Vaulting over traditional powers

A Friday night fancy: Houston Cougars roll into Top 25, validating controversialTV plan

Case Keenum and the Houston Cougars are back in the Top 25.
Kevin Sumlin's team sits at No. 23 in the poll, only one spot below ...
traditional BCS power Penn State.

The controversial Friday night lights plan is already paying dividends for the University of Houston's football team. A little late-night ESPN facetime turned out to be just what the national recognition doctor ordered for the Cougars.

In the wake of a 54-24 wipeout of UTEP in Houston's first TV game of the season — and its first game essentially competing against Texas high school football games, which are a near religious institution in the state — Kevin Sumlin's team vaulted back into the Top 25. The Cougars made their first 2010 appearance in both the Associated Press and USA Today Coaches Poll on Sunday, getting ranked No. 23 in both polls.

Now, Houston (2-0) takes a ranking into this Saturday night's important game against an 0-2 UCLA team. Even though the game is on the road in a BCS team's stadium, the Cougars could even be favored over the Bruins.

That's what scoring 122 points in two games will do for you. For it's not who Houston has beat — a second-tier, lower-division FCS team in Texas State in the opener and a UTEP team playing without its best player (running back Donald Buckram) — as much as how it's done it that's captured the voters' attention.

The Cougars are playing near video-game football, putting up numbers that would make any defensive mind outside of Rex Ryan sick.

Getting noticed nationally drove UH's decision to play two games on Friday night this season. A number of high school coaches spoke out against the plan, feeling it took away from the long tradition of Friday nights being high school football's exclusive domain. Super college Texas traditionalists hated it even more.

"I don't think it's the right thing to do," Bob Easley, one of Bear Bryant's Junction Boys at Texas A&M, told CultureMap before the season. "Some things are special and the Friday night football in Texas is right up there. You don't mess with that."

Or maybe you do if you're a program in the largely afterthought Conference USA that dreams (more and more rightly so) of bigger things.

Houston athletic director Mack Rhoades never wavered with the Friday night showcases and now it's hard to argue that the Cougars would have made it back into the Top 25 without the TV platform. (Houston spent much of last season ranked before a few late losses).

Now, the question shifts to how UH's lifeline quarterback will feel for UCLA. The Heisman-promoted Case Keenum wobbled off the field in the third quarter of the UTEP romp and was examined for a concussion on the sideline.

At least Keenum can take pride in the fact that his school — often-discounted Houston — now sits only one spot below Penn State, one of college football's all-time powers, in the AP Top 25. That's a heady tradition grab of the Cougars' own.

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chill out

Houston Astros ballpark gets cool new name for the next 15 years

Courtesy of the Houston Astros

The Astros' stadium will have a new name in 2025.

The Houston Astros are about to have the coolest ballpark in Major League Baseball. The team announced on Monday, November 18 that its has reached a naming rights agreement HVAC manufacturer Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc.

Beginning on January 1, 2025, the stadium will be known as Daikin Park (die-kin). Scheduled to run through the 2039 season, the new name replaces Minute Maid Park, which has been the stadium’s name since 2002. It opened in 1999 as Enron Field.

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Astros fans online are already calling the new stadium “The Ice Box,” replacing its informal “The Juice Box” moniker. That name feels likely to stick.

Japan-based Daikin Industries is a leading manufacturer of HVAC systems. It sells air conditioning units and other products under brand names such as Daikin, Goodman, Amana® and Quietflex. Critically, it operates Daikin Texas Technology Park in nearby Waller, which is the largest HVAC manufacturing facility in North America. The company employs approximately 10,000 people in Greater Houston, according to a release.

“We are excited to be partnering with Daikin for our ballpark’s naming rights,” Astros owner Jim said. “Daikin is an international company that proudly calls the Greater Houston area its North American home. The Houston Astros and Daikin share the same values, a commitment to excellence and a desire to give back to our local community. As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of this ballpark in 2025, I am proud to have Daikin alongside us to create even more special memories for our fans now and in the future.”

The Astros will use the revenue for new stadium amenities and other upgrades. It will also continue the team’s various community initiatives. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. the Houston Chronicle notes that naming rights deals may be worth anywhere from $3.5 million per year (T-Mobile park in Seattle) to $11 million per year for the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Field.

The team’s first game in Daikin Park will take place on Monday, March 24, which it plays an exhibition against its Triple-A affiliate, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys. It will open the regular season on Thursday, March 27 against the New York Mets.

“Daikin fit all of the criteria we set out to find in a naming rights partner,” Astros senior vice president Matt Brand added. “Their name and reputation fit our iconic downtown Houston home, and their values mesh perfectly with those of the Astros. We are grateful to partner with the entire Daikin team and to help them succeed in their business goals. Daikin Park will be a special place for our fans for many years to come.”

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