re: When is the SEC gonna pony up and support ice hockey?

We’ve got Equestrian competition. What more can you need?

Eerytime a SEC hockey team takes to the rink they drown....no one wants to watch folks drowning....

UGA used to (may still) have a traveling intramural (?) hockey club....wasn't affiliated with the AD in any way, I think, and may have not actually been affiliated with the University in any official way. It was a pretty big deal in the late 90s...I remember seeing billboards for games in Augusta and Savannah. Occasionally you'd see someone sporting one of the jerseys...they were pretty slick.

Hockey only makes it in towns where there is a commitment to it making it and there is enough transplants to fill the arena. The 2 NHL teams in Atlanta were both expansion teams and the sole purpose of their existence was for the owner groups to sell them as quickly as possible and turn a handsome profit in the process. The Flames had a pretty solid fanbase and the Thrashers had a seriously solid fanbase...but it was not enough in either case to survive the initial plans of the owners to sell the franchise as soon as possible. There is a strong move to get another NHL team in Atlanta...it will be exactly the same if it ever happens (doubtful). I think there is a minor league team on the north side or will be in a season or so.

Have you not heard of the latest court settlement? No one will be looking to start new sports and I suspect some non revenue sports will be switching to club status. Not sure how Title IX will play out but it's not looking good for things like golf, tennis, maybe volleyball and even baseball at some schools that attract 100 people to their games. It's a big mess and has ruined sports as we knew it.

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SCar just won national titles

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I played on the very fledgling USC club team when I was an undergrad. At the time, we played in the Coliseum, so we were actually on campus. It was an absolute blast, and I remember the road games fondly. We'd play UTK the weekend of the football game, and we'd bash each other's brains in over a weekend series, then hang out and drink for the games.

Club hockey and club rugby is exactly what college sports was always supposed to look like. We played because we loved it, loved our school, and it was an honor to don the colors. Plus, it's a gorgeous sweater.

I’d watch it if Arkansas had a team.

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I've been following the growth of ice hockey in non-traditional markets and can't help but be impressed by the success stories in Florida, Dallas, and Nashville.

The Florida Panthers, Dallas Stars, and Nashville Predators have built strong fan bases and competitive teams despite being in the heart of the South, traditionally dominated by college football and basketball.

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Per NHL fans: "But, but, but hockey won't catch on in the South!"

They do as a club team.

Jones center in Springdale.