Wow:
Only one end zone will be used for offense Saturday at Wrigley Field for the Illinois-Northwestern game because of safety concerns, the Big Ten announced Friday, and the Chicago Cubs said the decision caught them by surprise.
NCAA rules state the field dimensions must have adequate space surrounding the playing surface: “Limit lines shall be marked … 12 feet outside the sidelines and the end lines, except in stadiums where total field surface does not permit. In these stadiums, the limit lines shall not be less than 6 feet from the sidelines and end lines.”
Wrigley’s east end zone is a few feet away from the right-field wall, and although there is padding, there were concerns players could be injured there.
I had to read the article two or three times before I could actually believe that was reading. But it sounds to me like every time a team gets the ball they’re going to march to the corresponding yard line on the other side of the field. There have been a few instances in Delosa over the years where special accommodations had to be made or just weren’t made when some bleachers were declared unsafe or an endzone was discovered to be unsafe because of a misplaced cart. In one sense, the first incident was worse than this because people who had bought tickets suddenly no longer had tickets and at least everyone is going to get to see this game. And unlike the second case, nobody had their leg shattered. Even so… wow. What a disaster and an embarrassment for both the Chicago Cubs and the people that organized this.
On the other hand, it’s brilliant in its own way. I am going to surf all of the channels tomorrow and see if I can catch this game. Otherwise, I couldn’t be less interested in a game given my antipathy towards the Big Ten and that neither of these teams are real national contenders. So in that sense, I guess it works out. It does bring a lot of attention to a game that would otherwise be ignored.
Update: The game is on now. They definitely made the right decision. This was very poorly thought out. I am inclined to say that heads should roll over this, but the announcers are doing a pretty good job of talking it up so maybe I am overreacting. On the other hand, I was wrong about fans not getting stiffed on tickets. Some folks bought tickets at the endzone and will likely never see any scores there. And unlike the Delosa incident, they won’t get their money back. A story to tell their kids about, I suppose.
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9 Responses to Halfcourt Football
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It seems like a very good solution as neither team will benefit at the other’s expense. Though the people who bought tickets in the unused endzone should get partial refunds.
Yeah, it was the best available solution to a problem that never should have happened.
One of the guys at the unused endzone had a great sign that said “WRONG WAY!”
There is nothing more pathetic than a football game being played in a baseball stadium. Sorry, it just sucks.
We lose our own stadium for two years, after next week. We will have to play in the Giants’ park in downtown SF — a baseball park. I hate that!
Maria: We lose our own stadium for two years, after next week.
Who do you mean we, Kemo Sabe?
Maria: There is nothing more pathetic than a football game being played in a baseball stadium.
I would say a baseball game being played in a football stadium is. (e.g. LA Coliseum 1958-1961)
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maybe I am overreacting
You really are overreacting here. The game was cool as hell to watch, and a touchdown was scored in the forbidden endzone.
They should have just played. The wall was well padded, and the players are well padded. Outfielders have to navigate the wall wearing no padding.
I am going to surf all of the channels tomorrow and see if I can catch this game.
Why didn’t you just look it up the channel online?
You really are overreacting here. The game was cool as hell to watch, and a touchdown was scored in the forbidden endzone.
Maybe so. There is something at least kinda cool about there being a Forbidden Endzone. I watched the first quarter or so until it looked like Illinois was going to run away with the game (though Northwestern came back while I was away).
Why didn’t you just look it up the channel online?
I guess it’s because we’re not in the footprint of any of the major conferences, but the local channels and ESPN wait until the last minute before deciding which games to show. I was looking everything up for the first couple weeks, but I kept running into games that were supposed to be on but weren’t. Aggravating the situation was that ESPN would get mixed up and show some Big Ten game on ESPN and then put the accompanying Big 12 that is supposed to be on an alternate channel would instead be showing the same Big Ten game because they thought ESPN was showing the Big 12 game. So I decided to just start flipping around instead.
Who do you mean we, Kemo Sabe?
You a Stanfurd fan?
Maria: You a Stanfurd fan?
No, I just don’t know what college you were referring to… With that reference, did you go to Cal?
No, Mike, I just like to watch them play. I guess I must be a masochist. 🙂
Nothing wrong with that. I do kind of roll my eyes at those who can’t be bothered to root for the team of the school they actually went to, but rooting for a major school in addition to (or in the event that their school doesn’t field a team) is cool by me. I wish more Colosseans would adopt Southern Tech as their “home team” even if they didn’t actually go there.
I’m kind of of the belief that a lot of university “systems” ought to consolidate their athletics. It wouldn’t work for California, which has only two systems, but for say University of Alabama at Huntsville to adopt the Crimson Tide as their team would prevent UAH from having to try to field their own misbegotten teams.