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Solutions Surfacing In Stadium Standoff

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 22, 2008

If good people with competing agendas keep an eye on the greater good, it's often possible to find a compromise that works for everyone.

And so it is with the scheduling conflict at Raymond James Stadium that has pitted the University of South Florida against local sports and tourism officials who recruited the Atlantic Coast Conference football championship to town the first weekend of December.

In a meeting with Mayor Pam Iorio last week, stakeholders in the standoff agreed that USF should pursue a long-term lease at the stadium and - after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, of course - get first dibs on scheduling games. USF is Tampa's home team and deserves top priority.

But no football team gets to play at home the last game of every season, so the university should not demand that the stadium go dark in those years when the Bulls play away.

So a proposal by Hillsborough Commissioner Jim Norman, to convene a follow-up group that seeks to negotiate the differences and find a compromise, makes sense. The Tampa Sports Authority will hear the proposal Monday.

Already, signs suggest the dispute will end with a win-win.

ACC Associate Commissioner Michael Kelly, who was in Tampa on Friday for planning meetings, said his conference is willing to talk about long-term scheduling possibilities. Kelly said he has spoken with colleagues in the Big East Conference - in which USF plays - and they also expressed a willingness to address long-term scheduling.

Other partners should join the discussion, too. Officials say the Bucs will have to sign off on any long-term contract with USF. And ESPN, the sports network that televises both the ACC and the Big East games, needs to buy into the understanding, too.

USF Athletic Director Doug Woolard should take the lead in working out the details with the Big East. And he should work posthaste to negotiate a long-term lease with the stadium. It is in the best interests of the university and the community for USF to lock up the stadium for as long as possible, at the lowest possible rate.

It's unfortunate the dispute momentarily turned ugly last week, but with the right people at the table, a solution will be found that maximizes the stadium's use and honors Tampa's tradition as a great sports town.

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