wardly

last 2010 football attendance numbers i recently saw had us with about a 17,000 average, ranked 7th in belt. this number would put us 8th in cusa, and last in mwc. these figures have slightly changed since k.state home game. this is fyi,not trying to stir anything up, but just wanted to see where we stand in comparision.

i think we are in violent agreement. regarding "every other school", you are right. however, my concern is north texas and what we can do to improve our program. i hadn't thought about smu maxing out in football attendance, but point well taken. probably reinforces need for regional conference. no one comes to see them play cfu, or us fau.

smu has about 12,000 students, tulsa about 4,000. i wouldn't be too happy compairing football attendance,even with 6 down years. also, smu has poor basketball program, while we don't.[ i don't know what you mean by seperation]. regarding $7millon more annually into athletics, i assume this is based upon student fees, as i am sure its not increased alumni giving. since we are in the belt, are you saying attendance will not come? would it come vs cusa or mwc ?chicken or the egg? i am not saying we don't have some value to another conference. i just don't think its as much as it could/should be. we need to increase attendance regardless of conference,especially in basketball, and increase alumni giving by increasing our fan base. by doing so, we become more attractive to mwc and cusa. thats no bull.

why is the truth a lot of bull? the comments i made have nothing to do with joining a AQ CONFERENCE and everything to do with being attractive to mwc or cusa. no, i am not blind. i see the new facalities. i also see average football attendance at around 18,000 this decade. i also see aversge mens basketball attendance below 3,000. a dream without a plan is still a dream.

i would love to see us in mwc or cusa. however, i see a few problems when i remove my rose tinted glasses. we have a small fan base at present, no tv following,don't travel, poor financial support from alumni, and a underfunded athletic program. i realistically believe that winning solves some of these issues, and feel that with our new coach and stadium we have a chance to move forward. hovever, we have never seemed to address the following question; what do we want,[lexus], what do we need[transportation], and what are we willing to pay for[used pick -up truck]? until we open our wallets as much as our mouths we will continue to be a sleeping giant. just an observation.

i wouldn't get too upset over the reception. one problem was that those in back couldn't hear the question asked, and became disinterested with the q&a. it was a good turnout and everyone was fired up. not a bad problem to have. this guy is good!

what a great hire [and move] by coach mac!

from big 8/12 friends i have, think mccarney is a great hire for us. he did a good job under difficult recruiting circumstances at iowa st., similar to what he will face here. north texas needed to make a statement to alumni and other conferences that we are committed to big time football. regarding our outside consultant, i don't begrudge him his $40,000, as he added much needed creditably to our search. in the big picture, whats a $40,000 expenditure when compared to a $78 million investment? for that matter, whats $500,000 annually if it produces more revenue? i was not excited at first, but have come to believe we may have hired another hayden fry. just an opinion.

mwv has 10 football schools now that tcu has left[this includes hawaii], and has stated they plan to go to 12 and 2 divisions with playoff. question is, do they stick to their roots, and add utah st. and utep, or come back to dfw market with us or smu. you are right, its about tv market. however, as long as mwc is contracted with versus they won't get much exposure.i don't think houston has much interest in mwc now that tcu has left, buy i could be wrong. i do expect mwc to move fast and get this done by years end.

my question is why would north texas, smu or houston consider a move to mwc? it reminds me of our experience with big west, and smu's with wac. at this point, all 3 schools appear to be trying to become a regional football power, as opposed to tcu who is on the national stage. i would probably want to stay in the belt with an eye on cusa. what say ye?

abner haynes, without a doubt. i have lived long enough to have seen some great backs at north texas, including a few not mentioned, but he had the break away speed and moves like no other.as a side note, he was our 1st black player in a time of segreation, and received death threats when he enrolled. a denton native from fred moore high [the dragons], he was not allowed in local movie theaters,restaurants, etc.,. i have always said that if joe greene was the best, abner haynes was the bravest.just a old mans opinion.

hope you are right. however, with smu's experience in wac, would they move to mwc if invited?

+1

they may decide that houston/dfw are out of their footprint. i would expect utah state to get serious consideration, as well as utep. san jose st., idaho, and mnsu are sol. hope i am wrong. the loss of both smu,houston,or utep opens up 2 slots in cusa west, which is where i want north texas to be.

or, the mwc could add utah st. and utep and forget about dfw market.

coaching profession is based upon buddy system. i would expect coach mac to surround himself with coaches he knows and trusts. also, a new broom sweeps clean. question: does anyone know his start date? i assume florida going to a bowl game. hope he gets his release and can start putting together a staff and recruiting this week.

this is just an opinion, but coach chico was basically a fallback position if we we unable to hire a proven head coach. most on this board initially wanted an experienced head coach, and this is what we got. coach chico was given a small window to showcase his coaching skills, and certainly made the most of it, which should help him in his quest to become a head coach. what hurt him was the dodge disaster, which forced the decision makers to go for safe. they just could not take another chance as too much riding on outcome of this hire. while mccarney would not have been my preference, be brings a lot to the table and has had some measure of success in a difficult setting at iowa state. remember that we have had only 5 winning seasons in the past 30 years, and have won only a dozen or so games the last 6 years. even with a new stadium, which only gets us up to speed, we are not exactly a " chick magnet". my suggestion is that all of us put aside our differences regarding the selection of mccarney and continue to support north texas athletics. who knows. we may have just hired another hayden fry.

good luck with that.

dr. rawlngs is very involved with athletics, especially football , and even more so since we invested $78 million in a new stadium. this decision was not a unilateral decision by rick, which has not always been the case in past hires. the following is just an opinion, but it has always appeared to me that historically the athletic department was basically left alone with not much accountability. no longer. this is not a reflection on the job rick has or has not done, but rather good business on the administration's part as our athletic budget continues to grow.i am a big fan of ricks, and am amazed at what he has accomplished in updating our facalities in such a short period of time. i entered ntsu in 61', and until rick arrived the only new facality was athletic administration building constructed during hayden frys tenure.[ the supper pit is actually considered a multi-purpose building, has its own supervisor, and does not report to the athletic department.]in summary, the decision to hire coach mac was a collective effort, and the only people who have never made a hiring mistake are those who have never hired anyone. while i would have gone a different direction in my coaching choice, i support their decision and look forward to a new era as we move forward.

talent not there. canales did a hell of a job. start rebuilding next year with new coach.

i don't know why you would make such a statement, and would like to know what specifically you think he has been dishonest about. i graduated in 66, have known most of the a.d.'s in the past 40 years, and combined they have not accomplished what rick has during his tenure.

the coaching profession is based upon the buddy system in all sports.

+1

door #1

if we are not the doormat, you could have fooled me. overall, we have lost more conference games that won in a 10 year period. you are right. we should and i think will be at the top again in the net 3 to 5 years.