[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 16238]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           THE MEMPHIS TIGERS

  (Mr. COHEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute.)
  Mr. COHEN. Tonight is going to be the sixth game of the World Series. 
Sports means money, business, and jobs. The St. Louis economy has been 
spurred on by the World Series to where they're not cutting employees 
because they have had increased sales tax. It's the same way with 
college sports.
  I want to encourage all the Big East presidents to consider the 
University of Memphis for membership. Memphis is a major city. It is 
the home of Federal Express, International Paper, and other major 
companies. We don't have a professional football team in Memphis. So if 
we get in the Big East, in essence, you are our professional football 
team and the city would rally around it, unlike in Dallas and Houston, 
where they have professional teams. The Big East is known for 
basketball.
  Rick Pitino, the coach of our rival, the University of Louisville, 
has suggested Memphis should be in the conference to keep the Big East 
as a primary basketball conference. What a great thing to see Memphis 
and Louisville again in a conference game.
  We ought to be beyond just dollars--although Memphis can bring them--
but also competitive rivalries that make the sport what it has been in 
the American appetite. I encourage the Big East to include the 
University of Memphis in its expansion plans.

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