SI.com - SI On Campus - Campus Blog: 6/3/07

When you just don't feel like studying...

6/08/2007 03:04:00 PM

Ball State Porn Sales Stalled

Ball State students learned a hard lesson -- if you're going to make a porn, get Jenna Jameson!

Barry Brecheisen/WireImage

One of our favorite stories here at SIOC has been the porno that Ball State unknowingly allowed to be shot on its campus. Well, the numbers are in and they're not looking good. Sales of the movie, which is titled Vampire Diaries, have been lower than expected. Those associated with the movie say it would have been much more successful if the school hadn't taken legal action to prevent its release in February. The school claims it never took such action.

Another possibility is that the low sales don't have to do with the film's delayed release date, but rather with its hefty $39.95 price tag. I wouldn’t even pay that much if it starred Tom Hanks and was packaged with an original print of Citizen Kane.
--Eric Horowitz

View comments | Add a comment

6/08/2007 02:33:00 PM

College World Series Leaving Omaha?

Omaha's Rosenblatt Stadium is one of the best baseball stadiums in the world, but will the CWS abandon Omaha for a more desirable location?

Peter Aiken/WireImage

Omaha's Rosenblatt Stadium has been home to the College World Series every year since 1950, but its contract with the NCAA is set to expire in 2010. The city is considering a $25 million renovation to the stadium, but it wants the NCAA to commit to a 10-year extension before it goes forward with the plan. In its history the NCAA has never granted more than a five-year extension. Omaha's uncertain contract status will surely spark a debate about whether or not it's time to move the Series.

The most obvious reason to move the CWS is that holding it in Omaha every year is unfair to any team that has to play Nebraska. No other sport grants one team such an unfair home field advantage in a post-season tournament. The Cornhuskers are a legitimate college baseball powerhouse (eight regionals in the last nine years) and therefore holding the CWS in Omaha every year is like repeatedly playing the Final Four in North Carolina. Rosenblatt stadium also has a small seating capacity of 23,000, and let's face it, fans of schools from ACC and SEC can't be too happy about having to trek to Omaha every year.

On the other hand, there is a lot of tradition in Omaha and the city has become a Mecca for college baseball. The isolated location creates an electric, festival-like atmosphere that's unmatched in the sports world. Nobody in Omaha wants to see the series leave and their opinion is undoubtedly shared by millions across the country. With major and minor league baseball seasons in full swing, there is also the problem of finding other sites to host the Series.

The NCAA hopes to reach a decision later this year or in early 2008. The city of Omaha will do everything it can to keep the Series, but it's possible that come 2011, the CWS will be somewhere other than Rosenblatt Stadium for the first time in 60 years.
--Eric Horowitz

View comments | Add a comment

6/06/2007 03:34:00 PM

The Greatest Wiffleball Tournament Ever

Fenway Park in Irvine, California? Not quite, but a replica has been set up for UC-Davis' Wiffleball Palooza

Photo by AP

UC Davis is the place to be for wiffleball aficionados. For the school's annual Wiffleball tournament, called Wiffleball Palooza, miniature replicas of major league stadiums are built. Last year the tournament featured Yankee Stadium, Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, and AT&T Park. Last weekend's tournament went with a retro feel as games were played in miniature models of Ebbets Field, Cleveland Municipal Stadium, Crosley Field, and the Polo Grounds.

The tournament featured a whopping 64 games in 24 hours, as well as a home run derby. In order to squeeze in all the games, teams played all night long. Overall, the tournament was a success, and students were happy with the chance to get a small taste of what it was like to play for the Brooklyn Dodgers. As they old saying goes, "If you build it, they who play intramural sports will come." --Eric Horowitz

View comments | Add a comment

Is something going on at your campus we should know about? Tell us here.