Perhaps I can add come clarity to my anger yesterday that confused so many. Let me begin by saying that I have been attending college football games in person for 53 years. I have been a loyal season ticket holder at UT for 36 years. I have seen UT play on every other SEC campus except for A&M & Missouri and I will be at A&M this year. I have been to numerous bowl games and other in-season venues like UCLA at the Rose Bowl and at Notre Dame. I am part of the legion of followers that fill Neyland Stadium on Saturdays, attend the walk, and have been part of UT's strong following on many away games. It is people like me who constitute the majority of people who create the "Big Orange Experience" that makes UT football so special and is a huge part of the UT brand that we like to boast about and "sell" to college prospects.
Getting hotel rooms in Knoxville for football weekends is not a big deal unless one wants a hotel room close enough to campus to enable walking to the stadium and not having to worry with the hassle of driving, particularly after the game. If you desire one of these rooms, then getting one is difficult and very expensive. One can only do that if one books it months in advance and often not even then for games against "big name" opponents. When you do have the opportunity to book them you can do so with a refundable reservation (2 nights minimum usually) at a higher cost. You can save a little money by rolling the dice and prepaying the reservation at a lower rate (still very expensive) but forfeiting the right for a refund if you cannot make the game.
UT released a schedule months ago indicating the dates when it would be playing its games this fall. The kickoff times have gone to TBD or TBA for years now as those are dictated by TV. Those of us who go to games get that and accept it. Never in my 36 years do I recall a date ever having been subject to change unless dictated by a weather event or other tragic event. It seems to me that UT makes implicit contracts to ticket buyers when it issues dates of events and that it will honor those.
In this instance, September 3rd falls on a 3-day holiday weekend. I have relatives who are ASU alumni and jumped at the chance to see a game in Knoxville and be a part of the "Big Orange Experience". I have a child who has lived in a major northeastern city for the past 9 years who we see on average twice a year, who bought plane tickets for he and his girlfriend (who has never seen a game) to attend the game. It made for a perfect opportunity to kick off the season and have some quality family time, until it didn't.
I decided to bite the bullet and prepay for three rooms for two nights so that we could walk to the game and have easy access to downtown. One of my relatives had a knee replacement recently and this was a big part of my motivation. All of this made sense when the game was on Saturday of a three-day holiday weekend. When the "implicit contract" was broken it blew everything up. The major hotel was kind enough to refund the $1,600 that had been taken from my credit card account weeks ago and I am very grateful to them for doing so.
I get the fact that this was a "business decision" by Hart. I get the fact that this was a decision that gives Jones 2 extra days to prepare for the Bruton Smith fiasco at Bristol. I get that for people who sit own their butts and watch the games on HD TV's that this feeds their 8-month craving for college football two days earlier, plus it allows them to watch marque games on Saturday at noon that they otherwise would have missed. I get that D-I football has long been a business and money dictates when teams play and often who they play. I get all of that. The arguments about increased exposure in this trade-off were amusing.
My point was about people who go to great effort in terms or of time and money to fill the seats and create the great game-day experience we like to brag about. Those same people who like to brag about the experience are quick to whine when there are less than 102,000 in Neyland or when they think those who are there don't yell loud enough. I have always been amazed at how many of those who do attend are "blue hairs" as so many on here like to refer to them. I am also amazed at how many travel 2 hours or more to get to home games. I am guessing the people who fall into these categories constitute at least half of those who fill the stands.
As a few of you understood, the 3.5 months to the first game may seem like a long time to make plans and commitments but it is in fact short notice when a UTAD decision like this is made. The people who get jerked around are not the ones sitting at home or in a bar watching the game but those who try and make plans to actually attend the games in person. Weare an afterthought, pawns who are expected to fall in line and be good soldiers, until we don't come to a game or cheer loud enough, then we are traitors and fair weather fans in the eyes of most on this board. That was my point, UTAD wants us to create the game day experience to brand and sell but we are collateral damage in the eyes of administrators and coaches when decisions like this are made. Money talks and ESPN has a lot more than we do.
Let the snide replies begin. I know most on hear don't have the attention span to read a post this long and others won't have the inclination. And like yesterday, any discussion about the intent of my post will go off into multiple unrelated directions. That is what is it like on here. Like you and I am over it and sick about talking about it. The End.
Getting hotel rooms in Knoxville for football weekends is not a big deal unless one wants a hotel room close enough to campus to enable walking to the stadium and not having to worry with the hassle of driving, particularly after the game. If you desire one of these rooms, then getting one is difficult and very expensive. One can only do that if one books it months in advance and often not even then for games against "big name" opponents. When you do have the opportunity to book them you can do so with a refundable reservation (2 nights minimum usually) at a higher cost. You can save a little money by rolling the dice and prepaying the reservation at a lower rate (still very expensive) but forfeiting the right for a refund if you cannot make the game.
UT released a schedule months ago indicating the dates when it would be playing its games this fall. The kickoff times have gone to TBD or TBA for years now as those are dictated by TV. Those of us who go to games get that and accept it. Never in my 36 years do I recall a date ever having been subject to change unless dictated by a weather event or other tragic event. It seems to me that UT makes implicit contracts to ticket buyers when it issues dates of events and that it will honor those.
In this instance, September 3rd falls on a 3-day holiday weekend. I have relatives who are ASU alumni and jumped at the chance to see a game in Knoxville and be a part of the "Big Orange Experience". I have a child who has lived in a major northeastern city for the past 9 years who we see on average twice a year, who bought plane tickets for he and his girlfriend (who has never seen a game) to attend the game. It made for a perfect opportunity to kick off the season and have some quality family time, until it didn't.
I decided to bite the bullet and prepay for three rooms for two nights so that we could walk to the game and have easy access to downtown. One of my relatives had a knee replacement recently and this was a big part of my motivation. All of this made sense when the game was on Saturday of a three-day holiday weekend. When the "implicit contract" was broken it blew everything up. The major hotel was kind enough to refund the $1,600 that had been taken from my credit card account weeks ago and I am very grateful to them for doing so.
I get the fact that this was a "business decision" by Hart. I get the fact that this was a decision that gives Jones 2 extra days to prepare for the Bruton Smith fiasco at Bristol. I get that for people who sit own their butts and watch the games on HD TV's that this feeds their 8-month craving for college football two days earlier, plus it allows them to watch marque games on Saturday at noon that they otherwise would have missed. I get that D-I football has long been a business and money dictates when teams play and often who they play. I get all of that. The arguments about increased exposure in this trade-off were amusing.
My point was about people who go to great effort in terms or of time and money to fill the seats and create the great game-day experience we like to brag about. Those same people who like to brag about the experience are quick to whine when there are less than 102,000 in Neyland or when they think those who are there don't yell loud enough. I have always been amazed at how many of those who do attend are "blue hairs" as so many on here like to refer to them. I am also amazed at how many travel 2 hours or more to get to home games. I am guessing the people who fall into these categories constitute at least half of those who fill the stands.
As a few of you understood, the 3.5 months to the first game may seem like a long time to make plans and commitments but it is in fact short notice when a UTAD decision like this is made. The people who get jerked around are not the ones sitting at home or in a bar watching the game but those who try and make plans to actually attend the games in person. Weare an afterthought, pawns who are expected to fall in line and be good soldiers, until we don't come to a game or cheer loud enough, then we are traitors and fair weather fans in the eyes of most on this board. That was my point, UTAD wants us to create the game day experience to brand and sell but we are collateral damage in the eyes of administrators and coaches when decisions like this are made. Money talks and ESPN has a lot more than we do.
Let the snide replies begin. I know most on hear don't have the attention span to read a post this long and others won't have the inclination. And like yesterday, any discussion about the intent of my post will go off into multiple unrelated directions. That is what is it like on here. Like you and I am over it and sick about talking about it. The End.
