Did Lehigh Valley break the CIFL rules with their postponement?

[Minor League Man]

//www.oursportscentral.com/service ... id=3600395

Outlawz postpone opener
03/03/08 - Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) Lehigh Valley Outlawz

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Bethlehem, PA... It is with mixed emotions that we must inform you that the Outlawz home opener scheduled for March 8 vs. the New England Surge has been postponed until June 14.

The good news is that the reason for cancellation is the Lehigh University Basketball program. Both the men and women's teams enter this weeks Patriot League playoff tournament with expectations to make noise. the revised game and practice schedule just does not allow enough time to convert to football and back. Coupled with the fact that the turf has been "rolled up:" for six months and will need a few days to flatten and settle, once installed. The reduced turnaround time simply does not allow sufficient setup time. The likelihood of either of the teams advancing to the next round are great enough that the basketball court will be needed through the weekend. The Outlawz would like to wish the Lehigh Basketball teams the best of luck. Bring us home a championship.


The sadness is that each and every member of the CIFL, NE Surge and Outlawz were looking forward to a kickoff this weekend. It just was not to be. There will be a game on March 22 with a very much improved and revamped Outlawz team.


Media Contacts - We will temporarily place all ads and promotions, on hold until the week of March 16. Please hold all prepayments as credits until then. We will proceed from there as scheduled. Thank you for your patience and understanding.


Players & Fans - All games and events will stay with the original game date, i.e. Special Guest, Giveaways, Events, etc.. as they are game date specific. All events originally planned for March 8 will take place on June 14th. You will notice that the tickets have been printed with this make-up date; as the Stabler Arena and Lehigh University have been completely up front with the situation and possible scenarios; since November. Although, it is still disappointing.


Thank you and we hope to see you on March 22 at the Stabler Arena when we take on the New Jersey revolution and hold an Easter Egg Hunt prior to the game; on our playing field. Special Guest will be former Eagle Bill Bergey. The game will be broadcast live on TV2Sports. For more information, or tickets, call (610)Football or visit http://www.610football.com.

Hold on...June 14 cuts into the playoff schedule, because the first round is getting played that week!

I say the Outlawz forfeit the game because they won't play it in the regular season span...New England should be officially 1-0, and Lehigh Valley 0-1.

What do you think?

[Tatonka]

Sounds like a legit reason to postpone the game, although it's too bad the two teams didn't have open weeks during the season to reschedule. It's apparent this was a possibility and they knew well in advance that it might occur and they appear to be handling the situation the best they can.

[chardale]

[quote=""Minor League Man""]//www.oursportscentral.com/service ... id=3600395



Hold on...June 14 cuts into the playoff schedule, because the first round is getting played that week!

I say the Outlawz forfeit the game because they won't play it in the regular season span...New England should be officially 1-0, and Lehigh Valley 0-1.

What do you think?[/quote] Turf rolled up andwill need a few days to flatten out,,,,,,

[jeffspitaleri]

I think we have had this discussion before, John.

Lehigh is a good organization and we all knew this was a possibility when scheduling the game, we will work around it and play the game on another date. There will be no forfeit or anything of the sort.

As for the Kicker going to try out for AFL, good, I hope he makes it as that is the goal for our players to begin with.

[rams80]

Ummmmm.....not to call BS or anything, but the Patriot League men's basketball tournament doesn't have games on that date, and the women's basketball tournament has every game except the title game on March 12 played at Army.

[jeffspitaleri]

We know the schedule of the tournament and hoped that we could get it in. However, it is the one full day that we were told it takes to breakdown the court that is the problem.

The college owns the arena and we have to do what they say, bottom line.

[Tatonka]

Perhaps Lehigh University should hire a larger support staff in order to accomodate more events in their arena.

There's a Cavs game at Quicken Loans Arena this Saturday, 3/8 at 1:00pm. In and of itself, that's no big deal... but the fact that the Lake Erie Monsters (AHL hockey) will be playing a game at the Q the night before, AND six hours after the Cavs game on Saturday night shows that their reason ("... one full day that we were told it takes to breakdown the court...") for not being able to host the Outlawz seems a bit, lame?

Oh, and the AFL Gladiators will play in the same building the next day at noon too. Now THAT'S an arena that caters to it's tenants. But Jeff's right, the Outlawz have to do what the arena tells them they can do, so I wouldn't place blame on the team or the league. I'd give the arena a hard time, but the Outlawz are just tenants...

[ChampionOfSteel]

[quote=""jeffspitaleri""]We know the schedule of the tournament and hoped that we could get it in. However, it is the one full day that we were told it takes to breakdown the court that is the problem.

The college owns the arena and we have to do what they say, bottom line.[/quote]

At what point did the Lehigh U. adminstrators mention the conditional aspect of use for that weekend?

Did you know that back when you guys were first drafting the overall league schedule?

How come the Outlawz did not have a bye/away game etched in stone for that weekend before the computer and/or a person started to create the overall league schedule?!

Can't understand the lack of attention to detail (coach Paul Brown of the Bengals is probably rolling over in his grave right now) ...unless the Lehigh folks told you sheepishly we have a problem.... Your response should have been "no, we are playing on that date as agreed upon in writing back in November!"

Did Lehigh University try to renege on their offer to hold the arena for that date?

No paperwork in the league office last year contractually in writing to hold dates from the arena people for the Wayne County Rumble.

No paperwork in the league office this year contractually in writing to hold dates from the arena people for the Outlawz?

Blame the arena?! Blame JS!

[preeths]

No blame is necessary. That's the way it sometimes works when you are not the building's primary tenant. Minor league teams have games shuffled occasionally, and that will continue to be the case. It could be the league and Outlaws decided to gamble on this date because only much less favorable dates were available as an alternative. Now that this one has fallen through, they'll have to settle for their second choice. It happens.

[ChampionOfSteel]

[quote=""Tatonka""]Perhaps Lehigh University should hire a larger support staff in order to accomodate more events in their arena.[/quote]

"If you buy apples for 3.00 per bushel and sell them for 2.95. You don't go out and buy a bigger truck."

Oops! I forgot I'm dealing with CIFL alumni here.