Swinney ACC Championship press conference

by TigerNet Staff - Fri Dec 02 12:53:53 GMT-04:00 2011

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Transcript of Dabo Swinney's press conference at Bank of America Stadium Friday.

COACH SWINNEY: Well, it's good to be here in Charlotte with everybody. As I told our folks back home on Tuesday, when you're having a press conference this week, it's a good thing. You want to have an opportunity to compete in games like this, and for us this is what it's all about. You start the season I think we started August 4th, and this was our goal, to be in this game. In fact, one year ago, we were up here in the Bowl game, and that's one of the things I told the team is, listen, our goal is to be back in Charlotte but to be competing for the ACC Championship.

It's a privilege to represent the Atlantic Division. It's been a hard fought season by all the teams in this conference. Virginia Tech is an incredible opponent. They've obviously kind of set the standard for this conference over the last several years, so it's a privilege to have a chance to compete with them for the overall title and a chance to go to the Discover Orange Bowl.

With that, I'll take whatever questions you have.

Q. Just your comments on sort of the firestorm that was started last night. Twitter exploded after your comments about South Carolina, and despite the fact that the rivalry game is a week old and you're playing for the ACC Championship, it sent ripples through the state last night.

COACH SWINNEY: I really don't have any comment. You know, it is what it is. You know, I think that like I heard today that it supposedly wasn't said, and that's great. It's awful convenient on Thursday. I know this, that if my media put something out that I said and if it was nationally perceived that I said it, I promise you, I would correct it. I would make sure that it was made known that especially something that is derogatory that I wouldn't want my name attached to, I would make sure that it was clear, or I'd pick up the phone and I'd call and say, hey, there's something out there that people are saying I said and I didn't say it. That's really all there is to it.

I said that last night. I don't know if he said it or not, but there certainly hasn't been any rebuttal. But that's it on that. We'll talk about the ballgame.

Q. I saw that Phillip Price was listed as probable. I was wondering how he looked at practice and how confident you are in him right now.

COACH SWINNEY: Well, he's looked actually very well in practice, and he didn't get a lot of good on good last week. Most of his work last week was versus the scout look guys. We just he got in the game and Coach Caldwell just didn't feel good about the way he was reacting, especially with kind of the early start that we had as far as how he performed, and just didn't like the match up. So we felt like we needed to go in a different direction.

But he's come back this week and he's had a really good week, and he's gone full speed pass rush and inside and all that kind of stuff. I feel much better about him, but he's got to go and compete and play four quarters tomorrow night.

Q. Are there certain things that you feel that you have corrected? You've lost three out of four. Are there certain things you've worked on in particular to correct, where there are common threads in those games?

COACH SWINNEY: Oh, yeah, we've worked every single day. But it's a game of execution and performance, and we've had a hard time getting 11 guys to pull the rope in the same direction every play. That's what it takes to win and to consistently win.

You know, the biggest thing for us, and I've said it many times, the last four games we've had 12 turnovers, and we've created zero in the last three. I think we're minus 10 in turnover margin, and before that kind of slide came, I think we were plus 9. So you're talking about a drastic, drastic change in that category.

There's always things to improve upon, but until that's corrected, you're just sledding uphill. So that's been the biggest things. We were 8 and 0, we had six turnovers, because it just leads to other things. People start pressing, they start playing outside the system, they start doing things they shouldn't do. It kind of takes the air out of this side of the ball, and it just kind of and it creates energy for the opponent, and it creates opportunities, hurts you in field position, and on and on and on, just like up there in rally. We played on a 100 yard field and they played on a 20 yard field for a good bit of that game. And that's tough when you're playing good people. So that's the biggest thing for us is just playing smart football.

I'm proud of our guys. They've had a good season, and we've got a chance to have a great season with four great quarters tomorrow night.

Q. You figure that Virginia Tech probably is going to make some adjustments from what happened when you played them up there. What do you do? Are you going to try and do the same thing that was successful for you back in Blacksburg or are you going to adjust to what they're going to adjust to?

COACH SWINNEY: Well, it's the 13th game. They are who they are and we are who we are. I don't know if anybody is going to trick anybody in this ballgame. This is a game of execution, making the fewest mistakes, winning the physical match ups. You know, they've done a really good job, and they've continued to do basically the same things. They've got a few changes here and there just like we do, but I don't think either team will surprise each other as far as getting out of their personality of who they are. It's just to win a championship game, you have to execute high level, you've got to win physically and you have to make the fewest mistakes.

Q. What concerns you more, Logan Thomas as a passer or Logan Thomas as a runner?

COACH SWINNEY: Whew, well, he's pretty good at both. Coming into our first game, I would have said as a runner just because coming into that game he had I think he had thrown four touchdowns and maybe had four interceptions.

But since that game, he's thrown 14 touchdowns and three interceptions. And he's running quarterback sneaks for 12 yards. He has really gained a lot of confidence. He's been the real key for their football team. They've done a great job in using him effectively in the running game. He's taken you can see how his confidence has grown. They've done a few things different in the passing game, but he has really become an accurate thrower, and he's gotten just a lot more confident. He's got a big arm, got a big, big arm, so he's a problem for anybody that's playing him, there's no question.

Q. Last Saturday I asked you about sort of hitting that reset button. Have you seen the ability of your players to maybe do that a little bit this week and push that stuff out of their mind and focus on this championship?

COACH SWINNEY: Yeah, and that's what you have to do. Really, that's the way it's got to be every week. If we go 8 and 0, that doesn't mean we lose the 9th game and if we lose two in a row that doesn't mean we lose three. You just have to move on and get ready for the next game. It's always about the next game or the next season. That's the only thing that you have any control over at this point. So sitting around worrying about it is irrelevant.

Now, certainly you learn from it and you watch the film and you try you're always trying to grow and get better. But for us our big thing was, listen, the regular season is over, you play all year to earn a right to get to postseason, and we're one of two teams still standing in our conference, and we have an opportunity to play for the overall championship, and these guys have earned that. I wish we were 12 and 0 coming into this; we're not. Can't do anything about that. All we can do anything about is how we play tomorrow night.

Q. You were asked about Thomas' arms and legs, but maybe the biggest thing with him since you've played him, and may be the best defensive game you guys played all year, where is his confidence and does that concern you because he obviously looks like a totally different guy, not only confidence but from a poise standpoint?

COACH SWINNEY: Yeah, and that's kind of what I was alluding to earlier. His confidence was grown tremendously in all areas of his game, running the football, making the right decisions in that part of the game. But throwing the ball with so much more confidence, throwing the ball very accurately, whether it's throws in the quick game, throws on the move or taking the shots down the field. I mean, he's got a lot of confidence, and it really, really shows.

He's playing at a high level. All those guys are. They're playing at a high level and clicking on all cylinders coming into the postseason.

Q. To the extent that adjustments therefore may have to be based on a guy who thinks differently as opposed to taking the blind side sack last time, is that kind of how the mindset has to be from your defensive standpoint?

COACH SWINNEY: Yeah, we've got to just do our jobs. We've got guys that are supposed to play gaps and they've got to do that, and we've got to have rush lane integrity with a quarterback like this. We can't have missed assignments, guys lining up wrong. We've got to really be accountable to each other, and again, have 11 guys pulling the rope in the same direction every single play because if you don't, you give up a big play. We've got to try to minimize that.

Q. Can you talk about David Wilson, the running back for them? I know you guys have struggled to stop the run a little bit recently, and certainly he seems like he would be a very dangerous player tomorrow night.

COACH SWINNEY: Yeah, I think he had 120 yards or so on us the first time. He's as good a player as there is in the country. I mean, he's probably I don't know how much he's talked about nationally from a media standpoint, but he is a great football player, very, very dangerous in all aspects, tough, hard nosed runner, and he's got speed. His 1,500, 1,600 yards rushing is a tremendous accomplishment for him. He's a guy we've got to do a good job on to have a chance to win.

Q. Tech was one of the few teams to slow Sammy back in the first game, but you guys really used Dwayne effectively in that game. Can you talk about what he brings to your offense?

COACH SWINNEY: Yeah, Dwayne? Dwayne is a match up problem for people. I mean, he's a guy that you've got to know where he is from a defensive standpoint. He's almost 6'4", 255 pounds and can run and jump and handle the ball like a wide out. So he's the kind of guy you want on your side of the ball, that's for sure. And we made some plays in the passing game, and to have a chance to beat Virginia Tech you have to do that. They're built to stop the run, and you have to make some plays in the passing game, and we made just enough plays to get it done the first time we played them, and it'll take that and probably a little bit more this time.

Q. Talking about Logan Thomas having confidence, Tajh Boyd, when the slide started it was maybe because he had too much confidence or was forcing throws. Where would you put his confidence level this week in practice and in his preparation and kind of where he stands right now facing this challenge?

COACH SWINNEY: He's been very focused. I like how he's been in that film room all week. He's been over there on his own a bunch. I mean, he's Tajh is a winner. He's not lost many games, ever, and so he doesn't like losing. You know, he realizes that he's got to play better and he has to do his part, as everyone else does, coaches, everybody.

You know, I've been very pleased with his execution all week long, and I was confident in how he was last week. He practiced well last week. But he's excited about having an opportunity to play for a championship, and again, all these guys are. This is what they do it for. This is what they everybody wants to be undefeated, and there's probably not going to be many of those teams in the country when it's all said and done, never is, but when this is what you do, and they're lifting weights and they're working at 5:30 in the morning and they've got when nobody is watching, they're grinding. This is what they do it for, and so they always realize that. There's no practice Monday, there's no game next week. This is it. Next time we get together, it'll be down the road a little bit before we play a game. Everybody is focused and committed and has a real sense of urgency to try to play their best game.

Q. Can you talk a little bit about the game being here in Charlotte and if you think it should stay and kind of what the pros and cons are for you?

COACH SWINNEY: Well, I think that from our perspective it's great being here in Charlotte because we have a huge fan base, and I'm sure it's going to be a great atmosphere tomorrow night, be a ton of Clemson folks. It's not a burden to be able to get here from a travel standpoint, and I think that's awesome, and I think this city does a tremendous job. They take a lot of pride in all their events up here. I've been up here for a few events, including the Bowl game last year, and they do a great job from a hospitality standpoint and just organization and all that.

I think it's a great spot. Where it goes from here, I don't know. It's really not my decision. But we're just happy to be a part of it.

Q. A close game could be decided by special teams play, and it seems like special teams for the Tigers have been pretty good all season long really. Can you talk about the combination of guys that you've got working with Benton being back and then Dawson and of course Chandler?

COACH SWINNEY: Well, that's another real key to have a chance to beat Virginia Tech; you'd better be sound in special teams. And we did a pretty good job up there, and we've done a decent job all year. We did give up a couple big punt returns this year, which is very disappointing, and that hurt us down this last three or four game stretch.

But Dawson has punted the ball well and punted the ball well last week, Catanzaro is going from a guy that couldn't hardly make one last year to a guy that has made Second Team All ACC and has had a great year for us. We've got to cover very, very well because they've got dangerous return men, and when we have an opportunity to put one through the pipes, you have to make it. Points are at a premium when you play Virginia Tech because they're a tough team to score against. So we've got to make our opportunities and you have to create field position in the punting game, and that's one of the things we talk about is let's end every offensive possession with a kick, whether it's a punt or an extra point or a field goal, and we'll have a chance to be successful, keep our defense out there playing on a long field.

But special teams is going to be a big part of this game. There's no doubt about it. We've got to continue to play well.

Q. Are you amazed at what Sammy has done as a freshman for you guys, and do you sense that maybe he's a little extra motivated this time around since he kind of had a quiet game in Blacksburg the first time around?

COACH SWINNEY: Yes, I am amazed at what he's done as a freshman. I knew he was going to be a very, very good player. I watched him in camp and just couldn't believe what I was seeing in camp every single practice, the consistency, the knowledge, the ability to absorb installation, technique, toughness, just incredible what I saw in camp. So I wasn't surprised that he had a great year. But I am amazed at just to what level he was able to perform at all year long. He did not play well last week, and he's got to play well for us to be the type of offense that we need to be. He's got to make and all of them, not just him, but we've got to make the plays that present themselves, and he's anxious to get back out and play on this stage, and he's been dialed in all week long. I look forward to it. I'm proud of him, though. I guess he's got an award hopefully that he's going to win. I don't know if that's common knowledge or not. But anyway, he's is that common knowledge? Okay. I don't want Michael Kelly back there throwing things at me. But I'm proud of him for being Rookie of the Year, and he certainly has earned that.

COACH FRANK BEAMER

Virginia Tech

COACH BEAMER: I can tell you we're extremely happy to be back in this championship game. It hasn't been easy. I told several people, this has been a grind this year, going through some injuries and a new quarterback that really has come along well, has come along very fast. But we've had to work a little bit this year.

But we understand the talent that we're playing against. We understand that ‑‑ I mean, they are a well‑coached football team. We've already seen that, and have great respect for Clemson, how they do things. I think it's the making of a fantastic football game.

The stadium is going to be sold out. That's the way it should be for the championship football game, and I hope both of us can do the game justice and do it right.

Q. In the first game, you guys gave up four sacks. In the last seven games you've only given up six. Can you just talk about the improvement of the offensive line, or is part of that improvement also Logan knowing to get rid of it?

COACH BEAMER: Yeah, and I think the situation, too. You don't want to get in 3rd and long. A couple of sacks came at the end of the ballgame, and they're laying their ears back and you don't want to get in that situation against these guys.

But our offensive line, I do think we've got a lot of experience in there and they played very well. It's a good group of kids, and they want to be good and want to protect the quarterback. I think they've improved, and I think Logan has improved. I think he's learned from situations. He gets rid of the ball. All that helps that situation, too. So I think it's a combination of our offensive line and Logan and protection.

Q. You guys have been here before, you've won here before. Do you think that experience will pay off tomorrow?

COACH BEAMER: You know, I think experience always matters, but I think what it is, you've got a very talented football team that you're going against, a team that struggled a little bit down at the end here, but I know this, that when you've got talent like they have, they're just a play or two away from getting that momentum back, and you understand that.

It's one game, and I think what's on the field probably means more than who's got experience and who doesn't.

Q. What are the ways that you would describe your team as being a different team from the first time you played Clemson?

COACH BEAMER: Well, I hope we'll perform better offensively. I think we're a better offensive team, and then you can't turn the ball over, which we did a couple times in that first Clemson game. I really believe that offensively we're better, and basically I think our quarterback has more experience and kept getting better with experience. I think that's big.

And then I would hope that we can kick the ball better. You know, our punting in that first ballgame, we really gave up some field position in that part of it, and so I think that's a key part in this whole thing, too, is the field position, and that goes back to your kicking game. So I would hope it would be better there.

Q. Two questions: Can you talk about the last month that Clemson has had and what differences you've seen in them from when you played them first? I know you've touched on it a bit but they've been struggling. And then just following that, can you talk about the game being here in Charlotte? Would you like to stay here and from your experiences last year, also?

COACH BEAMER: Yeah, I'll take that one first. I don't think there's any question this is a great place for it. I think it's the place for it. I think it's central to the ACC as far as location of teams. The sellouts I think are important. Our championship game needs to be sold out. So to me it's a great stadium.

I know between Clemson and Virginia Tech, they're both going to bring a lot of people, but I think you've got to have some other people supporting your game like they do here in Charlotte. I think they've done a great job of getting support from this community. I think that ‑‑ I think this is the place for it.

Clemson, there's a thin line, such a thin line between momentum and getting over a hump and not. I think they just got on the other side of that thin line, and sometimes it's hard ‑‑ once you get rolling the other way, it's hard to get it back. But like I said earlier, I think when you've got talent on your football team like they do, offensively and defensively and punter wise and kicking wise, when they've got talent, you get into a game, and all of a sudden things get rolling. We've experienced it firsthand. David Teel wrote an article, we came here for the first game, our first game against Florida State, and that was the year Florida State, they struggled down the stretch and so forth, but when they got out on the field against us that night, we had a bunch of penalties and they got us pretty good.

We've got firsthand ‑‑ I think what's happened in the past is in the past, and you'd better get ready to play this one ballgame with everything you've got because they're putting a lot into it, and we need to do the same thing.

Q. I think you need better reading material first. But is there any question that Danny [Coale] is going to punt tomorrow night?

COACH BEAMER: Well, that's a pregame decision. Last week we decided to punt Danny in pregame, but he's punted well this week. But our other kid has, too; Branthover has punted well this week, too, so we'll see there in pregame.

Q. In '07 and '08 you lost to Boston College during the regular season, you came back and beat them in the ACC Championship game; you lost to Clemson this year during the regular season. Do you feel like you learned a lot about your team that will allow you to come back and beat Clemson this second time around?

COACH BEAMER: Well, you know, I hope we're a better football team. But again, you know, it's happened to us twice, but that's no sign it's going to happen three times in a row. I think we've got to go make it happen, and again, we've got to play well. I guarantee they've got the ability to be really good and have been really good at times and just got on the wrong side of that momentum deal.

We're going to have to play a great football game. Our kids understand that, and like I said earlier, we've got great respect for Clemson, their program, how they do things, and we know we've got to play.

Q. Sammy Watkins was largely held under control in the first game. Is that something specific you guys were targeting him on defensively?

COACH BEAMER: It's hard. You know, it's hard because against so many other guys, and you get one stopped and here goes another one. But he's an explosive guy. Every play he touches the ball, and if he's not touching the ball you've got to regard that, too. But every time he's got the ball in his hands, he's a threat to go and go the distance. You know, really a ‑‑ and he's in an offense with a lot of other guys that really makes it difficult, makes it very difficult.

An Interview With:

JOHN SWOFFORD and WILL WEBB

JOHN SWOFFORD: First of all, there's a release being passed out there that you should have in hand. The purpose of this particular part of the press conference this afternoon is that I'm very, very pleased to be able to announce that by unanimous vote of our athletic directors and faculty representatives that the 2012 and 2013 Dr. Pepper ACC Championship game will be here in Charlotte.

I think it's pretty obvious that both last year and this year are tremendous successes in terms of this game. They're back‑to‑back sellouts, and that's certainly very, very important to us. The events surrounding the game are truly outstanding, good growth in the advance ticket sales. In fact, this year before the two teams were announced, the game was sold out, and that's what you really look for with this type of game ‑‑ sold out with the exception of the tickets that the two schools have.

So I think what we have found is just an all‑around quality experience for our fans and our teams and for Charlotte, and we've found a real win‑win kind of situation with this game.

We're just very, very pleased with how last year went, very, very pleased with how we know this year is going. We anticipate a terrific game tomorrow night with a packed stadium, and our entire league is truly very appreciative of the kind of support that has been extended to the Atlantic Coast Conference from everybody throughout this city.

There are a couple of people and organizations that I want to particularly thank and recognize. First of all, Charlotte Collegiate Football and their board, particularly Johnny Harris, who has really embraced this idea of bringing the ACC Championship game to Charlotte and backed it from the very beginning; Tom Skains; Steve Luquire; Will Webb, who does much of the day‑to‑day aspects of the game. Certainly the opportunity to have this game here would not be possible without this great stadium and without the vision and the cooperation of Jerry Richardson and Danny Morrison and the Carolina Panthers. They have just been terrific. Our honorary captains Hugh McColl and Harvey Gant, two of the great citizens of Charlotte that have also backed us from the very beginning; the Leatherheads, which is a group very much involved with the selling of tickets here in the local community, and as I've said, that's extraordinarily important. They have done a tremendous job with the advance ticket sales. And I want to mention and recognize and point out Michael Kelly, our associate commissioner for football broadcasting and communications, who just does an outstanding job from our office in coordinating the whole weekend.

So we look forward to not only a great weekend this year but being back for at least two more years with the ACC Championship game in Charlotte.

I also want to ask Will Webb to come up and say a few words, and then if you have any questions, we'll both be more than happy to take those. Will, thanks for the job that you do.

WILL WEBB: Thank you, Commissioner. On behalf of Charlotte Collegiate Football, the city, the Leatherheads, we're ecstatic about this announcement. We're honored to have the ACC here. We're very pleased that it has grown the way it's grown in the last year, and we look forward to continuing to work hard to continue that growth and to make this a great event year in and year out for Charlotte and the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Q. Did you open this up for bidding, and if so, what other cities did bid?

JOHN SWOFFORD: We did not. We've been so pleased with what we have found here with last year's game and then continuing into this year's game, and the fact that this year's game is sold out, and the sense of cooperation and the momentum that we have found here coupled with all the other assets that we have talked about before in terms of the geographic location, the fact that eight of our schools are within 300 miles of the city of Charlotte, this stadium, the hotels and restaurants downtown, the ability to walk to the game from those places, and just the general overall support. I think it's pretty telling when all 12 of our schools vote in favor of continuing this relationship without even taking it out to be in consideration.

We've found something that certainly in its first two years has worked extraordinarily well for us, and we want to continue that.

Q. Was there any thought to making it longer than two years?

JOHN SWOFFORD: Well, I'll tell you why we went two years, is that it'll put us totally in sync with our Bowl contracts and whatever happens with the postseason football nationally, whether it's an extension of the BCS or something else. And that'll put the whole thing in a chronological sync that we thought was a wise way to go as we look toward the future.

Q. Just curious, you mentioned a couple weeks ago that the idea of the Pac‑12 playing these games on campus, expressed a little curiosity about that. Was that kicked around this time or do you plan to kick it around in the future?

JOHN SWOFFORD: We really didn't kick it around this time. I think that's something you take a look at if you don't really find a home. We prefer a quality neutral site where the game can be consistently successful year in and year out, and hopefully we have found that here in Charlotte. That's been what we've pursued from the very first championship game. And certainly our first two years in Charlotte indicate to us that this may well be that home. So we didn't really seriously consider that in terms of going to campus, but obviously it is something that the Pac‑12 is doing on the West Coast, and we'll see how that goes.

But from a pure competitive standpoint, we very much prefer a neutral site.

Q. Not that you've had any problems, but having another couple years, will that make it easier to sell tickets going forward and will it be more familiar to the city?

WILL WEBB: Well, what we've wanted to do was build a brand of a game that's in demand, and last year's sellout helped us this year with renewals. A month ago we were on the verge of a sellout. That will help us next year as we go back into the market. We've got a lot of people this year who weren't able to get tickets because they waited until their team qualified. That will help us next year.

We learn every year with the events we do how to fine‑tune them, how to make them better, how to make this an event really that is deserving of the ACC's name, and that's what our goal is.

Q. How does this help the Belk Bowl and vice versa?

WILL WEBB: Well, what it helps is we've got quality football, quality college football in addition to quality pro football in Charlotte. Our Leatherheads group is very engaged in both. As of last week we had sold more tickets to the Belk Bowl this year than we did all of last year for the Meineke Car Care Bowl. It just helps us to be able to present two very quality college football postseason experiences to the community.

JOHN SWOFFORD: Belk is sponsoring our event tonight, The Legends Event, that's turned into something really special in terms of this weekend, and Belk is a sponsor of this event tonight. I went over and visited with the Belk people last week, with Will, and they were spending a great deal of time with Chick‑Fil‑a in terms of taking a look at how to be the best title sponsor of a Bowl that you can be. I was very pleased to see that because Chick‑Fil‑a does a terrific job in Atlanta, and if Belk is going to emulate somebody, that's a good group to emulate.

But it's great to see a local title sponsor for the Bowl game here in Charlotte and also terrific that they're certainly supportive of the ACC Championship game, as well.

WILL WEBB: Yeah, the folks at Belk have indicated to us that the success of the ACC helps them be successful, as well, so it's not an us/them, it's hey, we're all together, let's make it work.

Q. What's the breakdown on tickets available to the public versus how many each school gets?

JOHN SWOFFORD: Well, each school gets 10,000 tickets. We hold a total of 20,000. Conference office, we utilize I think about 4,000 or 5,000; is that right? 2,000, I'm exaggerating. And then the balance is generally available here locally to the public.

Q. Is a sellout considered the public sale or also include the school sales?

WILL WEBB: Well, we are sold out of the public, whatever was available to the public, and I can guarantee you between Clemson and Virginia Tech there's more demand for each school's 10,000 tickets than they've got. I think they each wish they had a whole lot more.

JOHN SWOFFORD: Yeah, both schools, the demand, at least from what I'm told, both schools were sold out before they actually ‑‑ of their 10,000 each before they actually knew they were coming here.

Q. Does that mean there are 51,000, give or take, public tickets?

WILL WEBB: Give or take, that's pretty good math. That wasn't my forte in college, but that sounds pretty close.

JOHN SWOFFORD: And as I said earlier, one of the ‑‑ the growth, I think, has been very good over the last couple of years in terms of the advance ticket sales, and that tells a lot in terms of the support from the local community, and we're really pleased with that.

Q. Your answer on the neutral site, safe to extrapolate from that that you would like this to be the permanent home of the game?

JOHN SWOFFORD: Well, I think it's got all the things you would want in a permanent home, from the beginning, and then when you see the kind of support that it's getting from the city, from local fans, the number of tickets that are being sold outside of the two teams' ticket allotments, it's just an excellent recipe, if you will, for success on an ongoing basis.