It’s nearly pay day in Baltimore.
When Towson takes the field against No. 3 LSU in Tiger Stadium Saturday night, it will be $500,000 richer as a university. That money will go a long way toward making its athletic department flush with all kinds of shiny toys.
But is it worth it?
The game won’t necessarily be a romp, even if LSU feels it has something to prove after escaping from Auburn with a 12-10 win last week.
Towson running back Terrance West scored 29 touchdowns as a freshman in 2011, and has already tallied five in three games this season. With a 5-foot-11, 223-pound frame, West would be easy to confuse for one of LSU’s backs.
LSU coach Les Miles warned his team this week about underestimating its opponent. All he had to do was bring up his alma mater’s 2007 season-opener, when Appalachian State shocked the sports world with an improbable 34-32 win in the Big House against No. 5 Michigan.
But if Towson doesn’t manage to pull off the improbable, if it loses in a rout like everyone expects, who stands to benefit?
The Towson players won’t be counting the greenbacks as they take their bruised and beaten bodies back up to Baltimore.
LSU’s starters aren’t likely to play the entire game in the middle of a tough conference schedule.
The $70 price for a football ticket certainly won’t be worth watching the entire shellacking, even for the most die-hard of fans.
Here’s the grind: when Towson agreed to come to Baton Rouge for the last Saturday in September, it knew it was subjecting its football players for what could stand as the worst beat down of their collegiate career in return for a heaping pile of cash.
The Towson players may be talented in their own right, but they are in no way prepared to face a defensive line with several future first-round picks in its ranks.
No matter how big the pay day, its not worth the embarrassment that comes with it.
Take a look at Savannah State’s early-season schedule when they lost by a combined 139-0 score to Oklahoma State and Florida State. The combined payout for that humiliation? About $860,000.
You probably knew that already, and there is part of the problem. Savannah State is synonymous with embarrassment.
I hope Towson puts the money to good use for the players who spent the three hours sacrificing their bodies to earn it.
