[TSKCoug]

nwbuckeye,

I think that Jaxbuck has likely hit on the answer. No amount of gate incentive would have kept tOSU to the contracted game with WSU. If the Buckeye athletic department is carrying a huge debt service that would be powerfull incentive to kill the game in favor of another home game. The huge home gate revenue is what killed the proposed home and home deal with Auburn last year. In that case, as in this one, "home" on this end would likely have been Qwest Field. If the Buckeyes had just objected to Martin Stadium in Pullman as a venue, Qwest Field is a more than feasible alternative. In in fact I think that with the NFC Championship Game the Seahawks pushed attendance to somewhere near 70,000 (with SRO tickets). I have heard rumors that Paul Allen, in past years, already has been cutting WSU a good deal on rent of the facility for that one day a year. He may have been pursuadable to greatly sweeten the pot for tOSU, had the Bucks wanted to keep the date. After all he is the 6th or 7th richest man in the USA. A WSU/tOSU match up would have undoubtedly been a bigger draw than whoever the Mutts would be playing at Montlake (if they had a game the same day).
Perhaps WSU needs to propose a 2 for 1 deal to tOSU, with a larger penalty clause for withdrawal from the Seattle game but sweeteners if they hold to the deal.