stebo

I don't think that anyone expected us to win this game... Vizza's picks and poor choices might have actually cost us this game. Sometimes it is better to say nothing at all than say something you will regret. I imgaine that Dodge has tried to say anything and everything that he can think of to try and pick this team up after a loss... sometimes silence is more powerful than words. I realize that you are dissapointed and so is your son, I feel bad that he has to end his career this way as well. We are building for the future and unfortunately it is really ugly right now. The only way to get better is to go through these growing pains, I just hope that the kids are learning from their mistakes because there are a shitload of mistakes being made.

Dickey had other issues. I am not going to rehash them all but he really had the opportunity to be a legend at NT and he screwed it up. Personally, I went back and forth on Dickey and really enjoyed talking with him but there were other things that were just unacceptable. The last year he was here, he didn't even speak to his boss - they would literally avoid one another. Lots of people don't like their bosses... heck, some of my employees probably don't like me all the time... but he held that Mattress Mac deal over RV's head and used it as blackmail in a way. It was not a healthy relationship and if he would have just been proud of where he worked and kissed his boss' ass like the rest of us have to do, he would probably still have a job.

That average is probably about right. Most of UTSA's students are part time, not full time. They have little campus life and are the poster child for a commuter school. Lots of parents go to school there part time. Probably the most damaging thing to UTSA is their agreement with UT (45 minutes up the road). As part of the UT system, UTSA has a bridge program that allows those freshman and sophomores that did not get into UT to get their 1st two years out of the way in San Antonio and automatically be accepted to UT-Austin for their JR and SR years. I don't know the hard data but I would guess that at least 25% of their student body is treating UTSA like a JR College, just getting their basics out of the way with a GPA above a 3.5 so that they get automatic acceptance to UT-Austin (where they really would rather be). If you take all things into consideration - UTSA probably will average $2,000 per student during their time in San Antonio. Maybe adding football will help to keep them instead of lose them; but not IAA football... it will have to be after they move up to IA (yes, I know there are new names - I prefer the old ones

The "Lupe" Murchison Performing Arts Center - ala the Lupe, ala the Armadiller

It is too late now, the deadline to file any type of appeal was 5 pm today, right Flyer? If I read the bylaws correctly, any type of appeal must be done by 5 pm, the next business day (after the results are certified)... so that cutoff was 40 minutes ago. Maybe he was trying to get someone to act before the 5 pm cut-off today... any chance that he got someone to go along with it?

Does Ken still work for the University? I remember taking Drivers Ed (actually - it is a NT class that teaches college students how to be drivers ed instructors and at the same time teaches drivers ed to 15 year old kids) and he was in charge of that whole program... It was in the basement of the Super Pit when I took it for upper level electives credit. Certified me to be a drivers ed instructor in the State of Texas... Is he still doing that or is he retired? I remember him telling us stories about playing and later coaching the Mean Green. I think he was a track coach? Maybe football, too... can't quite remember all the details.

110. FLORIDA ATLANTIC (2-5) THE BUZZ: Saturday's game will be the last in a six-game stretch that saw the Owls play away from home five times. NEXT: Saturday, at Louisiana-Monroe. 111. SAN DIEGO STATE (1-6) THE BUZZ: The Aztecs trailed 49-0 at halftime en route to losing 70-7 to New Mexico. NEXT: Saturday, vs. Colorado State. 112. WASHINGTON STATE (1-7) THE BUZZ: The Cougars have allowed more than 60 points four times this season. Man … NEXT: Nov. 1, at Stanford. 113. UTAH STATE (1-6) THE BUZZ: Fresno has a good ground game, and Utah State struggles stopping the run. NEXT GAME: Saturday, vs. Fresno State. 114. SMU (1-7) THE BUZZ: SMU loves to throw; Navy loves to run. NEXT: Saturday, at Navy. 115. LOUISIANA-MONROE (2-5) THE BUZZ: Saturday's game will be the second in a three-game homestand for the Warhawks. NEXT: Saturday, vs. Florida Atlantic. 116. EASTERN MICHIGAN (2-6) THE BUZZ: A shaky defense likely faces a long day against the undefeated Cardinals. NEXT: Saturday, at Ball State. 117. KENT STATE (1-6) THE BUZZ: The offense actually has been OK. The defense, on the other hand, hasn't. NEXT: Saturday, at Miami (Ohio). 118. WESTERN KENTUCKY (2-6) THE BUZZ: The Hilltoppers take a four-game losing streak into their bye week. NEXT: Nov. 1, vs. North Texas. 119. IDAHO (1-7) THE BUZZ: The Vandals play their next three at home. NEXT: Saturday, vs. New Mexico State. 120. NORTH TEXAS (0-7) THE BUZZ: An 0-12 season is beckoning for the Mean Green. NEXT: Saturday, vs. Troy.

I will say that the bright spot is our O-Line. While Vizza was hurried all night long - they held their own. This is tough to do without a TE. Vizza is really, really good at protecting himself and the ball but I think that throwing on the run hurts his accuracy. Even still, there are plenty of passes that are catchable and if those passes hit the hands, they should be brought in. I think that this team is talented but I can't put my finger on what it missing. The system is working - we ARE getting the yards and moving the ball. We have the right QB and some great receivers... we just are missing a few pieces of the puzzle. The big play kills us, plain and simple. I can't tell if it is speed or bad positioning. The sad thing is that it looks like lazy playing... even when ULM burned us on two of the three big plays - there was nobody even attempting to run down the player that was scoring. I would rather have a guy 20 yards behind the dude with the ball (with no chance of catching up) than none at all. Sloppy and a little lazy to me, but what do I know. I just like to see a little Hustle (like the kind we get from Gio), even if there is no chance. I mean, a guy running down the field with the ball could always drop it... and if we are standing around just watching there is zero chance of recovering the fumble.

I concur...

So I packed up the car, grabbed a friend, and headed to Monroe this weekend for the game. I hadn't been able to see the team in person this year and this was the one weekend where I didn't have work to deal with. Let me just say that our traveling crew has sharply declined. I used to always count on seeing a few folks at the away games - even if it was just parents of players... Well, I think that a lot of people have given up hope and that is sad. One of the great aspects of being in the Sun Belt is the ability to travel to about half of our away games (Monroe is the shortest trip). Couple the Monroe game with a night in Shreve and you have a very nice 36 hour vacation. EagleMBA and his Eaglette were there and we really enjoyed watching the game with them. I spoke with RV before the game and it still amazes me how much he will talk your ear off (that is a good thing)... I do not think there is another IA program in the nation with such a friendly, approachable AD. Driving down we saw RV and his wife in their car and slowed down to scream between car windows on the Interstate. I was trying to get inside information about the vote and he was waiting for the official word as well. We ran into him again at the game and again - just the nicest, most direct guy that you could want. I know that a lot of people like to rip on RV for stupid stuff; but the fact is - we should really never even know who the AD is. If we know who the AD is and know him well, things are probably not going that good. Hopefully we will someday move to the point where our AD doesn't have to be cheerleader, marketing coordinator, fund raiser, alumni relations coordinator, coach, media relations expert, and defender of his own family... hopefully, someday - our AD can just be the freaking AD. Only at NT does an AD have to wear so many damn hats. It is a good thing for RV, he has a lot of feathers in his cap - but I would guess that he would give half of those feathers back just to do a normal AD job. Ok, I will leave that alone now.. On to the game. What I saw this game was what I saw last year. A team that is always a few plays away from being competitive. In this case it was giving the big play away to Monroe. Special teams remain a mystery to me. Speed is either not there - or people are just not in the right place. You would have thought that we were playing LSU, not ULM, the way that they were literally running circles around us. I don't know if this is speed or coaching. I am going to say coaching but my opinion doesn't mean much. The defense is better than last year. I know that the numbers do not reflect that - but they are actually tackling this year (sometimes) and they will get better. We cannot handle any trickery.. I mean none. Our guys just cannot recover from being in the wrong place. Again, I cannot tell if it is speed or positioning. Take away the big plays and we win this game. I think that we statistically won this game (or it was really close).... lots of yardage but terrible in the red zone. This is a good ULM team and the fact that we crawled back into this one was admirable. I am not sure if Weatherbie had called the dogs off - but we got better as the game went on rather than worse. All and all, this team is not bad. These players are not bad. We cannot throw or catch a long ball to save our lives though. I am not going to call out any players by name but the ball literally hit several of them in the hands several times and a simple dive for the ball would have gotten the job done. Sometimes the player just needs to be happy with the 40 yard pass and not worry about the TD that could happen if they get to catch it on two feet. Will we win a game this year? I really don't know. FAU doesn't seem to be that big of a threat and WKY is suspect. We always play ASU tough. Troy will beat us up pretty good but they will play a clean game. We just have to figure out a way to play more conservatively. The offense does work much like Dickey's offense but with small pass plays. It is a hell of a lot more exciting to watch than Dickey ball though. I don't understand why our coaches do not manage the clock - if we shorten the game than we might win. I am going to guess that the threat of the spread is the speed of the game - keeping the D constantly on guard, not knowing what is coming next - but that is when it is working effectively... I think that using the clock to our advantage would actually help... because we can move the ball, we can kick field goals - we just cannot stop the big play. The less time that the opponent has to do that, the better. I look forward to the day that I can go to an easy away game like Monroe and see more familiar faces. Those were some great times during the Dickey years. I miss the travelling fan base - winning will get that back.

Funny ironic that the alumni are hovering around waiting for the results and only a few students. I just don't know folks, 55-45 sounds about right again, same as last time. I would hope that the election would be contested - way too much ballot fraud. Have the vote again this semester, no reason to wait until the Spring. Make it old fashioned balloting, in person, in the union. I know that a re-vote is bad but this voting on your phone/voting on a computer/voting in any building on campus - just has too many ways to be corrupted. I will never understand the mind of the North Texas student (in general)... I guess this is why I was in a fraternity at North Texas and stayed away from the artsy fartsy crowd, you just can't reason with them... and the thing that STILL gets me is that this won't even take effect until 2011!!! So these kids won't even have to pay it (for the most part), yet they still vote against it. They are just the "no" crowd. GRRR

Make fun of UTA all that you want but their student body voted to increase their athletic fee to support football. Their administration basically said "no thanks"

That is messed up. I do want to hear if things are looking good - but not fake looking good.

I will be there

Thank you to all SGA Senators that put such a PERFECTLY worded item on the ballot. If this doesn't pass than I will be very baffled. I just don't know how anyone could vote "no" to that.

Can someone post the wording of the vote question? Like - does it say "I vote yes to reducing the Student Service Fee by $3 dollars and dedicating $10 per hour for a dedicated athletic fee?" or something like that? Just curious as to how this was worded on the ballot. Also - I wonder what will happen for the students that try to vote online and it freezes up. What happens if their vote isn't counted? I didn't even know that students could vote online.. kinda scary if there are server problems.

bump

Somebody asked me for my math on that. Well, I have never done the math but RV did. Asked point blankly about money games a year or two ago - RV said that we could eliminate them if we could average 26K a game. There is some sort of formula where we make the same amount of money at home with a 26K crowd as we do for a road money game (tickets, concessions, etc..) Now - money games were paying about $350K when that was said so that changes things a little... The Belt is wanting (as a group) no less than a million a game for future money games.

As long as we get a good crowd, it will offset the payout for most "money" games. We did this for JJ - the likes of Cameron University, Texas A&M-International, SE Okl State, etc.. I really don't think it is a good policy for long term success - you are right, if we lose - it is a lose/lose situation. But at this point we need to see if this coach can even beat those teams. I think it would serve two purposes - allow us to have another winnable home game and also see exactly how good (or bad) this team/style is. I am so up in the air right now, I just don't know if we need to start all over again or give it more time. These types of games would be a good way to judge if we needed to make the hard decision (to cut our losses and move on) or if we just need to give our coach more time.

I believe that we need to pull out of any games that we can for the next two years and schedule IAA's. It is really time to go back to basics, that means Samfords and the like on the schedule. I don't know if our schedules are locked in next year or the next - but we neep some cupcakes for wins so that we can build some confidence in this team. We did it for JJ, Dodge deserves the same. Oh, and it would also be a good barometer to decide if the Dodge system is ever going to work. If we can't beat IAA's - we need a change. Until then, I have nothing to judge it on - there is a lot of parity at the IA level and I can't tell if the system is just bad or if we just need more time.

I can't really get a feel as to how the vote is going because the majority of the replies on that ed piece are from alumni or non-students. It seems to me that there are really only 2 or 3 students against it - about 5 or 6 for it - and then the normal group of idiots using up space to complain about the school, RV, his son, and how LEED is not really important but some sort of "scam"... Next they will try to convince me that ACORN voters don't really exist or something... hmmm, can we get ACORN to register students for the vote?

I can't see it - is there a setting on my computer that I need to change?

That was a powerful piece. Some people got angry tonight when I feel they should have been sad. We are even seeing a few Dickey "nostalgia" posts. It can't get any worse than this, it is impossible. I really appreciate the opinion by Harry that we need to give FIU a little credit. They are a good team. I have always been in the camp that believed FIU had much much more potential than FAU. Both have massive amounts of money to play with, both are running true Div I budgets and pay their coaches a respectable wage for this level. We desperately need this vote to pass - not for a stadium - but to fund this program at the Div I level. I am not mad tonight, I am sad.

It was tough for me to post that. I feel that way. I hope that it is does not offend anyone. I am not trying to be a jerk when I say that - I really believe it. I think that the team was out of control at times and I think that because we were winning, people looked the other way on a lot of issues. I think that it was the most tragic thing in the world and I start to tear up even thinking about it - but I really believe that sometimes you have to do the right thing in order to teach a lesson to someone before they harm themselves or others. I might be completely wrong. I have spoken to players about it and it was not just one person or player - many of them were doing the things that kids do in college. I am not a saint, I did my fair share of experimentation in college. I just would hope that the environment now would discourage this type of experimentation - not encourage it (or make it cool). Again, maybe I am wrong. I only knew about a handful of players in that era (some worked for me, some just came in to the bar to hang out with those that worked for me)... Things were very much out of control in the DD era. Maybe it is that way at every college program. I was talking with a guy on chat tonight that swore up and down that it happens at every program so maybe I am naive to think that NT should hold its standards up higher... I feel that Todge is doing that - holding kids to a higher standard when it comes to decisions... maybe that is why so many kids have left. Maybe I am out of touch. I just don't know. I just had to respond to the post that seemed to be "nostalgic" about Dickey. Things were completely out of control under his guidance inn my opinion. I am just one person with one voice and I have the right to be wrong just like anyone else. I did not post that to offend anyone and I hope that it doesn't.

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