It’s official.
Arkansas has signed an agreement to play three more football games in Little Rock over the next five years, it was announced Thursday morning.
• Complete signed agreement here
In a press conference in Little Rock at War Memorial Stadium, everybody said the right and proper thing.
“A big part of our mission as a university is to make lives better for Arkansans,” said UA chancellor Joe Steinmetz. “That means a lot of things including recruiting students from every part of our state, providing transformational opportunities, solving problems through research and discovery, and contributing service through collaboration.
“But it also means engaging the entire state. The Arkansas Razorbacks are a tremendous source of pride for the University of Arkansas and the state, and will always be a big part of that engagement. We’re excited to continue the tradition of playing at War Memorial Stadium.”
New athletics director Hunter Yurachek was hit with this problem almost before he found his office back in December and spent a lot of his time talking to as many people as possible around the state.
“Throughout this process, I sought and listened to many passionate Razorbacks from every corner of our state and beyond,” he said. “While those conversations provided varying perspectives, they collectively reaffirmed my belief that this state is unified in our desire to see the Razorback program succeed.”
The new agreement is very specific and requires the state to do certain things in terms of fixing the place up. Included in that will be a new turf, getting team dressing rooms up to SEC standards as well as the stadium infrastructure and internet connectivity among other things.
Of course, all of this is subject to SEC scheduling and the league granting waivers.
Quite frankly, the league could throw a giant monkey wrench in the entire agreement on nearly every factor of it because they control the scheduling.
There’s a lot of work that has got to be done to War Memorial Stadium before the 2019 game and that money is coming from somewhere other than the UA.
That is the way it should be. The agreement also has many things in place, including a guarantee on the number of tickets that have to be sold for each game (47,000). The revenue numbers from that for the UA will have to be a minimum of $2.1 million, $2.3 million and $2.5 million, repsectively.
The stadium will control the concessions and, yes, Coke will be available instead of Pepsi (that will make a lot of fans happy for that simple thing alone).
For the spring game, the UA will pay rent of $75,000 per game. If there is a rent for the game against Missouri, well, it escaped me (and I looked a couple of times fairly closely).
It appears to be a much better financial deal for the UA.
Assuming, of course, the SEC agrees to it all. One has to assume Yurachek got at least a verbal go-ahead from the league before any agreement reached this stage.
But if the state doesn’t get War Memorial up to snuff, then there won’t be any games played there at all.
We’ll see how it plays out.
Complete quotes
UA chancellor Joe Steinmetz:
“A big part of our mission as a university is to make lives better for Arkansans. That means a lot of things including recruiting students from every part of our state, providing transformational opportunities, solving problems through research and discovery, and contributing service through collaboration. But it also means engaging the entire state. The Arkansas Razorbacks are a tremendous source of pride for the University of Arkansas and the state, and will always be a big part of that engagement. We’re excited to continue the tradition of playing at War Memorial Stadium. I’d like to thank Hunter Yurachek for his due diligence throughout the process while also including what is sometimes overlooked in a decision like this – the decades of fond memories and strong emotions so many Razorback fans share related to the Razorbacks playing in Little Rock. I’d also like to thank the many people who provided their input and guidance that led to this decision, and especially Governor Hutchinson, Arkansas Parks and Tourism, the War Memorial Stadium Commission, University of Arkansas System leaders and others who helped to continue the connection between War Memorial Stadium and the Arkansas Razorbacks.”
Razorbacks athletics director Hunter Yurachek:
“For 70 years, University of Arkansas football games at War Memorial Stadium have been a part of our program’s rich history and our state’s heritage. We are pleased that through our partnership with the Arkansas Department of Parks and Tourism, we will be able to continue this Razorback tradition while also ensuring our program is in position to compete successfully in the SEC and nationally. Throughout this process, I sought and listened to many passionate Razorbacks from every corner of our state and beyond. While those conversations provided varying perspectives, they collectively reaffirmed my belief that this state is unified in our desire to see the Razorback program succeed. I am appreciative of the support provided by Chancellor Steinmetz and the leadership of the University of Arkansas as well as the constructive dialogue throughout this process with Governor Hutchinson, Kane Webb and others who worked diligently to make this agreement a reality.”
Kane Webb, Director of Arkansas Parks and Tourism:
“I think this agreement speaks very highly of the University of Arkansas. In an era in which money seems to be the driving force behind every major decision in big-time college athletics – and it doesn’t get any bigger time than SEC football – this wasn’t a money decision. It required an appreciation and understanding of tradition and culture and a willingness to be uniquely Arkansas.”
Kevin Crass, War Memorial Stadium Commission Chairman:
“As Chairman of the War Memorial Stadium Commission, I am both excited and grateful that Razorback games will continue in Little Rock. This announcement reflects the continuation of a successful partnership between the U of A and War Memorial that has lasted 70 years. I appreciate the efforts of all who made this happen, especially Governor Hutchinson, Chancellor Joe Steinmetz and Athletic Director Hunter Yurachek.”
