Is This Town Big Enough...

[shaft]

College football will always take a back seat to pro-football in Dallas, but is DFW a big enough market to support three division one programs?

On the field performance is still the biggest indicator of what type of attendance a program will draws, but media coverage helps.

[adman]

College football will always take a back seat to pro-football in Dallas, but is DFW a big enough market to support three division one programs?

On the field performance is still the biggest indicator of what type of attendance a program will draws, but media coverage helps.

We've got 5.7MM people in the DFW area per 2005 Census figures. That makes DFW the 4th largest metro area in the country. It also means our metro population is larger than the population of 35 states. So yeah, I'd say we're big enough.

[MeanGreen61]

the metroplex has had 3 programs for several years so why should this question even come up now ?

[shaft]

Sure DFW is a big media market, but college football gets very little coverage. Do you think the local media will actually expand its coverage if all the local programs are doing well? Or will it be a zero sum trade off for coverage.

[greenminer]

Sure DFW is a big media market, but college football gets very little coverage. Do you think the local media will actually expand its coverage if all the local programs are doing well? Or will it be a zero sum trade off for coverage.

The media will cover what people want to see. DFW people want to see winners.

I have more concern re: Jerry World. Tickets for the 'boys are going to make many DFWers refinance their food budget, sell the first born, and stop driving on Saturdays to spare them the gas money.

[EagleMBA]

Actually, I kinda sorta hope that Cowboy sticker shock will keep more people in front of the TV on Sundays and seeking out good D-1 college football on Saturdays to serve the need for live action. We are certainly going to have an entertaining product on the field this year and a few more wins (given some defensive improvement). Now is the time to expose the masses to what an entertainment bargain UNT football is.

[UNTFan23]

Retailers are more concerned about inflation brought about by energy costs that show no signs of stopping and the trickle down affects. Food costs are continuing to rise and gas is expected to be $4.00/gal this summer.

While people won't stop buying food any time soon, the entertainment industry better be worried that something needs to be done soon to curb energy costs.

[Guest GrayEagleOne]

Raleigh-Durham does that now. They have North Carolina, North Carolina State and Duke within about 20 miles or less of each other. They don't have major sports franchises but then who can afford to go to NFL football and NBA basketball?

[MeanGreen61]

College football will always take a back seat to pro-football in Dallas, but is DFW a big enough market to support three division one programs?

On the field performance is still the biggest indicator of what type of attendance a program will draws, but media coverage helps.

If 3 is too many, in your opinion, who should drop football ?

[chrisfisher]

Yes, its big enough.

Edited January 8, 2008 by chrisfisher

[letsgiveacheer]

Raleigh-Durham does that now. They have North Carolina, North Carolina State and Duke within about 20 miles or less of each other. They don't have major sports franchises but then who can afford to go to NFL football and NBA basketball?

Very true. Plus there is Wake Forest just down the road in Winston-Salem. Except for Duke, there is no problem filling any of these stadiums on any given Saturday. I'll also add there are the NHL Carolina Hurricanes in Raleigh that are a big deal here. They share an arena with NC State and the colors of both teams are the same shade of red. Pretty clever!

[pollock]

is DFW a big enough market to support three division one programs?

Sure it is.

1. Texas

2. Oklahoma

3. Texas A&M

Whoever won the most games, most recently, gets to be #1.

[GreenAlums]

Sure DFW is a big media market, but college football gets very little coverage. Do you think the local media will actually expand its coverage if all the local programs are doing well? Or will it be a zero sum trade off for coverage.

I agree, this has always surprised me. What also surprises me is that UNT has over 110K alums (just alums, not including friends) in the DFW metroplex We should own it! We need to get to the problem (many think they know and they probably do...) and do something!!

[AnotherEagleFan]

Raleigh-Durham does that now. They have North Carolina, North Carolina State and Duke within about 20 miles or less of each other. They don't have major sports franchises but then who can afford to go to NFL football and NBA basketball?

Carolina Panthers?? They are close enough to make an impact.

[Eagle1855]

Sure it is.

1. Texas

2. Oklahoma

3. Texas A&M

Whoever won the most games, most recently, gets to be #1.

Yeah, in Houston you'll find the same thing. There's Rice, there's Houston...but there's actually UT, A&M, and LSU. It's just the way it goes.

Instead of worrying about causal DFW fans, we should worry about Denton-area fans, local alumni, and cultivating a pro-UNT athletics atmosphere amongst the current 34K students that sticks with them after they graduate. The latter being the most important, in my opinion.

Winning accomplishes a lot of this.

Edited January 8, 2008 by Eagle1855

[ShopMeanGreen]

NT football is relatively cheap. A fun game day atmosphere and a winning team will make all of the difference. It should not be hard to sell out Fouts easily with the fans in the north side of the metroplex.

[buff64]

Sure it is.

1. Texas

2. Oklahoma

3. Texas A&M

Whoever won the most games, most recently, gets to be #1.

Really 4 if you include Texas Tech.