INDIANAPOLIS — Ahead of the College Football Playoff National Championship game this weekend, a sportswriter from Atlanta took a moment to slam "cold, expensive" Indianapolis.
In the article, "Tickets high, temps low for Georgia-Bama in Indianapolis," Chip Towers with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution essentially equated Indy to a barren, overpriced Midwestern pothole.
Lucas Oil Stadium, which was named the best NFL stadium for five years in a row, was reduced to being just a mere building, with a "retractable roof" and "unnecessary openings." Those are 750-foot steel trusses that take nine minutes to stretch over 95,000 square feet of glorious artificial turf, sir.
The writer also claimed "a portion" of people were opting to stay in Louisville where there is, allegedly, "more to do" in the city nearly two hours to the south.
He likely did not know the 317 side of Twitter would respond like this:
People pulled up in a big way for the Circle City in Towers' mentions.
And our own Chuck Lofton responded in kind.
Local author John Green, writer of "A Fault in Our Stars" and "Turtles All The Way Down," had some words on Twitter, too.
The AJC writer, who has since gotten some heat on his Twitter page, did post somewhat of an apology for a few incorrect weather stats he posted in the article.
There are some other stats he missed. Downtown Indianapolis will host the following events between now and March:
Jan. 8-10: College Football Playoff National Championship
March 2-6: Big Ten women's basketball tournament
March 9-13: Big Ten men's basketball tournament
March 16-19: NCAA Division III men's and women's swimming and diving championships
March 17-19: NCAA men's basketball tournament first and second rounds
He wasn't entirely wrong, though.
Tickets for the biggest night in college football will certainly set you back, an average of $3,268 per seat according to one site. So will staying in one of Indy's hotels, three of which were named some of the best in America a few years ago.
And those chilly 27-degree days the writer lamented? Temperatures will, probably, be much lower. They may not even crack into the double digits when Georgia and Alabama take to the field Monday night.
We never said we were perfect.
But we're still a cool city. Just ask us.
So, if you come to Indy, bring some cash and a jacket — yes. We recommend Carhartt or North Face. A hat and gloves can never hurt.
Just make sure to leave some room for a bottle of shrimp cocktail sauce you can't find anywhere else.