Here's what T.S.U. will get out of the deal:
1) A new, state of the art stadium ..with it's own locker room.
2) A stadium where it controls signage for it's home games
3) A stadium in which TSU can invest in ...rather than several stadiums which they regularly rent out for "home" games.

Here's what the Dynamo gets:
1) Several million dollars that will help them to get their stadium deal done.
2) Goodwill with local black politicians ... who the Dynamo needs on their side ...... to get a stadium deal done

TSU athletic director Charles McClelland tells me that the money the school will invest ...up front ... in this deal ....will basically equal what the school pays out every season to rent such stadiums as Reliant and Robertson for their home games.

TSU has played "home" games in such scattered places as Chicago's Soldier Field ... where the played the CHICAGO CLASSIC a couple of seasons ago .....or Longview, Texas ... where they played the LONGVIEW CLASSIC. The bottom line is TSU will now have a place the Tigers can call home for their re-building football program.

The Dynamo receives much-needed money to help close the stadium deal with the city. There are still some hurdles to clear ...and some more money to raise ... but this is a big step. Dynamo president Oliver Luck tells me,"Their (TSU's) upfront capital contribution is really going to help make this stadium a reality, and I think long-term they're going to be much better off financially because they won't be spending $50 to 60,000 dollars per game to rent the stadium ...which will wind up in someone else's pocket."

TSU's athletic director McClelland says,"It's a great opportunity for Texas Southern University Athletics and it's football program. We've been searching for a facility to play in for quite sometime. It's a excellent, wonderful venue in downtown Houston and to share it with the Dynamo would almost be like a dream come true for us."

Adds Mayor White,"It's great ... it helps us close part of the gap. We had encouraged the Dynamo to visit with TSU and I talked with the president of TSU a couple of months ago ... so they've made progress. So we're closing the gap in order to get this built. The more public use we can get out of a facility like this with some contribution that would actually save TSU money ...the better off we'll all be."

So there you have it .... TSU and Dynamo have agreed to a deal .. once it's signed only a couple of hurdles remain in getting that new downtown stadium built. Proponents of the deal are hopeful that they can break ground on the new stadium before the end of the calendar year.