Why entertainment district might even boost Tennessee football record | Adams
Tennessee announced last week its plans for a Neyland Entertainment District. The development eventually could include a hotel, condominiums, and restaurants along the Knoxville waterfront near the football stadium and Thompson-Boling Arena.
Exciting stuff, huh?
Don’t get too excited. It won’t happen overnight – or by the time freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava throws his first pass in Neyland Stadium. But maybe, it could be in play for Tennessee’s next victory over Georgia or when the Vols make the College Football Playoff.
The project is a testament to the farsighted leadership of Tennessee athletics director Danny White, chancellor Donde Plowman, and president Randy Boyd.
If you just thought “Aren’t all leaders supposed to be farsighted,” you haven’t been following UT sports for long.
Remember UT athletics director Dave Hart? His most memorable move was to sign off on scrapping the name Lady Vols for all women’s sports except basketball. Oh, I almost forgot: He also hired coach Butch Jones.
I won’t bore you with the massive shortcomings of previous UT leaders. But it’s worth noting that the upgrade in athletics directors from former Phillip Fulmer to White is as significant as the leap forward from former football coach Jeremy Pruitt to his successor, Josh Heupel.
Fulmer couldn’t see beyond the offensive line that commanded so much of his attention. White can see where college sports is headed.
“People want to be entertained,” said Knoxville’s Craig Jenkins, a longtime sports business executive and promoter. “The business of sports is about entertainment now.”
He’s not diminishing how much the outcome of a game matters to a fan base as intense and passionate as Tennessee’s. He’s just referencing the game-day experience.
Why leave the high-def TV screen in your den for a trip to the stadium and a seat that’s barely wide enough for a super model?
Why? Because you can get something extra.
“Why did they do the porches at Lindsey Nelson Stadium?” Jenkins said. “It’s entertainment. People are having a great time. And there happens to be a baseball game going on.”
There are many appealing aspects to Tennessee’s proposed entertainment package. I especially like the idea of a hotel close to the stadium.
The first NFL game I covered was played in the Louisiana Superdome in the late 1970s. I spent a Saturday night at the Hyatt Regency hotel, then took a walkway to the stadium on game day.
No traffic. No problem finding media parking. All game-day trips should be so easy.
My native state of Louisiana seldom is involved in anything regarded as “ahead of its time,’ but the Superdome qualified. The adjoining hotel included shops, bars, and a restaurant/bar combination with a dance floor. Eating, drinking and dancing: A true Louisiana trifecta.
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Pro sports are ahead of the college crowd when it comes to enhanced entertainment. Many Knoxville residents are familiar with Atlanta’s Battery, a complex surrounding Truist Park, home of the Braves baseball team. There’s a hotel, apartments, office buildings, shopping, bars, and restaurants – plus major league baseball.
You don’t need an Atlanta-size city to capitalize on an entertainment district built around a stadium. And the timing is right in Knoxville. The city is growing, and UT sports are ascending.
Perhaps, Tennessee football is all the entertainment you need. And maybe, you only measure success by a won-loss percentage. But you still could appreciate the proposed Neyland Entertainment District, which would reflect just how much college football matters in Knoxville.
Recruits couldn’t help but notice.
.John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. Follow him at: twitter.com/johnadamskns.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Timing right for entertainment district to enhance Tennessee football
