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Regional Bias... does it exist? Should it exist?

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  • #16
    Re: Regional Bias... does it exist? Should it exist?

    Originally posted by komey1 View Post
    That's a HUGE part of it. Due to Title 9, to add hockey, the school must add other sports for women (unless they add both). I would also suspect that hockey doesn't make a lot of money (and may even lose money) for their schools unless you are big time - so not as much financial incentive.
    Even the pro hockey fanbase isn't exactly big (compared to other sports, as well as overall) in the non-traditional markets.

    And correct me if I'm wrong, but to gain hold in the COLLEGIATE area of the big four (baseball, football, basketball, hockey) is even a bigger task in the non-traditional markets. You think hockey could gain enough of a stronghold in the southeast (yes I know about UAH) to make it worthwhile? It's 99% football/basketball. You get to the middle south/middle of the nation, you can add baseball to that mix. Go west coast? 3 of the big 4, also.

    Even in a robust economy, there's only so much money to go around, and even if you toss all that money towards a program, you have years of tradition, upbringing, and general interest in the sport to fight against.
    Never really developed a taste for tequila. Kind of hard to understand how you make a drink out of something that sharp, inhospitable. Now, bourbon is easy to understand.
    Tastes like a warm summer day. -Raylan Givens

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    • #17
      Re: Regional Bias... does it exist? Should it exist?

      Originally posted by Brenthoven View Post
      Even the pro hockey fanbase isn't exactly big (compared to other sports, as well as overall) in the non-traditional markets.

      And correct me if I'm wrong, but to gain hold in the COLLEGIATE area of the big four (baseball, football, basketball, hockey) is even a bigger task in the non-traditional markets. You think hockey could gain enough of a stronghold in the southeast (yes I know about UAH) to make it worthwhile? It's 99% football/basketball. You get to the middle south/middle of the nation, you can add baseball to that mix. Go west coast? 3 of the big 4, also.

      Even in a robust economy, there's only so much money to go around, and even if you toss all that money towards a program, you have years of tradition, upbringing, and general interest in the sport to fight against.
      This is an important point that can't be stressed enough on this board.

      One of the additional factors counting against hockey is the lack of native Western/Southern talent. Sure there are a few Texans and Californians playing D-1 but not nearly enough to stock a league's worth of teams. So your left with importing talent from other regions of the country to fill a roster. At public universities this is a tough sell. Sure Arizona State or Tennessee might not care where basketball or football player come from as long as the Wins are flowing, but hockey?

      There will be a lot of voices asking why sports played by local kids (and the scholarships that come with them) should be passed over to import Joey from Calgary, Jean Marc from Laval, and Ed from St. Cloud.

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      • #18
        Re: Regional Bias... does it exist? Should it exist?

        Originally posted by BoomGoestheDynamite View Post
        This is an important point that can't be stressed enough on this board.

        One of the additional factors counting against hockey is the lack of native Western/Southern talent. Sure there are a few Texans and Californians playing D-1 but not nearly enough to stock a league's worth of teams. So your left with importing talent from other regions of the country to fill a roster. At public universities this is a tough sell. Sure Arizona State or Tennessee might not care where basketball or football player come from as long as the Wins are flowing, but hockey?

        There will be a lot of voices asking why sports played by local kids (and the scholarships that come with them) should be passed over to import Joey from Calgary, Jean Marc from Laval, and Ed from St. Cloud.
        And an example of the upbringing/general interest:

        1993 is when the North Stars left were stolen from MN. I travelled to Dallas in Dec 1994. I was giving the people I was with crap about them stealing our hockey team. Not ONE person even wanted the team, and maybe half of them were even familiar that they had a hockey team. To them, it was a blip in the paper, much like the MN Thunder (is that right? ) soccer team here.

        They were ALL about football. Every single person could rattle off every Texas Longhorn/Texas A&M football stat. Even the backups' stats. A rather attractive girl, who any one of us would assume would have no sports knowledge, was telling me about Leeland McElroy, whom I was scouting for a future fantasy football pick. She was quoting his average yards per carry, his ability to hit the hole, his 40 yard dash times, etc etc etc. like we bandy about weak glove hands or whatever.

        Now, fight 3-4+ generations of THAT. With your target audience in most sports: 25-35 year old men. With a "new" sport to the region. Good luck.
        Never really developed a taste for tequila. Kind of hard to understand how you make a drink out of something that sharp, inhospitable. Now, bourbon is easy to understand.
        Tastes like a warm summer day. -Raylan Givens

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        • #19
          Re: Regional Bias... does it exist? Should it exist?

          Originally posted by BoomGoestheDynamite View Post
          This is an important point that can't be stressed enough on this board.

          One of the additional factors counting against hockey is the lack of native Western/Southern talent. Sure there are a few Texans and Californians playing D-1 but not nearly enough to stock a league's worth of teams. So your left with importing talent from other regions of the country to fill a roster. At public universities this is a tough sell. Sure Arizona State or Tennessee might not care where basketball or football player come from as long as the Wins are flowing, but hockey?

          There will be a lot of voices asking why sports played by local kids (and the scholarships that come with them) should be passed over to import Joey from Calgary, Jean Marc from Laval, and Ed from St. Cloud.
          I like the name choices, although we all know the St. Cloud area has no hockey prospects worth spending a scholarship on.

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