Just plain hate! Richmond vs JMU

[mcveyrl]

????

Is this on another board? I don't remember any particular mud being slung, and certainly not by me. I'm on record as saying that I think it's a great stadium and being on campus will make it that much more of an appealing game to go to.

Well most of the discussion has gone on over on the JMU Board on CAAZone, Richmond's Rivals site, and on discussions started by the OP on the Richmond Times Dispatch site. I would say most JMU and CAA fans in general on here and on AGS have been nothing but complementary to the new stadium, as they in general experience the "loveliness" that was old UR Stadium. I think the OP is trying to stir the pot a little.

I can concur on the old stadium. How anybody could ever blame Richmond for getting out of that place is beyond me.

[henfan]

Whose responsibility to accomplish this? We paid City of Richmond $1 per year in rent ... who's to say they don't jack up the rent and still not offer any updating.[/b]

Most recruits weren't even taken to City Stadium because it was such an eyesore. We already have a couple verbals for 2011. How many do you have?

We'll make sure to put you at the top of the email list when announcements are made.

What is CAA football over the long haul?

We are happy in FCS football. There are plenty of other schools happy with FCS football. If we have to move to the SoCon or the Patriot because the CAA breaks up, we'll be glad to do it (and those conferences will be happy to have us

Whose resposibility was it to install a natural grass surface in UR Stadium? UR's. When you're renting a 22K-seat facility for a buck a year, you shouldn't have any complaints. There was no immediate threat to jack up the rent and you know it. Despite all of the rumors over the years about the desire to eventually develop the stadium site, I NEVER read anything about removing UR FB from the stadium to do it. I had read that there was a retrospective plan if UR ever abandoned the site. (BTW, now that UR is no longer a tenant, where ARE the plans to develop the site? )

Two years ago, a former student at my son's school was recruited by UR and was taken to UR Stadium (he was on the sidelines at the VMI game) AND shown the plans for the new ball field. He ended up elsewhere, though, admittedly, his final decision had nothing to do with the quality (or lack) of UR facilities. Point is that, contrary to your assertion, UR was not so embarrassed by UR Stadium that they were keeping kids away from the place. Much of the criticism of UR Stadium is extreme hyperbole.

I'm already on UR ticket email list because I've purchased tickets directly from them in the past for a UD home game. Thanks for the offer for updates anyway.

IMO, CAA FB over the long haul will not likely include schools with 9K-seat high school FB fields. My guess is that it will look increasingly like schools with 15K-30K seat stadiums.

I'm sure the UR red sweaters who raised such a ruckus when UR courted the Patriot League are going to love it if the team actually ends up playing there. At least if that happens, ticket demand won't be an issue.

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

Whose responsibility to accomplish this? We paid City of Richmond $1 per year in rent ... who's to say they don't jack up the rent and still not offer any updating.[/b]

Most recruits weren't even taken to City Stadium because it was such an eyesore. We already have a couple verbals for 2011. How many do you have?

We'll make sure to put you at the top of the email list when announcements are made.

What is CAA football over the long haul?

We are happy in FCS football. There are plenty of other schools happy with FCS football. If we have to move to the SoCon or the Patriot because the CAA breaks up, we'll be glad to do it (and those conferences will be happy to have us

Whose resposibility was it to install a natural grass surface in UR Stadium? UR's. When you're renting a 22K-seat facility for a buck a year, you shouldn't have any complaints. There was no immediate threat to jack up the rent and you know it. Despite all of the rumors over the years about the desire to eventually develop the stadium site, I NEVER read anything about removing UR FB from the stadium to do it. I had read that there was a retrospective plan if UR ever abandoned the site. (BTW, now that UR is no longer a tenant, where ARE the plans to develop the site? )

Two years ago, a former student at my son's school was recruited by UR and was taken to UR Stadium (he was on the sidelines at the VMI game) AND shown the plans for the new ball field. He ended up elsewhere, though, admittedly, his final decision had nothing to do with the quality (or lack) of UR facilities. Point is that, contrary to your assertion, UR was not so embarrassed by UR Stadium that they were keeping kids away from the place. Much of the criticism of UR Stadium is extreme hyperbole.

I'm already on UR ticket email list because I've purchased tickets directly from them in the past for a UD home game. Thanks for the offer for updates anyway.

IMO, CAA FB over the long haul will not likely include schools with 9K-seat high school FB fields. My guess is that it will look increasingly like schools with 15K-30K seat stadiums.

I'm sure the UR red sweaters who raised such a ruckus when UR courted the Patriot League are going to love it if the team actually ends up playing there. At least if that happens, ticket demand won't be an issue.

Coach Scott stated last week that City Stadium was avoided on recruiting visits. I am sure some of the kids asked to go to the Stadium. Not a real big shock if that happened.

The City rented the place to us for $1 a year but could have sold the place to developers at any point. Why cede control of your playing facility to the City of Richmond? VCU might play there if they have a football team or they might sell it. Who cares?

There has been serious discussion about the Patriot League adding Scholarships. That factor was not in play the last go around when Bill Cooper was President. I was just stating other options. The other would be the SoCon.

There is plenty of mediocre football being played in venues larger then 9000 in the CAA. I think you, of all people, would agree.

[Bostonspider]

Whose resposibility was it to install a natural grass surface in UR Stadium? UR's. When you're renting a 22K-seat facility for a buck a year, you shouldn't have any complaints. There was no immediate threat to jack up the rent and you know it. Despite all of the rumors over the years about the desire to eventually develop the stadium site, I NEVER read anything about removing UR FB from the stadium to do it. I had read that there was a retrospective plan if UR ever abandoned the site. (BTW, now that UR is no longer a tenant, where ARE the plans to develop the site? )

Two years ago, a former student at my son's school was recruited by UR and was taken to UR Stadium (he was on the sidelines at the VMI game) AND shown the plans for the new ball field. He ended up elsewhere, though, admittedly, his final decision had nothing to do with the quality (or lack) of UR facilities. Point is that, contrary to your assertion, UR was not so embarrassed by UR Stadium that they were keeping kids away from the place. Much of the criticism of UR Stadium is extreme hyperbole.

I'm already on UR ticket email list because I've purchased tickets directly from them in the past for a UD home game. Thanks for the offer for updates anyway.

IMO, CAA FB over the long haul will not likely include schools with 9K-seat high school FB fields. My guess is that it will look increasingly like schools with 15K-30K seat stadiums.

I'm sure the UR red sweaters who raised such a ruckus when UR courted the Patriot League are going to love it if the team actually ends up playing there. At least if that happens, ticket demand won't be an issue.

Yes UR had a nice deal on rent, but as you mentioned, was in charge of upkeep for an aging facility. Unless the City was willing to sell the Stadium to UR, what incentive was there to put the required 5-10 million into the stadium to make it a nice facility? And UR did in general play down UR stadium, a quote here from the TImes Dispatch, "First-year University of Richmond football coach Latrell Scott, a Spiders' assistant from 2005-07, acknowledged yesterday that the standard recruiting trip experienced by past UR prospects did not include a stop at the program's home stadium. It was a 21,319-seat, off-campus facility that opened in 1929. "For so many years, we hid City Stadium," Scott said."

So the CAA will only be playing in stadiums with 15K to 30K seats? How about W&M with 12K seats, or Towson with 11K, or UNH with 7K, or Maine with 10K, or Villanova with 12K? The only current stadiums in the CAA that fit you size constraints are JMU, UD, and UMass. Obviously ODU will when they join up, and GSU will with the Dome. I guess the CAA will only have 5 teams in the future.

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

Yes UR had a nice deal on rent, but as you mentioned, was in charge of upkeep for an aging facility. Unless the City was willing to sell the Stadium to UR, what incentive was there to put the required 5-10 million into the stadium to make it a nice facility?

Well said. We all know there's a huge return on investment for someone renting an apartment to spend a whole bunch of their own money adding granite countertops and a breakfast bar to their landlord's kitchen, right?

[youngterrier]

we were 3-8 last year

Delaware was 4-8 in 2008 and averaged over 21,000.

Delaware probably has more students than Wofford has living alumni+students

[GannonFan]

Delaware was 4-8 in 2008 and averaged over 21,000.

Delaware probably has more students than Wofford has living alumni+students

Delaware's got 16k undergrads. Do Wofford grads die immediately after graduation then???

[BDKJMU]

Its one thing to build a small (for I-AA) 8700 seat stadium, which UR was limited to by the city & wealthy surrounding neighborhood. But UR made it worse by building a track around the stadium. So you have a small (for I-AA) capacity stadium where the stands are far away from the action because of a track around the field. I realize a lot of I-AA stadiums still have this, but most of them were built at least several decades ago, like JMU. Its what sucked about JMU's old stadium until now (well at least on one side). But today its asinine to build a new stadium now at any capacity with a track around it, much less 8700k for the simple reason it puts the fans so far from the action. I don't care if you build a stadium in pure gold with a great press box & suites, at the I-AA level an unenclosed 8700k stadium with a track around it doesn't equal a great stadium.

"No, we're not the largest facility in America, but I'll tell you what, I challenge anybody to find a better facility for FCS football in the country," UR Athletic Director Jim Miller said." Miller is an idiot if he thinks UR will now have the best I-AA stadium in the country . Hell, by next season there will be 3 better ones (JMU, Liberty and ODU) in VA within a 2 hr drive.

http://www.jmusports.com/ViewArticle.db ... =204943483" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.libertyflames.com/media/1912 ... flames.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://www.odusports.com/view.gal?id=50972" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[youngterrier]

Delaware probably has more students than Wofford has living alumni+students

Delaware's got 16k undergrads. Do Wofford grads die immediately after graduation then???

let's do the math...Wofford has 1350 students attending (the number has spiked in the last 5-10 years, I remember we just recently broke the 1k mark)....that's about 1000 alumni every 4 years....so in 64 years we have that many alumni (which is plenty of time for a few to keel over in one circumstance or another), this is just me but I don't see that many class of '46 people of anything...

My point was that we are a small school.

[Bostonspider]

Its one thing to build a small (for I-AA) 8700 seat stadium, which UR was limited to by the city & wealthy surrounding neighborhood. But UR made it worse by building a track around the stadium. So you have a small (for I-AA) capacity stadium where the stands are far away from the action because of a track around the field. I realize a lot of I-AA stadiums still have this, but most of them were built at least several decades ago, like JMU. Its what sucked about JMU's old stadium until now (well at least on one side). But today its asinine to build a new stadium now at any capacity with a track around it, much less 8700k for the simple reason it puts the fans so far from the action. I don't care if you build a stadium in pure gold with a great press box & suites, at the I-AA level an unenclosed 8700k stadium with a track around it doesn't equal a great stadium.

Richmond DID NOT build a track around the field, it was already there... This is a greatly expanded and completely renovated First Market Stadium, now named Robins Stadium. There are fans on three sides of the field and then the Robins Center complex on the fourth side (the endzone stands will be right on the edge of the field and will be constructed before the season starts). And if I recall, your vaunted JMU stadium will still have the distance of a track between the field and one side of the stadium for the near and likely far future... Robins Stadium will have some of the nicest amenities of any stadium at the FCS level, which is what Miller was trying to get across.

Here is an image of before and after to get it through your thick skull that UR DID NOT build a track...

[BDKJMU]

Its one thing to build a small (for I-AA) 8700 seat stadium, which UR was limited to by the city & wealthy surrounding neighborhood. But UR made it worse by building a track around the stadium. So you have a small (for I-AA) capacity stadium where the stands are far away from the action because of a track around the field. I realize a lot of I-AA stadiums still have this, but most of them were built at least several decades ago, like JMU. Its what sucked about JMU's old stadium until now (well at least on one side). But today its asinine to build a new stadium now at any capacity with a track around it, much less 8700k for the simple reason it puts the fans so far from the action. I don't care if you build a stadium in pure gold with a great press box & suites, at the I-AA level an unenclosed 8700k stadium with a track around it doesn't equal a great stadium.

Richmond DID NOT build a track around the field, it was already there... This is a greatly expanded and completely renovated First Market Stadium, now named Robins Stadium. There are fans on three sides of the field and then the Robins Center complex on the fourth side (the endzone stands will be right on the edge of the field and will be constructed before the season starts). And if I recall, your vaunted JMU stadium will still have the distance of a track between the field and one side of the stadium for the near and likely far future... Robins Stadium will have some of the nicest amenities of any stadium at the FCS level, which is what Miller was trying to get across.

Here is an image of before and after to get it through your thick skull that UR DID NOT build a track...

Ok then, the track was there already, but that doesn't change the fact that UR is building a stadium around a track. Could have simply torn out the track and built the stadium over where the track was. The fact remains that the less than 4k fans on both sides will be much further from the action than they should be due to a track for a sport that no one gives a sh*t about.

[Bostonspider]

Well there were also Title IX implications to consider, by keeping the track, Richmond could rightfully claim that this was a true multipurpose stadium, benefitting the football, mens & womens soccer, and mens & womens track and field teams. Therefore there is no worry that money will be construed as only being spent on Men's facilities. Scary, but that is an important consideration. I am sure that in the future, RIchmond will build a small Soccer / Track and Field Facility somewhere else on campus, likely over by the Apartments. When that happens, then we will see what the University will do about lowering the field and adding more seats.

[DukeJack]

Before you start calling us thick because of some stupid track, make sure you don't make that error yourself. Look at these two stands and tell me if that track is staying put or will be gone:

[Bostonspider]

Before you start calling us thick because of some stupid track, make sure you don't make that error yourself. Look at these two stands and tell me if that track is staying put or will be gone:

Just because the track is no longer purple does not mean the student stands are any closer to the field than they were when the track was there... From all I have read, those stands are not meant to be replaced in this 2 part Phase I are they?

[henfan]

I guess the CAA will only have 5 teams in the future.

Of course, UD and UNH have plans for stadium enhancements to take their seating capacity well beyond where they are right now. Chances are that CAA facilities of current and future CAA members are going to resemble what UAlbany has planned and less like the stands that UR built around their campus track.

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

I guess the CAA will only have 5 teams in the future.

Of course, UD and UNH have plans for stadium enhancements to take their seating capacity well beyond where they are right now. Chances are that CAA facilities of current and future CAA members are going to resemble what UAlbany has planned and less like the stands that UR built around their campus track.

We all know how quick Delaware is to move on things...

When is it that you guys start moving dirt on your waterpaint project anyway?

[henfan]

We all know how quick Delaware is to move on things...
When is it that you guys start moving dirt on your waterpaint project anyway?

Well, the university is making athletic facility enchancements as we speak on north campus with an additional phase of improvements scheduled for Fall 2011. Other phases, including expansion of the FB stadium to 30K seats, haven't been scheduled yet and will begin according to the UD's ability to raise the needed funding needed. Could take a while in a tough economy but a conceptual plan is in place and silent fundraising has begun.

Hey, we're thankful the 'upgrades' don't include cutting stadium capacity to 8K and raising grandstands around the campus track. In the meantime, the old 22K-seat stadium will do just fine.

[GannonFan]

In the meantime, the old 22K-seat stadium will do just fine.

And seriously, that's the thing - it's not like UD is hurting for what we have. Huge stadium, sell out crowds, close to $500k profit per home game, two brand new turf practice fields right next to the field, a new turf field in the big stadium, one of the best video boards in FCS, and arguably one of the top 5 if not top 2 or 3 home field environments in the FCS country. So what if the press box isn't snazzy? I can live with that.

[89Hen]

My point was that we are a small school.

Your original point was you had a losing season. During Delaware's winning seasons, the Hens average 22,000. During losing seasons they average 21,000.

[89Hen]

So the only question remains... why did UR build a track around their new field?

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

So the only question remains... why did UR build a track around their new field?

At this point, there isn't room elsewhere on campus for the track. If we moved the track elsewhere, we would have made a $25M project into a more expensive project by at least 10%.

We got something done. You and me both know that there's plenty of waterpaint drawings that don't come to fruition.

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

In the meantime, the old 22K-seat stadium will do just fine.

And seriously, that's the thing - it's not like UD is hurting for what we have. Huge stadium, sell out crowds, close to $500k profit per home game, two brand new turf practice fields right next to the field, a new turf field in the big stadium, one of the best video boards in FCS, and arguably one of the top 5 if not top 2 or 3 home field environments in the FCS country. So what if the press box isn't snazzy? I can live with that.

Holy cow - How much do tickets cost? $500k PROFIT per game??

[89Hen]

Holy cow - How much do tickets cost? $500k PROFIT per game??

22,000 people for tickets, parking, concessions, merchandise, etc... That's only $22 per person.

[youngterrier]

My point was that we are a small school.

Your original point was you had a losing season. During Delaware's winning seasons, the Hens average 22,000. During losing seasons they average 21,000.

ummmm.....NO, the point of that post was to clarify my earlier statement, I used the losing season stat as a reason

I said in that same post that

my point was that Richmond, being of a greater number of students and Alumni, should in fact have a bigger stadium and expect greater attendance than just 8.7k.

you for some reason felt compelled to turn it into an attendance-dick measuring contest

Richmond can still do better

[PenthouseClosedEnd]

Holy cow - How much do tickets cost? $500k PROFIT per game??

22,000 people for tickets, parking, concessions, merchandise, etc... That's only $22 per person.

I think there is confusion between 'Revenues' and 'Profit' here.

How many of the 22,000 seats are set aside for families and students?

What costs are there staffing the game?

What insurance does school have to carry and fees paid to localities to host the event?

How much are the Jackrabbits paid to come visit?