Carson Field Football Board

I just alluded to this in another post (and Decoursey mentioned this earlier). I agree 100%. Use PBS to attract realignment. Build basketball place that will sell out regularly and have other money making opportunities. Then down the road see what is best option for football.

PBS can be used for big games. And use Nippert for lesser ones if necessary.

It's not that PBS isn't a good idea, it's a great one! The difference between Pitt's situation and UC's is Pitt is dealing with the Steelers and UC has to deal with the Brown family. That my friends is the elephant in the room.

Sure what DeCourcy says has a lot of truth in it. So does this. When I attended UC from 1978-81 and then 1982-84 the school was a commuter school. Nothing signified that more than what was then known as the fieldhouse parking lot. Next to McMicken Hall, it was one of the more identifiable features because of its size. And let me tell you, the cars weren't pretty back in those days. The campus had as much aesthetic appeal as a bowl of oatmeal and did have the same color. What has happened since then has been a profound transformation where the campus frequently makes lists as the most attractive and unique in terms of buildings. Gone is the fieldhouse lot, diminished is the reputation of being only a commuter school. The academic reputation has grown as well and continues to. Along the way the athletic programs have grown as well but not at a pace that overshadowed the student experience, be it academic or campus amenities. And that is how it should have been. Now, we have an athletic director and president who get that it is time to focus more on athletic venues and conference affiliation that matches where the university is in terms of academics and research. Everything in its time.

It's hard to argue with. People talk about the poor game experience at Nippert, especially when it is full. Poor sight lines, poor amenities, parking problems, narrow/uncomfortable seats. Those of us who have been to other college football venues know that this is actually the 'college experience.'

For better or worse, this is a pro sports town. Fans expect easy parking, comfortable seats, and good concessions and plentiful restrooms. Nippert cannot deliver that. And I don't think there is any renovation that can deliver that.

What Nippert does deliver is the intimate college experience and an excellent home field advantage. It has the wild and crazy student section that almost makes the ground shake.

If I were Whit Babcock, I would move the football games to PBS and spend the money that Nippert renovations would take on a gut rehab of 5/3 Arena. But I think there is tremendous pressure from certain alumni groups to keep football games on campus.

We need major facility upgrades to stay relevant in football and to attract that next move in the conference realigment game. We need a facility upgrade in basketball to maximize revenue and convert our multi-purpose facility into a true BB venue.

The Board of Trustees meets on Tuesday. I think they will be asked to greenlight a major effort to renovate Nippert Stadium (and likely 5/3 as well). I Don't think this is the right move, but I will support it if it comes. Moving forward with renovating Nippert is preferable to what we have done so far - which is to sit on our hands and talk and talk and talk.

I think this commitment is key to attracting a quality head football coach (and more importantly) retaining him for longer than three years.

I guess we'll see.

Exactly! Until we see evidence that the Brown family is willing to work amicably with UC, then the constant repetition of this whole idea is nothing more than...

Exactly.

I constantly see people say on this and other UC boards that Nippert is no worse than venues in OSU, Wisconsin, etc. What they fail to grasp is that we are a different community than those cities. The casual fan here is used to professional sports facilities/amenities. The narrow seats at Ohio Stadium and at Camp Randall mean nothing to people in Cincinnati.

We need to follow the Pitt model. Our cities mirror one another. They tore down their football stadium (similar to Nippert btw) and built their new state of art basketball arena on the site. Yes, Pitt has games were they struggle to half sell the stadium, but guess what--- they are in the ACC aren't they?

I am sure a deal can be worked out with Mike Brown and the County to make it more profittable for everyone involved. The county needs more revenue for that stadium and having 6-7 more games a year there will go along way filling up any deficits there are. It is a win-win for Mike Brown because he gets a large chunch of the ticket sales, concessions, parking, etc. Plus he can have his scouting team on site to check out the talent as they come through.

The biggest issue had to due with the licensing agreements, particular advertisement of Goldstar v. Skyline Chili. That is where UC lost their shirt in the deal. Those contracts can be reworked in the offseason.

I agree. He glossed right over his critique of Nippert, offering up a couple of points and calling the matter settled. I think the sight lines are perfect, and the intimacy and crowd electricity in the stadium would be far superior to anything UC could generate at PBS in at least the foreseeable future.

It's not nearly as simple as DeCourcy portrayed it. There are risks involved with pursuing either path. A renovated Nippert that can accommodate 43k fans puts it right in line with ACC programs that include Wake Forest, Duke, Boston College and Louisville.

LaRosa's is coming to Cbus.

Where are they putting it? I live in Westerville.

Totally agree. I would much rather watch games at an improved,slightly enlarged Nippert stadium. When an OU comes town, I have no objection moving to PBS (Even though I think we all agree that dealing with Mike Brown is problematic). As I've mentioned it on the site before, if you look at the attendance figures of most schools in major metro areas with pro football compitition, a stadium the size of PBS is unnecessary except for really big games and I don't think that will ever change as long as the Bungals are in town.