UIL's Move to NRG Proves to Costlier Than Anticipated

[Matthew328]

http://sportsday.dallasnews.com/high-school/high-schools/2016/02/09/contract-houstons-nrg-stadium-show-uils-change-venue-state-football-championship-costly-one

[Roughneck93]

Yikes, $495,000?

[toddg]

deathstar a much better deal

[Bosqueville]

http://sportsday.dallasnews.com/high-school/high-schools/2016/02/09/contract-houstons-nrg-stadium-show-uils-change-venue-state-football-championship-costly-one

Lordy, don't let the brainwashed Houstonites see this. They will tar and feather you...

[db8coach]

Move it to El Paso and make everyone drive. I would even bet that UTEP would probably let them have the facilities for free.

[PurplePop]

I know it's a done deal with the UIL and Jerry, but I like college stadiums a lot better for high school football. For me, McClane Stadium in Waco would be a way nicer venue for high school football championships than Jerry's giant sport's bar. But, I guess playing indoors is a prereq. nowadays.

[lostaussie]

I know it's a done deal with the UIL and Jerry, but I like college stadiums a lot better for high school football. For me, McClane Stadium in Waco would be a way nicer venue for high school football championships than Jerry's giant sport's bar. But, I guess playing indoors is a prereq. nowadays.

McLane vs Cowboy Stadium:doh:

[Bosqueville]

I know it's a done deal with the UIL and Jerry, but I like college stadiums a lot better for high school football. For me, McClane Stadium in Waco would be a way nicer venue for high school football championships than Jerry's giant sport's bar. But, I guess playing indoors is a prereq. nowadays.

McLane Stadium?? I'd vote for that!

[Rabid Cougar]

McLane vs Cowboy Stadium:doh:


Don't worry.. they are tearing down Floyd Casey as I type ;)


And Briles would be smiling all the way to National Signing Day. They encourage high schools to play there. They have extremely cheap rental rates for such a big venue.

[coach]

Houston, what a joke of a city...


There is only one logical place to play this game. Get it back to Jerry's World.


Oh and Kyle Field would be a much better venue than Floyd #2. Although, Baylor's stadium is more like a high school stadium than a college stadium lol.

[WOS1]

Oh well, I liked NRG... those suites were awesome and not to much money!

[speedbump]

There is only one logical place to play this game. Get it back to Jerry's World

So lets hear some of what you call logic.

[coach]

So lets hear some of what you call logic.

Well, for starters, having it at a place that costs you half a million dollars isnt very logical at all.

[HEMOTOXIC]

Well, for starters, having it at a place that costs you half a million dollars isnt very logical at all.

So, logically, you blame the entire city of Houston?

[clcannon17]

I know it's a done deal with the UIL and Jerry, but I like college stadiums a lot better for high school football. For me, McClane Stadium in Waco would be a way nicer venue for high school football championships than Jerry's giant sport's bar. But, I guess playing indoors is a prereq. nowadays.

McLane Stadium is the best choice imo. Places such as UT, ATM, and the Alamodome are also great choices. I'd prefer these to Jerry World and NRG, because of their central location along with adequate seating.

But I vote that the UIL takes up that money and makes Gordon Wood a 25,000 seat stadium. We are the center of Texas after all. :D

[jason]

AT&T Stadium is by far the best choice.
The history of having it there speaks for itself.

Anywhere not a dome is out.
Houston was obviously a failure and won't work.
The Alamo Dome is a dump. If people in/around Houston didn't have good attendance San Antonio won't either.

[Weebe]

My guess is that part of the reason for the high fee was changing the location late in late July. Events probably had to be rearranged.

The article says that the UIL is working to have the game rotate between Houston, SA and Arlington in the future, so they must feel they can work out a deal more reasonable that $450,000 per year.

[coach]

So, logically, you blame the entire city of Houston?

Well, no. Just the Northeast part...

[coach]

AT&T Stadium is by far the best choice.
The history of having it there speaks for itself.

Anywhere not a dome is out.
Houston was obviously a failure and won't work.
The Alamo Dome is a dump. If people in/around Houston didn't have good attendance San Antonio won't either.

Bingo

[Scoop27]

Darrell K Royal Memorial Stadium would be my choice

[coach]

Darrell K Royal Memorial Stadium would be my choice

Not happening. No parking and no hotels close. Same reason why the Basketball Championships left. If they could fix that then it would be a cool place to play.

[Saggy Aggie]

My guess is that part of the reason for the high fee was changing the location late in late July. Events probably had to be rearranged.

The article says that the UIL is working to have the game rotate between Houston, SA and Arlington in the future, so they must feel they can work out a deal more reasonable that $450,000 per year.

Yeah, everyone wants to ignore the fact that this was a last minute move to Houston not a pre-agreed deal. Of course it's going to be more expensive that way.

Of course the event isn't going to be as great as the original idea. When has a plan B ever outperformed a plan A on last minute notice?

Of course the attendance was low, you had how many schools playing for the title that were less than 5 years old?

Cmon guys....

[speedbump]

Well, no. Just the Northeast part...

Is that where the Book Depository is? ..... oh, wait.

[speedbump]

Well, for starters, having it at a place that costs you half a million dollars isnt very logical at all.

LOL Money is the only answer for everything for some people.

[coach]

LOL Money is the only answer for everything for some people.

The fee is half a million dollars. Dallas on charged 150,000.... UIL would be stupid to go back.

[coach]

Yeah, everyone wants to ignore the fact that this was a last minute move to Houston not a pre-agreed deal. Of course it's going to be more expensive that way.

Of course the event isn't going to be as great as the original idea. When has a plan B ever outperformed a plan A on last minute notice?

Of course the attendance was low, you had how many schools playing for the title that were less than 5 years old?

Cmon guys....

Attendance was low bc it was in houston. Same wreason why the coaching school attendance was an all time low this year. Coaches don't like to rtavel to the Houston area.

[Saggy Aggie]

So you're telling me the attendance would've been significantly higher in Dallas with the same teams playing on a last minute switch?

[toddg]

So you're telling me the attendance would've been significantly higher in Dallas with the same teams playing on a last minute switch?
I know for a fact more people from Canadian would have been there...

[Saggy Aggie]

I know for a fact more people from Canadian would have been there...
Yeah and less people from Katy and Richmond George ranch.....

Canadian #s wouldn't touch those....

[jason]

So you're telling me the attendance would've been significantly higher in Dallas with the same teams playing on a last minute switch?
yes
you can't blame a swing of almost 100k people on the teams or 'last minute' switch - it was known months before that they would be in houston so that argument is a moot point
the difference was the location - people in/around houston didn't show up to support the event and there is no argument to refute that

[Saggy Aggie]

yes
you can't blame a swing of almost 100k people on the teams or 'last minute' switch - it was known months before that they would be in houston so that argument is a moot point
the difference was the location - people in/around houston didn't show up to support the event and there is no argument to refute that

Lol so multiple schools with small fan bases that are 5 years old or less had nothing to do with it?

The attendance would've been significantly higher in Dallas despite 3 Houston area teams playing in the finals in the highest classifications?

Cmon Jason. You're not that dense

[HEMOTOXIC]

http://sportsday.dallasnews.com/high-school/high-schools/2016/02/09/contract-houstons-nrg-stadium-show-uils-change-venue-state-football-championship-costly-one

What is the comparison in attendance from the first year that AT&T hosted the event to this past year in Houston?

It's crazy that people have made it pretty clear that the only reason that they didn't attend is primarily due the games being played in Houston... they don't like traveling to Houston, etc. And, you still want to argue that Houston was not a good option. Maybe those "fans" are just sad for not attending simply because the games were played in Houston.

The truth is, the city of Houston could care less if the games were played back in Houston. It's my observation that the rest of the state have/had their panties in a wad because the games were played in Houston. Now, you have your article to say, "I told you so."

WHO CARES!!!

[jason]

Lol so multiple schools with small fan bases that are 5 years old or less had nothing to do with it?

The attendance would've been significantly higher in Dallas despite 3 Houston area teams playing in the finals in the highest classifications?

Cmon Jason. You're not that dense
no, but those few newer schools, had they been replaced with more traditional powers, likely wouldn't have made up the 100k difference...there still would have been a significant shortfall in support from the locals...

[coach]

So it cost the UIL half a million dollars bc they got a late notice (9 months) and not very many people came because there were new schools participating and the numbers were down 100k people bc of that factor. Yea that makes complete sense. What a freakin idiot.

[speedbump]

So it cost the UIL half a million dollars bc they got a late notice (9 months) and not very many people came because there were new schools participating and the numbers were down 100k people bc of that factor. Yea that makes complete sense. What a freakin idiot.

Since you are so greatly concerned with the UILs money, don't you think the people in Dallas that blew the deal and caused the move in the first place should have made up the difference? Do you rally think NRG should have done it for a price that was contracted with ATT four years ago? LOL

[coach]

Since you are so greatly concerned with the UILs money, don't you think the people in Dallas that blew the deal and caused the move in the first place should have made up the difference? Do you rally think NRG should have done it for a price that was contracted with ATT four years ago? LOL

I don't know if jerry Jones could afford the difference. Lol. Look, I completely understand that they had little time to prepare and it might have cost them more, but half a million is ridiculous. By all means I am not saying they should use the same contract that Dallas had. But half a million is ridiculous. It is really not that big of a deal bc it will be back in its rightful place next year and the attendance will return to its record setting form.

[charlesrixey]

There will always be a loyal fan base that shows up regardless of a game's location, and a group of locals who show up to watch the title games (I say this as someone who drove from Missouri to Houston). But the football fans in and around Houston had the opportunity to show up and the numbers did not deliver like in Dallas.

I like the idea of rotating sites every year, but an unbiased observer would say that the UIL blew a lot of money and if it was my wallet, I would say keep it more centralized in Dallas and save the 350,000, plus have thousands more show up to watch the games. I have a degree in ancient history, not math, and I can see that it doesn't take differential equations to figure out that 350,000 is a lot of money.

The argument that the number of newer schools affected attendance may partially explain the numbers, but there have been several programs that were either new or doormats who have won titles in recent years and the numbers didn't suffer like this year. Celina and Mart played in 2000 (combined population around 3,000 at that time) and the attendance was even greater than the 13,000 announced. This year, consistent programs like Katy, Westlake, Celina, WOS and Argyle were participating, and Katy and GPNS are two of the biggest names in Houston. Katy also had a historically good defense.

Lake Ridge and George Ranch were two of the most exciting teams to watch, desptie their "newness."

I enjoyed NRG stadium and had no complaints with the experience. But the reality is, the state championship games saw a large drop in attendance from previous years and the main difference between this year and previous years was the location for the games. To try and find a correlation apart from location ignores the numbers.

[chaingang]

There will always be a loyal fan base that shows up regardless of a game's location, and a group of locals who show up to watch the title games (I say this as someone who drove from Missouri to Houston). But the football fans in and around Houston had the opportunity to show up and the numbers did not deliver like in Dallas.

I like the idea of rotating sites every year, but an unbiased observer would say that the UIL blew a lot of money and if it was my wallet, I would say keep it more centralized in Dallas and save the 350,000, plus have thousands more show up to watch the games. I have a degree in ancient history, not math, and I can see that it doesn't take differential equations to figure out that 350,000 is a lot of money.

The argument that the number of newer schools affected attendance may partially explain the numbers, but there have been several programs that were either new or doormats who have won titles in recent years and the numbers didn't suffer like this year. Celina and Mart played in 2000 (combined population around 3,000 at that time) and the attendance was even greater than the 13,000 announced. This year, consistent programs like Katy, Westlake, Celina, WOS and Argyle were participating, and Katy and GPNS are two of the biggest names in Houston. Katy also had a historically good defense.

Lake Ridge and George Ranch were two of the most exciting teams to watch, desptie their "newness."

I enjoyed NRG stadium and had no complaints with the experience. But the reality is, the state championship games saw a large drop in attendance from previous years and the main difference between this year and previous years was the location for the games. To try and find a correlation apart from location ignores the numbers.
And the WOS side was packed! had just as much as 5A schools on that side. If you adjust for fans per capita, the WOS/Celina game was the most impressive of all IMO.

[Dawgs]

I just don't understand how anybody could argue against Jerry World. Have you ever heard a young kid dreaming of playing at NRG? The Texas HS Champioship games should be played at Cowboys stadium. Any other site is just plain dumb for so many reasons.

[speedbump]

I just don't understand how anybody could argue against Jerry World. Have you ever heard a young kid dreaming of playing at NRG? The Texas HS Champioship games should be played at Cowboys stadium. Any other site is just plain dumb for so many reasons.

Are you crazy?? Do you really think kids growing up down here don't dream of playing at NRG? I know you're totally ignorant of anything outside of your little E Texas world but come on man.

[Weebe]

Regardless of what location makes more money or draws more fans, the bottom line is it needs to be rotated to keep things fair to as many teams as possible.

It's not fair for Houston, San Antonio and South Texas teams to have to travel 5-6 hours by bus every year to play a team that has a 45 minute drive to the stadium.

It's a competitive disadvantage for those teams.

[PurplePop]

There will always be a loyal fan base that shows up regardless of a game's location, and a group of locals who show up to watch the title games (I say this as someone who drove from Missouri to Houston). But the football fans in and around Houston had the opportunity to show up and the numbers did not deliver like in Dallas.

I like the idea of rotating sites every year, but an unbiased observer would say that the UIL blew a lot of money and if it was my wallet, I would say keep it more centralized in Dallas and save the 350,000, plus have thousands more show up to watch the games. I have a degree in ancient history, not math, and I can see that it doesn't take differential equations to figure out that 350,000 is a lot of money.

The argument that the number of newer schools affected attendance may partially explain the numbers, but there have been several programs that were either new or doormats who have won titles in recent years and the numbers didn't suffer like this year. Celina and Mart played in 2000 (combined population around 3,000 at that time) and the attendance was even greater than the 13,000 announced. This year, consistent programs like Katy, Westlake, Celina, WOS and Argyle were participating, and Katy and GPNS are two of the biggest names in Houston. Katy also had a historically good defense.

Lake Ridge and George Ranch were two of the most exciting teams to watch, desptie their "newness."

I enjoyed NRG stadium and had no complaints with the experience. But the reality is, the state championship games saw a large drop in attendance from previous years and the main difference between this year and previous years was the location for the games. To try and find a correlation apart from location ignores the numbers.

Respectfully, you're just wrong. Katy's game attendance this year at NRG was a top ten all time in Texas history. How can that be if the Houston locals don't support high school football? In a similar-teams-last year/this year comparison, WOS and Celina drew this year similar numbers to what WOS and Gilmer drew last year at Jerry's big sports bar. There has never been a year with this many new programs. And, when you look at attendance of championship games for new programs (like Steele a few years ago), the numbers are always very low. Then roll in old programs without big town followings like La Vega and Westlake. And, then add in the novelty of Jerry's giant sports bar over the last few years. Houston sports fans are no different than Dallas sports fans. The one difference that is there that probably accounts for a 5% or less difference in attendance is that Dallas is closer to more playoff schools than Houston. That's about it. The UIL big shots just want to hang out in Jerry's swanky private bars a few times a year. Not sure that is what high school football should be about.

[charlesrixey]

I don't think class warfare has anything to do with it. Who cares who hangs out in a swanky private bar at a football stadium? Last time I checked, all NFL teams (except for Green Bay) are owned by rich people who build nice stadiums to stroke their egos (and often get the local taxpayers to fund it). I didn't go to NRG to see the novelty of the stadium, I went to watch football. It would be no different in Arlington. I'm pretty sure that the UIL "bigshots" care more about the bottom line than being schmoozed by stadium representatives.

Katy had a huge draw, and the attendance was still down from the previous years. If anything, that is further proof that location is the determining factor.

[Dawgs]

Are you crazy?? Do you really think kids growing up down here don't dream of playing at NRG? I know you're totally ignorant of anything outside of your little E Texas world but come on man.

What does me being from ETX have to do with anything? Being from Carthage it has no bearing on travel time for us. NRG and AT&T are the same distance for us. But to answer your question, no I highly doubt kids grow up anywhere in the State of Texas dreaming of playing in the same stadium as the Houston Texans. Possibly the kids in the Houston area, but outside of there doubt it. The fact is AT&T is a better draw, and it has history behind it.

[Scoop27]

They still need to change the site on a yearly basis-Use the Alamo Dome or DKR Memorial Stadium

[Rabid Cougar]

They still need to change the site on a yearly basis-Use the Alamo Dome or DKR Memorial Stadium

Oh hell no. Not going to get away with not mentioning Kyle Field.

[rb585]

They still need to change the site on a yearly basis-Use the Alamo Dome or DKR Memorial Stadium

1. They're never playing outdoors.

2. Especially on a grass field.

3. Alamodome is a complete dump. I wouldn't go there unless my team were involved.