The Pecan Park Eagle

Artist rendering of the new 40,000 seat football stadium at UH – but what do we call it?

With UH announcing that they have now sold the naming rights to their new football stadium to the Texas Dow Employees Credit Union, we Cougar alums are left to find the lyric of how the new name, TDECU Stadium, rings anything beyond the cash register when it comes to mystical aspirations of greatness on the gridiron. But that’s already covered by the money part, isn’t it? In the particular realm of amateur sports called college football and basketball, the only people who pay the price of amateurism are the athletes themselves. “No money for you,” sayest the holier than all NCAA governing board to the athletes. “Most of you are going to need that college education that came with your decision to play here once you figure out that only a handful of you are going to be good enough make it to the NFL or NBA.”

How about TDECU Stadium? For $15 million dollars over 10 years, that’s pretty catchy and inspirational.

Look. I get it. Everything in sports spins on big  money today. That TDECU deal guarantees UH an extra $1.5 million dollars per year for the next ten years that the Cougars, otherwise, would not have had. But as for the aspirational challenge of the “TDECU” name, It is doubtful that even the great Grantland Rice could do anything with that mostly consonant acronym mouthful.

Take me out to the TD-E-C-U,

Take me out with the CROWD!

Thanks for the money that we always LACK,

I’ll say the name if you then say it BACK!.

Let’s have fun at TDECU STADIUM!

If the COOGS don’t win it’s a SHAME,

‘Cause it’s ONE … TWO … THREE punts you’re OUT,

In the PARK … NAME… GAME!

The only thing worse than the acceptance of an unspeakable venue name would be those cases in which certain universities sold their venue names to inappropriately sounding sponsors.

For example, what if …

…. Rice played at Hooter’s Field?

…. Texas played at Whataburger Field? … Or even the Longhorn Steakhouse Park?

… Army played at Old Navy Field? or,

… Houston played at Kitty Litter Field?

I could sit here all day and watch the possibilities come to mind, but the point’s already made. This naming rights thing is not the biggest deal that ever  came down the pike and we shall all survive it’s growth, even if we cannot pronounce the name that’s been purchased for one of our facilities that we built as the funding alumni group.

Happy Hump Day!