Side Show Joe

Thanks for finding the updated numbers. In my opinion, Lombardi is not going to inherit the OU program. I think Gasso's son will. And yes, $185,000 is very high for a C-USA softball coach. Personally, I believe investing $200,000 in Lombardi would guarantee North Texas becomes a nation power in softball, and in my opinion that is a small price to pay. I'm sure our athletic department could adjust their budgets to free up the funds and make this happen.

I was recently studying up on the various FBS programs with an Eagle for their mascot, and it didn't take long for Boston College to get my attention. The other FBS Eagles (Southern Miss, Eastern Michigan, and Georgia Southern) just don't have the same Eagle history. I learned some interesting stuff too. We all know that the North Texas students adopted the Eagle in 1922. As it turns out, Boston College adopted the Eagle in 1920. I find it interesting that we both adopted our mascots around the same time, and we were the only Eagles in major sports until Philadelphia started in 1933. We represent the two oldest Eagle mascots in FBS football and have yet to meet on the field (96 years and counting). I think it would be a great home and home series. We could have a bronze "Nest" trophy created. Maybe the game ball with the final score could be placed in the nest. A series like this could get us a little more national coverage. It would be against an ACC opponent. Both programs currently have opening that would work in 2023 and 2024. And, I think we could beat them by the time we met. Thoughts?

Our focus should not be on hiring a coach that has local connections. Softball is a sport that does not pay coaches as well as the big 3 (football, basketball, and baseball). That is to our advantage. We could and should go out and hire a major name that will resonate with softball recruits on a national level. Melyssa Lombardi should be that target. She has been the associate head coach at Oklahoma since 2007. That means she has been a major part of winning 3 of the last 6 NCAA Softball Tournament Titles. And, to the best of my knowledge she is currently earning about $130,000 a year at OU. In my opinion, hiring her away should be a no-brainer. Her Bio. If anyone can find a better candidate, please post. http://www.soonersports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31000&ATCLID=210266768

I don't think Demil is the the guy they need, and I predict Chico will have another opportunity to be an interim head coach within the next 4 seasons.

This will be the 3rd year with Reffett as our defensive coordinator. Let's be honest, under his leadership, our defense has under-preformed. If we don't see improvements this season, I see no reason the majority of fans would want to endure the same struggling defense any longer. I am not a patient as I once was. I would have made a change at the end of last season. We have an amazing offense, and they should not have to carry the burden of winning every game. The D needs to step up this season.

Some on this board asked for a change in our defensive coaching at the end of last season. Just sayin'.

I wish coach Key the best moving forward, but like others on here, I agree, it is certainly time for a change. Softball is my favorite of the women's sports, and with our proximity to Oklahoma City, it should be a major priority for us to annually field a competitive team. In my opinion, there is only one logical candidate for the job... Melyssa Lombardi, associate head coach at Oklahoma. She has held that position since 2007 and has helped recruit and develop some of the best softball players in the country over the last decade. Here is her bio: http://www.soonersports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=31000&ATCLID=210266768

I see your point, but I'd think WB has a person at the AD that is responsible for keeping track of what happens on here, and taking ideas back to him.

A good suggestion, but I doubt my lone opinion would carry much weight. Baker seems to be a guy that looks for consensus when making decisions. There are strengths in that style of leadership, but I do not feel innovation is one of them.

My only problem with this survey is that it basically just reflects the opinions of us die-hard season ticket holders. We have somewhere in the neighborhood of 20,000 at most home games. I don't feel like our 750+ opinions truly reflect what most people that come to the games think. We really need to know what those other 19,250 people think, so we can figure out how to make them season ticket holders too. Personally, I think Baker should hand out surveys at the gates when people walk in at the SMU game. If each survey had a unique bar code, each ticket scanned should be able to be assigned to a ticket. There should be incentives for turning in the surveys too... field access for a future game, team autographed football/helmet, free food from the concessions, carry the Battle Flag onto the field at the introduction of a future game. Stuff like that. Winners could be announced during TV timeouts and halftime, using a field level camera and a roaming reporter. It would create a much more interactive fan experience, and our AD would have more relevant data to sift through.

Not going to lie... as the draft came to an end, I was hoping one of our players would get that last spot. I'm really tired of our draftless streak... and having to read about it every year.

What an unimpressive performance at the conference toury. I don't see an at-large bid for us. Not happy with the way this season has gone.

I'm not making excuses for our lack of donations, just pointing out that the dynamics of our situation are very different from the other C-USA programs, even our Texas peers within the conference. Due to those differences, I believe our solution will probably need to be different too. In my opinion because our situations are very different, I believe those programs are bad comparisons. Having stated that, I do believe we are seeing gains. I don't believe Baker is content to remain dead last in fund raising. If he were, I doubt he would have placed our donation numbers our there for public scrutiny.

I think you bring up a few bad comparisons. UTEP is the only game in El Paso... or within a million miles of El Paso. There is no competition for the attention of the general population. The people of El Paso can either support and watch UTEP or sit on their porch and watch the tumbleweeds roll into town. Rice is a very small exclusive private school, whose graduates go on to earn large amounts of money. They have an annual generational donation campaign that raises tons of money for the university. And the smallest group is the older alums. Although they are severely outnumbered by the younger alums, they always raise millions more then the others. UAB just came back from the dead. I like our situation much better. I don't think our problem is a lack of interest. As stated in you original post. We have more donors, we just don't have as much money being donated. I think the real problem is a lack of engagement. Although we engage more alums then other universities, we could engage many more. Our alums can't give like Rice. Most do not earn the salaries that many Rice grads do. Our fans can't be fleeced like UTEP. There are just too many other entertainment options in DFW. Because many of our alums will be donating at lower levels then our Texas peers, we must engage more of our alums. The good news is that we have many more alums then the other Texas C-USA programs. Again we must do a better job of marketing.

The answer is a little more complex. RV ran the department for 15 years. In that time we needed to build FBS G5 caliber facilities, while playing in the Sun Belt, where we were the only Texas program. Not an ideal situation. Although he had a difficult task, it still could have been handled better. But, at this point, there is no reason or need to open old wounds. Add in the fact that our programs have struggled for about a decade, and it isn't very hard to see why we are raising less money with more alums. I will consed that with our recent success, the numbers need to be improving rapidly. But, that will come down to marketing. Our leadership at North Texas must come to the realization that we can't just market like other programs. Being located in DFW creates a very unique set of circumstances for North Texas. Not only do we have to contend with two other FBS programs within 50 miles of our campus, and the two large state flagships (Texas & Texas A&M), but we also have the major professional teams in our market. I'm not complaining, just pointing out that we have to develop a better marketing strategy if we intend to capture the attention of our alumni or the general population. I have ideas about how we could effectively market our teams and increase our following and donations, but I don't know that anyone in the athletic department or on this board wants to hear them.

There are several in the ticket office. I grabbed one after the spring game. If you and Rick called the ticket office and told them you wanted one, they would probably mail it to y'all's season ticket addresses.

Where there is a problem, there is an opportunity. If possible, I think North Texas athletics should look into partnering with Dallas in a joint effort to keep the bowl. In exchange for paying half of the rights fee, North Texas would become the primary program tied to the bowl, and then the Big12 and Big10 would alternate sending programs. For $200K a year we would be guaranteed a decent landing spot when we finish bowl eligible, and against a P5 conference, when they fill it. It would work similar to the set up Boise had with the Idaho Potato Bowl. The rest of C-USA would throw a fit, but hey, if it isn't against some C-USA by-law, and it is okay with Dallas, the NCAA, Big12, Big10, and ESPN, I say do it. In my opinion that would be $200K a year, well spent.

The sky isn't falling. Littrell has proven he can win with a struggling defense. It's still way too early to worry about what we will look like next season. Players will get healthy, transfers will show up, and younger players will develop. In my opinion, we are in a much better position coming out of spring ball this season, than we have seen in many years. Fear not, we have time to improve in all the areas of concern.

Positives.... O-line looks to be improved. I am not as concerned about them as I was at this time last season. Fine looks healthy and sharp. He has good chemistry with the receivers. I think we can continue to throw on most teams. Negatives... Our defense continues to worry me. When starters were on the field and everyone was serious, our D couldn't make plays. Tackling looked bad on too many plays. The secondary seems the weakest part of our defense...again. I don't believe we have a running back in on our team that can replace Wilson. In all honesty, I don't believe the platoon philosophy will be able to replace Wilson's production either. Our kicking game needs to get much better. We are probably still waiting for some late transfers and we have a long time before next season, so I'm not worried yet.

I agree with you. Barkley is very athletic, but his performance on the field doesn't match what he is doing at the combine. For me that is a red flag. I think Chubb will be a much better player in the NFL. To be totally honest. I don't like the way the NFL tests the players at the combine. I'd have all the player run the 40s, run drills, jump the vertical, and do the bench, in full pads. Find out how athletic they are in actual gear.

Thanks for the on the ground insight MeanGreenTexan! Wish I could have made it this year.

I think you are missing my point. I love that our kids get a chance to go on the road and pull off upsets against historic football programs. I just want our kids to have that same chance at Apogee. Body-bag games seem to earn North Texas between $750K and $1M. This vote adds an extra $3.5M. Do we really need to continue the body-bag game philosophy?

Does this new influx of cash mean body-bag games will become a thing of the past?

Finally! Great day for North Texas.

Is anyone on here part of the SGA? If so, there should be a rule that any person or organization that brings a challenge, the SGA deems frivolous at the conclusion of their investigation, should be charged an "frivolous investigation fine" of more then $1,000. I think that would end some of these delay tactics. The challenge should be there for legitimate issues, not as a delay tactic or obstructionist maneuver.