadership needs to consider all options considering that an OCS in the near future is not likely.

(07-22-2014 04:06 PM)biguofmfan Wrote:  

(07-22-2014 07:46 AM)Stammers Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 09:12 AM)Strat57 Wrote:  

(07-09-2014 12:07 AM)biguofmfan Wrote:  Please do not get carried away with Houston's shiny new tin can. If Memphis goes this route, they will end up in the same place as Houston. That is, being left out of a super conference in the future.

Tiger fans who want this or any similar type of on-campus stadium are only interested in fan amenities and not what is in the best interest of the program moving forward. If Memphis wants to be in the Big 12 someday, then we are better off making comparisons with teams already in the Big 12 like Baylor or even Oklahoma, not Houston.

Memphis needs to either spend ~$200 - $350 million on Liberty Bowl improvements OR ~$400 million + on a new domed stadium either at the fairgrounds or downtown. 55K seat capacity minimum either way. Anything short of this and the University risks being left out of any super conference.

If lack of funds is allowed to be an excuse, then there is no point in even trying. If fans' short-term desires are put ahead of an aggressive master plan with long-term goals in mind, then no one can blame Fuente when he either fails here or leaves for any job marginally higher on the totem pole.

Most schools already in the Big 12 are looking for any excuse to invite Memphis and Cincinnati. Any last shred of doubt can be eliminated by making a statement that Memphis is serious. Bottom line, going the cheap route like Houston gives Texas another reason to say no. Making this mistake would be a disaster as we would go from being a basketball school to essentially a basketball-only school.

With that said, I am convinced that the new president, Bowen, and Fuente understand this and are willing to get us there with no expense spared. The future seems to be very bright, but it won't be if Memphians are afraid or lack the collective self-esteem to do what it takes and end up settling for something seemingly "good enough."

Finally, someone gets it.

After all these years; we finally disagree on something. You don't need a Ferrari to drive 10 miles to work every day. A $150 million OCS will be nicer than half of the P5 stadiums in existence; more than good enough. Just make it scalable so you can add an extra deck or fill in an endzone.

I'm not sure why we are concerned with half of the P5 stadiums in existence. We only need to be making comparisons to 10 stadiums in the Big 12 and $150M isn't good enough.

If realignment wasn't an issue, then there would be no reason for anything other than an OCS. I would agree with everything you, GA, and Atlanta said if this wasn't such a crucial time for Memphis' future. A major investment is required soon, and leadership needs to consider all options considering that an OCS in the near future is not likely.

If an OCS isn't an option, then the only remaining option is the LB - spend nothing and hope it's good enough until our university is willing to make the proper commitment. The city has no money and can only operate as an obstacle to an OCS by politics, discouraging local Memphis businesses who would otherwise support an OCS and development in the Highland-Normal district & by influence at the state level. The city will pull out all the stops to divert university facilities funding to the city's benefit (as they have done consistently for the last 60+ yrs) which will doom any OCS potential and our university's P5 chances with it. Of course the LB even when it was state-of-the-art hasn't been good enough for the last 50+ years to help our university become a member of the "club", so I'm not sure to what you refer by "other options" since none meet the option most likely to help receive a P5 spot - an OCS. If your argument is money, then hope to get more than $150M committed to an OCS but IMO an OCS is the only game changer for our university along with improved on-field performance

Once you have enough money to build a basketball arena on-campus, then you will get your football stadium with the mere threat of moving basketball.

(07-22-2014 11:31 PM)Claw Wrote:  Once you have enough money to build a basketball arena on-campus, then you will get your football stadium with the mere threat of moving basketball.

I agree but don't see our university officials playing that card. I don't see our university standing up to the city even though the university has the much stronger position financially (& probably with state politicians too). Our university officials have always deferred to the city. Also they have never been willing to press for a separate BOR or lobby for any major sports facilities OC. On the other hand, UTK has their own BOR & has an office and staff of employees that do nothing but work state legislators (they also hire independent lobbyists to do their dirty work). UTK gets their share & more while our university doesn't even get a pro rata share of TBOR directed revenues - & when we do, they are released through the city for city-directed facilities. A lot would have to change for our university to do what they should for OC facilities.

(07-22-2014 04:06 PM)biguofmfan Wrote:  

(07-22-2014 07:46 AM)Stammers Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 09:12 AM)Strat57 Wrote:  

(07-09-2014 12:07 AM)biguofmfan Wrote:  Please do not get carried away with Houston's shiny new tin can. If Memphis goes this route, they will end up in the same place as Houston. That is, being left out of a super conference in the future.

Tiger fans who want this or any similar type of on-campus stadium are only interested in fan amenities and not what is in the best interest of the program moving forward. If Memphis wants to be in the Big 12 someday, then we are better off making comparisons with teams already in the Big 12 like Baylor or even Oklahoma, not Houston.

Memphis needs to either spend ~$200 - $350 million on Liberty Bowl improvements OR ~$400 million + on a new domed stadium either at the fairgrounds or downtown. 55K seat capacity minimum either way. Anything short of this and the University risks being left out of any super conference.

If lack of funds is allowed to be an excuse, then there is no point in even trying. If fans' short-term desires are put ahead of an aggressive master plan with long-term goals in mind, then no one can blame Fuente when he either fails here or leaves for any job marginally higher on the totem pole.

Most schools already in the Big 12 are looking for any excuse to invite Memphis and Cincinnati. Any last shred of doubt can be eliminated by making a statement that Memphis is serious. Bottom line, going the cheap route like Houston gives Texas another reason to say no. Making this mistake would be a disaster as we would go from being a basketball school to essentially a basketball-only school.

With that said, I am convinced that the new president, Bowen, and Fuente understand this and are willing to get us there with no expense spared. The future seems to be very bright, but it won't be if Memphians are afraid or lack the collective self-esteem to do what it takes and end up settling for something seemingly "good enough."

Finally, someone gets it.

After all these years; we finally disagree on something. You don't need a Ferrari to drive 10 miles to work every day. A $150 million OCS will be nicer than half of the P5 stadiums in existence; more than good enough. Just make it scalable so you can add an extra deck or fill in an endzone.

I'm not sure why we are concerned with half of the P5 stadiums in existence. We only need to be making comparisons to 10 stadiums in the Big 12 and $150M isn't good enough.

If we can't build a qualifty college football stadium for $150 million then something is wrong.

(07-22-2014 04:06 PM)biguofmfan Wrote:  

(07-22-2014 07:46 AM)Stammers Wrote:  

(07-17-2014 09:12 AM)Strat57 Wrote:  

(07-09-2014 12:07 AM)biguofmfan Wrote:  Please do not get carried away with Houston's shiny new tin can. If Memphis goes this route, they will end up in the same place as Houston. That is, being left out of a super conference in the future.

Tiger fans who want this or any similar type of on-campus stadium are only interested in fan amenities and not what is in the best interest of the program moving forward. If Memphis wants to be in the Big 12 someday, then we are better off making comparisons with teams already in the Big 12 like Baylor or even Oklahoma, not Houston.

Memphis needs to either spend ~$200 - $350 million on Liberty Bowl improvements OR ~$400 million + on a new domed stadium either at the fairgrounds or downtown. 55K seat capacity minimum either way. Anything short of this and the University risks being left out of any super conference.

If lack of funds is allowed to be an excuse, then there is no point in even trying. If fans' short-term desires are put ahead of an aggressive master plan with long-term goals in mind, then no one can blame Fuente when he either fails here or leaves for any job marginally higher on the totem pole.

Most schools already in the Big 12 are looking for any excuse to invite Memphis and Cincinnati. Any last shred of doubt can be eliminated by making a statement that Memphis is serious. Bottom line, going the cheap route like Houston gives Texas another reason to say no. Making this mistake would be a disaster as we would go from being a basketball school to essentially a basketball-only school.

With that said, I am convinced that the new president, Bowen, and Fuente understand this and are willing to get us there with no expense spared. The future seems to be very bright, but it won't be if Memphians are afraid or lack the collective self-esteem to do what it takes and end up settling for something seemingly "good enough."

Finally, someone gets it.

After all these years; we finally disagree on something. You don't need a Ferrari to drive 10 miles to work every day. A $150 million OCS will be nicer than half of the P5 stadiums in existence; more than good enough. Just make it scalable so you can add an extra deck or fill in an endzone.

I'm not sure why we are concerned with half of the P5 stadiums in existence. We only need to be making comparisons to 10 stadiums in the Big 12 and $150M isn't good enough.

If realignment wasn't an issue, then there would be no reason for anything other than an OCS. I would agree with everything you, GA, and Atlanta said if this wasn't such a crucial time for Memphis' future. A major investment is required soon, and leadership needs to consider all options considering that an OCS in the near future is not likely.

Quote:I'm not sure why we are concerned with half of the P5 stadiums in existence

There are 2 equal parts that demonstrate that you have no grasp of the situation whatsoever.

PART I:
Budget

TCU
$105 million budgeted; final spend $164 million (most recent member)

Cincy
$65 million renovation to 100 year old stadium

UCF
$60 million stadium in today's dollars

SMU
$57 million stadium in today's dollars

USF
$0

Houston
$150 million renovation

PART II:
You want a stadium that can seat 55,000 minimum. That is way too many seats

45,000 TCU
35,097 Cincy
45,031 UCF
66,321 USF
40,000 Houston
32,000 SMU

Any plan that requires a spend of $400 million just isn't realistic. For starters, it is overkill, second, there is zero demand for a 55,000 seat stadium; third, there is enough money for a beautiful $150 million stadium, but nowhere close to $400 million, and fourth, if there was money there is no way anyone associated with the city, the state, the school, or any of the school's boosters would spend anywhere near $400 million.

I have tried to debate your point in a gentle, rational way, using facts, but apparently I have been too rough. I guarantee you that my response is the nicest you would get if you proposed your idea to anyone associated with the city, the school or the school's boosters.