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Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 6:10 pm**

SMU's greatest asset is Ford Stadium. It's the "jewel" of our campus. Yeah, I know Dallas Hall is older, but the stadium is the most prominent structure and the place most outsiders will be visiting.

It's my understanding that UP limited the size of the stadium during the design process and that the university is restricted to a set number of events at the stadium each year.

Are you kidding me? Ford Stadium is regularly referred to as one of the finest athletic facilites in the country in national media and we can't market it properly because of our stuck up neighbors!

I know a lot of you like to blame the DMN, Pye or Cavan for our problems, but I think a lot of the blame falls on the Park Cities.

As I see it, Ford Stadium should be full of high school football games, soccer games, band competitions, div. II athletics and that sort of thing every weekend. Any excuse to have new people on campus and introduce them to "Mustang Mania" should be embraced.

Yes, it's all well and good for us SMU students/alums to love the Hilltop, but we need to get people not connected with the university on our bandwagon as well. I'm sure not every Miami fan actually went to school there.

Thousands of people regularly go to University of Tulsa games. That's not just because they're enjoying a successful period. They also market, market, market the facilities and university.

The status quo is simply not cutting it.

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 6:57 pm**

dear idiot:

the compromise with UP was to build it 1/2 below street level - or we wouldn't have it at all.

you want a stadium right next to your house playing games EVERY weekend?

yes, UP was concerned with the constant LIGHTS and sound.

please note that RIVALS camp just happened last weekend at FORD.

I think we are on our 3rd or 4th year of Tom Laundry classic football weekend where 4 top teams play their game at FORD and it gets tons of press

don't compare FORD with TU stadium or the situation. TU has the largest FB stadium in TULSA, SMU does not, and their are plenty of other venues to play at in the dallas area as well (eg, Mavericks stadium at UTA, Coppell's stadium, Highlander Stadium, etc., Cotton Bowl, TEX Stadium).

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 7:06 pm**

This is one of the reasons (other than the Bush Library and similar projects) that SMU has been purchasing property to the east of campus all the way to the tollway.

Mockingbird and Hillcrest are already congested...so much so that the Park Cities as well as SMU are rightly concerned about it. You don't want to have your main selling points hung out to dry because too many dorks tried to find a shortcut through to Love Field or to Northwest Highway.

I think the concessions made to Park Cities were sensible, and since most of the homes to the open end of the bowl are rental anyway, there is very little compelling reason to get torqued up about that.

HOWEVER, it would be wise if SMU added another parking garage to its master plan, or better, placed one under the intramural field or across central near the old UA Cine...if they can carve up [deleted] beach for the largest collection of Spanish art outside of Spain, perhaps they can carve up an existing parking lot and beat up movie theatre (I saw Henry V there) into something cool...

Just my two cents...

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 7:14 pm**

Kappas Are Yummy wrote:SMU's greatest asset is Ford Stadium. It's the "jewel" of our campus. Yeah, I know Dallas Hall is older, but the stadium is the most prominent structure and the place most outsiders will be visiting.

It's my understanding that UP limited the size of the stadium during the design process and that the university is restricted to a set number of events at the stadium each year.

Are you kidding me? Ford Stadium is regularly referred to as one of the finest athletic facilites in the country in national media and we can't market it properly because of our stuck up neighbors!

I know a lot of you like to blame the DMN, Pye or Cavan for our problems, but I think a lot of the blame falls on the Park Cities.

As I see it, Ford Stadium should be full of high school football games, soccer games, band competitions, div. II athletics and that sort of thing every weekend. Any excuse to have new people on campus and introduce them to "Mustang Mania" should be embraced.

Yes, it's all well and good for us SMU students/alums to love the Hilltop, but we need to get people not connected with the university on our bandwagon as well. I'm sure not every Miami fan actually went to school there.

Thousands of people regularly go to University of Tulsa games. That's not just because they're enjoying a successful period. They also market, market, market the facilities and university.

The status quo is simply not cutting it.

first, SMU's greatest assets are its students & alumni

second, the height restriction in University Park was set in place long before SMU submitted plans for Ford, and began the permitting process.

third, what is your defination of "regularly" in the context of being quoted in "national" media and publications.

fourth, it's not a "Park Cities" issue, SMU's campus is located wholly in UP, not HP - get your facts strait before you make slanderous comments. i can see one oversight - Highland Park Methodist sits on the northeast corner of Mockingbird and Hillcrest, but is not part of SMU at all.

fifth, "thousands of people" regularly go to SMU games too. i believe average attendance was over 15,000 (yeah, those '0's AFTER the comma mean thousands)

sixth, please find a high school in texas that doesn't have a stadium of it's own (or even better has another school on it's schedule) that would drive demand for HS's to use Ford (every weekend as you say). BTW, DISD actually OWNS Reunion Arena, and can use it for things like band competitions and what not.

Point here is you need to try to inform yourself before you get on here and just start running at the mouth proving how uninformed you really are.

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 7:22 pm**

OC Mustang wrote:(I saw Henry V there)

me too - random

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 7:24 pm**

Just for accuracy's sake, I believe the City of Dallas, not DISD, owns Reunion Arena. One of the Hunts wants to buy the Arena from the City or swap out some land for it.

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 8:27 pm**

GoRedGoBlue wrote:dear idiot:

the compromise with UP was to build it 1/2 below street level - or we wouldn't have it at all.

you want a stadium right next to your house playing games EVERY weekend?

yes, UP was concerned with the constant LIGHTS and sound.

please note that RIVALS camp just happened last weekend at FORD.

I think we are on our 3rd or 4th year of Tom Laundry classic football weekend where 4 top teams play their game at FORD and it gets tons of press

don't compare FORD with TU stadium or the situation. TU has the largest FB stadium in TULSA, SMU does not, and their are plenty of other venues to play at in the dallas area as well (eg, Mavericks stadium at UTA, Coppell's stadium, Highlander Stadium, etc., Cotton Bowl, TEX Stadium).

EVERY WEEKEND consists of 6 weekends per year for 3 - 4 hours per
weekend. Thats about 18 - 24 hours per year.

Poor babies.

Posted: **Tue Feb 07, 2006 8:48 pm**

Kappas Are Yummy wrote:SMU's greatest asset is Ford Stadium. It's the "jewel" of our campus. Yeah, I know Dallas Hall is older, but the stadium is the most prominent structure and the place most outsiders will be visiting.

Nope, it used to be DALLAS HALL which you could see from Mockingbird
when I was there. Used to be a very neat view, subject of many pictures
looking up at it from near there. I remember one of them on the front
of the University catalog I used to apply with.

My first year at SMU, they planted a bunch of twigs in the middle of
Bishop's street medium. One of my new friends even broke one of them
while taking a picture from near Morrison. I wish he'd broke them all.

They have now grown into huge adults, and blocked the great view of
DALLAS HALL. Don't EVEN know what they were thinking about when
they were planted, except that they wanted to HIDE SMU from University
Park, and DALLAS.

Posted: **Wed Feb 08, 2006 1:04 am**

OC Mustang wrote: .... HOWEVER, it would be wise if SMU added another parking garage to its master plan ....

Isn't there a garage planned for the strip where Letterman Hall and the old SAE and LXA houses are?

Posted: **Wed Feb 08, 2006 1:25 am**

I do know that UP refused to allow Ford to host Dallas Burn (I refuse to acknowledge their stupid new name) games, when SMU and Lamar Hunt approached it before the Frisco stadium was built. I'm sure the profile of a good portion of the Burn fan base had *nothing* to do with that decision.

Posted: **Wed Feb 08, 2006 9:29 am**

Hoofprint wrote:
OC Mustang wrote: .... HOWEVER, it would be wise if SMU added another parking garage to its master plan ....
Isn't there a garage planned for the strip where Letterman Hall and the old SAE and LXA houses are?

Yes. They are supposed to have already bulldozed the land, but I think all three buildings are still standing.

Posted: **Wed Feb 08, 2006 10:07 am**

As of this morning (Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2006), they're still standing.
A parking garage that covers all three lots would go a LONG way toward alleviating the number of people who have to park miles away and walk to the games.

Posted: **Wed Feb 08, 2006 10:30 am**

PlanoStang wrote:
GoRedGoBlue wrote:dear idiot:

the compromise with UP was to build it 1/2 below street level - or we wouldn't have it at all.

you want a stadium right next to your house playing games EVERY weekend?

yes, UP was concerned with the constant LIGHTS and sound.

please note that RIVALS camp just happened last weekend at FORD.

I think we are on our 3rd or 4th year of Tom Laundry classic football weekend where 4 top teams play their game at FORD and it gets tons of press

don't compare FORD with TU stadium or the situation. TU has the largest FB stadium in TULSA, SMU does not, and their are plenty of other venues to play at in the dallas area as well (eg, Mavericks stadium at UTA, Coppell's stadium, Highlander Stadium, etc., Cotton Bowl, TEX Stadium).

EVERY WEEKEND consists of 6 weekends per year for 3 - 4 hours per
weekend. Thats about 18 - 24 hours per year.

PLANO STANG:

EVERY Weekend was in REFERENCE to the initial thread suggesting we should be playing HS Games, Band contests, etc... 'most' weekends...

I fully understand 6 w/e's per year is nominal. He is suggesting to use it for 20-30-40+ weekends.

Poor babies.

Posted: **Thu Feb 09, 2006 2:03 am**

Hey, Kappa: concentrate on getting more students out to the games. Please. Ya'll are a sorry bunch. Pitiful. Bandwagon fans...just like the rest of Dallas' citizenry.

Posted: **Thu Feb 09, 2006 9:35 am**

Yeeeeesh, some of you guys are sure sensitive about this issue. Why is that?

Sure we have to get more fans out to games, but there is only so much one person can do. That's why it's so vital that we use Ford Stadium to reach the greatest amount of people. I'm sorry, but I don't have a ton of sympathy for people who move next door to a university but are offended when they are inconvienenced by the university.

The bottom line is that most of Dallas does not feel connected with SMU. Ford Stadium is the perfect tool to connect with them. When the park cities keep us from using that tool, it's a major problem.

Also, the name calling is unnecessary. Aren't we all on the same side guys?

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