Owls let a championship slip through their fingers last year. Let's help them grab it in nine days.
You've heard of the movie title Seven Days in May.
Well, the movie to see if you are from Temple or ever cared about Temple is Nine Days in November.
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| Crunch time for Owls and their fans (Photo courtesy Akron Beacon-Journal) |
That's because these Nine Days in November, from today until Nov. 16, are the most important to the Temple University brand and image as any nine days have ever been.
We have nine days to fill the stadium for a national broadcast on ESPN2.
We have nine days to fill the stadium to support the Owls in what essentially is a conference (MAC East) championship game played in Philadelphia, the first time I can recall a title game ever for a Division IA (OK, FBS) team ever being played in this city.
The stakes of this game are THAT enormous and that important.
The benefits of getting a huge crowd are too many to list here.
Suffice it to say, it will open the eyes of the nation not just to win this game but win it in a packed, loud, enthusiastic stadium.
With all of this conference shifting being discussed, could anything help the Owls and Temple more than a big crowd?
In a word, no.
In fact, you can make a strong argument that the nation would be more impressed with a crowd of 30-35,000 filling the entire lower bowl of Lincoln Financial Field than it would be with an Owl win.
I'm greedy, though.
I want both.
I want the big crowd going crazy and the big win.
We can have both if we all knock on doors, pick up the phone and get five friends to come to the game with us.
Temple vs. OhioGame starts at 8 p.m., so no excuses about missing work or it being too cold or SEPTA strikes or Phillies games or nor'easters allowed.
Tuesday, November 16 at 8 PM
Lincoln Financial Field
* Temple Employee Night! Temple Employees receive special discounted tickets (as low as $12 for end zone tickets) with ID at the Box Office!
* Bring a Canned Food item to the game - receive a ticket for as low as $12!
* College Night! All area college students can receive a ticket for only $5 with ID!
* First 5,000 fans receive a Rally Towel - sponsored by Verizon Wireless and Snyder's of Hanover!
No excuses about it being on a Tuesday night and you have to work the next day.
I don't want to see any live game threads on any Temple message boards during that game.
Get on a damn bus, subway, plane, cab or drive to the game. Don't sit home and watch. This is an all-hands-on-deck, all-asses-in-seats game if there ever was one.
It's that important to the university's national and local image that a good chunk of the 260,000 living alumni and 33,000 full-time students set aside this block of three hours on Nov. 16 to be at this happening.
Nine days in November.
That should be enough time.
Girls, come back. We need you and 32,995 other full-time Temple students to make another appearance at 8 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 16 for the championship of the world and a Michelob Light (in your case, free $5.75 sodas). How great would it be to have 30K students and 40K alumni there? Damn great, I'd say.
