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Ford Field Hoping To Host More NCAA
Basketball Tournaments |
Ford Field, which last week hosted the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament Midwest Regional and in '09 will host the Final Four, is "hoping to have more NCAA basketball tournaments in its future," according to Mike O'Hara of the DETROIT NEWS. Lions and Ford Field Exec VP & COO Tom Lewand said that plans are "under way to bid for another regional tournament or a Final Four" and that the bid "could be made sometime this summer." Lewand noted that the NCAA is "seeking bids for a five-year period," from 2012-2016 (
DETROIT NEWS, 3/31). In Detroit, Terry Foster reported plans for a "bigger, better and more grandiose event" at Ford Field in '09 already are "being made and a number of meetings are scheduled when the Detroit contingent returns from [this] weekend's Final Four in San Antonio." The plans include: a Hoop City at Cobo Center, which will include a 3-on-3 basketball tournament, live broadcasts, dozens of activities produced by NCAA sponsors and coaches' clinics; a three-day music festival with daily and nightly live acts; charity events aiding Detroit-area civic groups; and competitive and fun runs through downtown Detroit and Belle Isle. Detroit Final Four Exec Dir Bill Ryan: "There are a lot of things we will begin formalizing in the next two or three weeks. We want to leave a legacy behind" (
DETROIT NEWS, 3/31).
BASKETBALL VENUE? Ryan said of Ford Field as a basketball venue, "We will continue to make changes in terms of sight lines, and there are a lot of back-of-the-house issues we will deal with. When you have an arena that is large and cavernous, it is hard to create an environment where the team and their fans can have the optimal viewing. ... There is a price to pay, but it is reasonable." The DETROIT NEWS' Foster, offering suggestions for '09 "based on weekend observations," wrote organizers need to "flood hotels with downtown information guides showing places to eat in and outside the central district." Also, a downtown shuttle service is "needed for area bars and restaurants" (DETROIT NEWS, 3/31). Ryan said last weekend's Midwest Regional "exceeded our expectations." Ryan said of the sight lines at Ford Field, "We've had conversation about the end-zone (sight) lines and the people in those seats. We're going to try to make some change for the Final Four to make it a better viewing angle." In Detroit, Mark Snyder writes the end-zone seats likely will "need to have a slightly steeper angle that still allows fans in the lowest row of permanent seats behind them to see the court." However, concerns that the fans are too far from the action "will be difficult to adjust." Snyder: "That's the price paid when a seating capacity of 70,000-plus is created" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 4/1). In Detroit, several DETROIT FREE PRESS writers shared their thoughts of Ford Field as a basketball venue. One said, "Let me join the chorus of folks who aren't feeling Ford Field as a basketball venue." Another added, "Football stadiums are not ideal places to watch basketball games." And while one writer said Ford Field "fared ... OK," another said the stadium "fared, as it does for every event it runs, very impressively" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 4/1).
SAN ANTONIO: In San Antonio, Melissa Monroe reported "almost every hotel room in downtown San Antonio [is] booked this week for the Final Four," as free concerts, other Final Four events and "wins by colleges that are relatively close to San Antonio, have pushed hotel demand higher than expected." NCAA Senior VP/Basketball & Business Strategies Greg Shaheen: "We are looking for inventory. We are acquiring additional rooms for the fan base. We will be using about 90[%] of the hotels downtown. Shaheen added that while "many NCAA staffers already have arrived, the majority of the crew won't be here until later this week." Monroe noted the Final Four is expected to bring 45,000 fans to San Antonio, and the city has "about 12,000 hotel rooms downtown" (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 4/1). Also in San Antonio, Buck Harvey reported the NCAA, which has scheduled Final Fours through Houston in 2011, will "designate the next four or five sites in November." San Antonio will bid to host one of the 2012-2016 Final Fours, and Harvey wrote the "timing should help San Antonio," as this year's Final Four will be "fresh on the minds of the NCAA committee members when they vote" in November. Other cities expected to bid include Detroit, Houston, Arlington, Phoenix, Indianapolis, St. Louis, Atlanta, Minneapolis and New Orleans. Harvey: "The NCAA likely won't award Final Fours to three Texas cities, and the aging Alamodome can't compete in size and amenities. But San Antonio can compete with an atmosphere that works" (SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS, 4/1).
