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Cisneros, others set to pitch S.A. to Raiders on Friday in Oakland
By Tom Orsborn : November 6, 2014 : Updated: November 6, 2014 2:50pm
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Photo By Eric Risberg/Associated PressOakland Raiders fans gesture on the sidelines during their NFL football training camp Saturday, July 26, 2014, in Napa, Calif. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg) -
The Oakland Raiders have spoken with top city officials about moving the historic franchise to the Alamo City.
Here are 9 reasons why the Raiders should come to San Antonio. -
Photo By Tony Avelar / Associated Press1. They've moved before
After their move to Los Angeles in 1982, the Raiders moved back to Oakland in 1995. A third move would not be something out of the ordinary for the Raiders, as all of their moves have been related to stadium problems, not unlike the ones they have now. -
Photo By Aaron Kehoe/Associated Press2. They won't have to share their stadium.
The Raiders' current stadium, O.co Coliseum, is the only stadium that serves both a NFL team and a MLB team. San Antonio could provide a single-purpose stadium for the Raiders without forcing them to run across dirt to get to the end zone. -
Photo By Courtesy Marmon Mok3. San Antonio already has a stadium ready for the Raiders.
While it may not be as large or have the same amount of luxury suites as the other two NFL teams in Texas' stadiums, the Alamodome can be an NFL host until a more permanent solution is found.
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Photo By ERIC GAY/Associated Press4. San Antonio has hosted games before.
After Hurricane Katrina made landfall at the Mississippi/Louisiana border, the Mercedes Superdome, the Saints' home in New Orleans, was not able to host any more games in the 2005 season. They played three games in the Alamodome, with one win coming against the Buffalo Bills.
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Photo By Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press5. Not everyone is a Cowboys or Texans fan.
Even though "America's Team" is 279 miles away, and the Texans are only 200 miles away, not all San Antonians are bound to those teams. If the Raiders came here, many fans would make the switch to their home team.
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Photo By TOM REEL/San Antonio Express-News6. Silver and Black
San Antonio's only other major professional franchise, the San Antonio Spurs, wears silver and black. The Oakland Raiders wear silver and black. San Antonians would have no problem with not having to change their wardrobe to support both teams.
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7. San Antonio can support two teams.
With almost 1.5 million people in the city limits, and almost 2.3 million in the metropolitan area, San Antonio is easily large enough to support another major professional sports franchise. San Antonians are die-hard fans, and will embrace and support the Raiders.
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Photo By Jeff Chiu/Associated Press8. International popularity
Along with the Cowboys and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Raiders are one of the most popular teams among NFL fans in Mexico. Bring the team to South Texas and they will be only a few hours away from that fan base. -
Photo By Ben Margot/Associated Press9. Dennis Allen
Oakland Raiders head coach Dennis Allen is no stranger to football in Texas. Allen, an Atlanta native, coached at Texas A&M under R.C. Slocum as a graduate assistant from 1996-99 and won a Big XII championship in 1998.
A group of San Antonio governmental and civic leaders headed by former Mayor Henry Cisneros will be in full sales mode when they meet with officials from the Oakland Raiders on Friday in California’s Bay Area.
“We’re going to present San Antonio’s strengths and assets in the most persuasive way possible,” Cisneros said. “We have a very, very good opportunity to set it forth in a way the Raiders can digest.”
The meeting comes nearly four months after Raiders owner Mark Davis first discussed with Cisneros and others in San Antonio, including Spurs owner Peter Holt and former Minnesota Vikings owner B.J. “Red” McCombs, the possibility of the beleaguered NFL franchise moving to the Alamo City should it fail to gain a new stadium in Oakland.
Since then, the Raiders deemed the Alamodome as an NFL-ready facility following a visit by two team officials to a UTSA game and have exchanged information with city leaders. The Raiders and the city also shared the cost of a survey of fans in South and Central Texas to gauge their interest in supporting the team.
Add it all up, and Cisneros believes the possibility of the team moving to South Texas is a “very clear 50-50 proposition.”
But Davis has made it clear he would like to keep the team in Oakland, while several media outlets have reported he is also eyeing Los Angeles as a relocation option ahead of San Antonio.
Citing anonymous sources, CBSsports.com recently reported the Raiders and the St. Louis Rams “would both be formalizing plans to move to Los Angeles in 2015” if not for the NFL having control of the process of putting teams into the nation's second-largest market. The Raiders’ lease at O.co Coliseum in Oakland expires after the end of this season.
Richard Perez, CEO of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, and Michael Sawaya, the City of San Antonio’s convention, sports and entertainment facilities director, are among those that will accompany Cisneros to Oakland.
Sawaya said the parties will study the first draft of the survey of San Antonio fans conducted by California-based Barrett Sports Group, an industry consultant.
“(The report of the survey) won’t be final until at least the end of November,” Sawaya said. “I am told it’s taking longer than usual because there was a much higher response than average.”
The Raiders declined to comment.
torsborn@express-news.net
