Ah, that will have to be the second stop on the line then, because my dad has had it running into Bobcats arena for some time now...
The UNCC uptown stop will be two blocks away from the arena.
Also.... FWIW... I was at the Wake/ECU basketball game on New Years Day and some ECU fans told me they heard we would have football within 5 years because some of the Trustees and supporters of the school are giving it a strong push now. (Metro has told us the same thing too)
interesting but they may also believe the bonnie cone grandson rumor as well.
What other D-1 programs does Rutgers have to compete with...Syracuse? UCONN? Boston College? Temple? None of those schools are in the NY Metro area except Rutgers and Rutgers is the flagship University of the most densely populated state in the US. It makes absolutely no sense comparing Charlotte to that area. Plus the fact that as much of a big deal Rutgers has been in the NY Metro area, many people could care less about their success, its just the fact that there are so many people in the area that enough care to make a difference. Not sure that would be the case in Charlotte where you have a NFL team and 5 other D-1 football teams in state that fans have decades of loyalty to.The City of Charlotte barely gets behind a successful basketball team at our school, yet you expect them to treat a Charlotte college football team to a higher level than the Panthers??? That is the type of treatment Boise State gets in Idaho, they are the only game in townâŚHUGE difference than the situation in Charlotte.
I want football as much as anyone, but people canât look at Boise State and expect that to happen here.
Take a moment to think about what youâre saying.
One of the biggest reasons to start a football program is for the city of Charlotte to take notice of the university. Itâs not happening the way it should right now.
I never ever suggested that college football would be treated at a higher level than the Panthers. I want the school to start with a Div 1AA football team - like how UConn used to be. If Charlotte becomes the second biggest football team in the Charlotte region, thatâs fine by me.
Itâs not New York City, but the last time I checked, Charlotte is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the country. I would also consider Charlotte to be less saturated with NFL and college football than most cities its size. Compare the proximity of the Div 1A programs that you believe are too far away to compete with Rutgers - and then tell me again why the nearby 5 North Carolina Div 1A programs saturates the Charlotte market. Throw is a few NFL franchises in New York and Philadelphia and your âonly game in townâ argument grows weaker.
It can definitely work in Charlotte, but we have to take it a step at a time. We are not going to become BSU overnight. Even though they are a young university like us, they have had football since their inception.
One of the examples mentioned, South Florida, is a great story and are going to be a force, but they are in talent rich Florida and still have relatively no fan support. I would hope that wouldnât be the case in Charlotte, but that isnât out of the question. (see bball support)
The information about BSU like Louisville being a metropolitan research university is interesting, it is too bad our school leaders are so stuck on that UNC titleâŚ
[QUOTE=ninerID;208278]interesting but they may also believe the bonnie cone grandson rumor as well.[/QUOTE]
Thatâs the funny part. One told me heâs heard weâll have football soon. His friend told me heâs been hearing that rumor for 20 years, then his girlfriend/wife mentioned the Bonnie Cone rumor⌠then the guy that started the conversation said his uncle knows one or 2 of the people Trustees/Supporters trying to get football (he called them âhigh rollersâ). Since this was in Winston, I wonder if he met Jim and heard it from him. Who knows. I thought it was interesting.
I am so sick of reading about Boise St, App, UNCP, Coastal, ODU, you name it, administrators getting it. Ours don't. Our admin sends nice polite little emails back saying "[B][I]thanks for your concern about 49er athletics[/I][/B]" and they assume all this football heat will go away once the fball season is done and over with, and then they can get back light rail, uptown campuses, and indoor tennis facilities.
Wait⌠you actually got that long of a response⌠mine was more like
sawâs it, thanks
[QUOTE=survivor45;208280]Take a moment to think about what youâre saying.
One of the biggest reasons to start a football program is for the city of Charlotte to take notice of the university. Itâs not happening the way it should right now.
I never ever suggested that college football would be treated at a higher level than the Panthers. I want the school to start with a Div 1AA football team - like how UConn used to be. If Charlotte becomes the second biggest football team in the Charlotte region, thatâs fine by me.
Itâs not New York City, but the last time I checked, Charlotte is one of the largest metropolitan areas in the country. I would also consider Charlotte to be less saturated with NFL and college football than most cities its size. Compare the proximity of the Div 1A programs that you believe are too far away to compete with Rutgers - and then tell me again why the nearby 5 North Carolina Div 1A programs saturates the Charlotte market. Throw is a few NFL franchises in New York and Philadelphia and your âonly game in townâ argument grows weaker.[/QUOTE]
NY Metro Area 18,747,320 (2005 estimate)
Charlotte Metro Area 1,521,278 (2005 estimate)
That is a HUGE differenceâŚ
We canât overlook the fact that many people in the Charlotte area have a college team they root for, because college football is big in the south.
In the Northeast most people are either Notre Dame fans, a fan of their alma mater, or donât care about college football. Rutgers media success is in large part because the networks are dying for a college team to be good in the NY Metro area. Notre Dame fans are not becoming Rutgers fans here, but Rutgers is picking up the fans that didnât really care about college football because it wasnât local. And of course Rutgers has a huge alumni base.
Another factor is that Rutgers is the flagship school of the state. State pride runs deep with the school and the State has embraced the football program. During big games you would see construction signs 40 miles from the campus with Go RU in the lights instead of caution or construction ahead. Do you expect that to happen in NC where we are one of the lowest funded in the state?
In Charlotte people can drive an hour to Columbia and see SEC action, or they can drive an hour to Winston Salem and see Wake Forest, or 2 hours to see UNC and NC State, or they can drive to Boone and catch the best 1-AA school. Those options are not present in New Jersey or in Boise, Idaho.
Maybe 25-50 years from now it will be different if we get the ball rolling now. But it is going to be rough to establish a presence; again I hate to harp on it, but just look at our basketball team.
In Charlotte people can drive an hour to Columbia and see SEC action, or they can drive an hour to Winston Salem and see Wake Forest, or 2 hours to see UNC and NC State, or they can drive to Boone and catch the best 1-AA school. Those options are not present in New Jersey or in Boise, Idaho.
Iâve been to both ACC and SEC college football games. ACC games are unbelievably weak in comparison. The difference is amazing.
Off the subject⌠but, for what itâs worth.
Edit: At least the games that go on around here⌠Iâm not talking about down in Miami or at Virginia Tech. Iâve never been to those.
again I hate to harp on it, but just look at our basketball team.
Basketball and Football are not the same thing.
[QUOTE=ninerID;208293]Basketball and Football are not the same thing.[/QUOTE]
The folks in Chapel Hill know that for a fact. 
A better comparison than NYC is Pittsburgh, PA with three pro franchises and U Pitt (the P is pronounced âShâ) in a town more compable to Charlotteâs size.
Theyâre a storied program since the start of the 20th century and have numerous (but debateble) National Championships. They also have had relative hard times recently, hired an idiot (Wannstadt), and played off campus. They still manage to draw no less than 40k a game.
As far as 5 DI-A teams being in NC, look at Ohio. Ohio has 10 (ten!) D-IA programs. Ask Chuck Amato about them. I think in his tenure he went Ooooooo for Ohio.
[QUOTE=NinerATL2CHA;208264]downtown bar scene, football games, frat row = quality student???
I might have to disagree with that one. While I agree being well-rounded is essential, but there are other things in life besides partying.[/QUOTE]
no those items donât equal a quality student. thats not what I said. I said academics alone donât make a quality student. We never sniff the kids who want a complete college experience because they never apply. Lets face it, the type kids who come to school and attach themselves socially are the ones who support the institution long term, travel for sports events, stroke checks, and probably make more $$ as professionals, and that is who UNCC should want. The kids who come to UNCC for school only get their diplomas, and then disappear into alum abyss.
no those items don't equal a quality student. thats not what I said. I said academics alone don't make a quality student. We never sniff the kids who want a complete college experience because they never apply. Lets face it, the kids who come to school and attach themselves socially are the ones who support the institution long term, travel for sports events, stroke checks, etc. The kid who just comes to UNCC for school only gets his diploma and then disappears into alum abyss.
Yeah, I agree with that. Plus, a football team will help get flat out more applicants which can be used to increase academic standards by being more selective⌠aside from just getting more well-rounded applicants. Wake Forest notes this everytime they talk about the success of their team.
[QUOTE=NinerLoudNProud;208297]A better comparison than NYC is Pittsburgh, PA with three pro franchises and U Pitt (the P is pronounced âShâ) in a town more compable to Charlotteâs size.
Theyâre a storied program since the start of the 20th century and have numerous (but debateble) National Championships. They also have had relative hard times recently, hired an idiot (Wannstadt), and played off campus. They still manage to draw no less than 40k a game.
As far as 5 DI-A teams being in NC, look at Ohio. Ohio has 10 (ten!) D-IA programs. Ask Chuck Amato about them. I think in his tenure he went Ooooooo for Ohio.[/QUOTE]
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/college/s_465583.html
Interesting read being that we always wonder where the Athletic Department gets our home basketball game attendance from.
Pittsburghâs attendance is inflated, it may be due to their awful coach, but I always see a ton of yellow seats at Heinz Field. They also travel very poorly and are a major reason the Big East got shafted on the latest bowl game partnerships. They had atrocious attendance at the Fiesta Bowl vs. Utah a few years back.
You are right though, Ohio is probably the best example for us to look at. They not only have a number of successful D-1A schools, but also some very good D1-AA schools to go along with a number of professional teams.
great read
We can't overlook the fact that many people in the Charlotte area have a college team they root for, because college football is big in the south.College football is big everywhere in this country, not just the south. So what? We start with a fan base of alumni and interested members of the community. Don't forget the 21,000 students. Or the fact that number will jump to over 30,000. Or the 50,000 alumni in the Charlotte area. With that many people who already have a stake in the university, there shouldn't be a problem filling 15,000 seats 4-6 times a year, in my opinion.
We build a fan base in the region and state over the next 50 years. Nothing happens overnight. I am an alumnus, and will bring nonalumni friends and relatives to games. My neighbor is an alumna and will bring her nonalumnus husband to the games. After a few seasons of this, I have a feeling some of these nonalumni will become fans and go to the games on their own. Then they will have kids, and take their kids to the games. Then their kids become fans.
Then, all of the sudden, 50 years from now, the whole city is rooting for the team as they travel to Mobile, Alabama for the Robots.com Seaweed Bowl National Championship Game! Ok, ok, Iâm getting ahead of myself. But you get the point.
You paint a very pretty picture nor
You paint a very pretty picture nor
all that took was a simple bit of vision.
if an indoor tennis facility captured 1/10th of that i would be shocked.
Quick who won the national championship in Tennis last year?
I bet anything without looking it up, none of you know.
Quick who won the national championship in Tennis last year?
Ancient history.
The USTA/ITA National Womenâs Team Indoor Championships is being held February 1-4, 2007 at the University of Wisconsin. There are some pretty good schools competing (seriously).
Mark it on your calender. Bragging rights are at stake!
guys,
there is no doubt Judy, the trustees, and Mr Smarty Pants Dubois would love to wave a wand and have football for all to enjoy, but everyone seems to be missing the point Iâve made for 10 freakin years now: they donât want to risk their careers on rolling the dice for it. Its a risky endeavor, and none of them want to risk their positions, hence they always say âits not time.â If it were a slam dunk money maker, theyâd be all over it, but they all know in order to have football, they are putting their necks out like Thanksgiving Day turkeys. They all want to play it safe, plus who wants to ruffle the feathers of the almight UNC-BOG???