How Each Patriot League School Can Imitate Holy Cross' EBW Classic
The inaugural football game at Worcester's Polar Park was a smashing success and laid the groundwork for similar events in the Patriot League
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On October 23rd, Holy Cross hosted the inaugural Edward Bennett Williams Classic at Worcester’s shiny new ballpark, Polar Park, home of the Worcester Red Sox.
The game was a smashing success drawing over 9500 fans, exceeding Holy Cross’ 2019 average home attendance by over 1000 fans. This is despite Fitton Field holding 23,500, showing that all Holy Cross fans needed was a change of scenery.
This game laid the groundwork for more one-off ballpark games in the markets of Patriot League schools. Ballpark games are a bit of an anomaly for the conference with there only being two other ballpark games this millennium, the 2014 Lafayette-Lehigh game at Yankee Stadium and the 2016 Ram-Crusader Cup at the same place.
However, ballpark football is worth pursuing with the rich tradition and history that nearly all of its schools have playing in the ballparks of the Northeast. So, I will pair each Patriot League school with their best match for a ballpark football game.
Bucknell: Bowman Field, Williamsport, PA
Image Courtesy: Baseballpilgrimages.com
Dimensions: 345 LF, 405 CF, 350 RF
The MLB plays a showcase game at the home of the Little League World Series, so why not let Bucknell take their program for a showcase in Williamsport. Williamsport is only about a 30 minute drive from Lewisburg and Bowman Field is one of the oldest ballparks in minor league baseball, opening in 1926.
Bowman Field’s dimensions are a bit cavernous, with left field 345 feet away and right field 350 feet away. The exterior, pictured above, is one of the most beautiful in baseball and reflects the era it was built in. The stadium once served as the home field for Lycoming, hosting 15 games from 1958-1961.
The only knock on Bowman is its capacity as it seats only 2474. Yet, this may not be as much of a problem as Bucknell only drew 2750 fans per home game in 2019, so the downgrade will not be significant. The attendance problem has been so bad, the Bison have installed tarps around most of the end zone seats at Christy Mathewson Stadium.
Ideally, Bucknell can take advantage of the Little League World Series and play a game during Week Zero, coinciding with the closing games of the Little League World Series.
The Williamsport Crosscutters season ends in mid-August, allowing for this. Bucknell can schedule a game around the Little League World Series and can even play on Sunday night after the championship game.
Bucknell playing in a “Little League College Classic” would give the FCS a chance to take back Week Zero from the FBS. One could imagine the attention the FCS would get with the FCS Kickoff or MEAC-SWAC Kickoff and a Bucknell game on primetime in back-to-back nights.
Colgate: Sahlen Field, Buffalo, NY
Picture Credit: Buffalonews.com
Dimensions: 325 LF, 371 LCF, 404 CF, 367 RCF, 325 RF
This one may be a stretch as Buffalo is a three-hour drive from Colgate’s campus, but the occasional game at the temporary home of the Blue Jays is not a bad idea.
Sahlen Field seats 19,000, over 8,000 more than Colgate’s cozy Andy Kerr Stadium presenting the opportunity for more gate revenue. Additionally, Colgate has a rich history playing in Buffalo, playing the Buffalo Bulls 16 times and playing at War Memorial Stadium five times in the past.
A Colgate-Cornell game has a chance to be a solid draw with Ithaca also being three hours away from Buffalo. One issue could be the layout, as the relatively small foul territory and shorter outfield walls may require a home plate to centerfield gridiron layout. No matter the layout, the Raiders can change things up for fans with a unique game in Buffalo’s ballpark.
Fordham: Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY
Picture credit: Brooklyn Digest
Dimensions: 318 LF, 399 LCF, 408 CF, 385 RCF, 314 RF
This one is pretty obvious, but its shocking that Fordham does not play more games at Yankee Stadium. In all, the Rams have played 22 games at both Yankee Stadiums.
Their only game to date at the current stadium was the 2016 Ram-Crusader Cup against Holy Cross, which drew 21,375 fans. For perspective, the Princeton-Dartmouth game at the stadium in 2019 drew 21,506, so the Rams were not a bad draw at all.
Unlike for the other schools in this article, travel is not an issue for the Rams hosting a game at Fordham. Students would only have to make a 30 minute subway trip and fans would likely only have to make minor changes to their subway commute.
While Fordham only averaged 3408 fans per home game in 2019, an occasional game at Yankee Stadium would provide that change of scenery that drew Holy Cross fans to Polar Park. Additionally, fans of other Patriot League schools would jump at the opportunity to go to as renowned a stadium as Yankee Stadium.
Georgetown: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
Picture credit: Ballparksofbaseball.com
Dimensions: 336 LF, 377 LCF, 402 CF, 370 RCF, 335 RF
Another obvious one here with Georgetown being in the nation’s capital. Georgetown was a frequent guest of Griffith Stadium, playing most of their home at the home of the Senators from 1917-1950. Most recently, they played a 2017 home game against Harvard at multi-purpose RFK Stadium.
While there has yet to be a football game at “The House That Ryan Zimmerman Built”, there have been prior discussions of hosting football there. In fact, the Military Bowl considered using it as a host site before settling on RFK Stadium.
Georgetown arguably has the most to gain from playing a ballpark game, as they play at tiny Cooper Field, which not only seats only 3750, but is literally in the middle of Georgetown’s campus. A game at Nationals Park would improve the fan experience on gameday and give the program a big-game feel they have lacked.
Of course the question is, if you schedule it, will they (Georgetown fans) come? The Harvard game at RFK only drew 3256 fans. Part of that was due to the decrepit state of RFK Stadium, but it was also the product of general fan disinterest. Maybe significant promoting of a Nationals Park game could help the game become a marquee event unlike the 2017 RFK Stadium game.
Lafayette and Lehigh: Coca-Cola Park, Allentown, PA
Picture Credit: Lehighvalleylive.com
Dimensions: 334 LF, 374 LCF, 400 CF, 369 RCF, 325 RF
Being in Eastern Pennsylvania, there were a wealth of options for both Lafayette and Lehigh, but Coca-Cola Park in Allentown was the best option for both schools. Both schools are within 20 minutes of the home of the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.
Coca-Cola Park has never hosted a game, but a layout from foul territory to the spacious area in left field and left-center field is ideal. Seeing both teams drive towards the giant coke bottle in left-center would be quite the site with this layout.
While Coca-Cola Park has smaller capacity than both schools’ stadiums, it could still accommodate the crowds that both schools draw. In 2019, Lehigh averaged only 6708 fans per home game, while Lafayette averaged only 4664.
Both teams have a variety of options for opponents, particularly Penn or Princeton which are both less than 90 minutes away and are brand names out of the Ivy League. A game at Coca-Cola Park would be a no-brainer given Lafayette and Lehigh both had success with ballpark ball in 2014…
BONUS: Citizen’s Bank Park For Lehigh-Lafayette
Dimensions: 334 LF, 374 LCF, 401 CF, 369 RCF, 330 RF
In 2014, Lafayette and Lehigh took a gamble and moved the 150th rendition of The Rivalry to Yankee Stadium. The gamble paid off, with both schools playing to a sellout crowd of over 48,000.
Asking for The Rivalry to be an annual neutral site game is obviously bogus, but an occasional game at Citizen’s Bank Park has the chance to draw similarly to the 2014 Yankee Stadium game.
Both schools are less than 90 minutes away and like the Yankee Stadium game, the added uniqueness of a MLB stadium hosting the game would make the game a hot ticket.
Holy Cross’ foray into the ballpark could not have gone better and the possibilities exist for Patriot League schools to create their own ballpark magic. It will be intriguing to see who jumps on the trend in the coming years.
Yankee Stadium football: not a good seat in the house