Green field with no markings... and possibly NO HEATING COILS

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short ornery norwegian said:
I agree with Dr. Don.

For two seasons, every Vikings home game will begin with the phrase, "from TCF Bank Stadium on the University of Minnesota Campus, it's time for Vikings football." The announcers will spend part of the broadcast discussing the fact that they're playing at the U of M campus. There will be shots of the stadium and the campus. And, let's not forget, all games at TCF will be televised into the market of the visiting team - maybe even into a market where the Gophs might be recruiting. Plus, some of the games will be nationally televised, showing off the stadium to prospective recruits everywhere.
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Considering the stadium has had little affect on recruiting so far doubt that any factor with regards to the Vikings playing there will change a thing.
 

First off the whole worry about the painted field thing is stupid. This is 2013 not 1975, pretty sure they can make a painted field look professional and not tacky. We are not talking about somebody going out and laying down chalk lines or something like that like they had to do when the Twins were in the playoffs and the Gophers were playing at the Dome. Every Sunday when the Vikings play they will be talking during the broadcast about the playing at "TCF Bank Stadium on the Campus of the University of Minnesota" Every cut away shot on the broadcast will show the campus, the M is all over the scoreboard just because the friggin block M is not at Midfield and the Endzone is green it isn't like people aren't going to know they are playing at the U's stadium.

The heated field thing vs. a heated tarp is also a non-issue for the U in the long run. As someone else pointed out the U is getting a tool it can use in bad weather situations and for the most part it doesn't matter anyway because we aren't playing there in December.

The key in all this as the rational people have pointed out the U is getting a NEW field for FREE and in two years when the Vikes move into their fancy new digs the U will be free to get things back to exactly where they want it in terms of look and branding. In the meantime they will have gotten stadium upgrades, additional revenue and a FREE field.
 

kellyleeks said:
Nice post, brotha. I listened to Thorogood's Bad to the Bone, while reading it overand over again. The NFL sucks. I've read reports that expect sexual violence ton increase by over 85% on camous when the Vikings are hosting.
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The NFL and I guess televised football in general stinks. Television has ruined football with all their tv time outs. I would rather watch paint dry than a "live" football game.
 

They will have heating coils.....there was so much b!tching and whining about how frozen the field was by the Vikes players. Just don't see it happening w/o coils after what we had to listen to.
 

Would you rather have a -7-0 record on a painted field or a 6-1 record on a field where the block M is integrated into the field.

I understand not wanting to give the Vikes a break after the crappy deal we had in the dome, but in the grand scheme of things I don't think this really matters.
 


With all the bitching and moaning this thread sounds like a menopausal feminist convention. It is amazing with a lack of information how people will fill that void with just about anything. The Gophers will come out of this just fine. They will get a ton of excellent exposure that they normally wouldn't due to 2 seasons of Vikings games being played at the Bank and regardless whether there is a block M at midfield or not. In the end they also end up with an upgraded facility.
 

46Gophers said:
With all the bitching and moaning this thread sounds like a menopausal feminist convention. It is amazing with a lack of information how people will fill that void with just about anything. The Gophers will come out of this just fine. They will get a ton of excellent exposure that they normally wouldn't due to 2 seasons of Vikings games being played at the Bank and regardless whether there is a block M at midfield or not. In the end they also end up with an upgraded facility.
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You very elegantly described over analyze.
 

I'm not familiar with the heated tarp/blanket. Does anyone know how well they work and where they have been used before?
 

Halsey Hall said:
we already have a brand new field. Painted logos aren't as effective as permanent ones.
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No, we have a field that is nearly 5 years old, which means it is almost time to replace it. In what way are they less effective? If you want to say they don't look as good, yea, I'd agree. But they still convey the logo. It's like anyone watching the game won't know where the game is being played because the Block M isn't popping as much.
 



Parski1 said:
They will have heating coils.....there was so much b!tching and whining about how frozen the field was by the Vikes players. Just don't see it happening w/o coils after what we had to listen to.
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There will be a heating tool, but it may not be coils. They could (as already noted several times) use a heating blanket. It's not a weird tech to the NFL, the Bills use it.
 

Don't know about effectiveness, but as Kessler notes in the interview it is what the Buffalo Bills use.
 

Grant said:
Yup. This is what I see happening. We better get the cash in escrow for the new field or we will get hosed out of the new field and will have to paint on our own home field. Only the Gophers...
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So your honest opinion is that the U will allow the Vikings to break a signed contract?
 

You guys are so funny. If you don't think the University is making out like bandits on this deal, your nuts. And if you don't think the legislature, who gives the vast majority of the money to the U, hasn't told the U in no uncertain terms that this IS going to happen, then you are smoking something. Hell, maybe they'll even get registers now. The only ones getting screwed by this are people that live in the neighborhood and have to deal with weekends and 2 games. This is good for the athletic department (although I don't recall reading whether the money from the Vikings goes to the athletic department or the general fund, anyone know?).
 



Bagley us a prick. He is the one that fought the building of TCF, arguing the U didn't need a stadium since the gophers could not leave the state. That was the last straw. Let the Vikings eat cake. How is that Unneeded U stadium looking now bagley? Frickin parasite.
 

tundra said:
Bagley us a prick. He is the one that fought the building of TCF, arguing the U didn't need a stadium since the gophers could not leave the state. That was the last straw. Let the Vikings eat cake. How is that Unneeded U stadium looking now bagley? Frickin parasite.
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I don't recall him saying that. I know Ruesse did.
 

tundra said:
Bagley us a prick. He is the one that fought the building of TCF, arguing the U didn't need a stadium since the gophers could not leave the state. That was the last straw. Let the Vikings eat cake. How is that Unneeded U stadium looking now bagley? Frickin parasite.
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Not to say you are wrong but do you have a link?
 


GoAUpher said:
So your honest opinion is that the U will allow the Vikings to break a signed contract?
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Yes. The Vikings are bullies and the Gopher administration are spineless twerps including Teague. Once the Vikings don't need us anymore they will do whatever they can to not pay for a new field. Remember how long it took for them to pay for the one game they played at TCF?
 

Grant said:
Yes. The Vikings are bullies and the Gopher administration are spineless twerps including Teague.
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Fair enough. I think you're crazy (if they were so spineless then why would they even negotiate such a hard-line contract in the first place?) but it's your opinion. The Teague part is especially curious given that I can't recall a single thing he's done since taking the job that would qualify as spineless. NOTE: that's not to say I think he's been flawless as an AD, but spineless isn't an adjective that seems even remotely accurate.

Grant said:
Once the Vikings don't need us anymore they will do whatever they can to not pay for a new field. Remember how long it took for them to pay for the one game they played at TCF?
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I don't actually recall the payment being a massive issue. If you've got a link to this huge delay I'd love to see it.
 

I don't have a link but they Vikings took over a year to pay in full and they only paid "in full" after the Gophers discounted the agreed upon amount by over $140k. Bottom line, get the money while you have the leverage or the Vikings will stick the U. The Vikings have no respect for the U administration and view them as pathetic pussies.
 

Grant said:
I don't have a link but they Vikings took over a year to pay in full and they only paid "in full" after the Gophers discounted the agreed upon amount by over $140k. Bottom line, get the money while you have the leverage or the Vikings will stick the U. The Vikings have no respect for the U administration and view them as pathetic pussies.
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I don't totally recall the discount you're talking about (though it sounds familiar) but it's worth remembering that everything related to that Bears game was done on the fly in a very short timeframe. In other words, the legal framework could have been weaker/up in the air and it was in response to an emergent event (i.e. a situation where the U might choose to simply recoup costs and nothing else).

This 2 year deal is nothing like that, having been negotiated and hammered out over a multiple month period. Again, I can't say you're wrong for believing that the U will somehow cave on the details of an agreement they worked hard to make strict (it's an opinion about the future after all), but that idea doesn't make a lot of logical sense. If they were going to cave, they would have done it already.

Whether the Vikings do or do not respect the U has no bearing on the situation. All it takes to hold the Vikings to the deal is a press release threatening to sue them for non-payment and breach of contract. The bad PR alone is a big time stick.
 

Except that the Vikings will paint the U as the bad guy and the public generally likes the Vikings a lot more than the U. If we don't get the money up front for the new field, there is a great chance the Vikings stiff us and we go along with it in a "well the field is practically brand new and the paint doesn't look so bad and gosh darn it we want to be a good neighbor" kind of Minnesota way. Also, the Vikings will complain about how the arrangement ended up costing them more than they expected with lost ad revenue and lower concessions. This will NOT be a healthy relationship.
 


Grant said:
Except that the Vikings will paint the U as the bad guy and the public generally likes the Vikings a lot more than the U.
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Something tells me the "general public" (who are not a uniform Viking loving block after the stadium bill) won't look kindly on the Vikings for breaking a contract they agreed to in good faith. It's not like the Vikings can suddenly pretend they were forced into the deal...they picked a stadium location that required it. This whole thing is their doing.

Grant said:
If we don't get the money up front for the new field, there is a great chance the Vikings stiff us and we go along with it in a "well the field is practically brand new and the paint doesn't look so bad and gosh darn it we want to be a good neighbor" kind of Minnesota way.
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If this was going to happen it would have already happened (i.e. there'd be no clause for a 2nd field).[/QUOTE]
Grant said:
Also, the Vikings will complain about how the arrangement ended up costing them more than they expected with lost ad revenue and lower concessions. This will NOT be a healthy relationship.
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And all the U has to say is "too bad, you signed the deal" and "your choice of a stadium location is the cause of all this, it's not our fault you didn't plan properly."

Look, I can't prove you wrong b/c again, opinions. But if the U was as weak as you say then the cave would already happened. And for the Vikings to get away with the kind of moves you assume will take place, they'd have to whitewash years of public statements and negotiating positions. It's not going to happen.
 

Didn't they say many times that they would put in heating coils? Now - "uh, maybe we will use a blanket or something". The Vikings have no problem going back on public statements. I could be totally wrong but I expect this to be a very unhealthy relationship with the U taking tremendous abuse and insult every step of the way.
 

Ski U Mah Gopher said:
The amount of paranoia on this board is remarkable.
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Dammit, I am Not paranoid. The Government is monitoring my cell phone calls and my internet traffic; The CIA is implanting listening devices in my dental work; Obama care will have death panels to deny coverage to conservatives; and vaccinations cause mental retardation.
 

Grant said:
Didn't they say many times that they would put in heating coils? Now - "uh, maybe we will use a blanket or something". The Vikings have no problem going back on public statements. I could be totally wrong but I expect this to be a very unhealthy relationship with the U taking tremendous abuse and insult every step of the way.
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And if the blanket is cheaper and works just as well, let them buy it. The U has veto power on all stadium decisions as it is stated in the contract. The U doesn;t really need the coils system...if the blanket is a cheaper alternative that works just as well, then go ahead.

The amount of paranoia that legal contracts won't be followed amazes me....normally when the U f's up, its on the actually agreement in the contract, not after the contract is in effect. They have a lot of well paid lawyers to make sure that everything in the contract is followed....
 

short ornery norwegian said:
Dammit, I am Not paranoid. The Government is monitoring my cell phone calls and my internet traffic; The CIA is implanting listening devices in my dental work; Obama care will have death panels to deny coverage to conservatives; and vaccinations cause mental retardation.
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Is Parski really one of us?:rolleyes:
 

Grant said:
Didn't they say many times that they would put in heating coils? Now - "uh, maybe we will use a blanket or something". The Vikings have no problem going back on public statements. I could be totally wrong but I expect this to be a very unhealthy relationship with the U taking tremendous abuse and insult every step of the way.
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Because changing their mind on which heating method to pay for (something they didn't have to have decided yet) is exactly the same as reneging on a signed contract and going back on their public support for paying the Gophers X dollars for the use of TCF.
 

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