InTheDriversSeat Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 Last September, Sun-Times writer Michael Sneed wrote that a NIU football game would be played in 2016: http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/9873...-cell-next-year But the NIU Athletic Director denied Michael Sneed's story at the time: http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2015/09/25/...-field/ao5jo3s/ Apparently he was wrong because today (February 16th) Crain's Chicago Business wrote that a NIU football game will happen at USCF, and the details will be announced tomorrow at an event: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/201...at-u-s-cellular I bet Roger Bossard is happy that the football game will be scheduled after the baseball postseason is over. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg775 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 QUOTE (InTheDriversSeat @ Feb 17, 2016 -> 03:30 AM) Last September, Sun-Times writer Michael Sneed wrote that a NIU football game would be played in 2016: http://chicago.suntimes.com/news/7/71/9873...-cell-next-year But the NIU Athletic Director denied Michael Sneed's story at the time: http://www.daily-chronicle.com/2015/09/25/...-field/ao5jo3s/ Apparently he was wrong because today (February 16th) Crain's Chicago Business wrote that a NIU football game will happen at USCF, and the details will be announced tomorrow at an event: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/201...at-u-s-cellular I bet Roger Bossard is happy that the football game will be scheduled after the baseball postseason is over. . Won't they tear up the beautiful grass? Why would they allow football at the Cell when Soldier Field has to be available for NIU? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank_Thomas Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 (edited) This is awesome to see, as I am an alumnus of NIU. The White Sox have always had a connection to NIU that I deeply appreciate. When I was at NIU we had a school shooting on Valentine's Day that must people don't remember. And I'll never forget the White Sox holding a baseball game for the NIU baseball team (against ND) soon afteR and they donated all proceeds to the families of the victims. I really appreciate that through the years my alma mater and my favorite team have kept that connection and look forward to attending this game in the fall. Edited February 17, 2016 by Frank_Thomas35 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LDF Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 QUOTE (Frank_Thomas35 @ Feb 17, 2016 -> 08:27 AM) This is awesome to see, as I am an alumnus of NIU. The White Sox have always had a connection to NIU that I deeply appreciate. When I was at NIU we had a school shooting on Valentine's Day that must people don't remember. And I'll never forget the White Sox holding a baseball game for the NIU baseball team (against ND) soon afteR and they donated all proceeds to the families of the victims. I really appreciate that through the years my alma mater and my favorite team have kept that connection and look forward to attending this game in the fall. that was a great story on what the sox did. as you said, those little things is what make the owners a good bunch of guys, and should not be forgotten. now i will add me to the #1 on that list to keep remember on what the owner did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 Chicago White Sox @whitesox 24m24 minutes ago .@NIU_Football & @UToledo will play in the Huskie Chi-Town Showdown on November 9. The game will be the first football game in the 25-year history of U.S. Cellular Field. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InTheDriversSeat Posted February 17, 2016 Author Share Posted February 17, 2016 The Sox facebook site has 2 illustrations of the football field layout at USCF. The field will go in a north-south direction parallel to the 1st base line, so I think the best seats will be in the upper deck along the 1st base line. https://www.facebook.com/WhiteSox/photos/a....e=3&theater https://www.facebook.com/WhiteSox/photos/pc...e=3&theater Does anybody know what direction the football field went when the Chicago Cardinals played at Comiskey Park? Was the field parallel to the 3rd base line / Shields Avenue, or was the field parallel to the 1st base line / 35th Street? . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knightni Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 QUOTE (InTheDriversSeat @ Feb 17, 2016 -> 02:17 PM) The Sox facebook site has 2 illustrations of the football field layout at USCF. The field will go in a north-south direction parallel to the 1st base line, so I think the best seats will be in the upper deck along the 1st base line. https://www.facebook.com/WhiteSox/photos/a....e=3&theater https://www.facebook.com/WhiteSox/photos/pc...e=3&theater Does anybody know what direction the football field went when the Chicago Cardinals played at Comiskey Park? Was the field parallel to the 3rd base line / Shields Avenue, or was the field parallel to the 1st base line / 35th Street? . Any non-social media pictures available? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Allen Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 I just think it's weird they made a decision years ago to get away from multi-purpose outdoor arenas, and now it's a craze to play football games in baseball stadiums. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InTheDriversSeat Posted February 17, 2016 Author Share Posted February 17, 2016 Any non-social media pictures available? I found another picture at the NIU Football website: http://www.niuhuskies.com/sports/m-footbl/...ootbl-body.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Allen Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 I wonder if the NIU student body is upset Wrigley will be undergoing renovations and is unavailable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickofypres Posted February 17, 2016 Share Posted February 17, 2016 Awesome news. I am a student at the University of Toledo so this is twice as exciting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InTheDriversSeat Posted November 8, 2016 Author Share Posted November 8, 2016 A reminder, taking place tomorrow night, November 9th, 2016, will be the Northern Illinois Huskies - Toledo Rockets college football game at Guaranteed Rate Field. The game will be the first event at the stadium since the name was officially changed on November 1st. Plenty of tickets remain, however estimated attendance at the time this special event was announced was 15,000 - 25,000 fans. The contest tomorrow will not resemble the Northwestern - Illinois debacle at Wrigley Field in 2010 where both sides played in the same direction using one end zone because of the cramped, potentially dangerous layout. Perhaps Northwestern University should consider having future games at Guaranteed Rate Field instead. As expected, looks like Roger Bossard has done a wonderful job transforming the field: http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2016/11/08/whi...-toledo-vs-niu/ For anyone unable to attend in person, here is the broadcast information: Television ESPN2 - Wednesday, November 9th, 7:00 PM Central (Live) Re-airs: ESPN3 (online streaming service) - Wednesday, November 9th, 10:00 PM Central ESPNU - Saturday, November 19th, 12:30 AM Central Radio 'Huskies Sports Network' Chicago AM 560 WIND 'The Answer' DeKalb AM 1360 WLBK / FM 98.9 W255BN (WLBK translator) Rockford AM 1330 WNTA "Sportsfan Radio 1330' Worldwide internet streaming audio TuneIn App (Northern Illinois Huskies Sports Network) http://niuhuskies.com/sports/2016/6/28/niu...io-network.aspx 'Rocket Sports Radio Network' Radio station affiliates and streaming audio at this link: http://sportsaffiliates.learfieldsports.co...iliates/toledo1 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donaldo Posted November 10, 2016 Share Posted November 10, 2016 (edited) QUOTE (InTheDriversSeat @ Feb 17, 2016 -> 01:17 PM) Does anybody know what direction the football field went when the Chicago Cardinals played at Comiskey Park? Was the field parallel to the 3rd base line / Shields Avenue, or was the field parallel to the 1st base line / 35th Street? North-South...parallel to 3rd base line. QUOTE (InTheDriversSeat @ Nov 8, 2016 -> 05:30 PM) Plenty of tickets remain, however estimated attendance at the time this special event was announced was 15,000 - 25,000 fans. Looks like fewer than 10,000 people actually showed up. Jason Benetti doing play-by-play for ESPN. Edited November 10, 2016 by Donaldo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Chappas Posted November 10, 2016 Share Posted November 10, 2016 QUOTE (Donaldo @ Nov 9, 2016 -> 07:47 PM) North-South...parallel to 3rd base line. Looks like fewer than 10,000 people actually showed up. Jason Benetti doing play-by-play for ESPN. That game should have been played the Saturday after Thanksgiving when the NIU students are home. Northwestern should play there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleHurt05 Posted November 10, 2016 Share Posted November 10, 2016 Some people on Twitter were calling the stadium #TheArrow. They might not be a bad nickname if it stuck, better than the GRate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dick Allen Posted November 10, 2016 Share Posted November 10, 2016 QUOTE (Harry Chappas @ Nov 10, 2016 -> 08:22 AM) That game should have been played the Saturday after Thanksgiving when the NIU students are home. Northwestern should play there. No one should play there. It wasn't built for football. Why bother? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InTheDriversSeat Posted November 11, 2016 Author Share Posted November 11, 2016 No one should play there. It wasn't built for football. Why bother? Because revenue goes to the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority. The NIU game was scheduled after the final game of the World Series, so this game had no impact on baseball. The other MLB baseball stadium in Chicago has numerous events other than baseball, and the ISFA wants to compete more with that facility. Plus, the football game was an experiment to determine if they could pull it off or not. I attended the football game and was impressed with everything except the size of the crowd. Hats off to Roger Bossard and Terry Savarise for making the night happen. According to Herb Gould's column in the Sun-Times on Thursday, there may be more football games at Guaranteed Rate Field. NIU "Athletic Director Sean Frazier wants to take a long look at having the Huskies bring a football game to the Sox' ballpark annually basis". That game should have been played the Saturday after Thanksgiving when the NIU students are home. Northwestern should play there. I agree next year the game should be held on a weekend to boost attendance. Also, I would schedule the game during the daytime when the temperatures are warmer this time of year. Northwestern should definitely get out of Wrigley and have a game at Guaranteed Rate Field due to the dangerous layout at Wrigley, but according to this article Northwestern University Athletic Director Jim Phillips is a Cubs fan, and wants his football team to return to Wrigley in 2017: http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/colle...0519-story.html Looks like fewer than 10,000 people actually showed up. The official announced attendance was 10,180 (according to Herb Gould of the Sun-Times, "NIU officials were anticipating a crowd of 13,000 to 18,000, comparable to their home attendance in DeKalb). Here are some of my thoughts: The best seats in the house were definitely at the upper deck along the 1st base line, although the football field was in clearly sight from every seat at the park. Was surprised that the cost for an upper deck ticket was $45 in advance, but I paid just $24 for an upper deck seat at the window 1 hour before the game. NIU should consider lower ticket prices next year to get more people to come out. I was happy to see that fireworks were shot off when the home team scored touchdowns. Souvenir event program magazines were available, but no event t-shirts were produced although regular NIU shirts were sold at the gift shop inside the park. I noticed that the Mid-American Conference has a female official that worked the game. I'm not a fan of Gene Honda, so I was glad to hear NIU's own P.A. announcer instead. As the case with baseball games, great visuals all night on the Sox new HD scoreboard. And of course I enjoyed the ballpark food one last time until April next year. Did anyone else attend the football game? What were your observations? . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WBWSF Posted November 11, 2016 Share Posted November 11, 2016 I went to the game. I was surprised at the enthusiasm of the crowd. They made alot of noise for only 10,000 people. It would make more sense to have the game played on a weekend. NIU is not really a good draw. I noticed that NIU only had 11,000 at their Homecoming game a few weeks ago. When I was a student there it was common to have crowds of less than 10,000 at the games. All in all, I enjoyed the game. I hope they have it every year on the great South Side of Chicago. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Chappas Posted November 11, 2016 Share Posted November 11, 2016 NIU seemed to have a student body that came home on the weekends. Not sure if it is still that way but it would make more sense to have an afternoon game with a tailgate opportunity but he way the MAC works don't see that happening unless baseball season is going on. They could easily schedule the game for Comiskey in October and if a miracle happens move it back to DeKalb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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