Over the years, there has been great debate as to whether or not UT Tyler should have a football team. It’s East Texas where, like the rest of the state, football is king. Sure it’d be great to have a four-year university football program right here in the Rose Capital of the World, but is it really feasible? There’s a good chance it would pay off down the road, but that’s the problem, it wouldn’t pay off now.
First of all, you’d be asking current students to pay for something that wouldn’t come until well after they graduate, and a lot of those students may not even be football fans which means it would never pay off for them.
Winning takes care of a lot of things but winning doesn’t happen overnight. You need a great players and a solid coaching staff, and time for the coaches to build a winning product.
UT Tyler’s athletic program plays in the American Southwest Conference in Division III, and the Patriots would be leaps and bounds behind the completion.
On top of that, you need a stadium, which would be paid for by our tax dollars. Tyler Junior College, Robert E. Lee High School and John Tyler High School already play at Rose Stadium so adding another team there isn’t a valid option. Not to mention, with colleges where large chunk of students stay on campus, having the stadium on the other side of town just isn’t ideal.Then you have to consider equipment which is anything but cheap.
Again, I’d love to go check out UT Tyler games on Saturday evenings, but I’d be shocked if it ever happened.