Posted by Sean Rowland on February 8, 2010
- We all saw last night at the Super Bowl that Miami’s football stadium changed names for the 53rd time. It is now Sun Life Stadium. Another name change that caught my eye was Brooklyn’s Keyspan Park (now MCU Park). The ridiculousness continues. Out of the 78 stadiums I’ve been to, 12 of them have changed their names since I’ve attended, which comes out to 15%….ugh
- On a sadder note, this is the last year for Oregon’s MacArthur Court. The Pit was built in 1926 and was one of my favorite places in the PAC-10 when watching hoops on TV from there. I love the design with the theatre-like upper balconies and the those yellow-orange lights that illuminate the ceiling (I think Michigan State’s Breslin Center has that too). The noise here was awesome and I’m sure will not be replicated at their new place. (at least they still have Autzen!) Luckily we still have some wonderful, splendid old barns in Minnesota with Williams Arena and Vanderbilt ’s Memorial Arena that should be around for a little while.
(from www.daylife.com)
- With the Vancouver Winter Olympics arriving at the end of the week hockey will be hosted at the Canucks’s GM Place (for now called Canada Hockey Place) and UBC Thunderbird Arena. I for one am extremely excited for the Olympic Hockey Tournament as it is so intense and means so much for the players. Obviously Canada and Russia are the favorites, but probably another 4 or 5 teams could make a run. I love the direction the US is going with youth and can’t wait to see them play. It would be great if Miller could put them on their shoulders (ala Hasek with the Czech team in ‘98) and make a deep run.
- While the hockey is going on, you will see figure skating return to a venue that has not been in the spotlight since the ‘94 Stanley Cup Finals……Welcome back, Pacific Coliseum!
Posted in General Stadia | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on January 31, 2010
Over the last month, I’ve been doing a little research and trip planning as we’re heading to the biggest state in the country, Texas! One of my friends is going to be getting married in Austin in early April, so of course we will be checking out a few new stadiums. I am definitely excited to visit Austin, I’ve heard nothing but great things on what a fun and cool place Austin is. On our list of things to check out is the state capital, the University of Texas, 6th Street and the famous Congress Bridge bats.
Stadium-wise, there are a number of options in Austin. Unfortunately, I am out of season for the one I would most like to see: University of Texas Football. It would have been amazing to see a game at Royal Memorial Stadium. Seeing a Texas High School Football game would have been sweet too. Also out is the Frank Erwin Center. So my options were seeing the beautiful Dell Diamond in Round Rock (a suburb not too far away), checking out the brand new facility in the suburb of Cedar Park for the AHL Stars, or taking in a University of Texas Baseball game at UFCU Disch-Falk Field. The Express were on the road and the Stars play on Friday Night (the night of the wedding), so luckily the Longhorns came through with a weekend series vs Kansas. Once tickets become available, we’ll be all set to see my first college ballpark.
Out of the 13 stadiums on The List in the Austin vicinity, only one has games playing during the April 8-13 stretch. Of course I’m not going to pass up an opportunity to try and find another facility. I did not have to look to far on the map to find our next destination: San Antonio! It’s only about 1:20 from Austin right down I-35. We’re going to spend a couple days in the city and see the sights (Riverwalk, The Alamo…etc). There are eight stadiums on The List in San Antonio (plus a high school stadium in the suburb of Converse) with one of them having a game played while we’re in town. But it’s a big one, the AT&T Center home of the NBA Spurs. This would be my first NBA game and am excited to make a visit to this facility and game.
That’s the plan for Texas and hopefully everything holds and works accordingly. As always, check out the Schedule page for upcoming visits. The next one will likely be Christl Arena for Army basketball. I’m not sure yet if I’ll be going on Feb 7 or the Feb 21 game vs Navy. February is always a busy month at work (generally the heart of the snow-season in the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic), so if I’m off on the 7th I may just go then. Too bad the Black Knights have struggled so much in Patriot League play. It looked like the Navy game could have big implications for the conference earlier in the season.
Posted in Visit Plans | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on January 21, 2010
This is a little late as the all-star games sneak up on me, but here’s a list of the respective league’s host arenas. Remember, the NHL does not have an all-star game this year because of Olympic Hockey Tournament (eagerly anticipated by me). Also, not all of the minor leagues have a game:
AHL: Cumberland County Civic Center……Portland, ME……January 19
ECHL: Citizens Buisness Bank Arena……Ontario, CA……..January 20
OHL/QMJHL/WHL: WFCU Center………Windsor, ON…….January 20
USHL: Pepsi Coliseum………Indianapolis, IN…………January 26
Posted in Hockey | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on January 14, 2010
Last Night, I went to Piscataway, NJ and returned to the Louis Brown Athletic Center to see Syracuse take on Rutgers. This is the most excited I’ve been for an Orange team since the days of Carmelo, Warrick and G-Mac. I absolutely love watching this team and think they could win it all (a thought I never even entertained during the 2003 season). Some of the great things I’ve seen this year: they are long and have played the Zone very well, two solid big guys down low with Jackson and Onuaku, an all-everything guy with Rautins, solid three point shooting, good role players (Kris Joseph and Mookie Jones)…I feel like they have all the tools in place right now. Only two things worry me: free-throw shooting and the combo PG play of freshman Brandon Triche and Scoop Jardine, however they continue to look better and better. Against Rutgers, last night they looked solid being in control pretty much all game. A couple times Rutgers cut the lead to under 10, but Syracuse always pushed it back. Rautins almost had a triple-double with 23pts, 9ast, 8reb. I sat amongst probably a couple thousand Cuse fans again and enjoyed hearing those “Let’s Go Orange” chants
Enough of me ranting and more to what you care about, the actual stadium! The traffic getting to the RAC was awful. The last time I went here, it was in a snowstorm, so traffic entering wasn’t an issue. According to my GPS, I was two minutes from my arrival at 6:55 PM. I pulled into my parking space at 7:20 PM (game time was 7:30 PM). Not good for an 8,000 seat arena. My second go-round here, really confirmed my thoughts that this is one ugly arena from the outside, and the seating inside is steep and goes on for a long time. However, it can be such a loud building and that’s what I like about it. There was only one time when the fans really got loud, but the noise was great. I really have to give a ton of credit to those Rutgers fans. They haven’t been to the NCAAs since 1991, almost always have a losing season, yet there they are, consistently filling the place and supporting the Knights. Those fans are a great group and deserve a great year to get the RAC rocking.
Posted in College Basketball | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on January 10, 2010
On a cold Saturday Afternoon, I made the two-hour trip to Philadelphia to see #78 on the list, newly renovated Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse, now known as Michael J. Hagan ‘85 Arena. Saint Joseph’s University was the team and I’ve always enjoyed watching them play on TV in their little bandbox gym. Not only watching their stellar 2003-2004 team led by Jameer Nelson and Delonte West, but even back to 2001 when Marvin O’Connor was lighting it up for them. I never realized that they were right near the edge of Philadelphia, I always thought they were in the middle like Penn or Temple. But the campus is right on the border of Montgomery Co. and Lower Merion Twp, on US-1 or City Ave. City Ave kind of had a busy suburbanish feel, but there were a few upscale shopping plazas.
After walking around Hawk Hill and campus for a few minutes, it was game-time. I bought my ticket at the last minute and of course they screwed it up at Will Call. This was my first ever will call error, so I guess that’s not too bad. They couldn’t find my ticket and then sent me to another ticket booth where I got a random ticket that wasn’t even mine. I didn’t care, as long as I got in, though I prefer aisle seats and my original had Seat 3. Over the past year, they completely re-did the facility and added about 1,000 more seats. I must say they did a terrific job. The surrounding concourses are well done with trophy displays and huge murals of players and teams on the walls. Meanwhile, they still kept the seating layout, but just added the seats at the ends of the arena. It is an old-school, tight set up with all of the seating areas flat and facing straight forward. The important thing is that they didn’t seem to lose that loud and intimidating atmosphere. For more review details, check out the review on the right.
It was cool to be able to see the famous Hawk in person and it’s true he/she (this year, I think its a she) does not stop flapping its wings. There were signs all over saying “The Hawk Will Never Die” and though I never heard any great chants except “Let’s Go St Joe’s”, the students were still on winter break. The Hawks really struggled against Fordham and for there standards have had a terrible year as the win brought them to 5-9. Offensively, they just couldn’t get into a rhythm and they let the Rams hit too many threes. Still, they gradually pulled away late in the game. Everything went well with the visit as I enjoyed a nice time on Hawk Hill and was glad to get to a college basketball barn I have seen over the years. Great job with the renovations and it was an arena I liked. The only other game note was seeing the terrific basketball writer/observer/traveler Kyle Whelliston (Mid-Majority) and Bally there at the game in press row. After the game, right across the street is Larry’s Steaks. I’ve yet to have a Philly Cheesesteak and was glad I stopped their for one. It was an awesome cheesesteak!!!! Skip Pat’s and Geno’s as so many of the online reviews I’ve read describe them as tourist traps (and who would want cheese wiz anyway?) and head to Larry’s.
Posted in Visits | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on January 8, 2010
I tried so hard to make the Rhode Island trip to work. Everything was setting up great. The weather was good (clear of snow) and I wouldn’t have to work and the wife had the weekend off. However, with Friday’s snow, I have to do some summaries tomorrow. Then, it just became too late to plan/book everything, so we just decided another weekend would be better, when we have a little more leadtime. Plus its going to be freakin’ freezing, so any of the outdoor stuff we were going to do in Newport wouldn’t be all that fun. Especially, the Sunday morning famous cliffside walk when its 15 degrees and breezy. Its a shame because I was really looking forward not only to seeing URI’s Ryan Center, but also the HUGE Temple vs Rhode Island game.
So instead, we have a very nice consolation prize: A-10 rival Saint Joseph’s and newly renovated Michael J. Hagan ‘85 Arena (lets just call it Hagan Arena). This use to be the old bandbox, Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse and it still is the same building, but it has been completely upgraded. I’ll be heading there on a solo trip for a 4 PM game vs Fordham tomorrow. Can’t wait to see the Fieldhouse and all the traditions played out on Hawk Hill!
Posted in Visit Plans | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on December 28, 2009
I hope everyone had a happy and safe holiday. We’re back from a brief break at work to see family and friends in Rochester and while there, we saw the AHL Amerks play Hamilton at Blue Cross Arena. The old barn otherwise known as the War Memorial (it’s former name) has to be considered my ‘home’ stadium. I’ve never taken the time to figure out how many games I’ve been to here, but it surely is a lot. It such a quirky arena with quite a contrast of old and new. The more hockey arenas I visit, the more I realize how special it is as so many of the other (mainly newer) arenas are just sterile. There are so many goofy traditions here that I love: The accordian guy playing tunes as you walk into the arena, how the lights have to be ‘warmed up’ because of their age while the anthem is playing, the Moose, the off-center scoreboard, the old horn and score-o between the first and second period.
After a few down years, it was nice to see a holiday crowd of 7,000+ at the game. A completely new management team came in and made sweeping changes on and off the nice, mostly for the good. As for the arena/team nuances, I do like how they brought back the home white uniforms. But I find it horrible they let go the organist for decades, Fred Costello. Hearing the organ was a staple at Amerks games and now it has been replaced by awful, loud and constant pop music. To all these minor league teams who think they need loud music to energize or excite the crowd: please stop. As for the game, the Amerks withstood 47 shots and came out with a 4-2 win. So we say goodbye to Blue Cross Arena….till next year (or sooner if the Calder Cup Finals come calling).
As for the next new stadium trip, those plans are up in there as usual. If we get a real nice weather break, I’ve been toying with the idea of spending the weekend in Rhode Island for a couple venues. In reality, we’ll probably sneak away to a nearby facility, but it probably will not be until that week that I decide. Also, if you look at the schedule page, you’ll notice a Texas trip in April…more on that to come!
Posted in Hockey | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on December 12, 2009
Needless to say, I am not going to be making it to the Prudential Center and the Devils game tonight. December is always a tough time for plans to work because of the holidays and the weather/work get crazy. Our initial plan of heading down to Newark, DE to see the Blue Hens was canceled as my wife getting schedule for morning work. As far as the Devils plans, I’ve been working crazy hours, we are hosting a birthday/holiday party tomorrow and I haven’t done any shopping yet, so I needed to make sure it got done along with some other things. Oh well. If I do go somewhere for a game it probably will be short notice and likely within the next seven days. In the meantime, let’s enjoy the best college basketball team in the country, your Syracuse Orange!
Posted in Visit Plans | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on December 1, 2009
I was back in Rochester for the four-day holiday and went to go see the Sabres play Carolina on Saturday Night in Buffalo. They played rather awful as they could not get anything going the first two periods and then just exploded with five goals in the third to win 5-1. Ryan Miller (USA! USA!) was awesome making some great saves to keep them in it and then probably made one of the saves of the year towards the end of the second. This led to a DOUBLE standing O by our crowd. It was great to get back to see the Sabres play as it had been almost four years since my last game there.
HSBC is still one of my favorite arena experiences in the league as it truly is a great place. A couple of the new features I saw included “The Aud” bar in one of the concourses. Really cool, nostalgic hang-out area to drink and relax during the intermissions. The scoreboard was new to me as well and I honestly did not like the design of it. I find the circular scores around the board unappealing. The video is spectacular and crystal-clear, but man has it become a distraction. It seems any dead-time during the game, they fill the board with fan shots and everybody in the arena is fixated with the scoreboard. Also the pricing structure is annoying with four levels of prices based on the day and game, plus the Sabres have added pre-paid parking along with prices for how close you are to the arena. Booo. I know everyone is going this route, but its still sad to see. Lastly, it was nice to see a few of the new banners in the building. The 2007 division/presidents trophy banners and a couple new retired numbers (Gare, LaFontaine).
HSBC Arena is at the top of my list, but we are tentatively planning a New Jersey Devils game December 12, so we will see how the relatively new Prudential Center stacks up.
Posted in Hockey | Leave a Comment »
Posted by Sean Rowland on November 16, 2009
The trip to West Long Branch to see Monmouth University’s new arena went very well. The Hawks hung in the game for the first ten minutes, but Seton Hall gradually pushed it out of reach. I was rooting for the Hawks not only because most times I side with the Sub Red-Liners. Plus the Hall comes across as arrogant along with their over-expressive coach Bobby Gonzalez. I know being Syracuse fan, I should ‘root’ for my conference, but I can’t stand most of the Big East teams (Conncocketicut, Pitt…etc).
Anyway, the building is beautiful and seems to be much better than old Boylan Gym. They made the arena intimate with seats extremely close to the court and you could tell it certainly could get loud. It’s just too bad Monmouth fans didn’t feel that energized to keep loud and TRY to rattle Seton Hall. The layout is a bit awkward, but it is great that they put the indoor track on the top level and not near the playing court. That way it feels like a true arena. The scoreboard was beautiful too and they never used the video in a distracting way. I think they were still working out some of the opening night kinks as it took me forever to find where the programs were sold (hidden behind the stairwell when you first walk in). Also, the ticket procedure was a little strange. I also hope they get some banners up in that place! That better not be an oversight, because they should proudly be hanging there conference championships.
All-in-all, the MAC is a decent, new arena. I enjoyed my game there and the building has some very good features. It certainly is light-years ahead of its NEC counterparts and likely will help Monmouth basketball with recruiting.
Posted in Visits | Leave a Comment »
