We Should Not Play Isu In The Dome!!

[ubuntuCAT]

Nor should we play Iowa in the dome for that matter. We are building a brand spanking new facility for our team, and then we want to take them off their home court for the in-state rival games???? I for one think the McLeod Center at maximum capacity overflowing with people will be far more intimidating than even a crowd of 12,000 at the dome. By keeping Mac out of the McLeod Center is not a slap in the face it’s letting him coach where he is actually quite accustomed to being. I seem to remember him playing college ball and coaching for 5 years in the dome. Why don’t we have the mentality that “I dare you to come to our new arena” A place you’ve never been, and surrounded by opposing fans in much closer proximity than what we have at the Dome.

And to address the financial issues as UNI is a small school and needs the revenue from the in-state rival games. Charge more; charge double I don’t think there will be a problem filling the place. I am a student and enjoy my free (sort of) admission but I would have no problem buying a ticket for this game (or any game for that matter).

[jordana33]

Agreed. But the administration see's a chance to put 12,000 plus in the Dome and make some cash money. We'll all just have to work that much harder to properly welcome Mac back home.

[dirtyD]

Hartzell said on the radio yesterday that he would not allow Mac to play in the new arena. The game will be played in the Dome. I'm hoping for another 20 plus whooping on ISU like 2004.

[Newsbreaker]

On one hand, we'll have an ENORMOUS crowd for ISU next year. More then that, many see the new building as the house that Mac built, and that's not true. If anything, it's the house that RH and Eldon Miller built.

It would be very easy to have that ISU game turn into a coronation of Mac in his building, and there is no reason to let that happen. I agreed, until yesterday, that the ISU game at least should be played in the McLeod Center, for the same reasons as given above.

Now, however, McDermott and his Cyclones aren't good enough to play in our new building. Let them have at the old place.

[PanthergirlUNI]

The almighty dollar is probably more an issue than "not letting Mac play in the MC" don't you think? They can make more money and accomodate more fans in the Dome, so the big bosses will probably put the ISU game in the Dome in 05-06 and maybe continue to put the in-state rivalry games in there. However, if the football team continues to be successful, they should rethink the whole situation. They don't want to be in the same frenzy tearing down the bball court and putting it back up every day as they were this year.

[UnderParPanther]

With budget issues that are facing the University, Iowa and Iowa St games will continue to be played in the dome and that was regardless if Mac stayed here or went someplace else. 5,000 extra people makes a big difference for our athletic department.

[Panther AC]

Sauserj...

For your information, non-students already pay twice the regular price for "premium games", such as Iowa and Iowa State, that have been played in the Dome. That's $24 per ticket versus the regular $12 for adults and kids. Much higher ticket prices than that will begin to reduce attendance.

The fact remains the athletic department needs the extra revenue that is generated from 5000 more tickets being sold in the Dome more so than any perceived home court advantage provided in the Cloud. It is a harsh reality of the financial situation and the ISU game will now take on added interest with the coaching changes and should put more people inthe seats of the Dome.

[northwest iowa panther]

Only 12,000 for ISU? Lets hope closer to 20,000. If in the McLeod, we won't have enough room for all the media for that game. In fact, we should show our hospitality to the Cardinal and Gold by handing out candy treats along with the butt kicking we're going to give ISU and by game time we're going to be all out of candy.

Plus if tickets are as hard to come by in the McLeod as they say, then it would be an excellent opportunity to get everyone to a game that wants to see one.

[ubuntuCAT]

Only 12,000 for ISU? Lets hope closer to 20,000. If in the McLeod, we won't have enough room for all the media for that game. In fact, we should show our hospitality to the Cardinal and Gold by handing out candy treats along with the butt kicking we're going to give ISU and by game time we're going to be all out of candy.

Plus if tickets are as hard to come by in the McLeod as they say, then it would be an excellent opportunity to get everyone to a game that wants to see one.

I posted this thread against games in the Dome but I have to say I like your last point about they're being a oppurtunity to get everyone to a game. Anyway not like there's a lot I can do about it the game is going to be in the Dome, I'm going to be there and it's going to be tons of fun.

[UNI MadCat]

This has been decided for a long time. Mac leaving had no bearing on where ISU would play UNI next year.

This is an old topic that I have ranted about for months. I think its time to move on.

[Panther11]

WINNING is how we got to this level. The Dome will become a "neutral" court to our team in the years to come. All the reasons other teams hated to play in the Dome, we will need to deal with. Our 3 to 4 point home court advantage will be cut in half at best.
5000 extra tickets sold to one game? I could argue that this program could sell 10,000 to see Wichita State, SIU, Drake or Bradley next season. Why not move those games, and sell 12,000 more tickets? What about marketing our spanking new facility to the "fans" that have complained about the Dome as a basketball venue for a generation?
We will be asking a financially pestered fan base to move from their new digs, to the old joint, sit farther from the court, and wonder what they wrote all those checks for. Face it, the dome is a great advantage in Football, but the future in basketball needs to be in the Mac.
This isn't about keeping McDermott out of the Mac, it's about the budget. WINNING helps the budget, losing to Iowa & Iowa State creates apathy to much of the fence sitting fan base.
I had hoped my last Basketball game in the dome was the Bradley thumping. That said, I can stomach one more next December. After that we need to pack the Mac and make the Cloud loud!

[UNIAlum95]

WINNING is how we got to this level. The Dome will become a "neutral" court to our team in the years to come. All the reasons other teams hated to play in the Dome, we will need to deal with. Our 3 to 4 point home court advantage will be cut in half at best.
5000 extra tickets sold to one game? I could argue that this program could sell 10,000 to see Wichita State, SIU, Drake or Bradley next season. Why not move those games, and sell 12,000 more tickets? What about marketing our spanking new facility to the "fans" that have complained about the Dome as a basketball venue for a generation?
We will be asking a financially pestered fan base to move from their new digs, to the old joint, sit farther from the court, and wonder what they wrote all those checks for. Face it, the dome is a great advantage in Football, but the future in basketball needs to be in the Mac.
This isn't about keeping McDermott out of the Mac, it's about the budget. WINNING helps the budget, losing to Iowa & Iowa State creates apathy to much of the fence sitting fan base.
I had hoped my last Basketball game in the dome was the Bradley thumping. That said, I can stomach one more next December. After that we need to pack the Mac and make the Cloud loud!

These have been my feelings for a while. I don't like building a new arena only to leave it empty for the "big" games. What if a nationally ranked SIU team comes in undefeated against a top 20 ranked UNI team with the title on the line. We could sell 15K for that one, should we move it. The game against Drake this year sold over 10K. That's another 4K tickets we won't be able to sell. Shoot move the game with Iowa to CR and ISU to Des Moines and you've got the same effect. It becomes a neutral court game. Our former coach stated it well that we have a brand new arena that is already too small.

[CincyPanther88]

These have been my feelings for a while. I don't like building a new arena only to leave it empty for the "big" games. What if a nationally ranked SIU team comes in undefeated against a top 20 ranked UNI team with the title on the line. We could sell 15K for that one, should we move it. The game against Drake this year sold over 10K. That's another 4K tickets we won't be able to sell. Shoot move the game with Iowa to CR and ISU to Des Moines and you've got the same effect. It becomes a neutral court game. Our former coach stated it well that we have a brand new arena that is already too small.

I kinda feel the same way. But if they feel like they can sell more tickets at a premium cost, that factor cannot be overlooked. I can't help but wonder what a full house in the MAC for ISU or Iowa would sound like.

[pantherfan4ever]

Agreed. But the administration see's a chance to put 12,000 plus in the Dome and make some cash money. We'll all just have to work that much harder to properly welcome Mac back home.

agreed, UNI does make as much money as ISU or Iowa, so any chance to get more fans in the stands, means MORE MONEY I dont think it is bad to go to the dome for those games... what we should have done, was built a freakin BIGGER arena to begin with!!!!! I like the size because it will be packed and full of loud fans, but it could have been 1,000 to 2,000 seats larger and still gotten packed with way our program is going now.. oh well.... GO PANTHERS!

[Matt Trump]

... what we should have done, was built a freakin BIGGER arena to begin with!!!!! I like the size because it will be packed and full of loud fans, but it could have been 1,000 to 2,000 seats larger and still gotten packed with way our program is going now.. oh well.... GO PANTHERS!

That is where we as fans need to step up. Had they received adequate funding, the Athletic Department could have built a bigger arena. The legislature is obviously not going to step it up so that is where the fans need to.

I hope the angry students on this board realize the opportunity they will have after they graduate and land on their feet to contribute so we don't lose the next great coach.