BREAKING: Apple Cup to move to Seattle full time

Been over at Cougfan, and it seems everyone HATES it.

But if the game is over Thanksgiving break it is a lot to home. While I would prefer to be in the college atmosphere, you can’t argue with the almighty dollar. 2 Million is a lot more then the 250,000 the team gets for a game in Pullman.

If you look at a lot of great rivalries (Red River, Colorado and Colorado St, Kansas and Kansas st.) they are all played in neutral sites. There are a lot of pluses and minuses about it and I’m not sure how I fell right now.

I voted yes, but I’m torn. I graduate next year so it’s not like I’ll be in Pullman, however I liked the idea of returning to Pullman every year to watch us play against the Huskies… I guess Homecoming will be an even bigger event.

Also I feel really bad for the businesses in Pullman since they really could use the money that the game brings in.

Increasing our exposure to recruits on the west side is nothing but good.

Thus paving the way for the biggest college football-related riot in U.S. history.

But seriously – wherever they put the minuscule student sections (and they will be minuscule, trust me), they better make damn sure they are on opposite sides of the field from one another. I’ve gotten the oh-no-a-fight-might-actually-break-out feeling a couple times at WSU/UW events in Pullman, and something tells me the dam will break at some point.

Potential brutality aside, I’m not liking the idea. It’s about a 60/40 split in favor of the Huskies. And when the Huskies are good (a long shot, but it could happen someday) get ready to watch some purple creep in to the sea of crimson thanks to stubhub.

I just liked the fact that every other year the game was in the heart of Cougar country. Making those wusses from the west side travel 300 miles to the Palouse is all part of the fun. Also, no more snow bowls. Probably.

I’m really split on this. I’ve always been a proponent of the Seattle game (although, becoming a season holder today, I’m not a fan of it being a separate deal), but that’s in part because it’s exposure for WSU on the west side that isn’t normally there. When the AC rolls around we get more exposure.

Then again, there was no experience like rivalry games in high school with fans lined up on each side of the arena. I was a proud participant in the Stinky Sneaker games in Spokane, and the loudest I’ve ever heard any arena was my senior year. And because University is awful at most things, I was part of the first graduating class at Central Valley to go undefeatedin the contest. We rushed the court at our rivals’ gym. That’s cold as ice, and it was awesome.

Part of me feels that it is awesome. Part of me thinks its sucks. I abstain (courteously) from the poll.

But you’re gonna have to start selling. Hard.

Then when I realized it is real my first reaction was NOOOOOOOOOO. But now I must say it could be fun.

My first year here was in ‘04, the first of the 4 wins out of the last 5. For each Apple Cup in Pullman I have camped out starting at about 5 AM the day of the game to get in the front row. Some of the best friendships I have forged in my time in Pullman were borne out of freezing my butt off waiting for the Cougs to play football. This last year, despite our difficulties, was the most fun I have ever had at a sporting event. I screamed until my throat bled, I cried a little when we stormed the field, and I had the time of my life. Qwest can not and will not be the same. EVER. I don’t care about the money or anything else. How will we ever get as pumped for defending Qwest as we do, both the team and fans, for defending Martin. There is nothing like stomping a rival at home, or beating them in their house and dancing on their turf. A piece of Cougar Football died today.

It won’t. The cotton bowl is almost perfectly equidistant from both schools. Qwest is 300 miles from Pullman and 3 miles from UW.

This move is what hiring Terry Porter would’ve been. A homerun potentially if all goes well, but far too high of a probability of a complete bust.

That they aren’t really keen on the idea, either.

Won’t he be playing double-a ball somewhere by then?

UW starts playing all their home games at Qwest when HS collapses? Won’t that be a home field advantage?

I’m sure Jim Walden is crying somewhere.

but I can’t fathom trying to get everyone as worked up in Qwest as they get in Martin. Qwest is loud, and I’ve been there for all but one of the Seattle Games, and I realize the AC would fill it to capacity. However, it just isn’t the same. Sure when it’s all done we could rush the field and dance like idiots, but the whole atmosphere before and after the game goes out the window. There would be no yellow lot tailgates across the street where everyone is having a blast, but there would be a bunch of tailgates way off the beaten path since you can’t tailgate in the main lot. There would be sweet victory, but no booing Huskies into leaving the Sports Page when you just wanna savor victory and knock down a few brews. There would be none of the same big town-little town stuff anymore, it would be just another “neutral” site, where people would be happy or sad, and then go disperse through a city that probably doesn’t care all that much. Seattle is a terrible sports town to begin with, so moving everything there just makes no sense. Not only that, but we would effectively eliminate any hope of ever getting another snow capped Apple Cup. It is not worth it, and the athletic department is not in such financial dire straits that we are looking at having to do what Western did to their football program. If we were it would be a different story. If you want a bowl game atmosphere then go to a bowl game when we earn it, not just when we inflate the rivalry game to that level, which I still don’t think would work.

this f*&%ing sucks.

When was the last time it snowed in Seattle on Apple Cup Saturday?

I still have a piece of Husky Stadium when we ripped appart the bleachers in ’97 (it sits in presented glory in the window of my man-cave)

How ‘bout making all those losers drive out 26 in shitty weather to play against us? I love it whenever I hears some 60 year old dawg bitching while he’s walking back to his Chevy Tahoe saying “we drove all the way out to this f*&%ing place for that.”

Picture Brandon Gibson catching a game winning touchdown and standing in an end-zone with the word “SEAHAWKS” writen on it.

Part of what makes college sports so great is the campus atmosphere. What’s next, home football games in San Antonio?

The game has to be played the Saturday after Thanksgiving!

Really trying to start a FireSterk.com site? Not renewing season tickets? Never attending anymore games? I thought we were Cougs through and through!?

I understand that money speaks, but seriously this takes every advantage that WSU has out of the equation (weather, travel, home crowd, large rowdy student body). I’d be curious to see how much revenue Pullman businesses lose in this change. We all want Pullman to be a growing town with plenty of business, restaurants, and hotels for college students and their families – yet we will be throwing that away with this decision. Also, in regards to the stadium remodel, do we really need that anymore? Apple Cup is the big ticket for season tickets, so expect ticket revenue to drop if STHs are not given GREAT seats at Qwest for relatively the same pricing. The main reason for getting season tickets at WSU is to be assured of Apple Cup tickets. Now with no need for AC tickets, why pay for the Oregon State, Idaho, Nevada type games? If we move the best game of the year to Seattle, we might as well move them all.

All we are doing is sabotaging our stadium remodel, taking away home field advantage, and putting additional revenue in King County instead of Pullman/Whitman County.

This decision sucks 10x more than Tony Bennett leaving. I live 5 minutes away from Qwest, so its not like I’m an East-side of the state person either. Coach Walden has to burning up right about now. The man who fought so hard to get the Apple Cup back to Pullman will be losing it – to Seattle. Are you kidding me?!!!

Plus, even with the 2 million – UW is getting the same 2 million. So maybe we get a little edge on the other 8 Pac-10 schools (which 2 million means nothing to – other than OSU); but we are just staying even with our rival. UW will be re-investing their 2 mil into athletics, and so WSU will have to follow suit. Athletics use what they receive, so an extra 2 mil just means we are spending 2 mil to keep up with the Jones. And again, taking money away from Pullman businesses. Everybody loves a half-dead Pullman, right? The upcoming addition of Suites, Loge Seats, Club Seats, concessions, etc. are what give WSU a financially competitive advantage (WSU earns extra revenue, while others stay the same). Taking away Apple Cup takes away a huge portion of this revenue stream. The only way I’m accepting of this if if its a 4 yr agreement or less; and would be taking place immediately. If its to help get us through the economic down-turn, then I understand – but permanently is a terrible idea.

I’m a student and I selfishly hate this move. That’s two potential Apple Cups in Pullman that I will be missing out on as a student.

There are going to be massive protests here on campus… I can already tell. I’ve already received two facebook group invitations about not moving the Apple Cup to Quest and the news has only been out for a few hours. Word is traveling fast and if students at this University have any say, this will not happen.

But that is a big ‘if’. Us students probably don’t have any say. After all they did take away some of our basketball seating this past year. Yet eventually they gave in and are going to be giving it back… so maybe there is hope this decision will be reversed/ won’t go through.

But I still felt sick to my stomach when I saw this. I don’t like playing the Apple Cup on the other side of the state in the Husky’s back yard every year. I don’t like the campus not being electric all week and all day for an event happing right next to the class rooms and down the street from the dorms. It’s just not the same thing when rivalry games aren’t played in the home stadium.

To me it loses a lot of what makes the games great, and does so by leaning an advantage towards Seattle.

Now that I’ve had some time to let it sink in I think it’s a terrible idea.

This is purely a money move for the AD department.

This sucks BIG TIME for the students. Are they going to accept student passes at Qwest for the AC? For the Dawgs, their home field advantage is somewhat diminished. For us, it is ANNIHILATED, I don’t care how many alum show up, the student section is always the most boisterous group of fans and rightfully so…it is THEIR team more then ours. THEIR time, and THEY deserve to enjoy it.

Even with all of the agony I experienced watching our horrendous AC losses in ‘00 and ’02 in person as a student I wouldn’t trade being at HOME for any venue in the world, no matter how nice it was. I would be sooooo bitter if I were a student right now, I feel for them, I really do.

This also sucks BIG TIME for the businesses in Pullman, who have ALWAYS been over the top supportive of Cougar athletics. I used to work at the Corner Market on Greek Row, I imagine if Bob is still there, he’s pacing around his place this morning, puffing smokes, just LIVID. The Apple Cup is arguably the biggest money-maker for Pullman’s businesses to come around all year long, and the AD just decided to pocket all of that money for themselves.

I live in Green Lake, so obviously this makes the Apple Cup 50% easier to attend than it was before from my perspective, but I don’t want it. I don’t NEED it.

The students and the businesses of Pullman, they NEED it.

Here are a few points.

1. Negative – This would not be good for the East Siders, because traveling over the mountains at this time of year can be treacherous. A lot of people in Spokane and other places won’t want to turn a 4-1/2 hr drive into a 10 hour drive because of weather. They also have to pay for gas and lodging.
2. Positive – But…yes, there is a lot of Cougars on the West Side.
3. Negative – We could miss memorable games like the 1992 Snowbowl in Pullman.
4. Positive – I personally can fly into Seattle stay with my family in the southland and go to the Apple Cup.
5. Negative – Hopefully they divide the tickets evenly, because you know those annoying Huskies (because it is basically a home game) will be snatching up those tickets. Hopefully we can get 33,000 Cougars there.
6. Positive – Financially it is good for the program and will also get us more publicity. If First & Goal, Inc. is paying all this money and promoting it, most likely it will be nationally televised.
7. Negative – We are breaking tradition.
8. Positive – This could become like “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.” The Georgia and Florida fans have to travel to Jacksonville ever year to watch there rivalry game. I think ours will become “The World’s Largest Keg Stand.” I hope they play this game on a weekend that is good for everyone. Thanksgiving weekend? Or maybe WSU needs to give students Monday and Friday off for the event. I will post the link about the “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Partly” below. The same thing goes for the Red River Rivalry, but that is located in Dallas, which is centered between OU and UT (which is ideal), so there is no advantage, but those crazy fans will travel anywhere.

Tell me this…How does OU have more rabid fans than WSU. The state of Oklahoma only has 3.5 million residents and the state of Washington has 6.5 million residents. Hmmmmm. I remember going to the 2003 OU/WSU Rose Bowl and there was twice as many OU fans as WSU fans. I know there they have tradition, but it just makes you wonder… By the way it was annoying to cover wagon run all over the place when they were pounding us. Rrrrrrrr!

Links:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_World%27s_Largest_Outdoor_Cocktail_Party

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_River_Shootout

On a neutral field, we won’t have images like this:

“Personally, I’m against it,” said Jim Walden, the ex-WSU coach who was on the sideline during that time and lobbied hard for a return of the game from Spokane to Pullman.

Walden said he understood Sterk’s position and appreciates the need to increase revenue at a time when proposed tuition increases and university budget cuts have strapped athletic departments.

But he added, recalling WSU’s double-overtime victory in Pullman last November, “Believe me, the ballgame [WSU] just got done winning, they would not have won anywhere else but Pullman. The emotion, that whole energy, was what kept hope alive.”

Some of you might like it. I’m guessing most of you won’t. :-)

If I were a student right now, I would be pissed but at the same time feel helpless in this whole situation. They are the one constant that adds so much to Pullman game-day experiences and they are getting left out on the streets. Also for the east-side Cougs, this blows chunks for them. I feel like we as a school lose our identity in this decision. If WSU alumni do not want to go to Pullman, then why should recruits want to commit 4 years of their life to that institution?

I seriously doubt that the last two Phases happen now, and if I were a student I would demand a stop to the student fees being paid towards the Martin Stadium upgrade. WSU is changing the terms on them. When these funds are stopped, you see a 10% drop in STH revenue, and a 30% drop in Student Passes, will the 2 million blood money still feel interesting, exciting, and new?

I’m sorry Nuss, but I can’t jump on board this wagon. For me, its personally a great thing travel-wise, but I feel we are robbing current students and future students of what we were able to enjoy. And to say those games were not enjoyable because of the weather is laughable. I watched the 1998 and 2000 Apple Cups in freezing cold weather when I was a student, and we lost both of them (the second one was down right terrible!). But in that cold 2000 (50-3) Apple Cup – is where I officially became a die-hard Coug. Seeing the advantages UW has, and disadvantages WSU encounters was enough to turn my allegiance to WSU and be a die-hard. With so many potential westside Cougs that grow up in Husky territory, the Apple Cup (in Pullman) might be that game where they understand what it means to be a Coug. I don’t know if you get that same experience by moving out of Pullman.