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3/10/2008, 03:37 PM
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Texas A&M, Arkansas to renew football rivalry at new Cowboys stadium
02:12 PM CDT on Monday, March 10, 2008
By KATE HAIROPOULOS / The Dallas Morning News
[email protected]
ARLINGTON -Texas A&M and Arkansas are the newest long-term tenants of the Dallas Cowboys' burgeoning $1.1 billion stadium.
The schools plan on settling in and building a tradition, similar perhaps to the annual Texas-Oklahoma game at the Cotton Bowl.
The renewed football rivalry will begin Oct. 3, 2009, the first game of an initial 10-year contract. But the schools can pick up five, four-year options that could extend the series to a 30-year deal.
The new stadium will feature Razorback and Aggies zones, and tickets will be split 50-50.
“We’d like to be here forever,” Texas A&M athletic director Bill Byrne said.
Wearing hard hats and orange safety vests, school officials - including Aggies coach Mike Sherman and Razorbacks coach Bobby Petrino - joined Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in announcing the deal at the stadium’s construction site Monday morning.
“This stadium can be home to great games,” said Jones, an Arkansas alum. “It’s a thrill to have schools that are as closely aligned - and certainly the school that is my alma mater - to come in here and initiate what this stadium can do.”
Each school stands to make a base of $5 million annually from the game, Byrne said. That number could grow with future sponsorships. Ticket prices have not been determined. A&M typically makes $3.5 million from a home game in College Station.
The Cowboys will charge the home team $100 rent each year.
“The Cowboys have been very, very helpful,” said Byrne, who has been in negotiations on the deal for about a year. “They wanted this game. It’s a good deal.”
Byrne said the schools will use the Oklahoma-Texas game as a gauge for prices. Arkansas and A&M will try to schedule the game around the first week of the State Fair.
The massive new stadium will feature Razorback and Aggies zones, and tickets will be split 50-50.
The rivalry will be televised according to the standing contracts of the Southeastern Conference (CBS) and Big 12 (ABC/ESPN).
Jones said the Cowboys hope to attract another college game in the future, though he didn’t provide details.
The stadium has already landed the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic, which is moving from Fair Park beginning in 2010.
Arkansas and A&M last played in 1991 before the Razorbacks left the Southwest Conference for the SEC.
Officials from both schools touted the recruiting and exposure benefits of playing in the Dallas area.
“It’s a new tradition we hope will last a long, long time,” Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long said.
Lotta stuff in there that makes it sound like they could figure out the 50/50 split. That really makes me wonder if it's 50/50 split of ALL tickets, or tickets remaining after Cowboys season ticket holders/ Suite owners get theirs.
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Texas A&M, Arkansas to renew football rivalry at new Cowboys stadium
02:12 PM CDT on Monday, March 10, 2008
By KATE HAIROPOULOS / The Dallas Morning News
[email protected]
ARLINGTON -Texas A&M and Arkansas are the newest long-term tenants of the Dallas Cowboys' burgeoning $1.1 billion stadium.
The schools plan on settling in and building a tradition, similar perhaps to the annual Texas-Oklahoma game at the Cotton Bowl.
The renewed football rivalry will begin Oct. 3, 2009, the first game of an initial 10-year contract. But the schools can pick up five, four-year options that could extend the series to a 30-year deal.
The new stadium will feature Razorback and Aggies zones, and tickets will be split 50-50.
“We’d like to be here forever,” Texas A&M athletic director Bill Byrne said.
Wearing hard hats and orange safety vests, school officials - including Aggies coach Mike Sherman and Razorbacks coach Bobby Petrino - joined Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones in announcing the deal at the stadium’s construction site Monday morning.
“This stadium can be home to great games,” said Jones, an Arkansas alum. “It’s a thrill to have schools that are as closely aligned - and certainly the school that is my alma mater - to come in here and initiate what this stadium can do.”
Each school stands to make a base of $5 million annually from the game, Byrne said. That number could grow with future sponsorships. Ticket prices have not been determined. A&M typically makes $3.5 million from a home game in College Station.
The Cowboys will charge the home team $100 rent each year.
“The Cowboys have been very, very helpful,” said Byrne, who has been in negotiations on the deal for about a year. “They wanted this game. It’s a good deal.”
Byrne said the schools will use the Oklahoma-Texas game as a gauge for prices. Arkansas and A&M will try to schedule the game around the first week of the State Fair.
The massive new stadium will feature Razorback and Aggies zones, and tickets will be split 50-50.
The rivalry will be televised according to the standing contracts of the Southeastern Conference (CBS) and Big 12 (ABC/ESPN).
Jones said the Cowboys hope to attract another college game in the future, though he didn’t provide details.
The stadium has already landed the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic, which is moving from Fair Park beginning in 2010.
Arkansas and A&M last played in 1991 before the Razorbacks left the Southwest Conference for the SEC.
Officials from both schools touted the recruiting and exposure benefits of playing in the Dallas area.
“It’s a new tradition we hope will last a long, long time,” Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long said.
Lotta stuff in there that makes it sound like they could figure out the 50/50 split. That really makes me wonder if it's 50/50 split of ALL tickets, or tickets remaining after Cowboys season ticket holders/ Suite owners get theirs.