Franklin Field done serving as Owls' nest

On Sept. 9 last year, Penn sports fans got a rare treat -- a free glimpse at college football's then-No. 1 Miami Hurricanes at Franklin Field.

No, the 'Canes weren't at Penn to challenge last year's Ivy League champs, but rather, were taking on Temple.

For over 20 years, the Owls have played some of their home games at Franklin Field. However, this year, Temple has a new home, the brand new Lincoln Financial Field.

"I would describe our relationship with Penn and Franklin Field as nothing less than very, very good," Temple Athletic Director Bill Bradshaw said. "I love Franklin Field, but we had the opportunity to play in Lincoln Financial, one of the nicest football arenas in the world."

In August, the Philadelphia Eagles reached a 15-year agreement with Temple to play all Owls home games at "The Linc." Both Bradshaw and Eagles spokesperson Ron Howard declined to comment on the financial details of the deal.

Prior to this season, the Owls split their home games between Veterans Stadium and Penn's campus.

According to a statement by Penn Athletic Communications Director Carla Shultzberg Zighelboim, Penn has lost very little revenue from Temple.

"We are thrilled that Temple has been able to work out a deal with the Eagles," she said. "It's probably as fine a stadium as exists in the country.

"We have a wide variety of events that take place in Franklin Field, and we charged very little rent to Temple in the spirit of the Big 5, so the lost revenue is minimal and most likely will be picked up from other activities over the course of the year."

While Bradshaw also did not comment on the financial workings of Temple's deal with Franklin Field, he indicated that Penn Athletic Director Steve Bilsky approached him about extending the Owls' deal with Penn.

In the end, however, playing in the 68,532-seat, natural grass Lincoln Financial Field was too good of a deal to pass up, as it would help Temple with recruiting and drawing bigger crowds to games, according to Bradshaw.

Last Saturday's home-opener -- the first regular season football game to be played at Lincoln Financial Field -- drew a crowd of 30,090 people to watch the Owls fall, 23-20, in double overtime to city rival Villanova.

Despite the new stadium, this was actually a decrease in attendance from last September's Miami game at Franklin Field. The Hurricanes 44-21 win was witnessed by 33,169 fans.

Bradshaw insists that this move had nothing to do with a bad relationship with Penn or a bad opinion of Franklin Field.

"Franklin Field is one of the greatest and most historic stadiums in college sports," he said. "Franklin Field has been wonderful to Temple football."

Continuing his good relationship with Penn's facilities, Bradshaw scheduled Temple's Nov. 29 home basketball game against Illinois at the Palestra. The Wachovia Center was booked for a Philadelphia 76ers match against the Atlanta Hawks.

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