Calgary ranked #38 Sports City

[the_only_turek_fan]

http://msn.foxsports.com/story/2631604?GT1=4550

Other notables.
Boston #1
Tampa Bay #14
Toronto #26 //First Canadian city to show up
Vancouver #44
Edmonton #47
Winnipeg #366 //Thats a bit unfair, IMO
Sain John #368 //The Last city on the list.

Thoughts?

[Hugeflamesfan]

Wheres MOntreal?

[looooob]

actually this is from the Sporting News...same series of articles that gave Calgary number one hockey town this year

Montreal is 33

Winnipeg has only CFL, AHL and independent baseball...I think TSN is weighted heavily towards 4 big pro leagues and NCAA

[peter12]

How in the heck is Boston number 1???

[looooob]

Originally posted by peter12@Aug 10 2004, 10:29 AM
How in the heck is Boston number 1???
TSN's Rationale is included on their site

basically the Patriots won the super bowl, and all other 'big 3' prosports teams made the playoffs , their college teams did well, as did some other local teams and the usual background stuff Boston Marathon etc.

[Poison]

How is Columbus ahead of us, what have they done lately???
Maybe college sports i suppose, is that where Ohio State plays?

[rb_chimp]

No Halifax? but Saint John is there??

[Displaced Flames fan]

Tough to argue with Boston IMO.

They have all 4 major sports with deep histories (save the Pats) and rabid followings. They have the recent success of the Pats. They have 2 of the best NCAA hockey programs in the country with rabid followings. A few AHL teams to boot.

Birthplace of basketball and the HOF for that sport is in Springfield. Boston marathon.

Not many cities can boast that many sporting options.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Originally posted by Poison@Aug 10 2004, 04:34 PM
How is Columbus ahead of us, what have they done lately???
Maybe college sports i suppose, is that where Ohio State plays?
Yeah, Ohio State plays there. Storied football program with a stadium that outseats anything the NFL has to offer. When you can get 100,000 people to a college football game every single week like they do, and even more so in Ann Arbor which isn't as big as Columbus, that's impressive.

Not much in the way of pro sports though.

[Displaced Flames fan]

Wichita #141...lol.

I guess that's on the strength of WSU Shocker baseball and the newly rejuvenated Shocker basketball program.

[picard]

still isn't 38 a signifiicant rise from last year? I seem to remember posts on the rankings last year. Great to see us ahead of the Chuck. I'm sure Laforge will whine about that too.

[Resolute 14]

Stanley Cup victory notwithstanding, Tampa at 14 is a joke. Seattle, Indy, Baltimore, St. Louis all deserve to be ahead.

Nashville at 19? For what?

[AaronSJ]

Originally posted by rb_chimp@Aug 10 2004, 11:37 AM
No Halifax? but Saint John is there??
Must have something to do with having professional sports, which would explain why my hometown came dead last (given that they recently lost their only professional sports entity), while bigger cities like Halifax & Quebec aren't listed.

Interesting enough, the bottom six cities are(were) all AHL cities - something that's no coincidence, I'm sure.

[zarrell]

Originally posted by Snakeeye@Aug 10 2004, 11:00 AM
Stanley Cup victory notwithstanding, Tampa at 14 is a joke. Seattle, Indy, Baltimore, St. Louis all deserve to be ahead.

Nashville at 19? For what?
Football, stock car racing and more football

[CaptainCrunch]

I can see another lively debate on Oilfans about Edmonton ranking behind us as far as sports towns go

[BigOilFan]

Originally posted by CaptainCrunch@Aug 10 2004, 11:52 PM
I can see another lively debate on Oilfans about Edmonton ranking behind us as far as sports towns go
We aren't as nearly obsessed with are rivals as you seem to be.

[Hugeflamesfan]

Originally posted by BigOilFan+Aug 11 2004, 02:17 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (BigOilFan @ Aug 11 2004, 02:17 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-CaptainCrunch@Aug 10 2004, 11:52 PM
I can see another lively debate on Oilfans about Edmonton ranking behind us as far as sports towns go
We aren't as nearly obsessed with are rivals as you seem to be. [/b][/quote]
:rolleyes:

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally posted by BigOilFan+Aug 11 2004, 02:17 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (BigOilFan @ Aug 11 2004, 02:17 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-CaptainCrunch@Aug 10 2004, 11:52 PM
I can see another lively debate on Oilfans about Edmonton ranking behind us as far as sports towns go
We aren't as nearly obsessed with are rivals as you seem to be. [/b][/quote]
are you kidding me, there's a 6 page debate on the report that named the Flames as the top city in hockey this year.

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by Snakeeye@Aug 10 2004, 05:00 PM
Stanley Cup victory notwithstanding, Tampa at 14 is a joke. Seattle, Indy, Baltimore, St. Louis all deserve to be ahead.

Nashville at 19? For what?
Tampa has a lot going for it in the Sports World.
1) Home to three major Sports Franchises (Bucs, Bolts, D-Rays)
2) Home to Division I College Teams in Basketball, Baseball and Football (USF which is the largest university in the state). USF will begin playing in the big east next year.
3) Since 1997 the Bucs have been a playoff team 5 of the last 7 years
4) The Bucs won the SuperBowl in 2002
5) The Bucs have sold out every game since 1997 and there are 108,000 people on their season ticket waiting list
6) Tampa is the corporate HQ of the New York Yankees and home to the Yankees Single A club (Tampa Yankees)
7) Tampa is a mecca for Baseball spring training. Yankee spring training games are all sell-outs. The D-Rays (St. Petersburg), Philadelphia Phillies (Clearwater), Pittsburgh Pirates (Bradenton), Detroit Tigers (Lakeland) and Toronto Blue Jays (Dunedin) all train in the Tampa metro area
8) Tampa is the home of the Outback Bowl (pitting a SEC team against a Big 10 team) which is always a sell-out
9) Tampa is home to the Buick Classic on the PGA Tour
10) Tampa is home to the Outback Classic on the Seniors Tour
11) Tampa hosted the NCCA Basketball quarterfinals two years ago and hosted the finals in 1999 (UConn beat Duke)
12) Tampa is home to the winningest Arena Football Team (the Storm have won 5 Arena Bowls the last being in 2003)
13) Tampa is home to many pro athletes including Jennifer Capriati, Light Heavyweight Champion Antonio Tarver, Junior Middleweight Champion Winky Wright, Three-time Olympic Gold Medalist Brooke Bennett and PGA Golfer John Houston. Not to mention such baseball stars as Tino Martinez, Lou Pinella, Gary Sheffield, Wade Boggs.
14) Oh and almost forgot home of the Stanley Cup Champion (and back-to-back) Southeast Division Winner) Tampa Bay Lightning.

That's 14 reasons why Tampa is #14 on the list.

[MrMastodonFarm]

15)The Immortal Hulk Hogan

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by MrMastodonFarm@Aug 11 2004, 05:40 PM
15)The Immortal Hulk Hogan
He's not from here, he's an import so don't blame us for him.

[TPA_TPC]

I had one other comment about the list. It has to do with Boston being number #1. Sure it is hard to argue that it isn't number one being the home of the Super Bowl Champion, but anyone that knows anything about Boston sports knows that the city lives and dies with the fortunes of the Boston Red Sox and we all know that they haven't won the World Series since 1918. Based on that alone, how can they be #1? Also, when was the last time that the Bruins or the Celtics won anything?

Also in an earlier post, someone stated that Springfield is home to the NBA HOF and where Basketball was invented. Springfield is on the other side of the state.

[The Goon]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC+Aug 11 2004, 11:48 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (TPA_TPC @ Aug 11 2004, 11:48 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-MrMastodonFarm@Aug 11 2004, 05:40 PM
15)The Immortal Hulk Hogan
He's not from here, he's an import so don't blame us for him. [/b][/quote]
With its long tradition of outstanding masked wrestlers, "Parts Unknown" should have made the list of top sports cities.

[looooob]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 12:25 PM
I had one other comment about the list. It has to do with Boston being number #1. Sure it is hard to argue that it isn't number one being the home of the Super Bowl Champion, but anyone that knows anything about Boston sports knows that the city lives and dies with the fortunes of the Boston Red Sox and we all know that they haven't won the World Series since 1918. Based on that alone, how can they be #1? Also, when was the last time that the Bruins or the Celtics won anything?

Also in an earlier post, someone stated that Springfield is home to the NBA HOF and where Basketball was invented. Springfield is on the other side of the state.
I'm not sure I follow you....because Boston's favorite team is the Red Sox, they shouldn't be ranked number 1 until the Sox win?

their city still won one of the 'big 4' sporting championships (arguably the biggest) and all 3 other teams had playoff years I think. plus the other stuff.

Plus I think the status is for THIS SEASON ONLY, meaning the fact the Bruins haven't won in 30 years is no more or less relevant than the Bucs (as an example) winning the Superbowl a few years ago. neither is included

I don't have a problem with Boston winning

[TPA_TPC]

Good Points Loooob. These polls are stupid though, all they do is measure bandwagoners.

[greerb]

I can't argue with Boston being the #1 sports city all of the teams that they have a really strong fan folowing. As for TPA_TPC's Tampa rant, TB is new to the world of sports. How long have the Devil Rays, Buckaneers, and the Lightning been in town? They don't have an NBA team whitch in the US POV would probaly put them up a few ranks. 10,000 people came out for the SC parade, where in Calgary 30,000+ came out to the ralley? How are the Ray's attendance? How did the lightning do for attendance when they first came to town, if 300+ people from Calgary could still get tickets for game 7 of the SC finals in TB there is something wrong for fan support for the lightning. Give them a few years TB might be a decent Sport City, for now they are just too new to this.

[Resolute 14]

Dont get me wrong, TPA, I'm not belittling Tampa as a sports market. I agree that it should be high up, even higher than Calgary (especially since Canadian based leagues arent really factored in), but I wouldnt put Tampa ahead of the markets I mentioned, and a couple others.

Top 20 or 25 though, definitely.

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by greerb@Aug 11 2004, 07:05 PM
I can't argue with Boston being the #1 sports city all of the teams that they have a really strong fan folowing. As for TPA_TPC's Tampa rant, TB is new to the world of sports. How long have the Devil Rays, Buckaneers, and the Lightning been in town? They don't have an NBA team whitch in the US POV would probaly put them up a few ranks. 10,000 people came out for the SC parade, where in Calgary 30,000+ came out to the ralley? How are the Ray's attendance? How did the lightning do for attendance when they first came to town, if 300+ people from Calgary could still get tickets for game 7 of the SC finals in TB there is something wrong for fan support for the lightning. Give them a few years TB might be a decent Sport City, for now they are just too new to this.
You make some really good points in your posts. Relatively speaking Tampa is a fairly new sports city. Some cities have had baseball for over 100 years and football for 80 years. Outside of Canada, there are only a handful of American cities that have a long hockey tradition (Detroit, Chicago, New York, Boston). What really builds a teams following is tradition. I grew-up in New York for example and can still remember the first Yankee game my dad took me to and he can remember the first Yankee game his dad took him to. You cannot grow that type of tradition overnight. Usually what has to happen is if a new team comes into your market there is an initial interest out of curiousty but to sustain that interest, a team needs to have some sucess since sports is a form of entertainment. All of a sudden, it is no longer just going to see a game, it is an event to go. This has been the case with the Buccaneers for years, and going to Lightning games has become an event recently (over the last couple of years). The Devil Rays haven't caught on yet for three reasons: 1) They have never finished out of last place, 2) They don't actually play in Tampa and there is a Tampa vs St. Pete rivalry down here, 3) Since the Yankees train in Tampa there are a lot of Yankee loyalists down here.

Tampa like all of Florida is football country so the town lives and dies with the Bucs. If you don't have season tickets, Bucs tickets cannot be had. Even though this is a NON-traditional hockey market, the town is completely captivated by the Lightning, so the Bolt's future here is extremely bright (Tampa is a good sports town). There has always been a loyal Lightning following, but most of the fans have been northern transplants (US and Canadian) which make-up a large portion of the population. A big shift has come down here in recent years where the locals have started to take an interest. The last couple of years the Lightning have drawn well and I anticipate that getting Lightning tickets will be has hard to get as Bucs tickets in the near future (although a lock-out that cancels the season would really hurt). The D-Rays just aren't there yet. Being in the same division as the Yankees and Red Sox doesn't help (the Yankee payroll is $200 million, the Sox is $130 million and the D-Rays are $38 million).

To answer some of your other questions, the Buccaneers came into being for the 1976 season, the Lightning in 1993 and the D-Rays in 1995. I don't think that it is an accident that the success of the various franchises are also in-line with how long they have been around. Although we don't have an NBA franchise, if you really wanted to go to a game, the Orlando Magic are about an hour and a half away. As far as Canadian city rankings, I don't think it can be measured without taking the CFL into account.

Bottom line is, Is Tampa as big a sports town as Boston, Chicago, New York, Philadelpia. If you are talking just football, I would argue that it ranks higher. Not only is the NFL as big of a deal, but high school football is a bigger deal and College football is by far bigger (Florida, Florida State, Miami). Is Tampa as big of a sport town in general? Of course not, due to the youth of our teams, the tradition isn't there yet, we have a fraction of the population and only have three of the big four sports. As far as 300+ Calgarians (is that the correct term?) getting tickets to Game 7 of the SC finals, yeah you could get tickets. The game was sold out but like all sporting events there were scalpers lurking. Tickets in the lower bowl were going for $1,500 (believe me I know). As far as those rankings, I don't put much stock in them but #14 sounds about right.

[TPA_TPC]

I have a question for you guys. I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL? Is it a big deal up there? Do games sell-out? Also, does your universities have football teams?

[Bill Bumface]

I used to be a CFL fan, until I realized that the mayor of Oakland was right when he said he'd rather have a tractor pulling race than a CFL franchise. The league is sort of a joke, with the exception of when you get to watch guys that are on their way to the nfl (Flutie, Garcia). If anything it just made me more interested in the NFL when I got to watch those guys.

As for CIS (university) football... no one cares at all. I think there is more interest in highschool football (teenage girls.. :P)

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by hulkrogan@Aug 11 2004, 08:22 PM
I used to be a CFL fan, until I realized that the mayor of Oakland was right when he said he'd rather have a tractor pulling race than a CFL franchise. The league is sort of a joke, with the exception of when you get to watch guys that are on their way to the nfl (Flutie, Garcia). If anything it just made me more interested in the NFL when I got to watch those guys.

As for CIS (university) football... no one cares at all. I think there is more interest in highschool football (teenage girls.. :P)
I am actually surprised that the NFL hasn't taken a look at Canada yet. It seems to me that Toronto at the least could support a franchise. I think football is a better fit in Canada than the NBA. The NBA has to go head-to-head with the NHL and that is a battle that cannot be won in Canada. Football is over just as hockey really starts to heat-up.

[Flames Draft Watcher]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.

[Daradon]

Being third after the big two in Canada (Toronto and Montreal) is probably the best we could ask for. Obviously they get big points for their baseball teams and just cause they're more metropolitan cities, more people in the states can find em. TO also has the Raptors.

Calgary actually has a lot of things going for it having the national teams based here for hockey and other olympic events. The olympics really helped us and Canada out with that. Probably after to share that honor with Vancouver after a few years. But good to know we're considered more of a sports city than them and the Chuck right now.

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher+Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Flames Draft Watcher @ Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends. [/b][/quote]
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it?

[calf]

Originally posted by hulkrogan@Aug 11 2004, 02:22 PM
I used to be a CFL fan, until I realized that the mayor of Oakland was right when he said he'd rather have a tractor pulling race than a CFL franchise. The league is sort of a joke, with the exception of when you get to watch guys that are on their way to the nfl (Flutie, Garcia). If anything it just made me more interested in the NFL when I got to watch those guys.

As for CIS (university) football... no one cares at all. I think there is more interest in highschool football (teenage girls.. :P)
I'll agree with you on CIS football - it sucks

but the CFL a joke? I think you're off your rocker on that. It may not have as talented players as the NFL, but the game itself is way better, and way more exciting IMHO. I think you can find 30,000+ people in Calgary that agree. It may not be religion, but it's definately not a joke. Especially, like you inferred, the fact that it's a great stepping stone for some really talented players to make it to the NFL.

Do the games sell out? to answer TPA_TPC's question. Depends on the team. Up until last season, the stamps had an impressive streak of having 30,000 plus. Teams with smaller stadiums have also done really well (MTL), and the non-NHL markets also do well (Sask, Win). Edmonton pulls the high 20,000s a game as well. BC, Hamilton and Toronto are fielding more competitive teams and are getting good crowds (new ownership in Hamilton and Toronto helped renew interest in those markets). So yea, the CFL's very healthy in Canada

[looooob]

Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher+Aug 11 2004, 02:29 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Flames Draft Watcher @ Aug 11 2004, 02:29 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends. [/b][/quote]
CFL is most popular on the Canadian Prairies and I guess right now Quebec.

In Calgary,Edmonton,Regina,Winnipeg there is a hard core of devoted fan...but we're talking 20000-35000 people at games, not NFL/NCAA sized followings.

there is college football too, but college sports in general are viewed really different up here in Calgary. I used to love going to college football and hockey games when I was a University student but you are talking about 500-1500 fanatical (and often drunk, mostly student) fans. I've never been to a college/university sporting event since I graduated and TV/Media coverage almost zero

[calf]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC+Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (TPA_TPC @ Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher@Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it? [/b][/quote]
I doubt there's any way Calgary can support an NFL franchise

[looooob]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC+Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (TPA_TPC @ Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher@Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it? [/b][/quote]
kind of a hypothetical question. I imagine (even though there is a hard core of fans that prefer the CFL game to the NFL game) that a NFL team would outdraw/outsell what the Stampeders do now(keeping in mind a bump in ticket price), if Calgary had a team. but could Calgary draw NFL size crowds for a NFL team? I doubt it...maybe for a few novelty years, but not long term

[TPA_TPC]

I saw Garcia and Flutie mentioned but remember Warren Moon? He was probably the best player that the CFL ever produced.

[calf]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:37 PM
I saw Garcia and Flutie mentioned but remember Warren Moon? He was probably the best player that the CFL ever produced.
or the NFL's best kicker (currently) Mike Vanderjagt too. He's up there IMHO :)

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by looooob+Aug 11 2004, 08:37 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (looooob @ Aug 11 2004, 08:37 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM
Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher@Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it?
kind of a hypothetical question. I imagine (even though there is a hard core of fans that prefer the CFL game to the NFL game) that a NFL team would outdraw/outsell what the Stampeders do now(keeping in mind a bump in ticket price), if Calgary had a team. but could Calgary draw NFL size crowds for a NFL team? I doubt it...maybe for a few novelty years, but not long term [/b][/quote]
NFL tickets are really not as bad as you think. Keep in mind you are only buying tickets for 10 games (2 preseaon and 8 regular season). I have noseblead season tickets for the Bucs. The price for the 2 tickets are about $1,600 a year (combined). The first year you buy them, you have to buy a personal seat license (the right to buy the season tickets for 10 years). That's another $1,600 (equal to the price of your seats) but 10% gets refunded back to you per year (they make the money on the interest). Now take hockey, I spent over $2,000 just on the playoffs.

[looooob]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:37 PM
I saw Garcia and Flutie mentioned but remember Warren Moon? He was probably the best player that the CFL ever produced.
at the risk of sounding politically incorrect....

there was a time, pre: Doug Williams, where the NFL seemed wary of black quarterbacks....alot of these guys were offered chances in the NFL at positions like defensive back and such, but came up to Canada as QBs....Warren Moon the best example, but in the 70s and 80s several CFL teams had black QBs(I'm thinking of Conredge Holloway, JC Watts, Roy Dewalt) at a time where I believe there were few or none in the NFL

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by calf+Aug 11 2004, 08:39 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (calf @ Aug 11 2004, 08:39 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:37 PM
I saw Garcia and Flutie mentioned but remember Warren Moon? He was probably the best player that the CFL ever produced.
or the NFL's best kicker (currently) Mike Vanderjagt too. He's up there IMHO :) [/b][/quote]
There is a kid right now (I cannot think of his name) playing for the University of Miami that is out of Canada. All of the experts say that he is going to be a big time NFL star one day.

[looooob]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC+Aug 11 2004, 02:44 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (TPA_TPC @ Aug 11 2004, 02:44 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by looooob@Aug 11 2004, 08:37 PM
Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM
Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher@Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it?
kind of a hypothetical question. I imagine (even though there is a hard core of fans that prefer the CFL game to the NFL game) that a NFL team would outdraw/outsell what the Stampeders do now(keeping in mind a bump in ticket price), if Calgary had a team. but could Calgary draw NFL size crowds for a NFL team? I doubt it...maybe for a few novelty years, but not long term
NFL tickets are really not as bad as you think. Keep in mind you are only buying tickets for 10 games (2 preseaon and 8 regular season). I have noseblead season tickets for the Bucs. The price for the 2 tickets are about $1,600 a year (combined). The first year you buy them, you have to buy a personal seat license (the right to buy the season tickets for 10 years). That's another $1,600 (equal to the price of your seats) but 10% gets refunded back to you per year (they make the money on the interest). Now take hockey, I spent over $2,000 just on the playoffs. [/b][/quote]
oh I understand that NFL is affordable due to the short season

but you are talking nosebleeds for 80bucks per game (US) if I follow you correctly. CFL tickets would be MUCH cheaper

obviously the NFL ticket is still worth it, I just threw out the ticket price thing before alot of people starting saying "if the Stamps get 30 000 a NFL team could easily get more than that" because alot of people don't pay very much for their Stamp tickets I would think

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by looooob+Aug 11 2004, 08:45 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (looooob @ Aug 11 2004, 08:45 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:37 PM
I saw Garcia and Flutie mentioned but remember Warren Moon? He was probably the best player that the CFL ever produced.
at the risk of sounding politically incorrect....

there was a time, pre: Doug Williams, where the NFL seemed wary of black quarterbacks....alot of these guys were offered chances in the NFL at positions like defensive back and such, but came up to Canada as QBs....Warren Moon the best example, but in the 70s and 80s several CFL teams had black QBs(I'm thinking of Conredge Holloway, JC Watts, Roy Dewalt) at a time where I believe there were few or none in the NFL [/b][/quote]
You are not being politically incorrect, you are being factual. Until Randall Cunningham NFL teams stayed away from black QB's. J.C. Watts was a great player in college (Oklahoma I think) but his style of play didn't translate well to the NFL. He did go on to a great political career though.

[Reggie Dunlop]

I'm moving this thread to the Wide World of Sports forum.

Why? Because I can. :P

[TPA_TPC]

Originally posted by looooob+Aug 11 2004, 08:48 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (looooob @ Aug 11 2004, 08:48 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:44 PM
Originally posted by looooob@Aug 11 2004, 08:37 PM
Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:32 PM
Originally posted by Flames Draft Watcher@Aug 11 2004, 08:29 PM
<!--QuoteBegin-TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 08:17 PM
I have a question for you guys.# I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL?# Is it a big deal up there?# Do games sell-out?# Also, does your universities have football teams?
There's hardcore fans for sure.

Personally I don't pay any attention to it whatsoever but that's not any different from the amount of attention I pay to basketball or baseball either :)

Although to clarify when I was younger and was a football fan, I EXCLUSIVELY watched the NFL. I considered the CFL to be a 2nd tier league.

But now hockey's the only sport I follow closely. And it's the same with many of my friends.
Would it be different though if Calagary had an NFL franchise? Do you think people would get behind it?
kind of a hypothetical question. I imagine (even though there is a hard core of fans that prefer the CFL game to the NFL game) that a NFL team would outdraw/outsell what the Stampeders do now(keeping in mind a bump in ticket price), if Calgary had a team. but could Calgary draw NFL size crowds for a NFL team? I doubt it...maybe for a few novelty years, but not long term
NFL tickets are really not as bad as you think. Keep in mind you are only buying tickets for 10 games (2 preseaon and 8 regular season). I have noseblead season tickets for the Bucs. The price for the 2 tickets are about $1,600 a year (combined). The first year you buy them, you have to buy a personal seat license (the right to buy the season tickets for 10 years). That's another $1,600 (equal to the price of your seats) but 10% gets refunded back to you per year (they make the money on the interest). Now take hockey, I spent over $2,000 just on the playoffs.
oh I understand that NFL is affordable due to the short season

but you are talking nosebleeds for 80bucks per game (US) if I follow you correctly. CFL tickets would be MUCH cheaper

obviously the NFL ticket is still worth it, I just threw out the ticket price thing before alot of people starting saying "if the Stamps get 30 000 a NFL team could easily get more than that" because alot of people don't pay very much for their Stamp tickets I would think [/b][/quote]
Just think, sports used to be considered cheap entertainment.

[Resolute 14]

You can get a Stamps season ticket for $110. The NFL may be affordable, relatively speaking, but the CFL is remarkably so.

Personally, I'd take the CFL game over the NFL any time. CFL is more wide open, faster paced, and generally more entertaining. The NFL has the talent and hype, the CFL the substance, IMNSHO.

That said, I dont really get the people who like one league and feel the need to bash the other.

As it is, given that Calgary still draws 30,000 a game for the Canadian version of the Cincinatti Bungals, then I'd answer TPA's question with "yeah, the CFL is big up here."

[Cube Inmate]

Originally posted by TPA_TPC@Aug 11 2004, 02:17 PM
I have a question for you guys. I realize that Hockey is a religion up there, but how do you guys view the CFL? Is it a big deal up there?
The game itself can be exciting, when you've got talent along the lines of Flutie in the lineup. I'd prefer to watch a CFL game to an NFL one simply because the 3-down rules and bigger field make passing a more important part of the game...These days though, with a watered-down talent pool, it's boring as hell and really does seem like an amateur league. It's bloody depressing to see a guy like Ricky Ray have one good season and then get snatched away by the NFL.

Also, it's tough to get excited about winning the league championship when there are only 9 teams. Calgary's Cup in '91 was really exciting because it was the first in 21 years...but the excitement was gone by '01, because it became obvious that a team could win the cup even with a sub-par team. It's not nearly as much of an accomplishment as winning Stanley.

So overall: "Meh" ^_^