Naming rights at Michigan Stadium

Submitted by hisurfernmi on

http://www.michiganstadiumproject.com/capital_gifts.php

Here is a list of all the items at Michigan Stadium that you can donate towards for a naming 'opportunity'. I'd be all over it if for $500 I could claim a urinal. I'd insist that the placard was posted in the urinal bowl.

What would you want to claim if possible?

Maybe the Mgoblog community should pool money together to get rights over one of these items. It would be sweet to have the Mgoblog Clock/Scoreboard

Section 1

March 27th, 2010 at 12:22 AM ^

But you're going to have to write a check for more than all four towers combined.

Can you get a check to 1000 S. State Street by May 1? And a check to me for $2000 would make me happy, too.

[Actually, I just did some math; if there are 2500 seats in Section 1, which is an approximation, at $500 PSD per seat per year, that's annual income to the Athletic Department of about $1.2m a year. So, what's the present value of an annuity paying out $1.2m/yr.? It would be interest-sensitive of course, but yeah, I would think that a check for $25m from you would cover the nut for the foreseeable future.]

ZooWolverine

March 26th, 2010 at 10:09 PM ^

Dude, naming the tunnel would be pretty sweet. But since I don't have $5 million, the $50,000 for security would be sweet. I bet that would allow me to kick out the random old guy demanding his actual seat in the student section. Too bad I don't have $50,000 either but, whatever, I can dream . . .

jonny_GoBlue

March 26th, 2010 at 11:46 PM ^

Ugh. Some of things should not be allowed to have names attached to them (exception perhaps by a Michigan Football legend). For instance, how ridiculous would it be for the players to run through the "Sally Milligan Tunnel" en route to an epic victory? Good grief, please don't do this.

Edward Khil

March 27th, 2010 at 1:44 AM ^

Didn't Dave Brandon just say this week, "If you don’t know what to do ask your customer...When I was a regent and this subject came up, we went out and did pretty qualified, professional, third-party research on the views of our fans...of the game-day experience at Michigan Stadium. And the research I saw at that time caused me to conclude that the thing that was the most objectionable, the thing that turned off the fan the most, was the idea that they would come to a football game and they would be blasted with advertising."

If Sanjay Gupta or Larry Page or those three astronauts want to put their names on a tower, that would be pretty cool. But if there's a CNN tower, a Google tower, and a NASA tower, maybe not so much. OK, a NASA tower WOULD be cool.

Rasmus

March 28th, 2010 at 2:40 AM ^

Donor recognition is a standard practice in institutional fundraising. These are not corporate sponsorship (i.e., advertising) opportunities. Look around at any museum, hospital, library, university, and the like and you'll see these kinds of philanthropic "naming opportunities." The John & Mary Smith Reading Room, etc. All this gets you is some signage. Three of the four towers are already taken, and I guarantee you they are named for people who have already given big money to the stadium renovation project. I suppose if Google wanted to give the $5 million to name the stadium tunnel, the university wouldn't turn them down, but all Google is getting is a sign somewhere and its name on a list of big donors -- no logos, and certainly no sponsorship deal that says broadcasters have to call it Google Tunnel or whatever.

rsblue

March 27th, 2010 at 2:47 AM ^

I am actually kind of disappointed that they are naming the tunnel. That to me has a special meaning and should not be subject to naming rights.

Happyshooter

March 27th, 2010 at 8:52 AM ^

I thought you guys were joking about naming the tunnel, then I went to the link.

Not a good idea. "The players are lined up in the EmConCom Lending Tunnel! The crowd is watching on the BriteSmile! Installment Payment Scoreboard!"

Bando Calrissian

March 27th, 2010 at 9:36 AM ^

Naming the tunnel is quite, quite lame. I can deal with them slapping a name on the outside of the towers, on the doors of suites and concourses I'll likely never see, etc. etc.

The tunnel, however. That's a little overboard. Slight Northwestern territory.

jmblue

March 27th, 2010 at 12:17 PM ^

Agree with everyone else on naming the tunnel - that's going too far.

I'm surprised that the scoreboard/clock is only $50,000 - that seems like it'd be a really prominent one. Unless it only applies to the current scoreboards, which may be replaced sometime in the future.