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USF Should End New Stadium Talk And Sign Long-Term RayJay Lease

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 15, 2008

The voicemails making their way around town from USF President Judy Genshaft reveal a university president out of touch with her community.

Genshaft is angry that Tampa landed the Atlantic Coast Conference championship game, which will be played at Raymond James Stadium on Dec. 6. She wants the stadium to accommodate a USF Bulls game that wasn't on the calendar when the ACC contract was signed.

But that's not how Genshaft characterizes the matter in a voicemail left with more than one person. Rather, she talks about "the actual eviction" of USF from the stadium.

"I'm really, really upset. The idea that you would kick us out ... is incomprehensible and terrible," she said. "It's forcing us to build our own stadium. I'm willing to do that."

Genshaft may be willing to build a stadium at USF, but this community is not.

Remember, USF-Tampa has had to hold classes at a movie theater because there aren't enough classrooms on campus. The university plans to turn away students this fall because there's not enough money to hire professors to teach them. And don't get us started on the on-campus parking nightmare, a problem this president has allowed to fester.

Before she leaves another message, Genshaft should know there is little support in this community for spending hundreds of millions of dollars on another stadium, plus millions more every year to keep it up.

What a terrible, terrible way to handle a disagreement.

How The Standoff Began

The Tampa Sports Authority and Tampa Sports Commission first tried to land the ACC championship game four years ago, but Jacksonville won out. However, disappointed with that city's performance, the ACC put the game out for bid again last year. It awarded Tampa the game this year and next, then moves the game to Charlotte for two years. After that, the ACC is expected to pick a permanent site.

The game meant 10,000 hotel room nights in Jacksonville - welcome news for Tampa Bay-area hotels, restaurants and entertainment venues. Plus, having another championship game in Tampa would further cement our reputation as a sports town.

But USF didn't share the community's excitement. Indeed, the university tried to keep it from happening.

Back in the fall, USF tried to secure the stadium rights for every Saturday in December, whether or not a game was scheduled. The sports authority refused, saying the deal would shut out concerts, tractor pulls and any hope of luring back the Florida Classic, the historic game between Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman that left town after some area merchants treated fans shabbily.

Besides, the sports authority argued, USF has a short-term lease that can be severed with two years' notice. It's believed the university negotiated such a lease so that when the time is right, it can easily pull out and build its own stadium.

It's rumored a site for the stadium has already been chosen.

Rival Conferences A Factor, Too

USF is in the Big East Conference, which a few years back lost some member teams to the rival ACC. The vacancies gave USF a leg up and in.

The Big East, however, lacks the number of teams required to hold a NCAA-sanctioned championship game. To remain in the spotlight, it schedules its last game of the season the same week that other conferences hold their championships.

When Tampa was bidding for the ACC championship, USF urged caution, knowing the date might conflict with its own needs. USF Trustee John Ramil says the university suggested the possibility of signing a long-term lease at RayJay, but was rebuffed because contract negotiations with the ACC were well under way. Nor was there time to renegotiate the contract before the season's start.

Last month, the Big East contacted USF about playing Rutgers at Raymond James on the Thursday night before the ACC game. But the ACC, which has the stadium reserved for pre-game festivities, refused to give it up.

That's when Genshaft started leaving irate voicemails, promising to call everybody she knew, starting with Mayor Pam Iorio.

A Possible Solution

Truth be told, USF has a legitimate argument, no matter the president's poor public relations.

If Tampa secures the ACC championship game for the long term, the Bulls will never be able to play the last game of their season at home. Such a limitation would place this exciting young team at a terrible disadvantage for what might be the biggest game of the year.

As Iorio brings the warring factions together today, we offer this as a proposed solution:

The university should give up talk of building a new stadium and move toward signing a long-term contract - of 15 to 20 years - at Raymond James.

The sports authority should reserve the stadium for USF the first week in December, or whenever its last game is scheduled. It's not clear why the university wanted the entire month of December, which would prevent other community events there.

And the authority should forego pursuing a long-term contract with the ACC.

While the ACC conference game will mean much to this community, USF means more.

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