GiddyUp wrote:It will always look and feel high school unless there is an upper deck built. Enclosing the end zone/ kid zone would be great, add more box seats there or a corral where people can watch the game and enjoy cocktails.
Since I am in a bad mood and feeling the need to be argumentative, I thought that I would provide links to a few single deck stadiums used by college and pro teams.
Why don't you throw in the Rose Bowl while you are at it. ? Geez, Those are all 100K stadiums - nothing comparable to our high school looking stadium. You get my drift, I think Univer of So Miss has a great stadium and very loud.
I love going to games at Ford Stadium, and I build my weekends in the fall around trips to Dallas. I have never once felt Ford Stadium was "small-time." Every seat I have ever had has offered a great view, and I plan to be at every home game as long as I live within driving distance. I could care less how tall the building looks from the outside -- we have a beautiful stadium.
couch 'em wrote:I've never been to a game at the Cotton Bowl, but I can imagine it isn't worth getting shot going to the car after the game, so I'll pass.
I went to dozens of games at the Cotton Bowl, including many night games, and never heard of anyone being shot. Never felt in danger either as far as that goes. Maybe the city should cancel the State Fair. They don't seem to know about all of the shootings you mention.
I happen to like the Ford, but that's just my opinion. Opinions aside though, isn't it designed the way it is in order to comply with Highland Park's ordinance and building restrictions. If that is the case, then no, Ford cannot be fixed the way you would prefer, though I do see your point about steeper stadium seating.
couch 'em wrote:I've never been to a game at the Cotton Bowl, but I can imagine it isn't worth getting shot going to the car after the game, so I'll pass.
The stadium, like everything else, influences how people perceive the program. I was a student in the Ford Stadium era - since day 1 setting foot in that stadium it has said "small time" or DI-AA to me. Many others agree. It is hard to sell the program as "Big East BCS!" when our 32,000 seats feel like 20,000.
I made a post years ago comparing Ford to other similarly sized stadiums to compare "feel". Maybe I'll pull that up if I have a chance to search for it.
Here is a random example I came across that inspired me to bring this subject up again.
Toyota Stadium, somewhere in Japan. This place holds 45,000 seats. Does this look like 45,000?
Do we need 100,000 seats? No. Should we go play in the Cotton Bowl in front of 75% empty seats? No. But it is just so bad that instead of maximizing what we could with Ford we went the other direction and almost tried to make it look as second tier as possible.
The seating area looks bigger because the playing area is much smaller.
I have played in and been to a lot of college stadiums. My honest opinion is that it does feel small-time. I agree that you are a long, long way from the action in the corners of the stadium and the press box/suite area is just not very appealing. Not sure anything can really be done though...it is what it is. And the blvd is cool for the home fans.
Those pics remind me of Aloha Stadium in Hawaii. Not the best stadium, but with the high seating it has a big-time feel, and looks impressive when full on TV and in person. Ford would have to do a Kenny Rogers-like face lift to get big time (only with better results than poor Kenny).
I like Ford, but yes, there are some things that could have been done to make it seem like a higher level college stadium. The concourse and the club level could have been nicer, but those are 2 things that could be somewhat addressed in a redesign in the future.
As far as the flat design, honestly, I like it. It makes the stadium seem a little old school. But then again, I am not a fan of heights. Buddy of mine has front row seats up on the 4th deck at Cowboys Stadium, and I've gone to 3 games with him out there and every time I can't get up to cheer at all. Makes me feel like I am going to fall over the railing.
I think given the restrictions UP put on us, there wasn't a whole lot more we could do. Also, it doesn't help how wedged in that location is given the proximity to the library, Mockingbird, etc. and fitting in a practice field.
As far as the sound is concerned, I think if we start getting more than 18k in there on a regular basis, it will help to not have the sound bouncing off metal seats and concrete. The sound system has gotten better, but it's far from good.
Go watch a game at Vanderbilt Stadium (it's close to 40,000), Duke (maybe 34,000), or Wake Forrest (seems smaller than SMU's) and see what a crappy stadium looks like. Ford is nice, and yes the bowl DOES need to be completed. But, in comparison - it's fine. SMU does not need a Bryant Denny Stadium (102,000) or another "arms race" stadium facility where some of the seats feel like you are at 30,000 feet. 45,000 rowdy (who can purchase beer) fans raising hell will not look high school, but instead look great to recruits, TV execs, advertisers, and to a certain way better conference to our east.
Big Hoss wrote:I think given the restrictions UP put on us, there wasn't a whole lot more we could do. Also, it doesn't help how wedged in that location is given the proximity to the library, Mockingbird, etc. and fitting in a practice field.
Bingo. Those factors, and we were on a downward spiral as a team when that thing was built, and there were a lot of people around the school and community that didn't want it built - anybody remember how hard the late 90's were? Ford was perfect for our needs then, and it fits our needs now.
Look, nobody I have ever met who didn't already root against us has ever said one bad thing about Ford. For years I have watched other programs - Memphis, Tulane, etc. - who didn't have their own stadiums look at ours with envy. We are lucky to have it.
