What is the latest on that...? I have thought for awhile that Little Rock would be a great place for a second SBC bowl game.
1. Nice market
2. Decent weather
3. would be a nice event for the community

While Arkansas is not a rich state they could scrape up the bucks for this game. SBC #2 vs MAC #4. Would not be a bad deal at all.
You ASU fans with influence should get the Little Rock chamber going on this.

I remember hearing a while back that the Florida area was where a second SBC Bowl game should be located. However, you bring up a great place to play the Little Rock Bowl. There is already a 50,000 seat stadium in Little Rock (where UA plays some of their home games, except when playing ULM :laugh: ) A second bowl game may be a few years away though. I'd like to see it happen, but I'm not counting on it any time soon.

I think that a second bowl game should be played at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas. I also think that the New Orleans Bowl should be moved to Birmingham, Alabama and renamed the Party Bowl.

Forget Little Rock. Lousy sports town.

What about Jackson, MS?

arkstfan Wrote:Forget Little Rock. Lousy sports town.

Really?
Why do you say that- not disagreeing, just wondering.

Quote:I think that a second bowl game should be played at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Arkansas. I also think that the New Orleans Bowl should be moved to Birmingham, Alabama and renamed the Party Bowl.

Why not? Nobody is playing football at Legion Field anyways... :laugh:

I gotta go with Swamphound though, I think Memorial Stadium in Jackson, MS would be perfect for a second SBC bowl. More central location and it isn't so big that the crowd will look tiny on TV.

GO TROJANS!

The question below was in the June Ask the commish. Disregarding the rediculous question I find WW's answer interesting

Question (Justin Dirico): If FAU did not lose one game, could it be possible to get an at large bowl game?

Commissioner Wright Waters: Not in 2004 as they will still be labeled I-AA but in 2005 FAU and FIU will compete for bowl spots and with three new bowls possibly on line, I would suspect a team that is 6-5 or better and has a good season ticket base will have opportunities.

With Seattle, Denver and Miami vying for new Bowls, there could be the tie in he's referring to. Since it would be for the 05 season at the earliest. I suspect perhaps Miami?

I would suspect Miami would be the most likely candidate of all of the one's mentioned. Not to take anything away from the other candidates, but we since bowl games are during WINTER, I think Miami would be a choice travel destination for a lot of people. I would also say it seems to make the "most" sense of the three possibilities mentioned in the Ask the Commish article. Seattle would be the longest trip for Sun Belt teams by far. Denver...well, it wouldn't be a bad destination. It does have a Sun Belt presence...even if it isn't for football. Unfortunately, the average temps are only in the low 30s for December. The upside of this is that it would be a different kind of trip for some people if they also wanted to fit in snow skiing. However, Miami has quite a bit going for it. Sun Belt presence, highs in the 70s, lows in the 40s, beaches...all pluses for a winter destination. Regardless of where the next bowl might be, it would just be nice to have a second bowl for the Sun Belt.

The reason I mentioned Little Rock is because they are a decent size market that does not have a lot of major sports. Arkansas State and UALR are in your league and that gives you a local tie. It would be a big event in Little Rock, a very small event in Miami or Denver.

I have to say not no but hell no to a Denver or Seattle bowl location. I understand the reasons behind Miami location for a bowl but have to agree with TopCoog how much attention would a #2 SBC team vs whomever, attract? I don't know much about Little Rock but they have a stadium that seems to rarely get used. In Jackson, since Ole Miss and Miss State no longer play the Egg Bowl there I do not know what if any games get played in that stadium. We (the SBC) have no schools in Mississippi and perhaps a bowl game there would help make some in roads in recruiting. One thing for certain with Jackson and Little Rock, we would be about the only show in town (much like the Mobile Bowl is now).

The sceond bowl will be close to a beach.


That's all I can say.

SwampHound Wrote:I have to say not no but hell no to a Denver or Seattle bowl location.  I understand the reasons behind Miami location for a bowl but have to agree with TopCoog how much attention would a #2 SBC team vs whomever, attract?  I don't know much about Little Rock but they have a stadium that seems to rarely get used.  In Jackson, since Ole Miss and Miss State no longer play the Egg Bowl there I do not know what if any games get played in that stadium.  We (the SBC) have no schools in Mississippi and perhaps a bowl game there would help make some in roads in recruiting.  One thing for certain with Jackson and Little Rock, we would be about the only show in town (much like the Mobile Bowl is now).

I seriously think there is something brewing in Miami.

Ya'll remember this little quote from the May Ask the Commissioner?

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Question (Ted Moore): I have an idea to set up a bowl game around second week in December between the Sun Belt #2 and the MAC #3. You can host it in Cleveland Browns Stadium and call it the Snow Bowl or whatever you want. Both teams want one more bowl game spot and it will be during the Browns season so you could draw a decent size crowd. I just think it's a shame for the teams in these conferences to only get so few bowl bids.

Commissioner Wright Waters:Ted, Cleveland is a lovely town but as we look at future bowl sites it is all about warm weather and fun destinations.

BlueRaiderPride Wrote:

SwampHound Wrote:I have to say not no but hell no to a Denver or Seattle bowl location.  I understand the reasons behind Miami location for a bowl but have to agree with TopCoog how much attention would a #2 SBC team vs whomever, attract?  I don't know much about Little Rock but they have a stadium that seems to rarely get used.  In Jackson, since Ole Miss and Miss State no longer play the Egg Bowl there I do not know what if any games get played in that stadium.  We (the SBC) have no schools in Mississippi and perhaps a bowl game there would help make some in roads in recruiting.  One thing for certain with Jackson and Little Rock, we would be about the only show in town (much like the Mobile Bowl is now).

I seriously think there is something brewing in Miami.

Ya'll remember this little quote from the May Ask the Commissioner?

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Question (Ted Moore): I have an idea to set up a bowl game around second week in December between the Sun Belt #2 and the MAC #3. You can host it in Cleveland Browns Stadium and call it the Snow Bowl or whatever you want. Both teams want one more bowl game spot and it will be during the Browns season so you could draw a decent size crowd. I just think it's a shame for the teams in these conferences to only get so few bowl bids.

Commissioner Wright Waters:Ted, Cleveland is a lovely town but as we look at future bowl sites it is all about warm weather and fun destinations.

SwampHound Wrote:I have to say not no but hell no to a Denver or Seattle bowl location. I understand the reasons behind Miami location for a bowl but have to agree with TopCoog how much attention would a #2 SBC team vs whomever, attract? I don't know much about Little Rock but they have a stadium that seems to rarely get used. In Jackson, since Ole Miss and Miss State no longer play the Egg Bowl there I do not know what if any games get played in that stadium. We (the SBC) have no schools in Mississippi and perhaps a bowl game there would help make some in roads in recruiting. One thing for certain with Jackson and Little Rock, we would be about the only show in town (much like the Mobile Bowl is now).

Swamp, the thing is I'm not sure how many fans would really be interested in Jackson or Little Rock as travel destination. One decent gauge might be looking at attendance figures for the last time Little Rock hosted the basketball tournament...I don't think it has been that many years. I'm not sure if the attendance numbers were good or not though. Plus, weather does come into play when you are talking Little Rock in December. The weather might be okay or it might be freezing cold with snow. With Jackson, the weather would be better. However, what can each of these two towns offer other than the games to entice people there for the bowl game. Maybe it isn't that important, but most people I know would rather have a game in a "touristy" spot.

topper1974 Wrote:Swamp, the thing is I'm not sure how many fans would really be interested in Jackson or Little Rock as travel destination. One decent gauge might be looking at attendance figures for the last time Little Rock hosted the basketball tournament...I don't think it has been that many years. I'm not sure if the attendance numbers were good or not though. Plus, weather does come into play when you are talking Little Rock in December. The weather might be okay or it might be freezing cold with snow. With Jackson, the weather would be better. However, what can each of these two towns offer other than the games to entice people there for the bowl game. Maybe it isn't that important, but most people I know would rather have a game in a "touristy" spot.

Good points, when compared to New Orleans or Miami, I am not sure what Little Rock or Jackson would have to offer other than the game itself. If a city like that was chosen it would be up to the locals to come out and help make it successfull. The question is would they?

DrBox Wrote:

arkstfan Wrote:Forget Little Rock. Lousy sports town.

Really?
Why do you say that- not disagreeing, just wondering.

UALR doesn't draw unless they are doing well.
AA Baseball has seen attendance fall quite a bit since they went from free admission promotions to $2 admission.
Arena football has seen attendance fall 50% in the last couple years and this year will be down even more.
The town is supposedly Hog crazy but just a few years ago they were giving away tickets to youth football teams and couldn't fill War Memorial Stadium because the team was down.
Back when Crowe was coach the Hogs were hosting #1 Miami to open the season in LR and they couldn't sell that out (only 53,000 seats).
When the Sun Belt basketball tournament has been here crowds have fallen to nothing as soon as ASU or UALR were out. One year the title game had an announced crowd of 350. I was there and that number was inflated.
NBA exhibitions have had very mixed results.

Arkansas State only draws a bit over 20,000 for football in LR when the weather is good. Do it in December against a Nevada and it will be worse, make it Nevada vs. Troy and it'll be embarassing.

I hope that the bowl games is played on grass field. I don't like Astroturf or Fieldturf.

Please, do not consider this a flame.

However, I am really skeptical that the Sun Belt will be given a 2nd bowl, considering that North Texas has played in the New Orleans bowl with a losing record before.

It is not helping the Sun Belt's cause having NT show up at a bowl having won the Sun Belt easilly, yet not being able to pull a regular season winning record.

Just a thought....

The Knight Time Wrote:Please, do not consider this a flame.

However, I am really skeptical that the Sun Belt will be given a 2nd bowl, considering that North Texas has played in the New Orleans bowl with a losing record before.

It is not helping the Sun Belt's cause having NT show up at a bowl having won the Sun Belt easilly, yet not being able to pull a regular season winning record.

Just a thought....

That happened only in the first year. UNT was 5-6 going into the bowl and finished the season 5-7. The next year (2002) they finished the season 7-5 and won the bowl game to finish 8-5 overall. Last season they entered the bowl 9-3 and finished the season 9-4 overall. I would say the last 2 seasons (out of 3 total we have had football in this conference) that UNT has represented us very well. Just my opinion.