I have heard coach Kill in interviews and he mentions the heating coil system
I think I have even heard coach Kill mention heating coils in an interview after the Wisconsin game or a more permenant heating system then what Lester Bagley keeps talking about. I really don't think it is the U dragging their feet on what type of heating system to put in to TCF it seems to be consistently the Vikings that bring up the heated tarp scenario used in Buffalo as what they are negotiating for the cheapest soloution possible. In the end the U will be responsible for maintaining any upgrades that are made but this just doesn't seem like the U is the one that is at an impasse. It seems like the Vikings as they were with the stadium legislation issue continue to dicker with and are the ones trying to avoid leaving the U with anything they have to pay for as far as upgrades. I know negotiating a business deal like this is complicated and you want your bosses to feel good about the deal they got, but in this instance as much money as the Wilfs received from the taxpayers to fund their palace, and padding their pockets they would at least look to be a good corporate citizen and look for some good PR.
The Vikings are like the renter or leasee that want's to use your unit, or commericial property,.max it out for what they can get for it, or push it to the limits, and then leave you with a big clean up bill and a bunch of damage to fix, and then they continue to want to be late with the rent or pay even less rent then originally agreed to. This is my hunch on how the Vikings will treat TCF stadium. They will come in do the shoddy work they want but only make things useable for as long as they are in the building to sell beer and the things they want. You can bet there going to paper the walls of the stadium and decks with temporary advertising, and even get some kind of advertising deal for the club room on game day. The Vikings will look to skate and push every curve of the envelope there is in the use agreement, it is how they operated at the dome. You can bet they are angling to get parking revenue.
Read the articles and the interviews that Lester Bagley is giving he is the one that keeps nickle and diming on stuff, not the U. All they have to do is look east to Green Bay and they will realize they cannot play December and January NFL games in Minnesota without a permanent heat source to keep the field thawed out. The tarp system is not going to work especially when you have the extremes we have had this December and January.
If they care about player safety as much as they say they do, they will stop touting the tarp system, it will not work in Minnesota.
The Vikings are the one's insisting on the paintable field, yet they want a tarp system for heat, makes no sense to remove the field and add a paintable field if your going to think you can tarp it off and heat it and that will work. What's the sense in ripping up the existing field if only to help the Vikings pay their sponsers back with field advertising, and so they can have their logo on the field and end zones.
I have said it before Lester Bagley is like a pimple you cannot pop, he will try and scream and holler but the Vikings really do not hold the cards the U does. They will end up doing what is best for player safety but it will be kicking and screaming the whole way. The U lawyers and AD, need to hold firm and negotiate a tough bargain, they are in the drivers seat not the Vikings.
