New USL soccer team named Roughnecks

[davideinstein]

I just want to point out the fact that USRufnex:

1. Is a huge fan of Tulsa Roughnecks
2. Is named after the Roughnecks
3. Was one of the first pointing out soccer could be played at OneOK
4. Has been an advocate of professional soccer returning to tulsa for years
5. Is now mad there is a professional soccer team playing at OneOK named after the Roughnecks.

Hilariously true.

[rdj]

I just want to point out the fact that USRufnex:

1. Is a huge fan of Tulsa Roughnecks
2. Is named after the Roughnecks
3. Was one of the first pointing out soccer could be played at OneOK
4. Has been an advocate of professional soccer returning to tulsa for years
5. Is now mad there is a professional soccer team playing at OneOK named after the Roughnecks.

Has me wondering if the account was hacked?!?

[TulsaRufnex]

I just want to point out the fact that USRufnex:

1. Is a huge fan of Tulsa Roughnecks
2. Is named after the Roughnecks
3. Was one of the first pointing out soccer could be played at OneOK
4. Has been an advocate of professional soccer returning to tulsa for years
5. Is now mad there is a professional soccer team playing at OneOK named after the Roughnecks.

1.  Yes.  (the old team from 1978-1985 whose last games were played at 15th & Yale)
2.  Yes.
3.  Yes, but that was BEFORE Sonny Dalesandro & Dr. Tommy Kern signed a lease on the old ballpark, sodded in the infield, and started an organization that every Tulsan should be proud of.  2014 will be alot of fun, and it has always been part of their plans to move up to USL Pro or the NASL... the ultimate goal is still an MLS bid.
4.  Yes, but I openly question the motivations of the Drillers and Bob Funk Jr, especially when it threatens the continued existence of the Tulsa Athletics at a venue which seats 10,997.  And I think starting a "name-the-team" contest at a time when the Athletics are gearing up for another season (and seeking sponsors) is a real dick move by them.
5.  You bet I'm angry.  Where were they in 2011 or 2012?  Why did this ballpark have to be so poorly designed and unaccommodating for soccer?  Where were they BEFORE Sonny and Dr. Kern put their butts on the line for soccer in this city and are (as we speak) moving forward, onward and upward?

***you also left out the website I created called tulsaroughnecks.com with an accompanying @tulsaroughnecks twitter account***  

I'd point out that in the summer of 2012, there were zero soccer franchises in Oklahoma.
By the fall of 2015, there could be a total of SEVEN -- three in OKC and four in Tulsa (yes, I said FOUR).

From the Tulsa Athletics FB page dated December 18th... https://www.facebook.com/ttownsoccer‎

Athletics nation-  There will be an announcement today that in 2015 a group calling themselves the "Tulsa Roughnecks" will enter the picture in our town as a USL Pro team. I would like to make it clear where the Athletics stand on the matter. Firstly, the Roughnecks name is something that is very special to me personally. As a child I was one of many who was profoundly affected by the team coming to our city. Their presence here is the sole reason that I played soccer as a child, professionally, and is essentially the impetus to the forming of the Tulsa Athletics. Victor Moreland is like a father to me. I played for Steve Earle in my youth. I count Billy Caskey and Charlie Mitchell as friends. And like many, I've shared a cold beer with "the boomer" Alan Woodward. The Roughnecks name is sacred to me and to this city.

That being said...The Tulsa Athletics want to bring an MLS franchise to Tulsa. We've been clear about that from the beginning. We are your team. Your support affirms that the love for the game still runs strong through the veins of Tulsa and is the sole reason why we work as hard as we do for this club. Today's announcement as interesting as it may seem, does not actually affect the way we'll approach anything. We're still going continue to improve our stadium, grow our fan base, and put a fantastic product on the field. I am a Tulsan. A proud one at that. If a group from Oklahoma City thinks that Athletics Nation is going to lay down and quit, then they have read myself and Tulsans all wrong. We made a commitment to you to bring top level soccer to Tulsa, and we will carrying on doing that. Like a former Roughneck just told me on the telephone, "Just because they're called the Roughnecks, doesn't make them the Roughnecks".

Yours in soccer,
Sonny Dalesandro

Chairman
Tulsa Athletics  

[Conan71]

Sonny makes a good point.  Don't get caught up in the up-start Roughnecks, just go play soccer and put a good game on the field.  That's the best thing the Athletics can do right now.  Since Driller Athletics Stadium is only a few blocks from the new house, MC and I will have to walk over for a few games this year.

[DowntownDan]

So if USL Pro is tier III and NASL is tier II, why don't the A's, or some other group, try and get Tulsa to the NASL level?  Seems like that would be a good power play if the A's want to win the soccer wars.  I enjoy the A's game but I don't quite understand the NPSL.  They seem to have doubled in size this year with teams in small towns (Joplin, Bryan) and suburbs (Frisco, Lewisville) or are club teams in large cities that play at high school stadiums and public soccer complexes, including in MLS cities where there can be no question that the NPSL club is more of a recreational activity than anything.  The A's might draw 4,000 fans, then play on the road in front of a couple of hundred and a suburban high school stadium.  The NASL and USL Pro seem to be more traditional minor league systems in larger markets, many of which are major markets that just don't have an MLS team.  I know I'd rather be playing teams in NYC and Minneapolis than Joplin and Frisco.

I'm also interested to see how the NASL and USL Pro co-exist in Oklahoma City.  I just don't see how smaller markets like Tulsa and OKC can survive if the soccer viewership is split.  Lets choose one for each city, in the same league, and stick with it.  Maybe I'm reading too much into tier II and tier III, but it seems that the tier II NASL is the better product and is moving into the largest non MLS markets.  I'd like to see Tulsa in that conversation.  I'm sick of being tier three in everything.  We have AA baseball and hockey and play against suburbs while OKC is AAA and playing in cities like New Orleans and Memphis.  Can we have a better tier for at least one major sport?  Please?

[RecycleMichael]

MLS franchise fees are now $75 million. NASL franchise fees are now $5 million dollars. That just buys you the team and stadium and operating costs are extra.

From the USL website...

Q: What is the estimated initial investment cost?  http://www.uslsoccer.com/aboutusl/franchise/123541.html

A: There are variable estimated initial investments for each league. The initial franchise fee range is $75,000 to $750,000 (depending on league).  Average operating budgets for the USL First Division range from $2M- $3M.

If USL Pro succeeds, I bet we could raise the ante.

[DowntownDan]

So Tulsa can't play in a better league because it's too expensive.  Man I wish I were rich.

[davideinstein]

I think $75M is worth it for an MLS franchise right now. The payoff is huge long term.

[RecycleMichael]

So Tulsa can't play in a better league because it's too expensive.  Man I wish I were rich.

I could afford some hats and we could become beggars.

[davideinstein]

I could afford some hats and we could become beggars.

Sounds good to me!

[Conan71]

Sounds good to me!

How about free Jimmy John's for everyone? 

[Rookie Okie]

How about some FUTBOL!

[sgrizzle]

Where were they in 2011 or 2012?  Where were they BEFORE Sonny and Dr. Kern put their butts on the line for soccer in this city and are (as we speak) moving forward, onward and upward?

Maybe it took 4 years to get the financial backing?

2010 Hubbard buys the Drillers
2012 Went Hubbard dies
2014 Hubbard's sons expand to soccer.

That doesn't seem to be an egregiously slow timeline, especially if Dad wasn't that supportive of Soccer.

[TulsaRufnex]

So if USL Pro is tier III and NASL is tier II, why don't the A's, or some other group, try and get Tulsa to the NASL level?

Getting warmer...
http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/soccer/pro-soccer-headed-to-oneok-field-in/article_eda23ec4-df3c-5f0e-8911-51d4ebc87d95.html

Another Tulsa ownership group headed by developer Warren Ross is working to land a franchise in the new North American Soccer League. That means there could be three pro/amateur teams competing in Tulsa by 2015.

"If there ends up being three teams, that's probably going to be unsustainable," Ross said. "But I love watching soccer, so any time there's a new amateur, pro or semi-pro team in town, I'm gonna be in support and probably be a season ticket-holder."

...a contest will be conducted as early as January to name the team. Prodigal LLC has filed the name "Roughnecks" with the U.S. Patent office, but other sources told the Tulsa World that rights to the name are in dispute.

"New Tulsa Roughnecks at New Driller Park?" posted May 5th, 2008
http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=9963.0

"Forget about Major League Soccer; USL1 at the old ballpark" posted August 9th, 2009
http://www.tulsanow.org/forum/index.php?topic=14018.0

***FYI, up until Fall 2009, USL-1 was one step below Major League Soccer.  In 2010, what became the "new" NASL split off from USL and for one season both the NASL and USL-1 were one step below MLS.  Starting in 2011, the NASL was approved as North America's second division but the USSF put additional stipulations on the approval (more net worth to own a franchise) while North America's third division became USL Pro.***

Conan, you and the missus will want to tailgate with us.  Our tailgate guy is a big auto racing fan... and several of the Tulsa Ultras (who road tripped to KC) have had a few seconds added towards their 15 minutes of fame as seen on tv....  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkrQH6pq56Q#t=39

Also, this is a stadium built to accommodate soccer.... Frontier Field, Rochester, NY... sadly, OneOK Field was not...


And this is a true multi-use Sutton Stadium at time of construction-- you can see that it could be used to football and soccer as well as baseball...
http://books.google.com/books?id=KBA6L4Bl1aQC&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=history+sutton+stadium+tulsa&source=bl&ots=OZHKF4KcLT&sig=H_E-_k5zQy0O-94ERIRstjcNU0A&hl=en&ei=spmASvK1K4LysQO_ydH7CA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2#v=onepage&q&f=true

[davideinstein]

All ONEOK needs are temporary stands on one side to accomplish the same thing.