Houston Texans: Why Fans Lose With Training Camp Venue Change

The Houston Texans dropped a bombshell a few days ago in regard to their decision to change the venue of their training camp which has been the same in all of their 15 years of existence.

The Houston Texans dropped a bombshell a few days ago in regard to their decision to change the venue of their training camp which has been the same in all of their 15 years of existence.

Yes, the Texans have decided to relocate to the Greenbrier, a luxury resort located in rural White Sulphur Springs, W. Va.

This news comes as rather shocking because I had always thought that having training camp in-town was a extreme cost-saving move.

Not only that but it offered the opportunity for Houston Texans’ fans to be able to see their favorite team up close and personal.

Because the cost of the tickets are free to training camp, for some fans, this was their ONLY window to where they’d be able to see our guys in action.

With the escalating ticket prices that continue in pro sports — spearheaded by the NFL’s unwavering popularity — many hard-working families are getting priced out of going to games.

So this yearly, ballyhooed-event was one that many looked forward to attending, despite temps reaching the triple-digits daily when it’s usually held in the late summer months.

But because the Houston Texans have decided to move training camp elsewhere, many of these fans will be shutout from being able see the Houston Texans before the start of the season.

Why make the move now?

Understandably, the Texans want to have as few distractions as possible.

With Brock Osweiler severely stinking the joint up last season, there’s no telling how fans would react if they do decide to trot him out there for camp.

But that’s just a theory — I’m sure the franchise got tired of being under a microscope during such a critical time of preparation.

Not to mention how hard it is to practice in Houston’s unforgiving summer weather.

This may have been something in the works for awhile and they’ve just decided to pull the trigger on it now.

So why The Greenbrier Resort?

Completed in 1913, the Greenbrier is one of the country’s most-historic resorts, nestled deeply in the Allegheny Mountains.

According to the Greenbrier’s site, here’s a description of what type of facility this is:

"“Combining graciousness of the past with exceptional comforts of today, a new era of elegance awaits you at The Greenbrier. This renowned property offers 710 rooms, including 33 suites and 96 guest and estate homes. The Greenbrier has 10 lobbies, 40+ meeting rooms and a complete conference center facility.”"

As well as this:

"“The Greenbrier offers exclusive services and amenities such as championship golf, fine dining, more than 55 activities, designer boutiques, our world-renowned mineral spa and a 103,000 square foot gaming and entertainment venue.”"

Not to mention that the resort spans 11,000 acres and has a Sports Performance Center that encompasses a two grass fields, an artificial field and a training center.

There have been 26 of the 45 presidents to stay at this resort with Dwight Eisenhower being the last to do so.

It’s definitely apparent that our team will be pampered to a tee while they work in cohort in seclusion with a facility that has all of the bells and whistles.

But here’s the kicker…

Although the Greenbrier has continued to have a sterling reputation, this facility was hemorrhaging money last decade.

West Virginia governor Jim Justice — who is an energy magnate and billionaire — swooped in and purchased the facility for $15 million back in 2009, staving off bankruptcy.

I’m sure this partly had to do with the 2008 financial crisis where our economy was in a terrible downward spiral.

The facility just underwent $250 million in renovations and is working hard to bring in more business.

It currently hosts the Greenbrier Classic, a PGA-tour event and has hosted the New Orleans Saints training camp for the past three seasons.

I can’t help but notice that Bob McNair and Justice share striking similarities.

Both on the Forbes 400 list, both amassing the majority of their fortunes in the energy business and both possibly crossing paths in the past.

Just like the Forbes list, the energy business is extremely competitive and everybody knows who’s-who in that sector, you can’t tell me that these guys have never met and compared notes.

I’m not sure the extent of the relationship of these two — I’m an outsider looking in — but this may be nothing more than Justice wooing his colleague [McNair] to move his team — and his money — to what has been referred to as “America’s Resort.”

He’s gotta find a get his $250 million investment back somehow!

Sounds like a winning combination…

Next: How Bob McNair Plans To Solve The QB Conundrum

But who loses?

Ultimately, Texans fans do.  As I suggested in the aforementioned, many fans no longer will be able to get a full-frontal of their favorite team.

This is, in my opinion, was something that had become a tradition.

Now, instead of hearing the familiar phrase of “What day are you heading out to training camp?” we will be shaking our heads in disgust, coming to grips with the fact that the guys with the big bucks win again.

Not us little guys…

But ultimately, there needs to be solution to include those fans that want to attend.

If being at the Greenbrier means so much, why don’t they alternate years between traveling up there and then here at the Methodist Training Center?

The idea of moving training camp is BAD to begin with but I think this is a sound alternative.

We’ll have to see — go Texans.