Why the FSU-Miami game won't be a sellout Reason No. 5: FSU<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/education/florida-state-university-OREDU000030.topic>-Miami is more of a national rivalry than a local rivalry. The Seminoles<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/sports/florida-state-seminoles-ORSPT000176.topic>and Hurricanes make for great television, and great ratings, which is why ESPN <http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/sports/espn-HOC792.topic>desperately wanted to broadcast this game on Labor Day<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/career-workplace/labor-day-EVFES000025.topic>night.
Even when the programs aren't on top of the polls — and only FSU, at No. 18, will enter this game ranked — Florida State-Miami is still great on TV. But it's somehow different in this state. For FSU fans, Florida always will be the Seminoles' chief rival. Miami fans, meanwhile, are among the most fickle anywhere. Even when the Hurricanes were competing for national championships every season, the school had a difficult time filling the seats. But the game still might be a sellout if it weren't for ... Reason No. 4: The economy is bad.Even though Tallahassee-area hotels have become friendlier in these difficult economic times, it remains an expensive venture to come to Doak Campbell Stadium. Let's say, for instance, you're driving from Orlando. That's about 230 miles or so. Throw in gas. A night at a hotel. Food. Tickets. It adds up. And suddenly, watching the Seminoles and Hurricanes at home on ESPN starts making more sense than spending hundreds of dollars to watch it in person. But the game still might be a sellout if it weren't for ... Reason No. 3: Tallahassee is remote enough — but seems more so for a week night game.Making it to Tallahassee is already a difficult trip. Anyone who has spent a significant amount of time on I-10, pulling their eyelids open during a late-night drive down a dark, lonely stretch of road, knows as much. Tallahassee is four to five hours from Orlando and Tampa and Atlanta — all cities with a lot of FSU alumni and fans — and about 2 1/2 hours from Jacksonville. In short, Tallahassee is a ways away from any major population center. This is a problem all season long for FSU officials trying to fill Doak Campbell, but it's even more of a problem for the Miami game, which comes on a Monday night. It will be difficult enough for the Tallahassee natives to make it to work on time on Tuesday morning. For those driving hours from out of town? Forget about it. But the game still might be a sellout if weren't for ... Reason No. 2: Doak Campbell Stadium is too big.With an 83,000-seat capacity, Doak Campbell has about 10,000 more seats than is necessary. When Bobby Bowden<http://www.orlandosentinel.com/topic/sports/football/bobby-bowden-PESPT008381.topic>arrived at FSU in 1976, the capacity at Doak was 40,500. As he built the Seminoles into a national powerhouse, stadium expansion followed. In less than 10 years, the capacity went from 40,500 to 60,519. It remained there through the 1991 season, and then Doak grew again, this time to 70,123 seats. It probably should have stayed right there. FSU last expanded the stadium before the 2003 season, which brought the official capacity to 82,300. That might be OK if you're a top-5 program, or if you're playing a rivalry game every week. But if FSU slumps — like it did during 7-6 seasons in '06 and '07 — then it will be stuck with thousands of empty seats. Like there were last season. A smaller stadium wouldn't hurt demand and, in fact, might help it given that tickets would become scarcer. As it is now, though, the stadium is too big. But the game still might be a sellout if weren't for ... Reason No. 1: FSU isn't back. Not yet.The Seminoles' 9-4 finish a season ago was their best since 2003, but the program is a ways away from what it used to be. If FSU were a national-title contender, ranked in the top 5, this game would be sold out. And you wouldn't have to worry about the lagging economy, remoteness of Tallahassee or any other reason why there are still plenty of tickets remaining. Winning seems to take care of a lot of those issues. *F*lorida State's season opener against Miami is not a sellout. In fact, it apparently is not close to being sold out. This will surprise people. After all, it's Florida State-Miami. One of college football's great rivalries. There are lots of reasons why this game is not sold out, and why it very likely will not be sold out come Sept. 7. Let's examine some of them, in reverse order of importance. Copyright © 2009, Orlando Sentinel <http://www.orlandosentinel.com/> --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ GATORS: ONE VOICE ON SATURDAY - NO VOICE ON SUNDAY! 1996 National Football Champions | 2006 National Basketball Champions 2006 National Football Champions | 2007 National Basketball Champions 2008 National Football Champions | Three Heisman Trophy winners: Steve Spurrier (1966), Danny Wuerffel (1996), Tim Tebow (2007) - Visit our website at www.gatornet.us -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
