Comments on: Slive Sees Future SEC Tourneys In Atlanta, Nashville, And…

By: Alabama | MrSEC

Alabama | MrSEC — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 14:22:21 +0000

[...] pushed both Kansas City and St. Louis to bid on future SEC Tournaments. Earlier this month Slive stated that he “anticipated” a bid coming from St. Louis, but he said nothing of Kansas City. So what did he say yesterday in Kansas City? “If [...]

By: MoKelly

MoKelly — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 17:27:37 +0000

We could also go to the dog races in West Memphis!

By: JHHopkins

JHHopkins — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 16:53:19 +0000

HAVE ALL OF YOU FORGOT….
One of the greatest SEC towns in the south is Memphis. The SEC Tourney use to be in Memphis & heavily supported. The reason it stopped is because Memphis is a very heavy basketball town (maybe the best in America) & they wanted to host the C-USA Tourney every year & pretty much have. No U of Memphis is gone to the Big East, & they won’t be playing the tourney there for a while. FedEx Forum was voted the best basketball venue in America. With Memphis in Tennessee touching the state borders of Mississippi & Arkansas, you find plenty of Alums/fans from all-SEC schools. Ranking fans from most to least is Tennessee (5 hours from Knoxville), Arkansas (5 hours from Fayetteville), Ole Miss (1 hour away), M~State (3 hours away from Starkville), LSU (about 6 hours away from BR), Alabama (4 hours away from T-Town), Kentucky (5 hours away & they would pack the place out like they do every where), Florida (11 hours away), Georgia (7 hours away from Athens), Auburn (5 hours away), South Carolina (10 hours away), Vandy is just 3 hours away….. I could promise the best basketball arena in the nation would be filled for all games, sold out for others. Memphis locals would support it….. geez they went out and watched East Carolina, Marshall, Central Florida, & other C-USA teams, they would watch decent SEC basketball & plenty of fans locally would make it & it less than a half a days drive for most of the SEC schools. YOU ALSO HAVE BEALE STREET to eat & party. The Superdome is no where near the French Quarter, Beale is 1 street over (about a 80 yard walk) to Beale. Plenty of hotels, establishments, locals, BBQ, & a practice facility in an amazing arena….. why is Slive not talking about putting it there. It is much better than Nashville. A better venue, better hotels (closer), better night life, & everything. It would be supported better than if it was in Nashville.

By: Dynamite fan

Dynamite fan — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 04:00:43 +0000

Why not just keep the thing in Nashville?? The Georgia Dome is horrible for B-ball and anywhere else draws flies at best. I’m watching the games from NO & it’s a dead atomsphere. St. Loius is NOT in any traditional SEC fans thought process as a SEC town. Hell it would be better in Louisville than St Louis. Also play the Football game somewhere else every 5th year or So New Orleans or a return to Birmingham

By: jt

jt — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 02:30:12 +0000

We really don’t want to have it in domes so that we can limit how many Kentucky fans get in. There will be 50,000 Kentucky fans there no matter where it is but in the smaller arenas only 18,000 can get in.

By: sfprman

sfprman — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 23:05:03 +0000

Dallas didn’t support the Big XII tournaments that much so any SEC tourney there would be even more a challenge.
St. Louis would be ideal and be a full house. And I like Nashville, too (will fly there in 2013 to root for Mizzou for sure) And the rotation with them and New Orleans (although the dismal attendance I’m seeing on TV today looks very bad) and Atlanta sounds smart.

By: George O

George O — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 22:42:54 +0000

Tournament shouldn’t be extended a day. Should be play-in games on Monday or Tuesday #12 @ #9 and #11@#10.

By: MoKelly

MoKelly — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:47:39 +0000

St. Louis in the rotation would be GREAT. I would be happy.

By: Mith242

Mith242 — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:44:41 +0000

I don’t like always playing the championship in football at Atlanta. I don’t see why they can’t move that around a little as well. I know you won’t have as many options as you would in basketball. But New Orleans could easily host it as well. At least throw a bone to the SEC West team fans once in a while.

By: m_Ag

m_Ag — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 21:15:22 +0000

“As for Dallas, see: Kansas City. Houston? Well, we’d be okay with the league tossing the Aggies a bone and allowing a single tourney to be played there, but no more.”

Houston is definitely easier for fans in Southern Lousiana, but for most of the SEC, it is at least as difficult to reach as Dallas. According to google maps, birmingham is 10h 46 minutes from Houston and 10h39 minutes from Dallas. Memphis is 2 and 1/2 hours closer to Dallas than Houston.

I think the tournament should probably be in those central locations 4 years out of 5, spending every 5th year in a place like Houston, Dallas, Orlando, or KC.

By: David

David — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:58:54 +0000

Agree with everything here except rotating Memphis in. People really don’t want to go there. Like it or not, safety and security are issues there. You have to be careful which blocks you walk down, how late you’re out, etc. You simply don’t have this problem on Broadway in Nashville. Texas cities, such as Houston, would be an interesting one-time thing. Overall, I think the league should stick mainly with Atlanta and Nashville, just like Slive said. I wonder if Phillips Arena is a possibility as opposed to the Georgia Dome?

By: mitchs3

mitchs3 — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:45:37 +0000

Mr. Slive is correct. Frank Viverito, Chairman of the St. Louis Sports Commission, will soon be calling. We’ll take either 2017 or 2018 – both if you’re so inclined. Try the toasted ravioli, it’s great.

I’ll be curious if the SEC would want it at Scottrade or the Jones Dome. Scottrade would make for a much better atmosphere, same as your comment about Philips vs. the Ga. Dome.

By: runner

runner — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 20:39:22 +0000

For starters, the hermitage is the hotel to stay while in nashville. Disagree about rotating it, it should be in nashville every year and build it up with one site. The concept works fine for the big 10 and indy, why not the sec? Atlanta has football, birmingham has baseball, give nashville hoops.