Are the Jags for sale?

[Driven1]

from Tim McClellan...

This is the question that brews among NFL insiders and fans alike.  With Los Angeles looming large in the collective brain trust of the National Football League, the list of teams that could potentially wind up in the second largest television market in the country almost certainly has to include the Jacksonville Jaguars.

But, are the Jacksonville Jaguars for sale?


Wayne Weaver is committed to the city of Jacksonville.  There can be absolutely no doubt about that simple fact.  He and his wife have made their home here since being awarded the franchise, and over the past fifteen years, they have entrenched themselves as fixtures in the community through their prolific philanthropic efforts involving numerous charities and cultural organizations. Wayne and Delores Weaver have embraced life in Jacksonville, and have no intention of leaving the city.

But, Wayne Weaver is 73 years old.  With the team struggling to sell season tickets in recent years, the strained revenue stream of the young franchise has been a constant focal point used to justify the talk about the team being relocated to Los Angeles.  The team has clearly struggled to keep their financial house in order, streamlining their operations staff and consolidating positions non-essential to the football side of the business.

They implemented a plan in 2006 that reduced the overall capacity of Jacksonville Municipal Stadium to trim their ticket inventory.  The reason for this was two-fold.

First, by shrinking the stadium by nearly 10,000 seats, the team shrank the magic number of non-premium seats that would count toward the NFL blackout policies.

It also allowed the team to raise prices to try to get their average ticket costs more in line with the rest of the NFL.  The Jaguars currently have one of the most affordable ticket pricing structures in the NFL.  But, season ticket holders have seen their ticket prices increase by anywhere from 40 to more than 100% depending on where the seats are located over the past three years.

Weaver and his staff are doing everything that they can to assure the long-term solvency of the team in Jacksonville.  But, this is not a young owner.  While his health appears to be outstanding, there may come a time when that will not be the case.  The rumors have been floated that he would hand control of the team over to his son when that time arrives.  But, there are also rumors indicating that his children have no interest in taking over operation of the team.

The initial purchase price of the Jaguars in 1993 was slightly more than $200 million.  Fifteen years later, the value of the Jacksonville Jaguars is ranged at anywhere between $800 million and slightly more $1 billion.  Weaver’s investment was roughly $160 million, so the return on investment would be significant if the team was sold.

Struggles to sell tickets. 
Difficulty in keeping up with the rapidly growing revenue stream generated by larger market franchises.
An aging ownership.
Those are certainly flags that would lead anyone to think that the team is potentially on the market.

When the city of Jacksonville was awarded the franchise in November of 1993, one of the motivating factors cited by the league in making the decision was the incredible growth potential for the region, and the football passion that existed at the time.  This combination put the city into a unique position that allowed them to beat out other larger cities such as Baltimore and St. Louis for an expansion franchise.

Over the next several years, the team found unprecedented success, becoming one of the most successful expansion franchises in the history of the league.  The fans were on board and excited by the newness of the entire NFL experience.  But, as the team began to become more mature, and the struggles started to bubble to the surface, the fans slowly peeled away.  At their low point following the 2002 season, the Jaguars were unable to fill a stadium that was built too large for the market to begin with, and the on-field struggles that the team endured were making that an even harder sell.

As the team transitioned in 2003 under new head coach, Jack Del Rio, they saw their ticket sales begin the slow climb back.  It was still a struggle, but the numbers did steadily increase.  When the team decided to bring the stadium more in line with other stadiums in the league by reducing the number of seats available, they were finally able to put blackouts in their rearview mirror.  However, that only lasted for so long, and the blackouts were back in 2007 despite the fact that the team had improved to the point where there was the potential for a return to the playoffs.

These issues with blackouts once again brought into focus the notion that the team was in jeopardy in the Jacksonville market, and that if a larger market came calling, that the Jaguars would be open to considering the move.  Wayne Weaver repeatedly denied this, but in the end, league sources remained insistent that there were constant rumors swirling that the team was indeed for sale.

As part of the evolution, the Jaguars continued to see improvement in the percentage of renewals for season tickets.  This was a positive sign that things were moving in the right direction, even though there were still issues with blackouts.

The city remained a potential hotbed for the franchise despite these struggles.  The growth has not abated.  The economy has struggled, but Jacksonville has managed to be somewhat insulated from that.

Still, those rumors persist, and it does seem likely that the time is going to come in the not too distant future where the team is going to be under new ownership.  What people seem to believe about this is that any new owner will immediately set into motion relocating the franchise to greener pastures.

But, is that necessarily the case?  Could the team find new ownership that would be more inclined to continue building what the Weaver’s have been crafting for 15 years?

There have been names bandied about as potential suitors.  One that would seem most appealing to the Jaguar fan base, and to Wayne Weaver in particular, is Eddie DeBartolo.

The former San Francisco 49′ers owner has been actively seeking an opportunity to get back into the National Football League.  He has the financial wherewithal to make a move if the opening presents itself.  He has long been rumored to be pursuing the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but the Glazer family has no interest in selling off the team.  So, he has looked elsewhere.  Could he be a potential suitor for Wayne Weaver?

Immediately, when people hear the name, they believe that his ties to the state of California would make it an absolute that he would move the team to Los Angeles.  However, DeBartolo lives in Tampa, and has extensive real estate interests in Jacksonville.  Would it really be a stretch for the marketing genius to think that he could be the guy that would be able to ride in on a white horse, bail Wayne Weaver out by buying the team, and then turn it into a franchise that is as profitable and popular as any of the premiere market teams in the league?

The cost of doing business in Florida is relatively cheap.  The stadium deal that the Jaguars have currently would be appealing to any potential owner.  The tax structure in the state of Florida when compared to what it would cost to do business in Los Angeles cannot be compared.  Jacksonville, for all of the small market stigma, has a lot of appeal for any person considering the purchase of an NFL franchise.

Wayne Weaver has remained a loyal steward to the city of Jacksonville.  That will not change whether he owns the franchise or not.  If the team is for sale, it would make sense that Weaver would want the new ownership to maintain that commitment to the city, opting to keep the team here and not immediately call in the moving vans.

The Jacksonville market remains a potentially top shelf market for the NFL.  The person that sees this who can also find a way to take that potential and turn it into a reality is out there.  Rather than abandoning the market for perceived greener pastures, the Jaguars could be on the cusp of taking major strides by staying put.

Is the team for sale?

There is always a price point that makes the answer to that question a simple yes.  But, it should be about more than just the money side in any deal that transfers controlling interest to a new party, and Wayne Weaver will make sure that this is indeed the case.

In the end, it is about keeping the Jaguars in Jacksonville.  That will happen.

http://mvn.com/nfl-jaguars/2008/06/11/are-the-jacksonville-jaguars-for-sale/

[fsujax]

I dont guess these rumors will ever end.  I believe Wayne Weaver is committed to Jacksonville, but what happens when he is no longer around???

[Driven1]

I agree FSU...Wayne has proven he is here to stay.  While I think he has manipulated the city a bit, he has proven he is willing to stick it out and stay the course.

[Jason]

Come on Tim McClellan, surely there are other things to write about.

[copperfiend]

Tim McClellan is no sports writer. He is just a fan. He posts on the Jaguars message board on jaguars.com as FBT.

[thebrokenforum]

This story has come up so many times I've lost count. And it's absolutely unfounded. There are all kinds of rumors and speculation about our city and our fans that it's way beyond ridiculous now. It's insulting. The answer to all the guessing is simple: support the team. Like Vic Ketchman says: protect this house.

I am tired of these stories and excited for this season. I honestly do not believe that the jaguars are leaving Jax ever. But here's some food for thought. If they did go what kind of identity does that leave Jax with? The jags have been great for this city and things only look to get better. There are a constant positive in a (recently) sea of negatives. Under Peyton we would be the murder capital of Florida. The city with absolutely horrible public and mass transit options. The Hoo-Hah Monologue town. Pro football is not everyone's cup of coffee but imagine this city without it. Especially now. Pretty disheartening to think about in my opinion.

Protect this house!

[Ocklawaha]

The International cow chip throwing contest has an opening, we could always sign up!

Ocklawaha

[adamh0903]

Tim McClellan is no sports writer. He is just a fan. He posts on the Jaguars message board on jaguars.com as FBT.

You are 100% correct, No journalistic credability what-so-ever

[Johnny]

I think as long as Wayne Weaver is the owner, we have no worries. He's refused to sell in the past and has stated his dedication to this city, to the point that he said he would be giving the team to his son (which also has some ties to Jacksonville, but I believe he lives in Chicago).

That being said, I just hope by the time the reigns are handed over that the Jacksonville community has built enough fans to keep the stadium sold out on an annual basis. I've had season tickets for going on 4 years now and football season is the best time of the year. I can't wait until my son is old enough to attend, I'll be picking up a 3rd season ticket at that point. 

[RiversideGator]

Last I heard Wayne Weaver lived in Riverside at the foot of Stockton Street in the Villa Riva condominium development.  I have never heard of him living in Chicago.

The best way to counter these silly rumors BTW is to get out there and buy Jags tickets and go to the darn games.  If we sell out every game, this sort of nonsense will stop being put out there.

[RiversideGator]

BTW, the author does not agree with the rumors.  Indeed he helps to dispel them in another article posted on that site:

Jaguars ticket sales ahead of 2007 pace. No need for panic.

By Tim McClellan | June 10th, 2008

With all of the hoopla surrounding the Jacksonville Jaguars, local media has had to resort to spinning things in any way possible to paint the situation with ticket sales in a negative light.

The Jaguars currently have fewer than 4,000 non-premium season tickets remaining in order to declare the 2008 season a sell-out, avoiding blackouts.  This number has been touted as being behind the pace for ticket sales in 2006 when the local media has reported on this.  What has not been reported is that the team is actually ahead of their numbers for 2007.  Renewals are up by 10% over previous years, and the number of tickets that need to be sold in order to avoid blackouts is smaller than the threshold that the team had to contend with last year.

Because of the way this number has been spun locally, the Jaguars continue to pop up in national articles talking about teams relocating to Los Angeles.  They are listed with teams like Minnesota or Buffalo as “at risk” franchises that could wind up playing on the west coast in the next few years.

It is the time of the year on the NFL calendar when the volume of information that is deemed to be newsworthy dwindles to a trickle, so naturally, the second largest media market in the country rises on the priority list as people try to offer their guess as to how Los Angeles will re-enter the exclusive fraternity of NFL cities.

Meanwhile, encouraging stories about how the fan base in Jacksonville continues to grow despite a struggling economy fall through the cracks.  That is hardly worth noting.  There is no glamour or glitz attached with a positive angle on a story.  It is much easier to push a story that portrays a situation in a negative light.

As this negativity continues to spread, it starts to permeate the local psyche.  Fans that are on the fence over ticket purchases might allow media reports to influence their decision one way or the other.  The battle to get those last tickets sold becomes even more difficult if fans start to think that it is not worth the investment because the team is not long for this town.

In local talk radio circles, this is great fodder.  One show dedicated an entire hour this morning to how this guest host (who was actually broadcasting from Orlando, still thought Ernest Wilford was on the depth chart, and believed the Jaguars were dealing with selling out an 80,000 seat stadium) thought the Jaguars should address this crisis.  His idea was simple.  Discount the remaining 4,000 tickets to get them sold.  Make those heavy discounts, selling the seats in the $10-15 range.  His belief was that the Jaguars make plenty of money and ticket sales are such a minor piece of their revenue puzzle that it would have little impact on their bottom line.

It is precisely this type of bad information that ultimately frustrates even the most loyal of fans.  The Jaguars do a miserably inept job of communicating their situation to the general public, leaving all of the media outlets to speculate, allowing these stories to fester and grow beyond the reality.  Then, when the information is so incorrect that people have no idea what the truth is, the team finally sends out their minions to pass along as little information as possible in an effort to appease the masses.

If the Jaguars did a better job of communicating their situation up front, there would be less attention paid to the ticket sales situation to begin with.  But, most of the dealings involving the business side of the franchise are so shrouded in secrecy that it requires an act of congress to get at the root of the story.

What we know right now is that the Jaguars have around 4,000 tickets left to avoid blackouts.  The Jaguars published that number nearly three weeks ago, and no updates have been shared with the media or general public since, so how accurate that figure is remains to be seen.

What we also know is that the renewal rates were up by double digits this year.  Again, that is positive news, but hardly ever referenced with regard to ticket sales.

We are also aware of the fact that the team is ahead of their sales pace for 2007.  The combination of a better schedule, a deeper playoff run, and heightened speculation about how good the team will be this year has fans more willing to get on the bandwagon this year than in seasons past.

Going back to the talk show host and his suggestions, he felt that if the Jaguars simply took his advice, they would sell out the 2008 season within hours.  The reality is that if you suddenly slash the cost of the tickets that remain in an effort to entice people to buy them, it would set into motion a chain of events that would almost certainly impact the team in a negative light.

First, the revenue stream is impacted by lower ticket costs.  With the revenue sharing program that is currently being employed by the National Football League, teams have to hit a very specific threshold in order to qualify fully for the program.  The Jaguars have to match 90% of the average league revenue in order to fully qualify for the sharing.  By cutting ticket prices, the team is put even further behind the curve in their efforts to reach that target.

Second, those fans that have been loyal season ticket holders for several years, accepting the dramatic increase of their ticket prices over the past few years and remaining committed to the team would be hard pressed to contain their anger when the guy sitting next to them bought a discounted ticket for the same seat that they paid full price for.  When renewals come around in 2009, that type of issue can turn a long-time season ticket holder into another lost fan.  Why should they renew their seats if they can simply sit on their hands and wait for the team to discount the tickets?

Over the past few years, the Jaguars have been trying to streamline their ticket packages in an effort to make it easier for them to manage.  By adding this new discounted program that this particular talk show host suggested, they would once again add another layer that would require additional management.

It would create a public relations nightmare for a team that is currently building the fan base in the right manner by doing it slowly.

The Jaguars ticket office and marketing operation are far from top shelf.  They clearly have made many mistakes over the years that have been a great source of frustration for the fans.  If they decided to pull the trigger on a program that would discount the remaining season tickets in an effort to get them sold, they will lose a portion of the fans that are considered loyal to the core as a result.  This is such a bad idea.

The Jaguars need to do a better job of communicating their situation.  They need to do a better job of marketing the team to expand the footprint of the fan base beyond the local Jacksonville television market.  The organization needs to put more effort into developing the local fan base by appealing to the youth in the area that will become future season ticket holders.  They have made strides in each of these areas, but there is clearly still much work to be done if the team continues to be mentioned any time speculation begins to arise about teams being relocated to Los Angeles.

Until they find a way to squash this buzz once and for all, they will have a difficult time trying to get the fans here in Jacksonville to fully embrace the team.

For the fans that are sweating the media reports harboring news of gloom and doom for the franchise, just remember that it is June.  No blackouts are announced in June.

http://mvn.com/nfl-jaguars/2008/06/10/jaguars-ticket-sales-ahead-of-2007-pace/

[Johnny]

Last I heard Wayne Weaver lived in Riverside at the foot of Stockton Street in the Villa Riva condominium development.  I have never heard of him living in Chicago.

The best way to counter these silly rumors BTW is to get out there and buy Jags tickets and go to the darn games.  If we sell out every game, this sort of nonsense will stop being put out there.

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/090607/jag_197278510.shtml

Actually, it looks like he just has a business in Chicago. He has a home here and in Seattle,  apparently.

[RiversideGator]

I think Mr. Weaver said that his son had a home in Chicago and one in Jacksonville and his daughter lives here in town.  I really like Weaver also BTW.  He is an incredible success story and a self-made man.  Here is the relevant excerpt from the T-U interview:

Q: Are your wife and children interested in keeping the team in your family?

Absolutely, [his wife would want to own the team] if something happened to me. And so would our two children. Our son has a very successful business in Chicago, and our daughter lives here. He has a home here and in Seattle. I'm getting a little bit long in the tooth, but I've got a few good years left before I want to turn it over.

http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/090607/jag_197278510.shtml

[RiversideGator]

He also clearly and unequivocally stated that the team is not for sale.  End of story as far as I am concerned.

[FBT]

This story has come up so many times I've lost count. And it's absolutely unfounded. There are all kinds of rumors and speculation about our city and our fans that it's way beyond ridiculous now. It's insulting. The answer to all the guessing is simple: support the team. Like Vic Ketchman says: protect this house.

I am tired of these stories and excited for this season. I honestly do not believe that the jaguars are leaving Jax ever. But here's some food for thought. If they did go what kind of identity does that leave Jax with? The jags have been great for this city and things only look to get better. There are a constant positive in a (recently) sea of negatives. Under Peyton we would be the murder capital of Florida. The city with absolutely horrible public and mass transit options. The Hoo-Hah Monologue town. Pro football is not everyone's cup of coffee but imagine this city without it. Especially now. Pretty disheartening to think about in my opinion.

Protect this house!

Relax.  The point of the article had nothing to do with the team actually leaving.  In fact, quite the opposite.  I wrote that blog after being subjected to an hour on one of the local sports talk shows of hearing about how dire things are, and about how the situation is so bad that the team could wind up relocating as a result. 

I wrote that article because as I sat at mini-camps this past weekend, I was approached by at least 3 people that indicated that they had "heard rumors" about the DeBartolo thing, and that the team was definitely on the block and for sale.

I wrote that article because on more than one occasion in the past month, the Jaguars have been listed as one of 3 or 4 teams that has the potential to be on the short list for the stadium in Los Angeles.

The entire premise of that article, and the one written previously about the ticket sales was to point out that it's not as bad as the pundits in the national media (who do not have a clue about the city of Jacksonville other than they knowing that it's somewhere they don't want to be) would like to portray it here for the franchise.

Tim McClellan is no sports writer. He is just a fan. He posts on the Jaguars message board on jaguars.com as FBT.

You are 100% correct, No journalistic credability what-so-ever

I wasn't aware that fan blogs required journalistic "credability" from people such as yourself.  I'll try harder next time.