Colorado, Colorado State To Play Football In Denver From '10-19

The Univ. of Colorado (CU) and Colorado State Univ. (CSU) yesterday announced an agreement to play their annual football game in Denver "for each of the next 10 seasons" beginning in '10, according to Natalie Meisler of the DENVER POST. CSU, which was scheduled to host the '10 game in Fort Collins, agreed to push that date "back a decade in order to have the 2010-19 games at Invesco Field at Mile High." Meisler notes the ticket split "will continue 55-45 favoring CU, based on relative stadium capacities." CU AD Mike Bohn said that the school "would make about $750,000 more a game now, and [$8-10M] more over the course of a decade playing in Denver instead of on campus," while CSU AD Paul Kowalczyk said that his school's "difference would be from" $1-1.5M a year (DENVER POST, 9/1). In Colorado, Kyle Ringo notes CSU's Hughes Stadium "seats fewer than 40,000 people and doesn't produce a significant enough revenue stream to make it a serious option." Kowalczyk notes if the game was played at CSU in '10, there would be "no series" with CU in the future. Kowalczyk: "So how do we win? So we cut off our noses to spite our face? That's not smart and that doesn't help our program long term." Kowalczyk said that an expansion of Hughes Stadium is "possible but nothing is planned at this time" (Boulder DAILY CAMERA, 9/1).

SOUND BUSINESS MOVE: In Colorado, Neill Woelk writes while there is "something about college football and college stadiums that can't be replicated at a neutral site," the "business side of college sports cannot be ignored." The shift to Invesco Field is a "sound business move for all parties involved," as "neither school can afford to ignore" the extra money the games are expected to generate in Denver. Woelk: "When Colorado threatened to end the series if CSU didn't agree to play in Denver next year (rather than Fort Collins), Kowalczyk had no choice but to concede the issue." The deal is "good for both schools -- not only monetarily, but in the big picture" -- as college sports have "never been front-and-center in this state, and playing the game on a regular basis in the state's biggest stadium should help on the exposure front." Playing the game in Denver "means more television time, more print media and a larger audience, both in the stadium and around the state," and corporations also "can now sign on knowing the deal they've reached will be in place for years to come" (Boulder DAILY CAMERA, 9/1).