Ordinarily, I would love their story. The University of South Florida began their football program only 10 years ago, in 1-AA. In their sixth 1-A season, they are already outperforming in-state behemoths, Florida State and Miami. However, I refuse to be happy for this bunch. There is something greater at stake here.
After their huge win over West Virginia, I did a wikipedia search on the University of South Florida to see where they are located. I expected that they would be in Miami-Dade or Broward County, but it turns out they are based in Tampa. Tampa is most certainly not in "South Florida".
We must not allow words and phrases to lose their meanings. If we let USF get away with their deceptive name, we are inviting an Orwellian dystopia, in which newspeak dominates the land. I'll be damned if I am party to a 1984 scenario, just because I want to cheer an underdog.
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11 comments:
Please consult a map dummy.
1) Don't get fresh, newbie.
2) Map consulted. Tampa is almost perfectly centered, longitudinally speaking, in the state of Florida. To describe it, geographically, as South Florida is no more instructive than referring to it as North Florida.
3) My limited research reveals that Tampa is not considered, even colloquially, as South Florida. A wikipedia search of the phrase South Florida turns up the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale-Pompano Beach metropolitan area. The South Florida Sun-Sentinental covers Broward, Palm Beach, and Miami-Dade news. I won't argue the point to the death with a guy from Florida. However, EVERYBODY, who doesn't know for a fact where USF is, assumes its in the Miami-Ft. Lauderdale metropolitan area.
Climatically, geographically and culturally Tampa not even comparable to north florida, leaving the other option being south florida. While your northern travel guides might sell you on the dump that is miami as being chic and all encompassing as to the south florida vibe, I can assure you it is not. Actually keep thinking it is. I would rather keep sw floridas gulf coast yankee numbers down.
Iowa is not culturally or geographically similar to the East Coast. Following your logic, you would have no problem naming a college in Des Moines "Western United States University".
I'll throw you a bone. I think I understand where you are coming from. As a Long Islander, I once met a person from New Rochelle, NY. When this person asked me if I knew where New Rochelle was, I quickly said "That's upstate". This individual responded "No, it's about 5 miles north of the Bronx". I knew precisely where New Rochelle was and had to explain, like a Long Island-centric douche, that I considered everything north of the Bronx "upstate". As a North Floridian, I think you are having a similar problem.
Drop your keyboard, lick your wounds, and fight another day, Jimer.
P.S. In my previous post, I meant "latitudinally speaking", as lines of latitude measure degrees North/South of the equator.
Look Tremont, I'm just saying that contrary to foreign belief, use of the descripter "south florida" should not be restricted to a mere quadrant of the state.
As an eighth generation floridian, I do anything I can to dissociate the state with the miami area.
Jimer I'm going to have to disagree with you. Tampa is neither southern nor northern florida, rather its central florida. As such its a cultural mix of south florida and north florida. You have your share of good old boys and southern belles, but you also have clubby girls and gelled up d'bags.
Agree to disagree. The mediator has spoken.
The University of South Florida is named so because at the time of its establishment it was the southern most public school in the state
Yes anonymous, I understand that, but the point that is actually being argued now is whether Tampa should currently be considered South Florida. In this day and age, the name of the school is a bit of a misnomer. And when was USF established? I think Miami was a city at that point and it was forseeable that the state may want to build a university down there at some point, so why give Tampa the "south" moniker?
I really can't speak on their lack of foresight. Maybe it's because they're southern and people from the south are stupid.
Should've been Western Florida... like Western Kentucky.
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