lived in DC area for 40+ years. Nobody hates Gtown more than me, beginning with the infamous "Rochester Classic" game from the early 70's. It's cool that we get more people in downtown DC than they do. Love re-watching Requiem for the Big East. But there is no upside to this!! What's done is done but we will regret this well before the fourth installment. Maryland, even George Mason better IMO if we want a game in the DMV.
For some reason, the concept of this game puts me in mind of the Civil War Reenactors that play war at Gettysburg every year on July 3rd. The flags are the same. The uniforms are the same. But it ain't the same as it was. It just isn't.
It's a grab for cash on both sides. It'll be the biggest crowd any Georgetown home games draws and it's because half the tickets will be sold to SU fans.
I KNOW why Georgetown wants it. Selling tickets to a game against Creighton in DC isn't easy. But I really don't understand why SU does, except to sell a few more tickets to a pre-ACC Season OOC game. Playing in front of DC area alumni could be accomplished a number of ways.
We'll get a bigger than usual crowd to at the Dome, many of them wanting to soak up the "rivalry" although they just never experienced it themselves. But they have been told it's important by those who were around in the 1980's.
The only other reason I can see is that Boeheim wants to play the game to keep alive as long as he can rekindle the feelings associated with the Old Big East.
I can picture him now in his den, re-watching "Requiem for The Big East" after a few scotches, with tears welling up in his eyes saying "Damn it! I don't care how much or how little sense it makes, we just have to keep playing them."
Since you have been around since the 70's, you experienced the "white heat" of that rivalry in the early days. To suggest what we have today --- the tattered shreds of a one time rivalry --- is in anyway close to what existed before is a cheapening of it.
I hated them then. Now GU is just a Catholic school in DC we used to be in the same league with.