You are dead on the money, my man, in more ways than one. My point is not necessarily "why it happened," but "what then happened." I want to see us avoid that fate, cause "don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you got til it's gone? Paved paradise and put up a parking lot."
BHG Stadium/Steve Spurrier/Florida Field is iconic and instantly recognizable by the four “wings” (is there an official name for these?) and 90 vertical rows of seating between the wings. I know this because when I was a student-athlete at Gainesville High, we had to jog from there to the stadium and run the stadium steps all the way to the top, then jog back to school (I still have nightmares about it and a bum knee). I believe only the LA Coliseum has more continuous single level rows? Renovations on the East stands are limited. The Florida Pool and Gymnasium- former “Alligator Alley”-are designated as historical landmarks. Constructing a fancy facade or beams to support luxury suites or an awning for shade would be difficult on that side. The big trend in stadiums today is field-level “fans zones.” To have one in BHG would involve the removal of a few rows of seating, most likely in one of the end zones. Tennessee added one this year, along with a fan zone around the scoreboard in the north end zone where fans can gather, eat and walk around with a full view of the playing field. The Gator Bowl and Texas A&M built premium club seating with access to a climate-controlled lounge between the 30-yard lines about 15-20 rows up. The “wings” would be ideal for a fan zone space or luxury suites. A section of the North end zone could remove a few rows for a “fan zone” balcony. The South end zone’s first 5-6 rows on the second level that extend the wings' design element on the 2nd level would be an ideal space for a fan zone. Each of these proposal would involve a reduction of the stadium’s capacity. Which is unfortunate. The biggest factor for the Gators’ lower attendance average in the last 15 years-bad coaches and bad losses. This season with the buzz of Napier and a good home schedule, all but 1 game was sold out. There’s nothing more glorious than 90,000 Gator fans packing Florida Feld cheering the Gators on at the top or their lungs, disrupting the opponent’s QB play-calling, swaying to “We Are the Boys” and singing Tom Petty.
Where did you find this photo? I've beenb searching for images of the stadium and searching youtube for videos of Gator games pre-1970's with little success.
Ol boys wouldn’t let Miami cheat right beside them. They got knocked down by the good ol boys that have always been our problem too.
What makes the Swamp, The Swamp is NOT the size of the crowd but the energy and noise of the crowd. The shape of the stadium rises at a higher degree than most. The noise is amplified. A few thousand seats less will make no difference if the fans are into it. More comfort when people are happy to be in front of their big TVs will draw more, especially if we are winning. It is the smart thing to do.
I'm just curious how existing ticket holders will be impacted. I love my seats in section 12, but when the total number of seats gets reduced, will I have enough booster points/priority to retain good seats? Or will the per-seat fee jump astronomically? Time will tell...
seems like there was an article a while back where all the engineering showed some 7-9k seats would be displaced with seat back chairs and the additional space required. And we know without even thinking about it the ticket prices will go up. I’m fine with all that it is the way all things are going. Put a winning product in the field and we won’t even notice..
I go to 2 to 3 games a year and pay stub hub prices to sit where I want and basically paid the lower end of booster prices to sit there. I will continue to pay to be where I want to sit and hopefully it has a freaking seat.
Boom. Nailed it. I think the sentiments of “don’t change anything “are sorely lacking the entire reason we are all here- to win. Uni combos occasionally, modern LED lights and seating etc all give us an advantage- playing new mumble auto tune mumble rap before the games is awful- but the kids love it and that’s the whole point. And if 1 person says “but BaMa DuZnT chAnge UnIForms” I swear to God my head will explode. WE ARE NOT BAMA. We are Florida. We should have our own swag. Our own things - and yeah, We are the boys, Petty, the humidity, the noise- that’s all part of it… but adding lights and some uni swag just enhances those other things and makes kids wanna come here.
Our urinal cakes should be fresh and changed out for Saturdays games with the logos of the opposing team on them. Nothing like a target you dont like...is it really too much to ask for in our renovation?
I imagine lowers risk to University as well. There's always the potential for bad things to happen when you push crowd density. Who am I kidding...its about the $$$.
Reminds me of when I still lived in G'ville. I superglued a noles logo inside my toilet bowl and every trip to the bathroom was very satisfying.
I was at the Dolphins vs Bills game in September. It was hotter than 2 rats f&$king in a wool sock. Seriously. Miami stadium has that shade zone that kept Dolphins in the shade and visiting team just roasted. Biggest home field advantage for any game I have ever attended, much more so than a loud game or emotional game. I wish we could do similar for our fans. (Plus maybe use some tech from Qatar about outside air conditioning for fans throughout the standium)
