NT80

It looks like the Denton Outlaw's first home game is Thursday night June 9 at 7:30pm at a field TBA. Denton Outlaw schedule

Rick, that IS the definition of a "kitchen pass"!

RV mentioned some of this briefly on the tour. He said the rains have caused some delay with the dirt prep plus the fundraising wasn't finished. He hinted the TCL group might use the Liberty Christian field with raised fences for this coming season. That would allow for the project to not be so rushed and really do it right. I guess I don't really understand these "silent" fundraising campaigns. I would give a few bucks to help with the stadium if they asked. The Denton TCL group doesn't have a website that I can find nor have they solicited publically for donations that I've heard either. An 8,000 seat baseball facility would be great if it happens. I hope it does.

We do host OU, OSU, and Baylor. Not bad home games for a team playing on a temporary field.

Yes, I watch it, but it is starting to get that "lost" feel to it as in the producers don't know which way to take the storyline. It "drifts" so to speak. Recently they aired the original 2-hour pilot again to get new viewers onboard, which is fine. Then they showed one new episode before running about 4 repeat shows from last season, then another new one this week. It's hard to follow with all the old/new skipping around. They have now focused on about 5-7 main characters but with all the backflashes into their past lives it's difficult to keep a flow on the current island situation. I liked the original premise of a Castaway type story, with more people. Now it seems to have become almost a soap-opera in the jungle. This is filmed in Hawaii BTW. P. S. - - they need a new logo for the show too!

I wish I knew who he was and what bank; I would make it well known to his boss WHY I was taking my business elsewhere!

Why would he even think of coming to a UNT game, knowing he'd be on the court, in a Whorn jacket? Ban 'em!

I see on the schedule we play some good teams at home this season: Okla. St., OU, Baylor. It will be nice when we finally get a permanent home field to be able to have a true home-field advantage against some of these power programs like they do to us on the road. NT Softball schedule

8pm on ESPN on Tuesday night for the men's final is prime time and good National coverage, we need to be in it!

Cat fight!

Softball team prepares for upcoming season Dustye Howard Daily Reporter January 26, 2005 Head coach Kelly Burns expects a more prosperous year in softball than last year. She expects her team to express more confidence and aggressive play on the field, so the team can win the Sun Belt Conference. "I felt good about the fall," Burns said. "We changed the way they were hitting, went to a rotational swing instead of a linear swing, so it took some time ... [but] with every game, they performed better and better," In a recent game in Spring Klein, Burns said, the team had 28 hits, proof the new style is clicking with the team. Burns also talked about how the players looked on the field. "We are deeper on the mound with five pitchers, whereas last year they only had two," she said. "We will be deep at the plate." Burns, however, knows that she has some obstacles ahead. "It's my job to teach them how to win again," Burns said. "Winning is a habit, as is losing." Returning players include third baseman Susan Waters, catcher Christen Jonse, first basemen Heather Bostic, pitcher and outfielder Katy Maxey, leftfielder Stephanie "Buffy" Cranmer and outfielder Kelei Walker. Newcomers are shortstop Katya Muller, third basemen and pitcher Kristina Fowler, outfielder Marquita Adams, and catcher Cristina DeLaRosa. "Senior Mandy Hacker on the mound will be solid and freshman Morgan Monte will give us a strong reliever," Burns said. She expects a lot of defensive and offensive strength from all these players. NT is scheduled to play on Feb. 2 at TWU in a scrimmage. "We are going to use that game to evaluate our progress and see where we are standing and gel as a team," Burns said. Burns anticipates facing her old alma mater, Texas A&M University, in College Station on Feb. 4. "I'm excited, of course." said Burns "It's always good to go back. They are a high quality program and will be a challenge. A&M, in any sport, is tough at home, but we are excited for the level of competition." Texas A&M is not the only Big 12 team NT will be facing this season. They are scheduled to play the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, UT-Austin and Baylor University as well as other highly competitive programs. "We have to have strength of schedule in order to get into the playoffs because winning conference isn't an automatic qualifier," Burns said. "We play teams that are tough to learn and grow and become better competitors."

??? CUSA would be the next progression up in conferences. Sure, I'd love NT to replace Baylor in the Big?12 tomorrow but first we need a few more facilities and fans.

UTEP and Tulsa do not have baseball either.

The Coppell TCL schedule shows games @ Denton in June 2005. Originally the plan was for groundbreaking in November 2004, after initial fundraising was complete, with completion finished before June 2005. I don't see anyway now they can have a field ready by June. There must be an alternate stadium like a high school field or Liberty Christian if the NT field is not ready

FYI... Channel 4's 10pm sportscast on college basketball only had a clip about UT's star player being academically disqualified... nothing about any local teams or scores. If I didn't know better I'd think we lived in Austin or some other Big12 metropolis instead of DFW, home to NO Big12 team!

UNT is starting to bounce back Crafty recruiting has Mean Green off to its best start in 10 years 09:46 PM CST on Wednesday, January 19, 2005 By BRETT VITO / Denton Record-Chronicle DENTON – When Johnny Jones arrived at North Texas four years ago, he decided to take the long route toward reviving a floundering men's basketball program. UNT's head coach didn't add a high number of transfers or recruiting classes filled with junior college players. He signed several high school players and was judicious about picking a few transfers who fit his up-tempo style while waiting for his team to jell. The approach is paying off for UNT (9-5), which is off to its best start through 14 games since the 1994-95 season. "We are trying to build a program, and that takes time," Jones said. "Sometimes you can bring in junior college guys and quick-fix a team, but we want to make sure that we are in a good position for the long haul." The series of milestones UNT has reached over the first few weeks of the season seem to indicate the Mean Green could be on its way to a second winning season under Jones. UNT went 6-3 to start the season, its best start through nine games since 1980-81. It entered conference play with seven wins for the first time since 1969-70. North Texas defeated New Mexico State in its Sun Belt Conference opener in Las Cruces on Jan. 8. UNT had lost 10 straight road games against the Aggies, a streak that dated to 1974. UNT stumbled against Denver on the road in its second Sun Belt game, but bounced back Monday to beat Florida International in Miami. North Texas faces Arkansas-Little Rock tonight at the Super Pit. The Mean Green's record may not look that impressive, but UNT lost to nationally ranked Texas and Alabama before bouncing back to win two of its first three conference games on the road. "We have an experienced team and know what it takes to get to the next level," said senior guard Leonard Hopkins, a former Lincoln High School standout. "When you have experience on the floor, you have the ability to get it done." Hopkins and forward Michael Jones are senior starters; sophomore Calvin Watson is in his second year as a starter. Hopkins was a preseason first-team All-Sun Belt selection and is averaging 17.8 points a game; Watson averages 13.3 points a game. The Mean Green features eight juniors or seniors, including point guard Isaac Hines. The former Collin County Community College standout is averaging 6.3 points, 3.2 assists and 2.1 steals and leads the team in rebounding with a 6.6 average in his first year with the team. UNT's experienced backcourt knows how to take care of the ball and make key plays down the stretch. North Texas ranks third in the Sun Belt in turnover margin by forcing 2.29 more turnovers than it commits, a dramatic improvement from last season when the Mean Green turned the ball over 2.21 more times than its opponent. It's helped North Texas post a 7-1 record in games decided by 10 points or less. The Mean Green was 10-8 in similar games last season. "Our chemistry is better this year," senior guard Marqus Mitchell said. "A lot of us played together last year, and the new guys have fit in well." UNT is starting to believe it has turned the corner. UNT has posted only one winning season in the last eight years, a 15-14 finish in 2001-02, Jones' first year with the team. "We have a lot of games to go, and hopefully, we can continue to get better and stay healthy," Jones said. "If we do that, some great things could be ahead for this team."

from Yahoo sports: North Texas 68, Fla. International 60 January 17, 2005 MIAMI (AP) -- Leonard Hopkins scored 17 points as North Texas overcame a poor shooting performance Monday night to beat Florida International 68-60 in a Sun Belt Conference game. North Texas shot just 33.9 percent from the field but capitalized on 26 Florida International turnovers in the win. Calvin Watson added 13 points for the Mean Green (9-5, 2-1), who also got 9 points and 5 assists from Michael Sturns in 14 minutes of action. Ivan Almonte led the Golden Panthers (7-10, 0-4) with 25 points and 13 rebounds, and Ismael N'Diaye added 22 points while Sheldon Bailey grabbed 11 rebounds.

Interesting article on what SELA (they will join the Southland next season) is looking for in a head coach (passing offense experience!); also their AD compares the SBC to the WAC since their former coach is heading to NMSU.... .................................................................................................................... Moving On; Southeastern starts over again By JOHN LENZ, Daily Star Sports Editor Southeastern Athletics Director Frank Pergolizzi knew Hal Mumme wouldn't stay in Hammond for long, but he admits he was thinking he'd get a third year out of his marquee-name coaching package. "I thought if we went 9-2 we would have a hard time keeping him," Pergolizzi said even as Mumme was being announced as New Mexico State new head football coach a thousand miles to the west in Las Cruces, N.M. "When we went 7-4, I probably let my guard down a little bit. I didn't see that as being quite enough to lift him over the edge... I thought at 7-4 we were safe for another year." But Pergolizzi may not have counted on New Mexico State's urgency and need to make a splash as the Aggies make the big jump upwards from the Sun Belt Conference to the high-powered Western Athletic Conference. That league is home to the likes of budding powerhouses like Fresno State, Boise State and Brigham Young -- a pass-happy league where Mumme's 'Air Raid' offense will fit right in. "You look at New Mexico State, not to downplay that at all, but it's not a top I-A program, so for them Hal is a good hire -- and maybe the best they could get," Pergolizzi said. "I hope they can be successful there. It's not going to be easy, like it wasn't easy here." Now the search for Southastern's next coach begins, with a solid base already established, but with a daunting move into the Southland Conference looming next season. Pergolizzi, who will take over football operations while the coaching serach is conducted, said the critical qualities he will be looking for include a preference for a coach with some head coaching experience. Given the talent already in place, he must also be an offensive-minded coach or one who has overseen successful pass-oriented offenses. "You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out that Martin Hankins is here and Felton Huggins is here, Hutch Gonzales and those kind of guys, so we're not going to turn around and start handing the ball off the the tailback 40 times a game," Pergolizzi said. "So I think somebody needs to have an offensive background or have a program where there clearly has been good performance and the ability to throw the ball, not run option and cram the ball down people's throat. Perhaps what will prove even more critical to the next coach's chances for success is his ability as a salesman -- one who can help raise revenue for Southeastern's chronically cash-strapped athletic program. "You look at our schedule next year, it makes me nervous," Pergolizzi said. "When you start conference play, there's six weeks in a row where there's not a game there whe you can look at a game and say, 'that's a 'W'. "We clearly know now that we have to work harder for 2005 than we did in 2004. Being in the conference next year will help the fan attractiveness of who you're playing. Admittedly, playing Texas College and Mercyhurst doesn't get a whole lot of people's attention." Pergolizzi said he expects his fax machine will start humming today as official word of his opening gets out. He would like to have a new coach decided upon by the time the spring semester starts Jan. 18, and he expects to be a busy man in Louisville, Ky., Jan. 9 when the American Football Coaches Convention convenes. "Hal always had his name," Pergolizzi said. "I don't think it's as critical for us to have a 'name' as it is to have someone who's a good coach who can fit in on our campus and our community, coach our student athletes and be successful."

5 winning seasons out of 16 years is hardly "quick to fire everyone". I doubt you'll find another college allowing such a record. I am frustrated in any of our sports that don't show "continued" improvement, but I agree we wait to see how the conference part plays out. The only things that can be changed are the fans (+/-), the facilities, the players, or the coaches.

I'll wait to see how we do in the conference race but every year seems to be a rebuild job. Have we ever upset a better known program?

I heard we would not play on "the stage" again because it was considered dangerous for the players ( the 5 foot drop off the stage). Now, I started school at UTA before I transferred to NT and probably saw nearly every UTA/NT basketball game. There were some good crowds but I don't recall Texas Hall ever being close to sold out, especially the balcony seats. But I agree we should play UTA more often in basketball. We need every rival we can find!

Wow, smack talk with UTA fans. Have we sunk to a new low? UTA does have a decent women's program, which shows where we need some work.

From another thread: "Several identities have been used in the past. With the old nickname “Moccasins,” a snake was used in the 1920’s and an Indian was used until the year of major change in 1996. A moccasin shoe was even used in the 1980’s. Adopting the State Bird of Tennessee (the Mockingbird) as the core of the new identity, while incorporating the strong regional imagery of the “Chattanooga Choo-Choo” and Chattanooga’s vast railroad history, SME Design created a strong and very unique athletics identity for UTC. The committee also recognized the need for the word “Chattanooga” to have a great emphasis in the logo. Thus, “The University of Tennessee at” is much smaller than the prominent place of “Chattanooga.” The nickname “Moccasins” was shortened to simply “Mocs.” Thus established, UTC could rebuild its athletics programs and initiatives around this new identity. The primary logo is our mascot, Scrappy, riding a train. The secondary logo features the front of a train with the word Mocs built into the logo. This logo is affectionately called the “Cowcatcher logo,” referring to the front lower grill of the train that helped push objects from the train tracks."

I personally liked Sloan. He started the ball rolling on our Stadium expansion to 30,000 and bringing us back to 1-A football after 13 years in 1-AA. But he liked golf more than NT and left us for a job in Florida to be closer to year-round golf.

For now UTC still plays football. This article mentions their current situation as well as former NT AD Steve Sloan, now UTC's AD, and former NT coach Jerry Moore.... Attendance dips, but program safe (T-FP) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- By Brad Shepard Staff Writer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dropping football is not an option now for the University of Chattanooga, school officials said. Attendance was down this year at Finley Stadium and a committee in the Faculty Senate is looking into the cost of the football program that has not had a winning record since 1997. But university interim chancellor Fred Obear said football is on solid ground. "Football is totally safe," he said. "There’s no ambiguity about that at all. This is a university policy issue that falls under the responsibility of the athletic board, and when they met, the issue was not even on the agenda. "It’s not on the radar screen at all." In the state’s budget-conscious climate where fellow Division I-AA program East Tennessee State made the decision to drop football after last season, UTC has to deal with rumors that it might be next. It doesn’t help that this season’s attendance — a 5,648 average in the five games — was the worst since 1996, when UTC was still at Chamberlain Field. UTC athletic director Steve Sloan believes the attendance will rise with the number of victories. "We haven’t been able to compete with Georgia Southern, Furman, Wofford and Appalachian State for years," Sloan said, "and when you can’t compete with teams in your conference, you lose fans. "Those (attendance) numbers are not staggering. They’re actually fairly consistent for a program that hasn’t been winning." This season, however, Southern Conference coaches noticed the discrepancy between UTC’s attendance and that of other league universities. "The crowds when we go over there have never been very good," said Appalachian State coach Jerry Moore, whose team lost 59-56 to UTC on Oct. 30 in front of an announced crowd of 4,486. "It’s a little disappointing, partly when they came off a win in Cullowhee, you’d think there’d be a little more support than that. It’s a shame." One SoCon coach with a unique perspective is Elon’s Paul Hamilton, who headed the now-defunct ETSU program. He said the Bucs’ crowds and interest level were comparable to UTC’s before the school dropped football. "I think from my perspective having been at ETSU and what went on down there is I hope people get behind Rodney Allison and what they’re doing," Hamilton said. "Finley is a great venue to watch college football. Even before we dropped football (at ETSU), we’d have 5-6,000 when we played. "Chattanooga obviously needs to pick it up some." Comparisons can be made between UTC and ETSU in their recent lack of success. But UTC isn’t facing the same Title IX issues, or stadium renovations that were going to cost more than $1 million at ETSU. "The only thing we don’t have at UTC is a winning program, and I think that can be fixed," UT trustee John Thornton said. "You don’t quit something just because you’re losing. "To me, there are a lot of good reasons to remain in football, and there’s one bad reason to quit, and that’s we’re not winning." The committee is examining other reasons, such as the hidden costs of football. Dr. Joe @#%$, a computer science professor, is on the committee and is opposed to football at the university. He insisted he spoke only for himself and not the committee, calling UTC’s football program a "money sink." He compared the school’s situation to ETSU’s, predicting that dropping the sport might save the university in excess of $1 million. He wonders where the football program will find necessary funding to stay afloat when the Tennessee Higher Education Commission outlaws public colleges spending state money on athletics beginning in 2008. "My guess is, personally, we could realize the same savings or maybe even more than ETSU," @#%$ said. "I don’t want to anticipate what the committee’s findings will be. "But my personal opinion is I think having a I-AA football team is not really with keeping with what UTC is about. It’s spending a lot of money in a division doomed to failure. The only teams that make money off football by rule are Division I teams." Dr. Richard Rice, president of UTC’s Faculty Senate, said he hopes to study the committee’s findings and make a recommendation to UTC’s chancellor concerning football by spring of 2005. Even if the committee finds there will be funding problems, Rice said he isn’t sure it will matter because of the boosters and community leaders on football’s side. "There’s such a strong support in the community that if the report comes out showing the program is indeed costly, I really wonder given the community support if the university administration would drop it," he said. A student athletic fee, which would have helped cover the costs of the athletic department, was voted down by the students earlier this year. Many feel the next chancellor of the university will be the one who makes the ultimate decision. "(Former UTC chancellor) Bill Stacy would not touch football," @#%$ said. "As long as he was here, football stayed. Now, he’s gone." Stacy wanted to distance himself from the situation but left a message after being contacted. He left UTC in August to take the headmaster position at Baylor School. "I take great confidence in Coach Sloan rebuilding the football program and great confidence in Rodney Allison," Stacy said. "The other part is I’m gone. I’m across the river and don’t know much about it." The biggest consequence of ETSU dropping football was having to leave the SoCon. The league’s bylaws state a member institution must have football to compete in the conference (current members UNCGreensboro, Davidson and College of Charleston were granted waivers to the rule). "We think we’re on the right track with (our) program," Obear said. "We like our Southern Conference membership, which is contingent on us having football." Like most other SoCon institutions, UTC budgets money to assist the athletic department each year. According to Debbie Parker, UTC associate vice chancellor for business and finance, the college has spent $187,943 more than it budgeted on the athletic department during the past four years. No separate numbers were available for football specifically. In only his second year at the helm of UTC’s football program, Allison has made efforts to put his name and face in the community along with a voice trying to sell his program. Ultimately, he knows the biggest selling point would be winning. "I know it costs money, but once you get to a point where you’re successful, you draw fans," Allison said. "It’s only human nature — especially here — for people to be skeptical. They’ve been told this before. They’re going to wait and see before they go spend their entertainment dollars. "I think eventually, this town and this university wants a successful football program, and I don’t think at this point, they’re willing to give up on it."