Raleigh has big sporting things going on this weekend!

My friend Scott Dupree of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance, the executive director, would appreciate as much as anybody, maybe more than anybody I know, that we ran a little long with Mark DeRosa of Major League Baseball Network. Scott joins us, big Pirates fan that he is, on the Adam Gold Show because it's time to talk a little bit about not the stadium series game, but why it was always a no-brainer that it would be a success. Scott, you are as responsible for all of these things as anybody I know.

There's a reason why the NCAA tournament keeps coming back, why NCAA college cups keep coming back, the ACC does stuff here. What is it about Raleigh and events that just is a great marriage? Well, first of all, thank you for having me on, Adam. I appreciate it. I guess I'll say Happy Valentine's Day to you. I forgot to say it too victorious. I'll say it to you instead. It's all right.

Quite the same. But anyway, thank you for having me on. And yeah, you've been way too kind because the key reason for our success here in terms of major events is tremendous people and partners. And you know the sports market better than anyone. The partnerships we have here and the kind of people and their passion for sports.

And they're also, you know, not just nice, but they're really good at what they do. And in this instance with the stadium series, I mean, the Carolina Hurricanes at NC State are just playing, of course, an enormous role in making it happen. And then partners, we put together a local organizing committee for this event and to really sort of roll out the red carpet for everyone coming to town and to make it extra special. And we had the City of Raleigh, Wake County, the Centennial Authority, the Convention and Visitors Bureau and the state of North Carolina all pitching in to make the local organizing committee a success. And it's that same formula with partnerships and teamwork that help us become so successful over the years with things like the variety of NCAA championships we have and all the NHL events we've hosted. Yeah, it really goes back to how successful the All-Star game was. And I know we had this 25th anniversary podcast for the Hurricanes and one of the episodes was best games in Hurricanes history. And Luke Ticock from the News and Observer, one of his five, was the All-Star game and how well run it was. So there's that element, too, is that not only can we support it, but we have the ability to pull it off.

Right. I think that was a great point that you just brought up now and that Luke brought up earlier. The All-Star weekend was really a landmark moment, a signature moment for the franchise in terms of its position and how it's perceived in the NHL and around the country and in Canada. I think it was an enormous stepping stone moment for the Hurricanes and the franchise here. But it was also, like you're saying, Adam, it was such a big event and it was so scrutinized and also so well received, it really helped Raleigh establish itself as a place that can host major national and international events.

And sort of an offshoot of that, in my opinion, turned into the IBMA World of Bluegrass, which is a massively successful annual event here every fall, as many of your listeners will know. And that's a non-sporting event, but it's also a similar massive event that has gone incredibly well here. And going back to All-Star weekend for a moment, if you remember, and I know you remember this whale going into that game, going into that weekend, there was a whole lot of, you know, the Mayberry mindset. And by the time the game, the weekend had come and gone, it was widely considered by NHL and by many of the league officials and team officials, the best, most successful All-Star game in league history. And that's what I think really took the Hurricanes to another level in terms of how they're perceived as a franchise.

And it's only, it's only grown from there. And Scott Dupree from the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance is joining us here. He is the executive director. The element of the fan base and the positioning of this franchise, because since the All-Star game in what, 2011, I believe, since the All-Star game, the Hurricanes had not made the playoffs until 2019. And it took a while, but attendance started to dwindle to the point where when Tom Dundon took over, attendance was on average about 11 or 12,000 a game.

And some games there was significantly less than that, even though 11 or 12 was announced. And it took a while to get the attendance back. The NHL was skeptical whether or not the league, whether or not the team could pull this off. What were your conversations like, if at all, with the NHL about that part? Well, it's interesting you say that.

First of all, you're right. We had that eight-year, I guess you would call, I like to refer to it as sort of the desert between the All-Star weekend, which was sort of the end of the wave of positive momentum that sort of ended after All-Star weekend, because then the franchise hit a lull. And from the time from All-Star weekend through when Tom Dundon purchased the team, that window was not a good window for the Canes. But I will say this, when, of course, led by Dundon's leadership, of course, in bringing an outdoor game here, it was his number one priority pretty much from the day he bought the team.

So he was the driving force behind it. But when you got down into the nuts and bolts of it, my perception was, and I still feel this way coming into this game, the league never had a concern about the game taking place here in terms of operation and logistics and planning and hosting, because they had seen two Stanley Cup Finals here, they had seen a draft, and they had seen All-Star weekend, all which went off incredibly well and without a hitch. So I think where the league was very concerned, like you're saying, when Tom started pushing for this in 2018, I think the league had genuine concerns of, can the Hurricanes sell tickets for this?

Can they sell anywhere near 55,000? And I think that was a big hurdle we had to clear. And to the credit of Dundon and Don Waddell and the Canes, they convinced the league we could do this. And the Canes and the Raleigh business community and myself, we all believed and knew it would sell out pretty much immediately, which is what it did. But I don't know that the league was really prepared for the tickets to sell that quickly. And I've since heard from the NHL, maybe not in an official capacity, but unofficially from the league, that this was the fastest sellout they've ever had in an outdoor game. And I don't believe they were really expecting that. And it's been a, you know, a pleasant surprise from their perspective. I remember talking to you, this goes back a few years now, because the Hurricanes were promised as they had gotten it in 2020.

The game was in, I believe, Colorado at, I think, the Air Force Academy. It was announced that the Hurricanes would get the next one and then COVID hit. And the Hurricanes postponed it an additional year to where it is today. It was going to be 2021 here. You're exactly right. And we also didn't have it in 2022, because it just wasn't quite, we weren't ready for it as a community in terms of COVID. And so it's been backed up two years. That is correct. So when you and I talked, I think I interviewed you for a piece I was writing.

This might have even been before 2020. I asked you, do you think we will have any trouble selling 55,000 tickets? And you gave me a one word, no, we will not have, they will sell the game out because you know what this area is like when it comes to big events. Big events. So let me ask you one more question.

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Jeep is a registered trademark of FCA US LLC. This week on RVER, sponsored by Progressive Insurance. I'm sorry, I can't operate on that vehicle. But doctor, you took an oath. That RV, it's my son's RV.

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See if you could save with a leader in RV insurance. The corporate community here in the past, not now, I don't believe, has been a little occasionally had been soft sometimes on the hurricanes. How has that changed and is Tom Dundon a big part of that or is it still be the team on the ice is so good that everybody's into it? Right.

That's a good question. And I will say right up front, I'm not in that in the details of the world of the hurricanes and corporate sponsorships, but I can say this, all the credit in the world to well, first of all, you know, Adam, winning cures all hills. If you win, all generally all the problems go away.

And what I'll say about to your question is this. Tom Dundon is hell bent on winning. I mean, he just wants to win.

I mean, I thought he is laser focused on he wants to win. He wants to win the Stanley Cup and he doesn't doesn't want to settle for anything less as a result with some of the moves he's made since he's been here, namely hiring Rod Brind'Amour. The Canes have done nothing but win since Tom since Tom Dundon purchased the team and winning has to get winning, has to get more winning and which has led to every game being sold out. And I think because of all of those reasons and just in general, the word winning the sponsors, I mean, the corporate community and sponsorship and enthusiasm and anticipation and the excitement in the community, all just sort of a snowball effect.

And it affects everything in a positive way, including corporate sponsorships. Scott Dupree, Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance executive director, smartest Pirates fan I know. Appreciate that. Adam, the Pirates report tomorrow that will begin the road to the 2023 World Championship. I'm rooting for you. I hope they bring back the yellow pinstripes and the yellow and black uniforms and the pillbox hat.

I hope all of it comes back. We are family, man. We could do that. I'll sing Sister Sledge to you. Thank you so much, Scott. I'll see you out there on Saturday, I know. We'll see you, Adam.

Have a great day. You got it. The Jeep Grand Cherokee four by E it's electrified. So you can boogie, woogie, woogie into the forest. Boogie, woogie, woogie through the month or boogie, woogie, woogie to work where you boogie, woogie, woogie down the hall to your boss's office to tell them you quit. Then you boogie, woogie, woogie to the elevator as he boogie, woogie, woogies after you begging, please take me with you. The electrified Jeep Grand Cherokee four by E. Learn more at jeep.com. Jeep is a registered trademark of FCA US LLC.