Miami Dolphins: Having an Urban Meyer-Tim Tebow 2008 Gators Reunion a Bad Idea

The Miami Dolphins' home field, Sun Life Stadium, is also home to the University of Miami Hurricanes and the Orange Bowl game.

The Dolphins charge the Hurricanes rent to play in their home stadium. Rent which the Hurricanes choose to pay. They agreed on the terms in 2007 when negotiations between the City of Miami, owners of the original Orange Bowl Stadium, and the University of Miami, the main tenants of the original Orange Bowl Stadium, fell through. 

So on Sunday, October 23rd when Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos make their trip to Miami, the Miami Dolphins will honor the University of Florida's 2008 National Championship team.

Well that's all fine and great after all, with Mike Pouncey playing for the Dolphins and Tim Tebow possibly playing for the Broncos and...WHAT?!

(That's a Family Guy reference by the way.)

Now I'm not writing that from the perspective of a Canes fan, which in full disclosure I am, but, this is a bad idea.

When the Florida Marlins move to, ironically, the original site of the Orange Bowl, the University of Miami will become the only other regular tenant at Sun Life Stadium. So it really doesn't make any sense to honor one of their rival teams, especially the rival that Canes fans probably loathe the most.

Especially a rival that doesn't want to play Miami because they'd rather get their guaranteed home victories over the likes of Furman, while playing Miami would mean having to agree on a home and home series. (Please Florida fans, give me a good reason why they can't play every year. And no, because Florida is in the SEC and already has a tough schedule isn't a good reason, not when I see LSU going out of its way to play Oregon or Georgia playing against Boise State this year. Not when Alabama has played Virginia Tech in years past.)

This has the potential to alienate both Miami and Florida State alums, whom there happen to be more of in South Florida.

So why is this a good idea?

Business wise, why is it a good idea? I hate comparing the Dolphins to the Heat but even before LeBron signed, they weren't putting together a 2006-2007 Gators reunion whenever Al Horford and the Hawks or Joakim Noah and the Bulls came to town.

The closest thing to that was when they brought back two members of the 2000 NCAA runner-up team, Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller. Only they didn't honor them, they brought them back to play for the Heat.

Canes and Noles fans won't care if the reunion meant they had to put on Dolphins jerseys and play for the Dolphins. 

But they do care about this. 

Many diehard UM and FSU fans will most likely not attend that game, some will sell their seats on stubhub to Gators fans and others will simply choose to not attend. 

For the ones who choose not to attend, that's lost revenue on parking, concessions, and merchandise.

Is that really worth it?

I hope it is, Miami Dolphins.

But maybe next time you want to honor a university, try honoring the team that pays you rent and plays in your stadium.

They have five national championships; the Gators only have three.

Thomas Galicia is a Miami Dolphins Featured Columnist. Follow him on twitter @thomasgalicia. For more of his opinions on other subjects, visit www.thomasgalicia.com.  I'd also like to add that while this is a Miami Dolphins page, College Football articles tend to get bombarded by ignorance. Please be respectful while commenting, no euphemisms for schools when bashing schools. I will flag you for ignorance regardless of what school you're bashing/defending.