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| If you can't see more Cherry in this photo than any other color, you need to see an eye doctor immediately. Fortunately, I have 20/20 vision. So does Steve Addazio, who also confirmed the numbers' breakdown. |
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When I first heard what the holdup was on making today's "handshake" agreement with the Big East a written one to join as early as this football season, I could only think of one word:
"Huh?"
That was in response to this:
"Temple is waiting to see if it can pay the $2.5 million buyout to the MAC."
Money should be no object here, but I get the drift.
The university's annual funding from Harrisburg was cut by $38 million, so paying $2.5 million on top of that cut for its sports programs to change leagues might not be viewed as good PR move for the school.
Heck, I watched Temple TV (it is Channel 50 on my cable system) this morning and uni president Ann Weaver Hart was saying "there's going to be a lot of pain for everyone over the next year but we'll get through it."
I know all about pain.If I have to go through another MAC season of forced Tuesday and Wednesday night home games and horrible road officiating, I'm going to have an ulcer.
I just decided I would be the greatest graduate in school history if I won the $60 million in the lottery tonight.
I would get into my beat-up, 125,000-mile 2004 Chevy Cavalier tomorrow morning, drive to Harrisburg and have one of those oversized checks deposited.
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| Most current BE fans are unaware that Temple traveled 6,000 of its own fans to the New Mexico Bowl or that 20,000 of the 23,000 in attendance at the 2009 Eagle Bank Bowl were Temple fans, but those figures have been documented as true by both bowls. |
I wouldn't even blink an eye.
Then the Temple Alumni Review would write an article about me with the simple headline: "Greatest Grad Ever."
I'd be the greatest grad ever because with my meager $2.5 million check, I'd faciilate a gold mine that would keep the school in the black long after I'm dead (which hopefully isn't for 30 or so more years).
Think about it.
Temple has a 70K stadium in the heart of Big East territory. Lincoln Financial Field is a veritable gold mine and Temple is sitting right on top of it.
To get to that gold, all Temple needs to do is become a more than competitive Big East team, which most football experts will tell you is true right now.
It has a Big East-ready football team now, with the best coaching staff in the Big East and the only coaching staff with three of its top five positions filled with guys who have won national championships as key parts of Florida's staff.
Temple also has 15K students who will be living on campus for the next 30 years, who will become involved rabid alumni fans.
This is not your father or grandfather's Temple, once a commuter school.
Give them the same competitive team they have now and the stadium fills up, the Temple brand goes national and applications for admission mulitiply tenfold.
That's the kind of vision Temple needs now, whatever the cost.
Temple has a lot of grads with "want to" like me who have no "means to."
I still think money should be no object.
West Virginia got $20 million together to buy out its agreement with the Big East. Enough of that should go to Temple to cover the $2.5 million. Even if the MAC holds up Temple for the two years notice, the parties should reach a settlement. Temple should suggest that Villanova take its place in the MAC to give UMass a travel partner.
After all, Temple is doing the Big East a huge favor by filling in an empty schedule.
If, though, money is the reason Temple ends up in MAC hell forever (or even one more day), I will scream.
So will anybody who cares even a little bit about Temple sports.
