Cowboys should stick to playing in Stillwater

By John Hillman  |   Sunday, May 17, 2009  |  Comments( 1 )

Oklahoma State Cowboys
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Collegiate athletic directors revel in the glamour of neutral-site games. Oklahoma State’s Mike Holder joined the bandwagon and clamors for the Cowboys to move a contest from Stillwater to the Dallas area. But Big D’s glitz may not equal Boone Pickens Stadium’s gold.

OSU and Texas Tech officials discussed the possibility of playing on neutral turf for almost a year before negotiations ended in a standstill. The Red Raiders then turned to Baylor and agreed to a two-year deal last April.

However, before the Cowboys seek another opponent in Dallas, Oklahoma State should reconsider the move and review the results of other Big XII members taking similar actions. Texas A&M and Arkansas recently agreed to a 10-year series held in Arlington at Cowboys Stadium. The Bears and Texas Tech have contracted to play at the same venue in 2009 and shift to the Cotton Bowl in 2010.

On the surface, these decisions appear solid. But the outcomes may not yield the financial rewards promoters predict.

With college football reaching saturation numbers and the economy struggling, alums living in neutral-site locales may hesitate to purchase tickets bearing a three-digit price tag for a single event. The problem compounds if large numbers of season ticket holders reject the concept of traveling outside familiar territory.

The Texas-Oklahoma game sets the standard for outside venues. Since 1929, the Longhorns and Sooners have waged the Red River Rivalry during the State Fair of Texas.

The event always generates a sell-out crowd, half wearing orange and the other half decked out in crimson. Every October, millions view the game via television.

No game can ever match the excitement and pageantry of Texas-OU. The Aggie-Razorback and Bear-Red Raider contests will surely draw comparisons, and the games could prove sorely lacking in both numbers and excitement.

History should tell the Cowboys to stick with Stillwater and avoid the bright lights of the big city. In the early days of the Big XII, OSU and Texas Tech played in Texas Stadium.

That contest drew slightly over 25,000 fans, and school officials quickly mothballed the idea. However, bandwagon fervor often supersedes the lessons of the past.
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About John Hillman

John Hillman graduated from Baylor University in 1974 with a BBA in accounting and earned an MBA from Baylor in 1987. He worked for accounting firms until 1982 when he became the chief financial officer for an independent insurance claims adjusting service, a position he still holds today. ...
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