CFL: International Bowl

[BullsFanInTX]

^^I guess we will have to agree to disagree.  We would bring at least 2-3 times as many as were brought to charlotte and b-ham for "small time" bowls.

Plus an 11-1 usf would be the best story in the country, hands down.  Not to mention rated in the top 15 at least.  Unless there were an 11-1 big 12 team available, I could definitely see them taking us.

[outrunner]

Unless the Big 12 is unbelievably terrible this year, and Notre Dame is around 6-6, and there are no other Big East teams that could suffice the position. USF is NOT going to the Gator Bowl.

Sorry, they added the Big 12 exception for a reason and they will use it if it comes down to USF, Pitt, or any other BE team that isn't exactly known to travel well.

Unless USF goes 11-1, and doesn't get bcs slot, then I could definitely see us going to Jax.  They know we will bring a lot of fans the short drive to jax.

We don't bring a lot of fans the short drive to Raymond James Stadium.

You can bet that the Gator Bowl would not take USF.  They'll take Oklahoma or Texas or Nebraska before they take USF.

Then again, there is the band-wagon factor. If we go 11-1, alot of people will be jumping on, just like Rutgers last year. So it could go either way.

[Joe]

Bandwagon fans don't make 3 1/2 hour trips to Jacksonville, or 6 1/2 hour trips to Birmingham or 8/9 hour trips to Charlotte. Ask Miami.

The hardcore fans are the ones who make the bowl games, and are last two bowl trips have been majority hardcore fans.

[Joe]

^^I guess we will have to agree to disagree.  We would bring at least 2-3 times as many as were brought to charlotte and b-ham for "small time" bowls.

Plus an 11-1 usf would be the best story in the country, hands down.  Not to mention rated in the top 15 at least.  Unless there were an 11-1 big 12 team available, I could definitely see them taking us.

2-3 times? Not so sure. We sold a little over 5000 tickets at $30 a pop to the Birmingham Bowl. I don't believe we have 10-15,000 fans willing make the trip to Jacksonville and paying $75 for a ticket to the game. That would constitute the majority of our season ticket holders.

For perspective it was reported that we had about 27,000 actual bodies at the games last year. about 5000 were free (students). You asking a lot of the hardcore fan base to make the trip. If it's FSU it might happen. But then again there is no way in hell the Gator Bowl kills the hotels in the hotels in the region with an all Florida matchup.

As for the "best story" in college football, for Bulls fans without a doubt. Nationally? maybe. Boise State was the best story last year, yet it didn't translate into the hype people thought it would be. Utah was a great story in 2004, yet it was one of the worst watched BCS games ever.

The Gator Bowl is now at 1pm, head to head with the Citrus Bowl, which destroyed it in ratings last year, despite the exciting finish. I think that a 9-3 Nebraska or a 9-3 Texas might get the nod because of the national exposure the team gets. Bowl ratings have definitively shown that people want to watch teams they know. Your USCs, Texas, Ohio States, etc even when down how drawn much better than a great story like Wake Forest was this past year (and that might be one of the greatest stories in college football the last 10 years)...the Wake Forest/Louisville game managed about a 6.5 rating, which was the worst rating in BCS history.

Our goal is the BCS, but I fear by not getting there we could be in Birmingham or Toronto, with a good shot at Charlotte, depending on who the matchup is.

[BullsFanInTX]

^^I guess we will have to agree to disagree.  We would bring at least 2-3 times as many as were brought to charlotte and b-ham for "small time" bowls.

Plus an 11-1 usf would be the best story in the country, hands down.  Not to mention rated in the top 15 at least.  Unless there were an 11-1 big 12 team available, I could definitely see them taking us.

2-3 times? Not so sure. We sold a little over 5000 tickets at $30 a pop to the Birmingham Bowl. I don't believe we have 10-15,000 fans willing make the trip to Jacksonville and paying $75 for a ticket to the game. That would constitute the majority of our season ticket holders.

For perspective it was reported that we had about 27,000 actual bodies at the games last year. about 5000 were free (students). You asking a lot of the hardcore fan base to make the trip. If it's FSU it might happen. But then again there is no way in hell the Gator Bowl kills the hotels in the hotels in the region with an all Florida matchup.

As for the "best story" in college football, for Bulls fans without a doubt. Nationally? maybe. Boise State was the best story last year, yet it didn't translate into the hype people thought it would be. Utah was a great story in 2004, yet it was one of the worst watched BCS games ever.

The Gator Bowl is now at 1pm, head to head with the Citrus Bowl, which destroyed it in ratings last year, despite the exciting finish. I think that a 9-3 Nebraska or a 9-3 Texas might get the nod because of the national exposure the team gets. Bowl ratings have definitively shown that people want to watch teams they know. Your USCs, Texas, Ohio States, etc even when down how drawn much better than a great story like Wake Forest was this past year (and that might be one of the greatest stories in college football the last 10 years)...the Wake Forest/Louisville game managed about a 6.5 rating, which was the worst rating in BCS history.

Our goal is the BCS, but I fear by not getting there we could be in Birmingham or Toronto, with a good shot at Charlotte, depending on who the matchup is.

Explain to me again why the gator bowl would care about hotel sales.  Butts in seats, yes.  But the gator bowl does not sell hotel rooms, that is up to the individual hotels.

[Joe]

Explain to me again why the gator bowl would care about hotel sales.  Butts in seats, yes.  But the gator bowl does not sell hotel rooms, that is up to the individual hotels.

Then you do not understand the bowl process. The Gator Bowl is put on by the "Gator Bowl Association", which like most bowl games is run by a committee of several leaders in the community. It includes CEOs, other high ranking corporate officers, Big time Lawyers, News Anchors, and most importantly the local Chambers of Commerce and Tourism promotion boards (or visitor's bereau). These people do not specifically work for the Gator Bowl in most cases, they are on the committee that puts this game on and usually are volunteers.

Further, when you watch the games you might see two major sponsors. One usually being the city its located in. The other being it's Visitor's Bureau promoting the region.

The idea of these bowl games are to get people in seats, but more importantly it's to stimulate the local economy with those butts in the seats. That includes restaurant use, hotels, and area attractions. There is a reason why bowl games put together guides on what to do in the area, where to eat, etc.

So yes, while getting a FSU/USF game could have the possibility of selling the game out,  you lose the 2-3 days you get the fans into Jacksonville (or whatever city) when a major bowl game attracts teams locally.

Now there are instances where your committee is made up of several prominent alumni and it helps earn your team a local bowl game (see Florida and the Outback Bowl; Texas and the Alamo Bowl) but that usually is the result of self interest.

I don't forsee that help USF at all in Jacksonville.

[BullsFanInTX]

Explain to me again why the gator bowl would care about hotel sales.  Butts in seats, yes.  But the gator bowl does not sell hotel rooms, that is up to the individual hotels.

Then you do not understand the bowl process. The Gator Bowl is put on by the "Gator Bowl Association", which like most bowl games is run by a committee of several leaders in the community. It includes CEOs, other high ranking corporate officers, Big time Lawyers, News Anchors, and most importantly the local Chambers of Commerce and Tourism promotion boards (or visitor's bereau). These people do not specifically work for the Gator Bowl in most cases, they are on the committee that puts this game on and usually are volunteers.

Further, when you watch the games you might see two major sponsors. One usually being the city its located in. The other being it's Visitor's Bureau promoting the region.

The idea of these bowl games are to get people in seats, but more importantly it's to stimulate the local economy with those butts in the seats. That includes restaurant use, hotels, and area attractions. There is a reason why bowl games put together guides on what to do in the area, where to eat, etc.

So yes, while getting a FSU/USF game could have the possibility of selling the game out,  you lose the 2-3 days you get the fans into Jacksonville (or whatever city) when a major bowl game attracts teams locally.

Now there are instances where your committee is made up of several prominent alumni and it helps earn your team a local bowl game (see Florida and the Outback Bowl; Texas and the Alamo Bowl) but that usually is the result of self interest.

I don't forsee that help USF at all in Jacksonville.

Thanks.  No, I did not know all the details of the bowl process, that is why I asked.

But I don't understand something...if hotel sales (and tourism) are so important...then why do bowls try to lock down local teams that could never fill up the hotel rooms, due to being so close.  Examples:  TCU has, I think, a side deal with the Texas bowl.  Memphis is said to carry the liberty bowl for cusa, Humanitarian bowl and Boise St, etc.   If the bowls cared so much about hotel sales, they why on earth would they make deals with the local teams, or that benefit the local teams conf, so they could take the local team.    

[Guest]

Thanks.  No, I did not know all the details of the bowl process, that is why I asked.

But I don't understand something...if hotel sales (and tourism) are so important...then why do bowls try to lock down local teams that could never fill up the hotel rooms, due to being so close.  Examples:  TCU has, I think, a side deal with the Texas bowl.  Memphis is said to carry the liberty bowl for cusa, Humanitarian bowl and Boise St, etc.   If the bowls cared so much about hotel sales, they why on earth would they make deals with the local teams, or that benefit the local teams conf, so they could take the local team.    

They don't have deals with teams.  The only individual schools that have deals with bowl committees are Notre Dame, Army & Navy -- the Independents.  The smaller bowls care about butts in seats as much as the local economic benefits.  There aren't a lot of schools that will bring large crowds to Boise or Fort Worth or Hawaii.  So those bowls have contracts with the local schools' conferences to help provide a sell out.

That being said, you wouldn't see a Memphis-Ole Miss Liberty Bowl or a TCU-SMU Fort Worth Bowl or a Boise St - Wazzu MPC Computers Bowl.

All of this means if the Gator Bowl gets FSU, they won't take USF.  If they get Va Tech or BC - then USF might make sense (if it also guaranteed ticket sales).    Last year's game drew 82,000 fans.  Could USF bring 1/3 of that: 27,000 fans??  That would be everyone who goes to a home game traveling to Jacksonville.

Sorry, but USF is in the position of either winning and going to the BCS or playing in Charlotte, Birmingham, or Toronto for at least the foreseeable future.

[Joe]

Thanks.  No, I did not know all the details of the bowl process, that is why I asked.

But I don't understand something...if hotel sales (and tourism) are so important...then why do bowls try to lock down local teams that could never fill up the hotel rooms, due to being so close.  Examples:  TCU has, I think, a side deal with the Texas bowl.  Memphis is said to carry the liberty bowl for cusa, Humanitarian bowl and Boise St, etc.   If the bowls cared so much about hotel sales, they why on earth would they make deals with the local teams, or that benefit the local teams conf, so they could take the local team.    

There are nuances, some of the smaller bowls are willing to take the smaller teams to help attendance. Further, the whole alumni or boosters on the committee thing come into play.

Say Birmingham could get a team with a great following like West Viriginia and also take UAB your looking at a record crowd. More than likely though the local team will be very local and it will be playing a team that could draw decently.

Change that situation say the Big East didn't have enough teams to fill their bowl allotment (I know this isn't likely but bear with me) and they could an Alabama/UAB matchup, a guarenteed sellout and a matchup that many of the UAB and Alabama alumni on the committee might want to see. In that case, being a small bowl that won't draw well normallly because of date, facility, and prestige they would probably take a flier.

Just to note the Humanitarian/MPC Computers was specifcally created to get Boise St in a bowl game, just as the Hawaii Bowl still exists for Hawaii. I don't think most in Boise really believe that game will draw well if Boise isn't in it.