unless you are sitting in a suite with a TV. Just not fair. I mean, you know those hockey tickets I was talking about on the glass? You know how much they cost somebody, and thank goodness, not me? Try $290. One seat. One game. I'm thinking if I'm forking over that much to attend a game, they ought to have someone personally come down and tell me why that goal was disallowed.
All of which made me think of sitting at Texas Stadium for a football game. A call is challenged by a coach. Well, now it's up to the video board operator if a replay is shown in the stadium. Generally, if the impending ruling would seem favorable to the home team, why you'll see that replay over and over again. If it's not, you got to wait until you go home to get another look.
Or, if the home team thinks a replay might encourage the visiting head coach to challenge the call, you will see nothing. The NFL considers that home-field advantage.
More like sitting-at-home advantage, because those folks will sure as hell see it.
Not fair.
Or take injuries. Say Andre Gurode has his helmet ripped off and some goofball decides to rake his cleat over his forehead. You see blood from your seat in the stands, but that's it. You got no idea what happened to him. Or why it happened. Or if he's out for the game. For the month.
Ah, but generally when it comes to injuries, as soon as possible an update is announced in the press box at the stadium. And update is given on the TV and radio broadcasts. But you guys, the ones who paid to come to the game, you get a big fat ZERO. Again, not fair.
Just drives me crazy.
Why can't they just give you guys an injury announcement at a break in play? Or have a message board, sort of like one of those crawlers on TV, just give you updates during the game? What would that hurt? Not like you'd be giving the other team a competitive advantage. I mean, they realize the guy is no longer on the sideline or the bench.
Just maddening.
Now the NFL and Major League Baseball and I'm sure the NHL will tell you they don't want to incite the crowd with controversial replays. Well come on, if it happened, it happened. And if I paid to see it happen, then why can't I see exactly what happened?
You see, NASCAR has the right idea. Their's is an open relationship with the fan. You want to listen to the driver talk to the pit crew? That's available. You want to hear the driver cuss out some guy who bumped him off the track as he talks to his pit crew afterward? That's available.
And not just for the suite people. That's for anyone who wants to rent one of those communication headsets that dial into the various channels. NASCAR brings you inside the game.
Now I'm not suggesting allowing NFL fans to listen to the coaches' booth-to-sideline conversations. Some of that would make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. But there should be no-holds barred on replays, especially for challenged calls. Injury information should be for one and all, not just the privileged sitting at home. If a pitcher takes a line drive off his arm, I shouldn't have to wait until I get to my car after the game to find out on the post-game radio show if his arm is broken.
The leagues will tell you when it comes to replays, they don't want to show up their officials. OK, fine, then prevent the networks from showing replays, too. I mean, what, there are probably a good 500,000 people locally watching any given Cowboys regular-season game. So it's OK for all them to form an opinion off multiple replays, to show-up their officials nationally if a mistake was made. But to the 60,000 who paid their way into the game, nooooo way. They are held in hostage ignorance.
Just ain't right.
Sorry for the rant. I'm sure you guys still want to know exactly who the Cowboys will draft on April 28. When I have a logical guess, believe me, you'll know. But we still got time for that. Just needed to get this off my chest. And the site of the new stadium construction gave me renewed hope. I mean, if you can hang a 180-foot video board from the ceiling of a stadium capable of holding 1000,000 comfortably, who knows.
And, come to think of it, who knows, somebody might be
