List narrows for ’05 Bayou Classic

A confirmed list of 16 sites throughout the nation have inquired about hosting the next State Farm Bayou Classic. Only seven of those have officially submitted proposals for consideration.
Bayou Classic Coordinator Ralph Slaughter confirmed stadiums in Houston, Birmingham, Ala., Jacksonville, Fla., Jackson, Miss., Orlando, Fla., Dallas and Shreveport are sites being considered for the Nov. 26 Southern-Grambling State game.
Slaughter said a committee would deliberate on factors such as hotel room availability and costs, space availability for other events, stadium capacity and facility costs. Entities representing cities of each site have turned in proposals and Slaughter said since time is important — the game is just over two months away — a decision could be available in a matter of days.
New Orleans received more than $300 million annually from an estimated 200,000 fans who participated in Bayou Classic festivities, according to the State Farm Bayou Classic Web site. Wherever the game and its complementing events are held, a strong economic punch will be dealt.
“We’re still evaluating proposals,” Slaughter said. “But this is not a decision made by one person. We’re getting suggestions from everyone who will be involved.”
Slaughter said as coordinator of the Bayou Classic, he is just one voice in the decision-making. He said representatives from Grambling State and Southern, including the colleges’ respective alumni leaders, athletic directors, head football coaches and band directors have input on the decision. Also, Slaughter said, input is heavily considered from elected officials and students on Grambling State and Southern’s campuses.
Atlanta, Detroit, Charlotte, N.C., Texas Stadium in Dallas, Los Angeles, Nashville, San Antonio and St. Louis are cities and sites that declined to host the Bayou Classic or dropped their proposals due to logistics, availability or commitments to other events.
The two in-state options — Baton Rouge and Shreveport — received special consideration because of economic impact the event would have on the state, especially during post-Katrina times.
“I think our location is perfect based on the fact that these are two state schools and the state really wants to keep this event in Louisiana,” said Lisa Hayes, senior convention sales manager for the Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau. “We feel we are the next best location. We are centrally located and we have a large population of both Southern and Grambling State alumni.”
Baton Rouge declined to host the game because of the lack of available rooms. Shreveport’s name is still in the hat, but the city still owes Southern over $100,000 from the last two games the football team played at Independence Stadium.
Also, Independence Stadium can only hold up to 53,000 people. The committee would prefer a site that could hold at least 60,000 people, but as many as 72,000 people have packed the Superdome for the game.
“We have a newly renovated stadium that can accommodate around 52,000 for the Bayou Classic,” Hayes said. “It’s somewhat short of what they wanted, but 52,000 is still a very large number of people, not to mention all of the fans who will be tailgating around Independence Stadium.
“When you think about New Orleans, not everything is downtown anyway,” Hayes said. “A lot of people live and conduct functions in outlying communities.”
Furthermore, Hayes said Shreveport has approximately 8,500 rooms in the Shreveport metropolitan area. However, Shreveport does not have them reserved for the 9,000 rooms the Bayou Classic committee is asking for. Most of the cities that have submitted proposals have lodging spaces reserved already.
According to a proposal by the convention and tourism bureau, only about 1,100 rooms have been committed in Shreveport, leaving fans to resort to other cities — in and out of the state — for lodging. In-state cities close enough to Shreveport that could accommodate Bayou Classic travelers are Monroe, 98 miles away to the east, or 76 miles south, in Natchitoches.
The closest cities in Texas with room availability — but not reserved or committed blocks — are Marshall, which is approximately a 40-minute drive away, and Longview, which is a drive of just over one hour.
“I just would like something that is going to be conducive to both institutions,” said Grambling State head football coach Melvin Spears. “I think we have to give all of our fans an opportunity of making arrangements.”
Spears said he did want to play the game in a venue similar to the Superdome. Southern head coach Pete Richardson voiced the same sentiment.
“I don’t really care, as long as we can get it preferably indoors,” Richardson said.
That would leave Houston, the only city left on the list with a dome-styled stadium, Reliant Stadium. Houston has the largest chapter of registered alumni in the SU Alumni Federation and a large consensus of Grambling State alumni.
Slaughter agreed that Houston is a favorable site, but the effects of Hurricane Rita on the metropolitan area will play a major role in the committee’s decision. The next closest sites are Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Miss., and the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.