The Falcons spent most of this week preparing for a game against the Chicago Bears, which would be played outdoors in -8 degree weather, inside. It took a power outage to get them outdoors on Thursday for 2 hours.
Why plan to get quasi-acclimated to colder weather when you can stay comfortable (read: soft/candy ass) inside in a 65+ degree heated facility?
The result of the Falcons vs. Bears Game. Another loss in the cold. The Falcons record in sub-freezing weather is now 1-3. I wonder if there is some relation between practicing to avoid cold weather and playing like piss when you actually get in cold weather.
Since this is mostly a Bulldog Blog, I will tie this back to the Dawgs with my trademark anti-Indoor Practice Facility rant.
The reasons that the Georgia Bulldogs should never invest in an Indoor Practice Facility include:
1. UGA plays outside. At least with the Falcons, there is some logic in that they play over half over their games indoors.
2. If you have an indoor facility, you'll use it even when you don't need to. They don't end up getting used just for the rain, ice and snow storms. "But coach, it's so hot. Can't we practice inside. But coach, it's too cold. But coach, it's rainy." Give me a break.
3. We don't need one for recruiting purposes. We've got the #2 recruiting class in the country coming in right now. Yet amazingly, we have no indoor facility. The team that we seem to lose the most recruits and games to is the Florida Gators. A team that also doesn't have an indoor facility.
4. Cost. Richt doesn't want a facility to avoid the elements. He wants a $20-30 million indoor multi-use palace with a new weight room, coaches offices and meeting rooms. We just spent $1.5 million on a new weight room, meeting room renovations and coaching office improvements. Why duplicate that expenditure?
5. Georgia needs $60 million in new facilities for basketball and other sports where we genuinely lag our peers in a meaningful way.
6. There are less than 5 days per year where the weather sucks so bad that we need to practice inside. And during those rare days, we can either do a walk-thru at the Ramsey Center. Or we can hit the road and use the Falcons' facility. 5 days a year isn't enough to warrant a $20-30 million expense.
Indoor practice facilities. Baa humbug.
4 comments:
Bravo, decatur! Every child born in the state of Georgia should be given a CD of Harry Calas reading this post when they leave the hospital.
Unfortunately, you and I are the only two UGA fans to whom this truth has been revealed.
Here's my other favorite talking point on this -- the Washington Redskins don't have an indoor facility. Why? Because Dan Snyder can't afford one? No. Because Snyder wouldn't cut out one of his kidneys and eat it if he thought it would increase his chances of hoisting the Lombardi Trophy? No. Because the weather is better in DC than in Athens, especially in November and December? Hell, no (I almost lost a couple of fingers walking around in my neighborhood in Northern Virginia last night).
No, the Redskins don't have an indoor facility because Joe Gibbs knows that they don't help you win, and may help you lose.
Thus endeth the supplemental rant.
The week before the SECCG, I saw the Dawgs trying to workout in gyms at the Ramsey center because it was raining so hard you couldn't see five feet away. It was horrible. The good news is that it didn't matter, but I can see where having a facility when you aonly have a week to practice for a hugge game, and it rains hard 3 out of 4 practice days, a faciolity could be useful. Until that time, I had been firmly in your camp opposed; now I am just not so sure.
Put a retractable roof on Sanford and add 30,000 seats - yeah, it sounds crazy but we'll have a place to practice when the weather is bad and one loud place to play - don't ask me how to pay for it
Totally, completely, absolutely agree.
We have no need for an indoor practice facility for the football team.
If it rains, if it's cold, if it hails; football is played. Outside.
Post a Comment