There SHOULD be an Ivy Bowl at Wrigley Field

[DarthCat]

Affer reading how the Pinstripe Bowl, being managed by the Yankees instead of a non profit 'bowl association', was absolutely a top notch experience for the teams, I agree with some who have posted the Cubs should do the same. Good reports I've read from the fans too.

Someone posted that if there was inclement weather that hindered travel plans, or tickets didn't sell to schools, there weren't enough fans locally to fill seats at the last minutes. If Chicago/Wrigley was the venue, and Big Ten was a partipant each year, I don't see how that's a problem. As we have discussed in depth, there are more fans of almost every school in Chicago as there are NU fans. Wrigley would be PACKED for any Big Ten bowl game the week after Christmas.

Ad into the equation the new hotel on the Wrigley plaza, and damn. This could be an event.

Names?

Ivy Bowl (But ivy's all dead in late December so...)
Wrigley Bowl
Cub Bowl
Catuli Bowl (Personal favorite)

 

[NJCat]

Affer reading how the Pinstripe Bowl, being managed by the Yankees instead of a non profit 'bowl association', was absolutely a top notch experience for the teams, I agree with some who have posted the Cubs should do the same. Good reports I've read from the fans too.

Someone posted that if there was inclement weather that hindered travel plans, or tickets didn't sell to schools, there weren't enough fans locally to fill seats at the last minutes. If Chicago/Wrigley was the venue, and Big Ten was a partipant each year, I don't see how that's a problem. As we have discussed in depth, there are more fans of almost every school in Chicago as there are NU fans. Wrigley would be PACKED for any Big Ten bowl game the week after Christmas.

Ad into the equation the new hotel on the Wrigley plaza, and damn. This could be an event.

Names?

Ivy Bowl (But ivy's all dead in late December so...)
Wrigley Bowl
Cub Bowl
Catuli Bowl (Personal favorite)

Do you have any insight into when (if ever) the modifications to Wrigley to permit a safe, full length football field will be complete? NU's plans to play there have gone suspiciously silent.

 

[DarthCat]

Do you have any insight into when (if ever) the modifications to Wrigley to permit a safe, full length football field will be complete? NU's plans to play there have gone suspiciously silent.

Well, the renovation plan went from four years to five years last year. I am not sure what part of the renovations would result in the field being altered to allow a full football field. The bullpens move under the bleachers this off season, so that's a significant change to the field that may make the field good to go for football. But I don't know.

I wouldn't expect any new word on NU's games there until the construction gets closer to completion. But considering the investment the Cubs are putting into the product, I think a bowl game would fit right into their plans.

Is there any information on how much the Yankees made on the Pinstripe Bowl? I am unclear how the economies of hosting a bowl game work. It must be profitable as there are so many getting in the game.

 

[Hungry Jack]

I don't think that field will ever safely accommodate a regulation football field. If anything, the Cubs will want to add more seats, though I have heard of no plays to do so. With its comfy schmumfy alleys and limited foul territory, WF will be even more of a hitter's haven.

I have little doubt that Chicago would be a very good bowl destination. People love to visit to Chicago to dine, party, and visit Al Capone's former haunts. A bowl game would be an easy sell in this town IF WE HAD AN INDOOR STADIUM. /rant

 

[NJCat]

I don't think that field will ever safely accommodate a regulation football field. If anything, the Cubs will want to add more seats, though I have heard of no plays to do so. With its comfy schmumfy alleys and limited foul territory, WF will be even more of a hitter's haven.

I have little doubt that Chicago would be a very good bowl destination. People love to visit to Chicago to dine, party, and visit Al Capone's former haunts. A bowl game would be an easy sell in this town IF WE HAD AN INDOOR STADIUM. /rant

I hate indoor stadia. Football is an outdoor game and should be played in cold weather. Indoor stadiums should be reserved for the South, and kept at 40F with optional snow making machinery available.

 

[its_the_sauce]

I don't think that field will ever safely accommodate a regulation football field. If anything, the Cubs will want to add more seats, though I have heard of no plays to do so. With its comfy schmumfy alleys and limited foul territory, WF will be even more of a hitter's haven.

I have little doubt that Chicago would be a very good bowl destination. People love to visit to Chicago to dine, party, and visit Al Capone's former haunts. A bowl game would be an easy sell in this town IF WE HAD AN INDOOR STADIUM. /rant

Yes, that indoor stadium has been a boon for attendance for the bowl in Detroit.

 

[Hungry Jack]

I hate indoor stadia. Football is an outdoor game and should be played in cold weather. Indoor stadiums should be reserved for the South, and kept at 40F with optional snow making machinery available.

Would you settle for a retractable roof?

This is just my ongoing rant about stupid City politics and the short-sighted decision to not build an indoor football stadium that could leverage the City's considerable tourism and convention infrastructure (hotels. restaurants, transportation, prostitutes, etc.). Super Bowl, B1G Championship, NCAA Final Four, Aon Big Shoulders Bowl, Comicon, Wrestlemania 35, etc. all could be hosted in our fair city if these numbnuts had any sense about them.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Yes, that indoor stadium has been a boon for attendance for the bowl in Detroit.

It's freaking DETROIT man. You don't go to Detroit unless you have to.

 

[DarthCat]

Would you settle for a retractable roof?

This is just my ongoing rant about stupid City politics and the short-sighted decision to not build an indoor football stadium that could leverage the City's considerable tourism and convention infrastructure (hotels. restaurants, transportation, prostitutes, etc.). Super Bowl, B1G Championship, NCAA Final Four, Aon Big Shoulders Bowl, Comicon, Wrestlemania 35, etc. all could be hosted in our fair city if these numbnuts had any sense about them.

An indoor stadium in Chicago?!? Ha ha ha! Never. Monsters of the Midway playing inside?! Never ever going to happen. Playing in the cold is part of the culture of the team's glory days.

 

[NJCat]

Would you settle for a retractable roof?

This is just my ongoing rant about stupid City politics and the short-sighted decision to not build an indoor football stadium that could leverage the City's considerable tourism and convention infrastructure (hotels. restaurants, transportation, prostitutes, etc.). Super Bowl, B1G Championship, NCAA Final Four, Aon Big Shoulders Bowl, Comicon, Wrestlemania 35, etc. all could be hosted in our fair city if these numbnuts had any sense about them.

I agree it would make great economic sense for Chicago, assuming the City doesn't pay the $1.5 Billion or so bill to erect it. I just hate watching cumfy schumfy football in a domed stadium.

 

[Hungry Jack]

An indoor stadium in Chicago?!? Ha ha ha! Never. Monsters of the Midway playing inside?! Never ever going to happen. Playing in the cold is part of the culture of the team's glory days.

It's freaking myth right up there with Sasquatch and the story where you go to a party and end up having your kidneys stolen.

 

[willycat]

An indoor stadium in Chicago?!? Ha ha ha! Never. Monsters of the Midway playing inside?! Never ever going to happen. Playing in the cold is part of the culture of the team's glory days.

Those "monsters" can't play, whether it's inside or outside.

 

[DarthCat]

It's freaking myth right up there with Sasquatch and the story where you go to a party and end up having your kidneys stolen.

How can you say a cultural identify is a 'myth'? By it's nature it's a matter of opinion. But there is a reason teams are moving AWAY from indoor stadiums, even in places with inclement weather.

In Chicago, an indoor football venue would never ever never happen.

Plus, playing indoors defeats the purpose of my original post about a bowl game in a historic venue in 'Big Ten' football weather.

 

[willycat]

Well, the renovation plan went from four years to five years last year. I am not sure what part of the renovations would result in the field being altered to allow a full football field. The bullpens move under the bleachers this off season, so that's a significant change to the field that may make the field good to go for football. But I don't know.

I wouldn't expect any new word on NU's games there until the construction gets closer to completion. But considering the investment the Cubs are putting into the product, I think a bowl game would fit right into their plans.

Is there any information on how much the Yankees made on the Pinstripe Bowl? I am unclear how the economies of hosting a bowl game work. It must be profitable as there are so many getting in the game.

Think that after this off season's work that the field reconstruction is about done. Next years re-do will be in the lower grandstands and the upper deck. Moving the bullpens and the dugouts will make for a safe full size football field and can't wait to see FSU, Alabama or Clemson play at the Big Ten Bowl in "Beautiful Wrigley Field". Maybe that's where NU will play TSISB if they don't pull a Vanderbilt.

 

[DarthCat]

I SERIOUSLY doubt we'd play ND there. We want a decided home field advantage in a Wrigley game and playing ND would NOT be it. Playing our 'home' games against them in '92 and '94 at Soldier Field was a terrible idea. It'd feel like a road game. Similarly I thought Illinois was a bad call for that game in '10.

Would prefer to see a Penn State, Maryland or other team with a small Chicago bass fan base.

 

[Hungry Jack]

How can you say a cultural identify is a 'myth'? By it's nature it's a matter of opinion. But there is a reason teams are moving AWAY from indoor stadiums, even in places with inclement weather.

In Chicago, an indoor football venue would never ever never happen.

Plus, playing indoors defeats the purpose of my original post about a bowl game in a historic venue in 'Big Ten' football weather.

I'm not sure this is the cultural identity of the team anymore. Maybe it is. But I think it's a joke, personally.

I agree that indoor stadiums are passe. In Chicago, they would need to build a retractable dome, multi-use facility to make it fly.

I certainly do not expect this to happen, at least any time soon. The opportunity was missed when they elected to pimp out Soldier Field.

 

[gocatsgo2003]

I don't think that field will ever safely accommodate a regulation football field. If anything, the Cubs will want to add more seats, though I have heard of no plays to do so. With its comfy schmumfy alleys and limited foul territory, WF will be even more of a hitter's haven.

I have little doubt that Chicago would be a very good bowl destination. People love to visit to Chicago to dine, party, and visit Al Capone's former haunts. A bowl game would be an easy sell in this town IF WE HAD AN INDOOR STADIUM. /rant

Accomodating a football field was supposedly on the list of goals for the renovation, though it could very well have fallen away in the give-and-take process with the City.

My understanding is a full-length field could/would be accommodated by removing semi-permanent seating behind home plate to allow a football field to be positioned 10-15 yards farther from the right field wall than it was for our game against the Illini.

 

[DarthCat]

I think they did that seating change behind home plate this off season. Right after the World Series, there was a picture of all the seats behind home ripped away, a huge section gone, all the way down to the dirt.

 

[gocatsgo2003]

I think they did that seating change behind home plate this off season. Right after the World Series, there was a picture of all the seats behind home ripped away, a huge section gone, all the way down to the dirt.

Yeah... there's a TON of work going on there right now:

 

[its_the_sauce]

I SERIOUSLY doubt we'd play ND there. We want a decided home field advantage in a Wrigley game and playing ND would NOT be it. Playing our 'home' games against them in '92 and '94 at Soldier Field was a terrible idea. It'd feel like a road game. Similarly I thought Illinois was a bad call for that game in '10.

Would prefer to see a Penn State, Maryland or other team with a small Chicago bass fan base.

Given the way the MLB playoffs now stretch into November (and with the Cubs possibly now being relevant for a while), options for NU playing at Wrigley are pretty much limited to the last 2 or 3 weeks of the season. ND currently scheduled for 11/3, don't think that would make the Wrigley availability cut.

 

[willycat]

I SERIOUSLY doubt we'd play ND there. We want a decided home field advantage in a Wrigley game and playing ND would NOT be it. Playing our 'home' games against them in '92 and '94 at Soldier Field was a terrible idea. It'd feel like a road game. Similarly I thought Illinois was a bad call for that game in '10.

Would prefer to see a Penn State, Maryland or other team with a small Chicago bass fan base.

You might be right but NU has beaten ND the last two times at So. Bend and not sure how much home field they would hole at Ryan. Remember Nebraska. I haven't looked at the future schedules but playing a east coast team or maybe Purdue, Indiana or Minnesota might work since they don't "travel well".

 

[DarthCat]

Minnesota on November 23, 2018.

In 2017, we're on the road too much of November.

 

[Sheffielder]

As far as cold weather bowl venues go, Chicago is an obvious choice, so long as a venue is available, whether that be Wrigley or Soldier Field...but this to me falls into the category of fans thinking there should be four superconferences of 16 schools each - that works out fine in your own head, until you realize there are actually very smart people/stakeholders involved in the process who need to want it more than you do - the Cubs organization (or the Bears) and at least two conferences are at the top of this list. The NCAA is also a stakeholder here, which has placed a moratorium on creating new bowl games, and even if some of the current bowls close up shop over the next few years, with bowl attendance trending downwards, they may simply choose to reduce the total number of games.

As far as stadiums with roofs...Detroit has one, Minneapolis has one, and Indy has one...and they're able to attract special events (B1G title game, Super Bowl, among others) because of it. So, regardless of where you stand on the issue, you need to live with the fact that Chicago will continue to miss out on opportunities because of it. Would not surprise me at all to see the SEC and perhaps a majority of ACC programs voting against a Chicago bowl game due to the open air venue.

 

[willycat]

Minnesota on November 23, 2018.

In 2017, we're on the road too much of November.

That would probably work but thinking that date would on or around Thanksgiving.

 

[gocatsgo2003]

That would probably work but thinking that date would on or around Thanksgiving.

Google is your friend. Thanksgiving falls on November 22, 2018.

 

[DarthCat]

Ahhhhh, I was quoting the 2019 schedule for the Minnesota game. My bad.

That year Thanksgiving is on the 28th

 

[Catreporter]

Fitz has said several times he is looking forward to playing another game in Wrigley.

 

[Windy City Cat Fan]

An indoor stadium in Chicago?!? Ha ha ha! Never. Monsters of the Midway playing inside?! Never ever going to happen. Playing in the cold is part of the culture of the team's glory days.

Considering most of the players in the NFL and the Bears are from warm weather states and college programs the idea of 'bear weather' is more about fans being willing to tolerate sitting through a game in the freezing cold.

 

[julescat]

beyond shit stadium for football.

 

[DarthCat]

Oh, Soldier Field is terrible. Last year when we played Illinois, it was my 12 year old's first time there. He couldn't have complained more about the look, concessions (Beggar's Pizza (no offense Nap) and RC vs Connie's and Coke products at Ryan), and even the Jumbotron.

I hadn't been in years, but actually left feeling a LOT better about Ryan Field.

 

[hdhntr1]

Would you settle for a retractable roof?

This is just my ongoing rant about stupid City politics and the short-sighted decision to not build an indoor football stadium that could leverage the City's considerable tourism and convention infrastructure (hotels. restaurants, transportation, prostitutes, etc.). Super Bowl, B1G Championship, NCAA Final Four, Aon Big Shoulders Bowl, Comicon, Wrestlemania 35, etc. all could be hosted in our fair city if these numbnuts had any sense about them.

I totally agree. To think that SF is likely the most costly stadium (costs have gone higher for NY and Dallas but SF was built longer ago at a cost over $800 mill so still more expensive in constant dollars) and so unusable because of its small size

 

[hdhntr1]

An indoor stadium in Chicago?!? Ha ha ha! Never. Monsters of the Midway playing inside?! Never ever going to happen. Playing in the cold is part of the culture of the team's glory days.

And that myth came about when the season ended in early DEC. and when it was only 12 or 14 games. (14 in 1963 with last game DEC 15 and Championship DEC 29)

 

[ubercat]

Yeah... there's a TON of work going on there right now:

View embedded media

The subterranean look of the Coliseum's gladiator's quarters comes to mind.

 

[Styre]

Oh, Soldier Field is terrible. Last year when we played Illinois, it was my 12 year old's first time there. He couldn't have complained more about the look, concessions (Beggar's Pizza (no offense Nap) and RC vs Connie's and Coke products at Ryan), and even the Jumbotron.

I hadn't been in years, but actually left feeling a LOT better about Ryan Field.

I have absolutely no problem with the seating area at Soldier Field. It's intimate but the seats are still comfortable and the sight lines are generally excellent. It also gets pretty damn loud on the rare occasions that the Bears are actually good.

The rest of the stadium, sadly, is seriously flawed. The concourses are too small, there aren't enough bathrooms, and the food sucks unless you're paying extra and sitting in the "club" levels. While I don't mind the look of the stadium from the outside, trying to cram a modern NFL stadium into the shell of a dump (and it was a dump) from the 1920s was a dreadful mistake.

 

[stpaulcat]

Affer reading how the Pinstripe Bowl, being managed by the Yankees instead of a non profit 'bowl association', was absolutely a top notch experience for the teams, I agree with some who have posted the Cubs should do the same. Good reports I've read from the fans too.

Someone posted that if there was inclement weather that hindered travel plans, or tickets didn't sell to schools, there weren't enough fans locally to fill seats at the last minutes. If Chicago/Wrigley was the venue, and Big Ten was a partipant each year, I don't see how that's a problem. As we have discussed in depth, there are more fans of almost every school in Chicago as there are NU fans. Wrigley would be PACKED for any Big Ten bowl game the week after Christmas.

Ad into the equation the new hotel on the Wrigley plaza, and damn. This could be an event.

Names?

Ivy Bowl (But ivy's all dead in late December so...)
Wrigley Bowl
Cub Bowl
Catuli Bowl (Personal favorite)

I never want to watch another football game where both teams go the same direction. That was perverse. Has that problem been fixed? If so, your idea is a great one. I love freezing my ass off.

 

[Hungry Jack]

The subterranean look of the Coliseum's gladiator's quarters comes to mind.

Did someone say "gladiator?"

It was on AMC last night. I could watch the Carthage / barbarian horde / chariot scene over and over again. It reminds me the time we beat Michigan.

 

[its_the_sauce]

I have absolutely no problem with the seating area at Soldier Field. It's intimate but the seats are still comfortable and the sight lines are generally excellent. It also gets pretty damn loud on the rare occasions that the Bears are actually good.

The rest of the stadium, sadly, is seriously flawed. The concourses are too small, there aren't enough bathrooms, and the food sucks unless you're paying extra and sitting in the "club" levels. While I don't mind the look of the stadium from the outside, trying to cram a modern NFL stadium into the shell of a dump (and it was a dump) from the 1920s was a dreadful mistake.

I'm a Bears STH (400 level). I like the SF after the redo. Being a regular I know which bathrooms to hit and I think it's very cool to hang out under the colonnade before the game. While I usually don't do the food, there is nothing wrong with the hot links or smoked turkey from the Robinson's stand in the NW plaza.

That being said it should have been totally raised and a new stadium built in its place. The kicker is many of the critics that lambaste the "landed spaceship" look would have screamed bloody murder had there been a move to tear it down.

 

[Windy City Cat Fan]

I have absolutely no problem with the seating area at Soldier Field. It's intimate but the seats are still comfortable and the sight lines are generally excellent. It also gets pretty damn loud on the rare occasions that the Bears are actually good.

The rest of the stadium, sadly, is seriously flawed. The concourses are too small, there aren't enough bathrooms, and the food sucks unless you're paying extra and sitting in the "club" levels. While I don't mind the look of the stadium from the outside, trying to cram a modern NFL stadium into the shell of a dump (and it was a dump) from the 1920s was a dreadful mistake.

Agree with you on the seating, sight lines and it getting loud. I've never understood people who complain about concessions - if you want a gourmet sandwich and craft beer for $25 why did you bother coming to a game and not just go out to lunch somewhere?

 

[Hungry Jack]

If I am Virginia McCaskey and I want a new stadium, I am going to the City with a plan to develop the substantial tract next to the river just south of Roosevelt Rd. It is an ideal site-close to the expressway, one block from the El, one block from Metra, close to the convention facilities and the entertainment areas. I lobby for TIF money and other City funding, DoT money and other public money.

I then build an indoor 75,000 person stadium with a retractable roof and a snow making system for all the idiot fans who crave "Bear weather." Let them eat cake!

I also enact plans to build a large hotel and commercial complex on the plot just across Roosevelt road, including a Bears HOF, Walter Payton roadhouse brewpub, and other stuff. I own all this stuff, and I make sure that my stadium gets used for a Super Bowl, B1G championship game, NCAA Final Four, Big Shoulders Bowl, and all the Hanna Montana concerts I can book. I also extract concessions from the convention unions so that my space is not so costly to use.

On game day, I run shuttles from Phoenix in China Town (dim sum!) to my new stadium. I also invite boaters to boat to my stadium on the river in early fall, and tailgate on their boats as they tie off on my docks next to the stadium. Women in bikini serve cold beer and hot wings to the boaters, who have ponied up $800 for a temporary slip during home games in September and October. In December, I run a promotion with the Blackhawks where attendees can attend a Hawks game on Sunday night, taking the shuttle over the UC.

I also run a gambling river boat hydrofoil shuttle to the boat in Joliet, serving lots of booze and wings on the way.

 

[Deeringfish]

Would it work to try and make it a bit of a local tradition at Wrigley. MAC vs B1G?
Top team in each conference not selected to a bowl plays. I suppose Rutgers and Maryland would not be very local but I bet they have fans in the Chicago area. We know Nebraska does. The MAC teams would be more local and also have fans in the area. Most of these fans can stand cold weather ball. It could end up being the number 2 MAC team vs a 5 and 7 B1G team but that might be competitive and would often be about bragging rights.