PlummMeanGreen

I think the MWC is a worthy dream for NT, but we have to do some fairly dramatic (NT alumnus-based) moves in order to put ourselves ahead of other schools who are probably a few steps ahead of us. TOO LONG A READ? <>*<> Then go to bottom of page and read the paragraphs below the dotted line & expecially if you as an NT alum and/or Mean Green fan can afford less than $1 a day in your household budget. Yes, I do think that TCU made a good decision by removing themselves from the CUSA (specifically its West Division) because IMO they create a perception with some potential recruits that they are a half step or more ahead of the schools they left behind one of which was their DFW twin and fellow private school, Southern Methodist University. I think one upmanship is what the non BCS is all about these days. That is why completing ALL venues at our Eagle Point Campus is so important for our own future and even in the Sun Belt where other schools are making noises of moving ahead of us by getting involved in all this athletic venue's arms race. NT is even moreso the bulls-eye target for about 7 other SBC football schools. Last year with all our close SBC football games was a pretty big indicator that they are closing the gap. In the decades I've followed our alma mater, I've observed that we have a tendency of taking a big step (or 2) forward and then 3 back. I hope Pohl's resignation doesn't put us in that mode again and trust Bobby Ray and our Board of Regents will not allow any one person or campus group to have such influence as to put us in that tailspin, yet I don't think NT moves forward, continues our dominance in the SBC or get our football program to where beating a Top 25 school is not such a surprise until these 3 things happen: (1) when we build a major college football stadium to finish out the Mean Green Athletic Village (2) when we significantly build our season ticket base which would eventually produce better attendance (3) when we build our Mean Green Club to such a level that it produces million$ (like U of Memphis' does at $5 million plus) because when that happens that allows NT to get its athletic budget to about $18-20 million where it would need to be to be competitive in the Mountain West Conference. All this happening in Mean Green Country is not about Norval Pohl or his successor, its not about NT Athletic Director Rick Villarreal, its not about Coach Darrell Dickey and its not about NT Board of Regent chairman Bobby Ray, yet all this happening is about-------us. Some NT alums: LET GEORGE DO IT! None of us can coat-tail with all this and take the attitude of "let George do our part" (so to speak) but each of us in whatever way we can work it into our budgets, have to be the investors in all this because if its not us of GoMeanGreen.com who are our school's most vocal, the ones of the NT constituency who very loudly make our opinions and ideas known or if its not us who makes most of our dreams that have come from this message board come to fruition--then just who is it who will make our dreams come true? .................................................................................................................. WHERE DOES ONE START? The ones who answer this number on campus: 1-800-UNT-2366 are NT Ticket Mgr. Gabe Kirkpatrick or one of his staff members..................Ask em' first how you can join the $250 level for less than $1.00 a day? They can help you toward the purchase of 2005 MG FB season tickets and/or explain to you how one can budget the Mean Green Club in most anyone's household budget. Can your budget afford less than $1 per day? If so, then that would get you that exclusive $250 annual MG Club membership (with close parking decal) and the opportunity to buy 2005 MG FB season ticket to even sit in "prime seating" Section E (between both 40 yard lines I think) So..........you are an out-of-town alum or fan and can't make all or any of the games? Gabe and staff can tell you how you can buy season tickets and make some (or all) of your season tickets available to others in or near Denton who may have a problem attending any Mean Green football game this Fall.

Probably took some of this out of context, but athletics seems to pull in larger numbers of alums and fans than the NT Winds Ensemble over at the NT College of Music. Now I appreciate good music as much as the next guy and play a bit of it myself, but no soloist or ensemble at the NT College of Music is ever going to get NT Exes out of the woodwork from all over the Lone Star State to show up for any concert while a good college football match-up at Fouts Field will. We really do seem to have those on campus who do not like all this athletic emphasis and I'd bet everytime many of that group drive by the Mean Green Athletic Village and see all the facilities that are now finished and others being built about half a century later than the should have, that when driving by those 200 acres between the 2 Texas interstates some of them probably utter a few choice words. It sometimes baffles some of us that Denton is even located in Texas where football is supposed to be king. To be honest about this, though, I think this is the last remnants of the the old "NTSU" campus crowd's last attempt to try to see that things would somehow return to the way things were done up there in the 1950's, 1960's and the 1970's. I think it's too late for that whether Norval Pohl is in Denton or not and if they think his leaving will enhance their agendas, I think NT Board of Regent chairman Bobby Ray and the rest of the NT Board of Regents have a big surprise waiting.

I don't see many wanting to donate $30 million, either, but all we are looking for is one. This is Texas and stranger things have happened among Texas colleges and universities when it comes to some fat cat Texan with a bit of ego and proud of his family name/heritage wanting to tackle such a project. The names which many on this board are sworn to secrecy that NT fund-raisers have been cultivating is a most impressive list. Even more impressive is that most have a UNT association of some kind. I defer back to Troy U, folks. They aimed high, shot low and got a nice football stadium because of it. NT Exes need to leave our past behind because its NT's future that Mr. Big Donor will mostly be interested in. GMG!

Bump...

Boy, does that trip across the bay on the Bolivar Ferry ever bring back memories of my youth. Was a great place to take a girl friend all you young gun alums down in Galveston/Houston; but of course, yall probably knew that already:) Was sorta' neat to look down in the water as the ferry cruised and see the porpoises swimming alongside it. Used to be a place near Bolivar Ferry Landing (as I recall) called the San Jacinto Inn which had some pretty darn good food, especially fried chicken. Any of you down there remember that place? Is Gaido's Seafood Restraunt still open near the Galveston seawall? How about the old Jack Tar Hotel? "Memories pressed between the pages of our minds." (As sung by Elvis Presley)

And I felt one coming on, too. OK, I'll refrain....

Jack, who is the fastest LB we have now?

A most welcome smile for all of us in light of the last 24 hours very bleak news from our alma mater's main campus.

I believe a few of us on this board may have been at one of LJ's first public appearances when he showed up for the now infamous Denia Neighborhood Pow Wow at the Gateway Center 2 or so years ago the same night we hosted TCU in the Super Pit. You can tell a whole lot about some by simply observing their body language and facial responses and I have to say that in the case of Lee Jackson and at that particular meeting, I could read neither. Wouldn't want to play poker with that man in other words. I guess the "no facial expression" comes from his days as a judge. I am sorry we are having this happen to all of us because we had such momentum going up there.

On a much smaller scale, I recently worked for a school for 6 1/2 years that was purchased by some investors in California. I started floating my resume' immediately because I've seen this song sung before; that is, when a new group comes in they are either angelicly tolerant or hostile. Well, the school corporation I had worked for all those years became part of a hostile take-over and all the new officials from California started throwing their newfound weight around and started trying to fix things that were absolutely not broken to make an impression. I call it "wee-wee'in" their territory. I was the first who bailed months ago getting another job at a tech school I had worked previously, but about 30 of my other former collegues in the DFW part of this tech school corporation stuck around and have been fired or re-assigned to lesser positions. Now some of the lawyers will get rich because lawsuits have been filed left and right by some who got kicked out are kicked down. They probably don't have a case when all the fallout clears because this is the way much business in America is done, unfortunately. I think Dr. Pohl was at the right place at the wrong time when Lee Jackson came aboard and I think LJ has very subtlely created a hostile take-over at the main campus in Denton. He is a former politician and most all their dirty work is done under the table and/or behind closed doors. Don't know how that will ever succeed in the academic setting long-term. This thing with Dr. Pohl has probably been on Jackson's agenda since he began his job as Chancellor (or soon after) is my guess. It's all very unfortunate and we probably haven't heard the last of all this yet. The unfortunate part in this is if all this festors to a boiling point that becomes public, it could discourage a Big Donor to give toward a facility that will do more for NT than many on our alma mater's campus seem to have a vision to comprehend.

Actually, I have heard of this being done at other schools. Sort of an encouragement for all athletic staffers (not just the coaches) to collectively as a department be pro-active in their community involvement as to sell more tickets to the general public.

WHOA! I totally concur, Don. I don't like the vibes and the karma I have felt since the man took the chancellor's job. I am sure he is an OK person, good family man and was a good Texas legislator representing part of Dallas, but I just don't think he is "The Man" for our constituency. He took his own big personal set back when the Texas Legislature did not approve our UNT Law School for (where else?) downtown Dallas. I thought we hired him because he had connections down in Austin that would help us--not hinder us. He made a very poor choice of words concerning Dr. Pohl with the Star-Telegram of which I am getting ready to read at lunch. Stebo posted it elsewhere, but I'll be damned if I, too, wouldn't mind a draft Norval Pohl for Chancellor movement. His approval rating with NT professors was low because he is still trying to take this school out of the J.C. Matthews era for one and some of those old timers on campus are fightin', kicking and screeching over that as they have for the last 2 or so decades; Pohl was trying to take us out of the the "rubber stamp" every NT professor who wanted tenureship and a comfy' life "freakin" long job in Denton. We've had too many tenured in the past on the NT payroll who retired 10 years before they were actually take off the NT payroll--others were good choices for tenureship. He has also taken some flack for being too pro-athetics. Good gosh! Look at how little had really been spent at NORTH TEXAS on football related facilities since Fouts Field opened up in 1951 (when I think you also told me your dad was a referee at some NT games during that era). Outside of the $500,000 endzone expansion (it was never $1 million as previously advertised) what did we mostly get at Fouts Field the previous 40 plus years except----new shades of green paint? I think the NT Board of Regents need to do some checkin' on other bad PR moves made by this Chancellor and try to determine if they really might have made a mistake in hiring this man for the UNT System.

Well then grad88 we've got to get the message out and to quote greenjoe again: Join the Mean Green Club Buy Season Tickets In due time, a new NT president may need to see better numbers with both.

8 season tickets?!?! Super! If 1,000 new season ticket buyers came from the almost 1,700 registered on GoMeanGreen.com with each buying 4 season tickets, that would be around 4,000 additional season tickets to add to whatever last year's totals were. Anyone know how many season tickets we sold in 2004? .......................................................................... On another note, just read on the CUSAbbs board that UTEP's Miner Athletic Club now has 1,600 members and they have a goal of selling 15,000 season tickets.

There are 2 kinds of NT Mean Green fans/alums I admire the most: (1) Those who have been following all this since the 1940's and (2) Those of you who drive 2 or more hours to come to most (or all ) Fouts Field games. Good luck in the Texas Hill Country, GangGreen. PS Of course, those who give to the Mean Green Club and buy season tickets are close to the top, too, right, greenjoe?

He has received good pub in other publications, just not this one, yet. Who was it that put Super JaMo on their All American team in only his true freshmen year; but I agree with you, he should have been placed in this poll, too.

Understand what you are saying, but Lee Jackson has much say on who athletics can and cannot talk to for that $50 million, and someone with that kind of money may be subtlely steered to spend it elsewhere in the UNT System besides Eagle Point. UNT Athletics has faced that scenario with other NT adminstrators in the past other than Lee Jackson (of which I wish we could have put a "Dr." in front of any UNT System chancellor's name BTW). <>*<> I'm with stebo inasmuch as I also wish "DOCTOR" Norval Pohl were the Chancellor of the UNT System. Lee Jackson failed in his atttempt to NT get a law school on his first go around with the Texas legislature and I haven't heard of any significant donations that were supposed to be raised under this watch, either; BUT for sure, we do have different university brandings and a new shade of green since he took the over.

I think there were significantly more for this move than against it and that fact should possibly be pointed out in due time. And if I had were a home-owner at Denia, I'd probaby take the low profile approach and just hope there are no eminent domain possibilities in the future concerning all their properties "which just happens to be adjacent to state-owned property" and was when they built or purchased their homes however many years ago. Wake up and smell the coffee (and the future) Denia-ites. And the beat goes on.......

I feel our coaches should have an opportunity to make more than any in the SBC & most in CUSA (if they aren't already). Shouldn't each of their salaries be accessible to the public since this is a state university? BUT after taking a hint from SUMG's post I also believe that any significant bonuses made available to our entire athletic staff should be tied to attendance at Fouts Field and when lofty numbers are met at the turnstiles then each of their bonuses should be just as lofty. If NT has 30,000 showing up for each home game, I think we should be able to cover such bonuses. Attendance is still our #1 challenge in Denton and it would sure be nice to see some kind of game plan on the drawing board to solve it.

Kind of an elitist attitude I'd say, eh? And where did he get his collegiate education again? Lee Jackson is and has been the main obstacle that I think keeps us from building a new football stadium in a proper time and I felt that way a long time ago concerning him. In fact, I had an entire thread jerked off this forum on that subject about a year ago. All you people who think we just had to have UNT-Dallas (even with our woefully small financial endowment) now think that some of our potential new stadium monies for the main campus in Denton might now be funneled to help build that campus in south Dallas County? I sure as hell do, although I don't think Bobby Ray and the NT Board of Regents will allow him to completely derail the new stadium, but he may just delay it a bit. Now was that all negative enough for some of you who think I get a bit too positive to be your typical NT Ex? Hell, I keep this up and I'll be ready for Scottie's board.

Dr. Pohl still has 12 months at NT to do some more legacy-building and I am eager to see how all that translates. He ain't done, yet, folks.

Dad joke: So we could have a new yell this Fall that goes like, uh: LICK EM' ?

PMG...it's that BOR that you are so sure of, that gave us Lee Jackson. I'll take a chill pill. Why don't you take a reality suppository?

You got me, MG61! Yeah, and I got an email from one of you suggesting a Dr. Salk type researcher needs to come up with something for, uh, poll-itus. Looks like Richard Schrushy is back in the Troy U athletic fold ($$$$) and if so, I'm sure he he is much happier to be there than in the place where the courts almost recently put him over his alleged fraud with HealthSouth.

I'm with you on that, eulesseagle... The knee-jerk & impulsive reactions on this board never cease to amaze me. But that's really OK because this is a shocker to most of us in the Mean Green Nation today. DO YOU REMEMBER? Yet when the TCU AD job opened, a few of you had Rick V leaving NT and into that job before TCU officials even started their national search. What gives with all this? I predicted TCU would go more for the champagne and cavier type AD over the beer and pretzels type AD that I perceive Rick V to be. IMHO, NT needs the beer and pretzels approach with our most diversified alumnus group more than champagne and cavier. Most of you by now know what kind of AD the Horned Frog faithful hired. I forecasted that the TCU AD would even have the sauve, gray haired Fortune 500 CEO type look and I'll be darned if he did! (Hey! Every once in a while I hit on some of these predicitons)! LOL! Calm down troops, the sky is truly not going to fall over this. Sure we will miss Dr. Pohl, but he is not the end-all in presidents who support NCAA D1-A athletics in word and deed. Anyone think Bobby Ray and our BOR's already kind of know what kind of president they want to replace Norval? I'd bet Bobby Ray already has his creative motors running on this new NT scenario already.