April 15, 2009 in Sports

Agreement near to move Apple Cup to Qwest

Game would remain in Seattle
Vince Grippi The Spokesman-Review
 
Tags: Apple Cup Qwest Field uw wsu WSU football

PULLMAN – Washington State University and the University of Washington are near an agreement to move the Apple Cup rivalry football game to Qwest Field in Seattle, The Spokesman-Review learned Wednesday.

The agreement, which is expected to be finalized soon, would mean the yearly game between the schools would move off campus sites – Martin Stadium in Pullman and Husky Stadium in Seattle – and be played in the Seattle Seahawks’ home each season beginning in 2010.

“Nothing is signed and there are no agreements,” Pullman mayor Glenn Johnson said, “but they are talking and there are some negotiations going on.”

A source with knowledge of the agreement among WSU, UW and First & Goal Inc., which operates Qwest Field, confirmed some of the details of the pending contract but asked their name not be used due to the sensitive nature of the discussions.

“It’s going to happen,” the source said, adding they couldn’t see anything derailing it.

Bill Stevens, WSU sports information director, would not comment on the negotiations, other than to say the school has been talking with First & Goal Inc., since the first of the year about continuing its annual game in the facility.

WSU has played one home game each season at Qwest since 2002. The agreement between Qwest and WSU expires after the Sept. 12 game with Hawaii.

“It would be premature to discuss specific games,” Stevens said. WSU athletic director Jim Sterk, through Stevens, also declined comment.

The major impetus behind the talks, according to the source, is financial, with each school in line to be guaranteed about $2 million each year from the Qwest agreement. Due to a revenue-sharing agreement currently in place, each school clears about $240,000 when the game is in Pullman and nearly $800,000 when it is held at Husky Stadium.

The proposal has been vetted by committees at both schools and the response has been “it would be fiscally irresponsible,” to turn down such a financial windfall, the source said.

Recent tuition increases proposed by Gov. Chris Gregoire would add around $1 million in scholarship costs to the WSU athletic department budget. And though a large majority of athletic funding is self-generated, proposed university-wide budget cuts could mean up to another $400,000 taken from the department’s nearly $30 million budget.

“If it’s $2 million a year, especially with this kind of competitive athletic conference and, especially when you’re dealing with the finances we have in the state, that would make a significant difference,” said Johnson, who is also a WSU communications professor.

Apple Cup week is a financial boon for Pullman’s hotels and restaurants, but the hit would be mitigated somewhat by the return of the early-season Seattle game.

“I am concerned about that,” Johnson said of the biennial Apple Cup no longer being in Pullman, “because that is a huge revenue boost for this entire region. When Sterk was talking to me (about a possible change), he said they would move back … that other game, which is usually at the first of the football season.

“If (Sterk) did bring back the other game, that is already over in Seattle, at least he would still be delivering the five games (a year) that he promised the chamber (of commerce) years ago, or promised the businesses.”

When the Cougars hosted the Apple Cup in 1950 and 1952 and from 1956 to 1980, they did so in Spokane. The game returned to Pullman in 1982 following a stadium expansion in the late 1970s.

Since then, the Pullman game usually played before a sellout crowd, though two of the last three have not. The game has drawn as many as 74,549 at Husky Stadium. Qwest Field holds 67,000.

Under the terms of the proposed agreement, Qwest Field would be considered a neutral site, with a designated home team each year but the seating split between the schools, according to the source.

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15 comments on this story so far. Add yours!

  • rayjon on April 15 at 8:33 p.m.

    Hopefully the Vandals are watching this, so they can move the game with BSU to Boise each year. Show me the money.

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  • C. Rader on April 15 at 9:40 p.m.

    Wow, I guess WSU fans who live over here don't count. Maybe the Cougs should just play all their football and basketball games over there. They can make much more money over there, I just don't think I am going to invest any more energy or money in the WSU “brand.” If they want to be UW East so bad they really should change the name of the school.

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  • Pat OLeary on April 16 at 5:10 a.m.

    You can't put enough lipstick on this pig. Qwest Field a neutral site? Yeah, right. Who's bird-brained idea is this? THe game was moved out of Spokane because of concerns for the economy of Pullman and now this?

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  • JeffNiles on April 16 at 4:26 p.m.

    Bad Idea. If I wanted to go to Quest Field I'd go watch the Seahawks. I enjoy watching the Cougs and look forward to Apple Cup especially when its a HOME game. Martin Stadium is a great place to watch football and would hate to see Apple Cup get moved to Seattle. It is not fair to the Cougs, Coug Fans and/or the City of Pullman.

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  • howie59 on April 17 at 3:56 p.m.

    This is ridiculous! Come on, Coug fans, let's raise our voices in protest. Look at any of the rivalries in college sports — one of the things that makes them great is the LACK of a “neutral site.” What would the Ohio State-Michigan game be if it were played at Ford Field instead of the Big House or the Horseshoe? And since when is a site in Seattle a neutral site anyway??? What lame-brain bean-counter thought this one up?

    Further proof that some people will do anything for a buck!

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  • Herb Huseland on April 21 at 7:01 p.m.

    Many comments about this move are without focus. WSU already plays one game per year in the larger market in Seattle. Secondly, there are many more WSU graduates living in the Puget Sound area than in Eastern Washington or Northern Idaho. The killer argument, though, is that WSU already plays one home game in Seattle. If you think that hauling the team over the pass for a game with Cal or Oregon State is the better choice??? Get out of here.

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  • Herb Huseland on April 21 at 7:04 p.m.

    Many comments about this move are without focus. WSU already plays one game per year in the larger market in Seattle. Secondly, there are many more WSU graduates living in the Puget Sound area than in Eastern Washington or Northern Idaho. The killer argument, though, is that WSU already plays one home game in Seattle. If you think that hauling the team over the pass for a game with Cal or Oregon State is the better choice??? Get out of here. Note to DFO: Can you get a geographical list of alumni?

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  • Herb Huseland on April 21 at 7:08 p.m.

    Oops. I knew that with this new program of preview.publish that I would do a duplicate. My bad.

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