Bama vs. Wisconsin in the 2015 Cowboys Classic

WylieTexasTider

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Sep 24, 2006
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Yes, Texas is down right now, but a random football fan is going to be more interested in watching Texas than Wisconsin.
No way ANYONE woud play Texas in that stadium unless they demanded 45k tickets. The stadium holds 90k for college football. They give each team 30k tickets and the other 30k are given to PSL holders.(aka cowboys club seat owners) That would turn the stadium into 60k Longhorn fans and 30k opposing fans.

It's my understanding Wisconsin travels equal to or better than Michigan. I know they have a pretty large alumni group that gathers to watch the games in DFW. Therefore, I assume tickets will be as pricey or more than the UM game was this year.
 
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Crimson1967

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Well, yeah, I wouldn't play them in Jerry World, either, unless they made a return visit to Bryant Denny. My point was they'd really be a better TV draw.
 

ALA2262

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What most, if not all, of you are failing to realize is that these neutral site opponents are not being directly negotiated with by Bama. That is the responsibility of the sponsoring organization. Granted, Bama has a tremendous amount of input and can decline or accept the organization's choice of opponents. Obviously, when this game was first proposed, Wisconsin declined and then tried to negotiate directly with Bama for a home and home in 2015 and 2018. Bama was not receptive to the split-years series and declined that proposal. Neither Bama's nor Wisconsin's proposal decline was an emphatic "no, we're not going to play you", so the sponsoring organization got them back to the negotiating table.
 

CaptainTide

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I'll bet you Wisconsin will be ranked in the top 15 when we play them. It'll be a good game. They're not a bad team by any means and I look forward to seeing this.
 

mmboys07

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Reading this thread on Alabama's prospects of playing Wisconsin a thought occurred to me: Does Alabama ever play outside the South? When is the last time they played a cold weather team actually at the place of the cold weather team?
 

Isaiah 63:1

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Reading this thread on Alabama's prospects of playing Wisconsin a thought occurred to me: Does Alabama ever play outside the South? When is the last time they played a cold weather team actually at the place of the cold weather team?
Penn State 2011, though not in a cold weather month.

This question is an ND tautological argument: "only by playing north of the Ohio River in November can you be a national power. SEC teams don't, so they aren't." It's an invalid premise.
 
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rgw

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Reading this thread on Alabama's prospects of playing Wisconsin a thought occurred to me: Does Alabama ever play outside the South? When is the last time they played a cold weather team actually at the place of the cold weather team?
As the previous poster said, we played @PSU last season. The cold weather thing is a complete non sequitur argument we here from the Big Ten crowd. First, the major OOC games are always played early in the season and it's hardly cold in the continental United States in late Summer. Second, the Big Ten doesn't even sign contracts with the three bowl games outside tropic or subtropic areas. The Big Ten doesn't seem too interested in playing "in their natural setting" when they have the contractual opportunities to do so. Why should the SEC go out of their way to play in the Idaho, Motor City, and Pinstripe Bowls against Big East and worse competition?
 

Isaiah 63:1

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...the Big Ten doesn't even sign contracts with the three bowl games outside tropic or subtropic areas. The Big Ten doesn't seem too interested in playing "in their natural setting" when they have the contractual opportunities to do so. Why should the SEC go out of their way to play in the Idaho, Motor City, and Pinstripe Bowls against Big East and worse competition?
mmboys07 is taking about a regular season, home-and-home series, not bowl games. On the NDNation board I frequent, the "north of the Ohio River in November" trope is a recurring one. They give UTenn grudging respect for having done this numerous times, most recently in 2005 (a game I attended with my Domer friend and at which I cheered lustily for ND, who won handily). But it's a trope...
 
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rgw

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My point is it is near impossible for an SEC to play "north of the Ohio River" in the Fall/Winter because no worthwhile bowl is up that way and OOC games are played in late Summer.
 

B1GTide

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The Big Ten plays all their non=conference games before starting league play.
Exactly, as do most conferences. The opportunity to play a tough foe in another conference comes early in the season before conference play gets into full swing, which is why these match-ups tend to happen in September.
 

MOAN

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I applaud the Big 10 teams for playing the SEC in these OOC games and bowls. To be the best you got to beat the best and the only way to do that is by playing them of course. And by playing the SEC they are getting schooled on how to compete and are catching up. Look at the match-ups yesterday and how close. The Big 10 will pass the Big 12 as the second best conference before to long I predict. ;)
 

Go Bama

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Wisconsin is an excellent opener. I'll be there.

I wonder what other teams were considered. Did Michigan not want any more of Alabama?

To the earlier poster, Texas will be good in 3 years, with or without Mac Brown. I heard on the radio this morning (Bill King) that if Texas loses to Oklahoma in the upcoming season, Mac is out. Texas is a sleeping giant and scares me more than any other program. IMO, Texas should win the NC once every four or five years with their money and recruiting base.
 

mmboys07

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There you go. A man of honesty. Can't chance that late season loss. Of course, every year ND goes either to Southern Cal or Stanford and has to take their chances. They have lost several National Championship opportunities by going to SC at the end of the year and Miami as well. More to the point: Once the playoff system starts it seems to me some consistency in scheduling dynamics need to be in place. Maybe even recruiting policies and admissions standards need to be addressed as well. I know when number restrictions kicked in ND was hurt because they could no longer stock pile talent and had to be much more selective in who they could bring in. Even to this day; their 5th year policy is difficult. The decision can only be made by the university at the end of the 4th year and the student must be full time enrolled in a graduate program and must already have their undergraduate degree. I have heard, for example, that many SEC schools do something called; "gray shirting". However, I don't know exactly what it means. Could someone explain?
 

TiderJack

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Wisconsin is an excellent opener. I'll be there.

I wonder what other teams were considered. Did Michigan not want any more of Alabama?

To the earlier poster, Texas will be good in 3 years, with or without Mac Brown. I heard on the radio this morning (Bill King) that if Texas loses to Oklahoma in the upcoming season, Mac is out. Texas is a sleeping giant and scares me more than any other program. IMO, Texas should win the NC once every four or five years with their money and recruiting base.
You would think but they don't. For the size of their program and the money they have they have won very few NC in their history. IMO they have been a sleeping giant for over 100 years.
 

TideEngineer08

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There you go. A man of honesty. Can't chance that late season loss. Of course, every year ND goes either to Southern Cal or Stanford and has to take their chances. They have lost several National Championship opportunities by going to SC at the end of the year and Miami as well. More to the point: Once the playoff system starts it seems to me some consistency in scheduling dynamics need to be in place. Maybe even recruiting policies and admissions standards need to be addressed as well. I know when number restrictions kicked in ND was hurt because they could no longer stock pile talent and had to be much more selective in who they could bring in. Even to this day; their 5th year policy is difficult. The decision can only be made by the university at the end of the 4th year and the student must be full time enrolled in a graduate program and must already have their undergraduate degree. I have heard, for example, that many SEC schools do something called; "gray shirting". However, I don't know exactly what it means. Could someone explain?
This is all of Notre Dame's choosing. Do not fault others for your own choices. Notre Dame has had numerous opportunities to join a conference in football and they have declined. Since Alabama plays a conference schedule, their toughest games are always in November, just the same as good ole Notre Dame. It just so happens we also have a conference title on the line, something the Fighting Irish don't have to worry about.
 

Con

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There you go. A man of honesty. Can't chance that late season loss. Of course, every year ND goes either to Southern Cal or Stanford and has to take their chances. They have lost several National Championship opportunities by going to SC at the end of the year and Miami as well. More to the point: Once the playoff system starts it seems to me some consistency in scheduling dynamics need to be in place. Maybe even recruiting policies and admissions standards need to be addressed as well. I know when number restrictions kicked in ND was hurt because they could no longer stock pile talent and had to be much more selective in who they could bring in. Even to this day; their 5th year policy is difficult. The decision can only be made by the university at the end of the 4th year and the student must be full time enrolled in a graduate program and must already have their undergraduate degree. I have heard, for example, that many SEC schools do something called; "gray shirting". However, I don't know exactly what it means. Could someone explain?
Traveling to Souther Cal is part of Notre Dame's deal. They don't play in a conference so who would they play if they didn't go to play there. I guess they would pick an Iowa St. since it is a little closer. It is no more different than Alabama playing LSU in November or an SEC Championship game.
 

Ole Man Dan

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I'm fine playing Wisconsin. We've played both better and worse teams. If their claim to fame is beating us in 1928... more power to em. I'm more interested in what they can do in 2015.
 

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