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A tale of three sports towns

By BOB PUTNAM
Published September 6, 2005

Dunedin and Clearwater don't have major pro sports franchises. They have never hosted flashpoint events. The Super Bowl, the NCAA Final Four, the Stanley Cup finals? Not there.

So it's no wonder area fans rarely turn their attention to either place when it comes to big-time sports.

For the athletic empire of the area, it's St. Petersburg and Tampa. The two cities are home to the Devil Rays, the Buccaneers, the Lightning and the University of South Florida.

Put the two cities together and St. Petersburg-Tampa would be unbeatable, right?

Well, not according to the Sporting News .

Last month, the magazine released its annual rating of best sports cities. Boston was No. 1, natch. Dunedin? No. 274. Clearwater? No. 283.

St. Petersburg-Tampa?

No. 388 ... among 388.

Apparently, losing a lot of games can kill your credibility.

The Sporting News cited the Bucs' 5-11 season, the Devil Rays' "continued imitation of a sandlot team" and USF's "less-than-bullish college football and basketball seasons" as reasons St. Petersburg-Tampa came in dead last.

But the real clincher was the Lightning not defending the Stanley Cup because of the NHL lockout.

To be ranked, a city must have at least a I-A college basketball team or Minor League Baseball team.

Dunedin and Clearwater barely qualified with their Minor League Baseball teams.

But now they also have something their big-city neighbors lack: a better ranking.

[Last modified September 6, 2005, 03:15:21]