by Mike Gibson

Stadium: Rock and Hard Place

Abstract cell art from our tailgate bud Darin Bartholomew

Depending upon who is consulted, there are two schools of thought regarding this too-long and drawn-out process called building a new football stadium:

Relax. Everything has been taken care of behind the scenes. Everything you see now is for show.
City Council will see a whole lot of protesters in its chambers come crunch time and vote against closing 15^th Street, effectively killing the project.

Maybe it’s because I’ve lived inside the city limits all of my life and am all-too-familiar with the way this City Government works, and people in school of thought one live in far-flung places like Long Island and Virginia, but Temple is officially between a rock and a hard place if it does not get permission to close 15^th Street.

Guess what?

It’s not coming.

In my mind, just enough space to build if you move the Amos Rec across the street but the Star Complex replaced most of the track and football field here.

Darrell Clarke is dead set against it and the “community” seems dead set against it.

Temple could have built on that site if the Star Complex wasn’t built because it would not require the permanent closing—actually rerouting—of 15^th Street. You could probably relocate Amos Recreation Center across 15^th to the old student Pavilion and squeeze a 35K stadium into the spot occupied by both Geasey and Star.

Now, with Star built, that limits Temple’s options to this:

Extend the Linc Deal

This will require holding the nose, taking the medicine and swallowing because the “lease” is one of the reasons why the university wanted to build a stadium in the first place.

Go to Franklin Field

Not an option because the AAC requires member schools to have stadium control at least on Saturdays. AAC tolerates the Linc because it gives Temple that control. It will not tolerate Penn having control over AAC TV schedule.

Knock Down The Temple Sports Complex

Move the soccer, field hockey and lax teams back to Geasey and knock down a facility Temple just spent $22 million to build and replace it with a football stadium. If you really want to build a stadium on campus, that’s Temple’s only option. It would not require closing any street and because the “community” did not oppose building the stadiums already on that location, they would not have much of an argument against building a football stadium there.

Monday: Our New Scheduling Buddies

7 thoughts on “Stadium: Rock and Hard Place”

flyinowl
March 16, 2018
11:02 am

It made no sense to me when they allowed the local football team to build a turf field at 10th and montgomery. It made no sense when they built the soccer and lacrosse fields at William Penn. It made no sense when they built the new aramark gym which took up space behind Geasey. SO EITHER they are not concerned and know the deal will be done behind the scenes, OR Temple is run by a bunch of short sighted idiots.

To sleep at night I believe the former.

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Fast Phil
March 16, 2018
8:21 pm

I was really optimistic with the resurgence of Temple football with Coach’s Golden and Rhule. While neither was perfect, I hoped we were heading back toward the exciting years of coach Hardin. I now fear the series of missteps by the University (as you set out) and the changing landscape of college football will exile Temple to an unsustainable financial situation and the end of major college football at Temple.

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- John Belli
  March 17, 2018
  10:51 am
  
  I’ve been saying it’s a waste of money for TU to be spending money on football now. The time that it should have been spent was when TU became a member of the Big East. Instead, they cut the budget then, leading to TU’s expulsion from the league. Now, any money spent is wasted unless there is a real chance the school will be invited to join a P-5 conference. Over the last several years, TU has never been at the top of any conference’s list and thinking that they will be invited is delusional. TU has always been a day late and a dollar short and now they are worse-two days late and two dollars short. Foresight is not in their vocabulary and never has been. Had they had that trait TU would have joined the Big East for BB when the league was formed. I understand that they wanted an all-sports conference but a true thinker would have said half a loaf is better than none and considered the possibility that if the league succeeded, an all-sports league would follow. As we all know the league did succeed and with Pitt and Temple in it, PSU would have been constrained to join it along with WVU and Rutgers, which later became members. Today it would be the preeminent BB league and a hell of a football league, one which would have secured TU’s sports future.
  
  Reply
Dave
March 17, 2018
11:01 pm

Woodward and Bernstein should investigate the treachery, money, and politics surrounding Philadelphia stadia.

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Mike Gibson
March 17, 2018
11:12 pm

It would make for great 60 minutes piece

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John Belli
March 19, 2018
9:04 pm

I suggest that all of you watch Patenaude’s press conference, which is below. It is so clear that he is not happy that Nutile is the starter. He praises him with faint damns and sounds resigned that Nutile is the starter. He was almost glowing when discussing Centeio as a guy who plays like qbs at Coastal Carolina. He barely discusses Nutile and even praises Russo. Why is this guy still here? He is a real impediment to a successful 2019 especially because he was the reason the Owls almost had a losing season in 2017. Nutile should not be in a competition after last season. Listen to his excuse why the run game was not successful. Not a word about chaining Sharga to the bench.
http://owlsports.com/watch/?Archive=8180&type=Archive

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John Belli
March 19, 2018
9:07 pm

Meant to say 2018 season. Jumped ahead a year. 2019 will be less than it should be as well if Patenaude is still here.

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