Mayor Laura Miller, upset over the lack of commitment from Texas or OU, has gone on a public relations campaign to force the state’s most powerful school to commit to play in the Cotton Bowl. The mayor brazenly tied renovations of the Cotton Bowl to a commitment from Texas and OU to continue playing their annual Red River Shootout at the Cotton Bowl. Let’s not forget that city leaders have been promising Texas and OU for years that the city was going to improve the deteriorating historical icon. Both schools have been lured back year after year after the city has made minimal improvements to the Cotton Bowl. Finally, this mayor is in no position to threaten or bully the national champion Longhorns into doing anything.

Mayor Miller earned her stripes for what not to do in sports negotiations when she blew the opportunity to bring the Dallas Cowboys back to Dallas and into their original home, the Cotton Bowl. Texas’ athletic director mentioned in a Dallas Morning News article that the city’s inability to stop the Cowboys from moving to Arlington and building a new stadium is of concern to Texas.

Miller, in a rare moment of accountability, has taken full responsibility for turning the Cowboys away citing the deal was too expensive for her. But the city charter does not call for the mayor to have that much control over a project like the Cotton Bowl/Cowboy project. Yet the city council sat back and allowed a mayor, inexperienced in these matters, to destroy a deal that would have been great for Dallas. I wonder if the same thing is happening again with the Texas/OU-Cotton Bowl negotiations. If it is, saner minds had better step up to the plate and get a handle on this deal.

I am often asked why the African-American community is so upset with Laura Miller. Here is one of the many reasons. Even though the fate of the Cotton Bowl has been mishandled by several administrations at City Hall, this mayor and only this mayor had the opportunity to lead the revitalization South of the Trinity by successfully landing the Cowboys at the Cotton Bowl. Those of us South of the Trinity realize that if the Cotton Bowl is allowed to fail then the Fair Park is not far behind. If that happens, the entire area surrounding this historic site will go into disrepair. The future of the southern sector, not just a football game, is at stake for residents South of the Trinity.

I do not know of any political player South of the Trinity who is not willing to work with Mayor Miller to save the Cotton Bowl. Despite the public aura presented by some in the white media, Mayor Miller is not willing to work with African-Americans who disagree with her on some issues but who are supportive of any initiative that makes the Cotton Bowl viable. The fact is there are several major universities who would benefit from playing at least one game annually at the Cotton Bowl mainly because the Dallas metroplex is one of the major football recruiting hotbeds in the country. Dallas city leaders must lead by quickly deciding how much is needed for the Cotton Bowl and putting the issue on the upcoming bond package. Interested university football programs must see as soon as possible that Dallas is indeed serious. The time for talking this issue to death is over. That is how we see it South of the Trinity.

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