Jags facing Game 1 blackout

In another life the Spud spent many years living in South Florida and one of the oddities there was that the Miami Dolphins often would fail to sell out their home games despite being one of the better teams in the NFL. At the time there were no other professional sports franchises in the market and if the local NBC affiliate didn't buy up the remaining tickets for that weekend's game, it would be blacked out.

With that as a backdrop, it's disheartening to see that the Jacksonville Jaguars are in jeopardy of not selling out their Sept. 9 home opener against Vince Young and the Tennessee Titans and having the game blacked out in the Jacksonville area.

The apparent apathy among Jags fans has got to concern owner Wayne Weaver and does not bode well for the longterm security of head coach Jack Del Rio. First off, in the NFL there are only 16 regular season games so each is treated as a special "event." This is the opening game of the season we're talking about, where the old cliche dictates that all teams are level at 0-0. But perhaps most disturbing is the Jags are still a relatively young franchise (12 years old) and just two years removed from the playoffs.

Now you have a better idea why the NFL has been so plodding about putting a franchise in Los Angeles. While it is the No. 2 TV market, the league remembers all too well how the Raiders would consistently fail to sell out, causing locals to have to watch out-of-town games — apparently without too much arm twisting.

The days of rabbit ears and standing on one's head to get an out-of-town signal are long gone. This is an era where every NFL game is available on TV, PC and radio if you want to pay for it. Blackouts should no longer be an issue, especially in the first week of the season. Let's hope the fans in North Florida — traditionally a football hotbed — get inspired and come out to support their Jags. It would be a shame to see them lose their team.

Comments

[The Zoner]

But would it be a shame to lose their team? If you can't sell out on opening day does your city really deserve a team?

And if the business community doesn't see the benefit of having NFL football in Jacksonville and doesn't buy the remaining tickets, then maybe the Jags are better suited elsewhere.

[Glenn]

Hard to believe they can't sell in that boring-ass town.

Perhaps part of it is that Jacksonville has a winning team in the national champ Gators, just an hour down the road. A wobbly, characterless NFL team isn't cutting it.

Go Jags, anyway. Bring 'em to L.A.

[Howard Burns]

I think both Zoner and Glenn have hit on something. The business community and the fan base in Jacksonville may be so spoiled by the success of the Gators that they've lost interest in the Jags for the time being. Maybe another city would treat them better though I'm not sure L.A. is it.

[Lloyd Thurman]

First of all, the game isn't against the titans, its against the bills. Second, the jags made it to the second round of the playoffs last year, they're not 2 years removed. Third, the face that they're a 12 yr old franchise actually works against them. They haven't built up the fan base and loyalty that a green bay or pittsburgh has simply because the people who grew up on them are just getting to college/graduating and typically don't have any money. Finally, the jags are fine money wise and have no financial issues. So what they don't sell out every single game in a year? LA has proven over and over that they don't give two craps about football, so stop kidding yourself with this "move 'em to LA" stuff. Its silly, it happens every offseason, and the jags, bills, etc. aren't moving any time soon to LA...so give it a break.

[H. Burns]

Lloyd, the article you're referring to was written a year ago. Sorry you got worked up over nothing. I personally don't care if they move to L.A. or not. You're right about one thing: Los Angeles fans couldn't care less whether there's pro football there or not.