Opinion: Moving the PSU game to Ford Field was the right move overall
When I first heard that Michigan State and Penn State were going to team up to bail out the media rights negotiating mistakes made by the Big Ten’s former commissioner, Kevin Warren, and play a night game on Black Friday in Spartan Stadium, my first thought was – and I quote – BRRRR.
Sure, I was intrigued by the fact that the Spartans and the Nittany Lions would have a prime-time television spot on a holiday weekend and that the attention of the college football world would be on East Lansing. But I also vividly remember how cold the stands were during that Indiana game last year.
So. Cold.
That was my first thought. My second thought was how the Black Friday night game on NBC would appear to the rest of the country. I’ve sat in Spartan Stadium on senior days/nights when the team had not much to play for and the fans were uninterested in a middling team with nothing on the line. It was not a good look.
But I’m a man of optimism and so I quickly put those thoughts out of my head and thought, best case scenario, who knows, perhaps the MSU and PSU game would have the ability to make an impact in the Big Ten East or on a bowl game … or something. Maybe, just maybe, one or both of the teams would have something on the line. Then I thought, even if that isn’t the case, at least the nation’s attention could be focused on the beautiful, unique, and absolutely awful Land-Grant Trophy that takes two to three full grown men to carry around the field.
As I waited for official word to come down, these thoughts – and more – were swirling around in my head. So when I saw the MSU press release in my email and the headline mentioned the cozy confines of Ford Field, my toes immediately, pre-emptively warmed up.
Don’t get me wrong. There is something magical about sitting through a crazy, epic weather game. My kids and I were in the stands (and evacuated) for the Penn State game a few years ago. As a kid, one of my Green and White memories was a Northwestern home game when people were sledding down the stairs because there was so much snow. So I get that aspect of it.
But I also get the fact that when you enter Ford Field in late November, you get to take your coat, gloves, and hat off and you don’t have to worry about possible frost bite on your fingers or toes. You get to grab a beer or a glass of wine. You can cheer for your team without worrying about if a good parent would start moving the kids to a warmer place or not.
In my opinion, this is a good solution, overall. My Spartans Illustrated colleague, Brendan Moore, disagrees. We’ll get to his thoughts later.
MSU was going to be hosting PSU on Thanksgiving weekend regardless. And there is a distinct possibility that the stands would be two-thirds full, the wind would be howling, the students would be home, and the ground would be frozen. Which is fine, I guess.
But because the Big Ten needed a night game and Michigan State/Penn State was a decent option for it, it opened up this possibility. Michigan State’s Athletic Director, Alan Haller, considered all the pros and cons and decided – after talking it over with his trusted circle – that this was a good move.
You can read all of Haller’s reasoning in this Spartans Illustrated article. And to me, it all made sense. But I had a few more questions that I needed confirmation on before I decided that I agreed with the decision.
First off, and not nearly as important as anything else – yes, alcohol will be served at Ford Field for this game. So that’s fun. And perhaps a sneak peek at something we might see at Spartan Stadium relatively soon. So grab a cold one and enjoy.
Secondly, will there be a home field advantage for the home team? The answer to that question is, yes, if Spartan fans buy the tickets allotted to them. I was able to confirm with MSU that the visiting team ticket sales will align with a road team allotment no different than if the game was in East Lansing. So, yes, as long as Spartan fans buy their share of the tickets, the game should feel like a legit home game, minus the seven layers of clothes and the long underwear. It might actually be MORE of a home field advantage if Spartan fans really show up.
Lastly, I wanted to make sure that MSU was going to be financially whole after accounting for this adventure to Detroit. And the answer to that is also yes, according to MSU AD Haller.
“Michigan State will pay Ford Field to use the building, and MSU will retain ticket revenue," Haller told me. "While we anticipate that we will at least match, or perhaps exceed, the revenue generated by a seventh home game at Spartan Stadium, financial considerations were never a motivation. This was an opportunity to provide a unique experience for our football team and fan base, in a primetime television window on Black Friday. The opportunity for our football program and our university to have a significant presence in Detroit is another positive.”
I can’t disagree with the logic.
But Spartans Illustrated writer – and current MSU student – Brendan Moore does. So let’s give some space here for his thoughts. I’ll see you in about eight paragraphs or so to continue explaining why Brendan is wrong.
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College football and the NFL are the same sports, but college football is uniquely different from its professional counterpart. What makes the college game different is the atmosphere. The students, the tailgating and the bands are what separates college football from pro football.
Taking a regular season game out of that atmosphere and placing it in a watered down environment like Ford Field is not what college football is about. College football is about Saturdays in the fall in college towns across America. Also, home games are precious. Coaches, players and fans only get six or seven per year. While Ford Field still presents a favorable crowd advantage for Michigan State, it’s not the same as playing at Spartan Stadium.
Stadium capacity is just one aspect of this. Spartan Stadium’s capacity is just a tad over 75,000. Ford Field holds approximately 65,000 people. While it might’ve been difficult to sell out Spartan Stadium on Black Friday, there is still a 10,000-seat drop-off between the two venues.
In addition, one would assume that less students and season ticket holders will attend the game at Ford Field because MSU isn’t honoring season ticket purchases for the game. While parking and the ticket expenses will be refunded, a portion of the season ticket holders and students will not pay the money to attend the game against Penn State.
I have also seen the argument that playing in Detroit is good for recruiting exposure. Wouldn’t playing the game on campus be better for recruiting exposure? The recruits, if they ended up playing for the Spartans, would be playing most of their games in East Lansing, not the Motor City. Why showcase Detroit?
In this specific instance, I think MSU got taken advantage of. In the last three games between MSU and Penn State in East Lansing, there hasn’t been perfect weather conditions. In 2017, the game was delayed for over three hours due to severe weather. The 2019 game was played in a torrential downpour and the 2021 game was played in a snow globe. MSU won two out of those three games. Penn State head coach James Franklin has had his fair share of struggles at Spartan Stadium. Franklin has only won one game in East Lansing since he arrived at Penn State in 2014. This move to Ford Field gives Penn State an advantage here.
This isn’t just a Michigan State issue. This is a college football issue. Many big games this season are being played at neutral sites. LSU is playing Florida State in Orlando in a rematch of last year’s game, which was played in New Orleans. Tennessee is taking on Virginia in Nashville. Not to mention, Notre Dame is traveling to Ireland to play Navy.
Regular season college football games belong on college campuses. It’s what the sport is all about.
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All right, I’m back.
And I’ll concede that Brendan made some fair points. Obviously, this wasn’t a no-brainer decision for Haller, but, in the end, it is my opinion that the pros definitely outweigh the cons.
No matter how hard the Big Ten has tried over the years, the Penn State versus Michigan State rivalry isn't a natural one that really fits the theme of rivalry weekend. So it ends up getting lost in the mix: Auburn/Alabama, Michigan/Ohio State, the Egg Bowl (Mississippi vs. Mississippi State) and intrastate rivalries across the country. This move gets a national spotlight on the game.
Another positive, it would seem, is that the MSU seniors will now celebrate their last home game at Spartan Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 4, versus Nebraska, instead of on Thanksgiving weekend where the students would have mostly headed home already and the crowd – if history repeated itself – would have been smaller than usual.
Another something worth remembering is that there is a new Big Ten commissioner in town, Tony Petitti. And while it might not be high up on the list of reasons for MSU deciding to make this happen, it certainly can’t hurt that Michigan State was willing to step up, help out the conference, and keep the NBC money flowing freely to the Big Ten schools. Don’t overlook the goodwill that that earns in the eyes of people that ultimately do matter, whether you like it or not.
This move also provides a peek into Haller’s decision-making process and his willingness to make moves that aren’t gimmes. Haller made a decision here that is reminiscent of former Michigan State AD Mark Hollis, who was always willing to think outside the box and keep his athletic department on the cutting edge of events. I like that Haller was willing to leverage the partnerships that MSU has formed over the years to create a unique event for the student-athletes, the band, the fans, and for the city of Detroit. It’s going to be a great football weekend in Detroit and MSU will be smack dab in the middle of it.
From all indications, the hosting of a November night game at Ford Field is a one-off; it is not likely to occur very often. This is good. It should take a lot to move a home game off campus. The conditions need to be such that it is a win (albeit a slight one) for everyone involved – and I believe that to be the case here.
On a different note, perhaps Haller can use this to cash in a favor in future years when the Big Ten is looking for November night games – how does a Black Friday prime-time game at the Rose Bowl versus UCLA sound in the next few years? Come on, Big Ten, make it happen. The Big Ten’s new footprint will soon have some warm November weather – and I hope that on these frigid, frozen Midwest winter nights, we’ll be able to see USC and UCLA host the Spartans, and others, in sunny southern California to fulfill this part of the media rights contract.
My toes are warming up just thinking about it.