The U is stupid for making this move, IMO. What they should have done is renovate the O-Bowl. Take the top deck off and make it a true bowl, with the luxury boxes around the top edge, kinda like Lambeau Field. They could have signed a three year lease at Joe Robbie/Pro Players/Dolphins/whateverthehellitscalledtoday stadium while the renovations were being completed.
They are stupid and thats what my dad (a season ticket holder) and most of their fans think. The last few years attendance has declined to arround 30k because the team wasnt playing well. In the 80s and 90s they drew 40-50k consistantly. Your recomendation would have been a pretty good one though expensive to execute. They moved in part for the luxury box revenue.
It was a landmark. I saw the Buffs there in '90. The facility was in deserate need of help back then. Renovation would have been nice.
It's been renovated a couple of times since then in so much that all the things that were falling apart on it were fixed. I think they got some Hurricane money after Andrew that paid for the most recent round.
It would have been nice to see it renovated, but wouldn't have been cost effective.
The U wanted that but didnt want to pay for it beyond their lease amount. They wanted the taxpayer to foot the bill.
Do you think it hurts the "U" in recruiting, fan base, donations, etc. that they don't have their own facility? Or can they use the pitch that play at an NFL stadium. Plus, the proximity factor can't help. Are there any other big time programs with their "home" that far away?
I think in the end this move hurt them because they play a lot further away from campus then before and at a time when the team is at a cross roads. And they do this for the next 25 years. If the team does not get better their base will dwindle some more. And now they have no where to go back to. When the Dolphins moved they suffered a much larger loss of casual fans than was expected. The Jets, Pats, and Bills were regular sellouts at the Orange Bowl that didnt translate to Joe Robie for years. I think The U will lose those same casual fans that dont want to drive to that concrete toilet.
An on campus stadium is not an option since the city keeps blocking it. They had the space and the blue prints but a late outcry from citizens killed it. The U is also a really small private school with undergrad at only 10,000 students and 5000 post graduates so on campus might not make sense anyway. They need the casual fan.
UCLA is the only team I can think of that plays that far away from campus (Rose Bowl). Usc plays in a former NFL stadium but its very close to campus.
To me the orange bowl was a special place. My dad and I would go together and sit in the stands and eat hot dogs. I was only 8 or 9 first time I went. I remember the ticket stub was white with a picture of Griese on it and it cost $10.
It was ratty for sure but no worse than Folsom. I saw Griese play there in the late 70s. I saw the Phins beat the Bears on MNF. I saw Marino play his first game there. I saw the Hurricanes play some great games against FSU. There were also some great games against BC, Penn State, NU, VT, and others. I saw the Buffs beat Notre Dame and win the mNC.