eGriz
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Joined: 27 Mar 2002
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Location: Missoula, Montana
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The stories are in order as they appear in this content area:
Dedicated fans chatter through Griz scrimmage (Kaimin).
UM athletics panel questions credit card use (Missoulian).
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Billings Bear finds better fit at fullback position (Greely Tribune).
UNC Offense Explodes for 58 Points in Final Spring Scrimmage (UNC).
***
Dedicated fans chatter through Griz scrimmage
Josi Carlson, Montana Kaimin
Saturday morning people sporting their best maroon and silver filled the sun-soaked west section of Washington-Grizzly Stadium. There was nothing on GrizVision, there were no Silvertip Skydivers and no one was dancing to “Cotton-Eyed Joe.”
With the sun tucked close to Mount Sentinel, fans arrived with coffee and hot chocolate in hand, eager to see the second inter-squad scrimmage of Bobby Hauck’s 2004 Grizzly football team.
Without the boisterous “North End Zone Crazies” or the belligerent sounds from the student section, the players’ cheering and the coaches’ barked orders could easily be deciphered.
The Grizzly faithful in attendance clapped appreciatively for first downs and gasped at hard hits, but their real focus seemed to be enjoying the delightful spring weather, chatting about the new players and speculating about the upcoming season.
“Who’s our new kicker?” asked one woman as the Grizzlies lined up in field goal position and freshman Paul Cahill ran out to attempt a 30-yarder. “He’d better make this one or we’re in for a long year.”
The three underclassmen vying for the unenviable task of replacing graduated kicker Chris Snyder each made their attempts from 30 yards.
“That’s what I like to see,” the woman yelled while scanning the roster to find their names.
Who would fill the kicker position and the abilities of the team’s two senior quarterbacks were hot topics among fans.
“I just wanted to see if we’ve been making any progress,” said a fan named Daryl. “Plus it’s great coming out here on a day like this.”
For 7-year-old Ben Tabaracci, the scrimmage was really about spending time with his father and grandfather. Three generations of the Tabaracci family sat in the first row on the 20-yard line, close enough to feel the spray from the drinking fountain. Their prime seats gave Ben an opportunity for an up-close look at some of his heroes.
“I like the way he plays,” Ben said, as his favorite player, Levander Segars, ran his route down the sideline in front of him.
While the Tabaraccis intently watched the intricacies of the Grizzly offense in relative silence, a few rows up some female fans were having fun gossiping and noting the players’ snug-fitting uniforms.
“Man, I forgot how much I like boys in football pants,” said one of the young women.
The group of friends glanced at the field as Chris Clark returned a kick for
57 yards, but quickly returned to a conversation recapping Friday night’s events.
The team finished the scrimmage by practicing some of its overtime offensive plays. Both quarterbacks managed touchdowns in the overtime offenses, ending the scrimmage on a positive note for the fans.
“That is money!” one fan yelled as quarterback Craig Ochs found wide receiver Jon Talmage for a 17-yard touchdown.
As the team gathered around Hauck on the 50-yard line to wrap up the scrimmage, a group of young kids gathered around the stairs leading to the field.
“Are they done yet?” asked a red-haired boy wearing a replica Grizzly jersey.
Slowly, the pack of children crept onto the field, relishing the opportunity to run freely on the spring turf, running imaginary routes in the end zone.
“Touchdown!” yelled the red-haired boy as he fumbled a lob pass, almost ran into the goal post and dropped his Nerf football.
As the children played and families and friends joined the players on the field, the rest of the crowd stood, gave the team appreciative applause and slowly moved up the aisles.
“Well, that wasn’t a bad way to spend a morning,” said one fan to his friend. “They look pretty good. Plus, it’s better than doing yard work.”
***
UM athletics panel questions credit card use
By BETSY COHEN of the Missoulian, 4/12/04
There were more questions than answers Friday when the panel charged with investigating the University of Montana athletic department's surprise deficit of nearly $1 million convened for its second meeting.
Members of the 11-person UM Athletics Inquiry Panel spent about an hour reviewing the research they did in the weeks prior to the meeting, then spent the remainder of the day grilling UM budget officials, athletic department administrators and directors of two booster agencies, the Grizzly Scholarship Association and the UM Foundation.
Since the group's first meeting, panel member Wayne Capp had researched how the athletic department spends roughly $600,000 annually on state-issued credit cards - or procurement cards - for items paid with funds from the department's budget.
Review of team travel expenses - including hotel rooms and meals - appeared to be legitimate and justifiable, Capp said. Nevertheless, initial examination of the records left him with some serious concerns about procurement card usage, which followed these themes:
There is little oversight of who uses the cards and what they're used for.
A tendency to use the cards beyond what the university likely intended when it first adopted the practice to eliminate the need for coaches and administrators to carry large sums of cash.
The cards create a culture of use that makes it easy for employees to reach in for the plastic and not be held to an immediate approval process for purchases.
Lack of an immediate or stringent approval and review policy makes it difficult to control purchases.
Athletic personnel authorized to use the department's 45-50 procurement cards, Capp learned, used them to buy a wide variety of items - everything from a $7 purchase at Jo-Ann Fabrics, to $3,000 in travel expenses, to one roll of duct tape, and to office furniture.
"Generally speaking, it appears that they are using the cards for everything," said Capp, a former financial investigator for the state Department of Justice. "I did find airfare was extensively charged, and in some cases charges were made for one-way flights to the tune of $1,400 to $1,800 per ticket."
Capp said some of the most curious airline purchases were made by Pat Kennedy, the men's basketball coach, who lived in Chicago before his UM hire, and appeared to center recruiting trips around the Chicago area. Some of the expenses appear to have been reimbursed.
Capp also wondered why Rob Edwards, the athletic department's fiscal manager, charged $890 for two airline tickets on his procurement card for a trip to New York. The tickets were issued from Maine to New York and back the week the football team played in Maine.
"While on the trip to Maine, would it be appropriate for one employee to leave for New York and come back?" Capp asked Bob Duringer, UM's vice president for finance and administration. "Would the fiscal manager be recruiting?"
"Probably not," replied Duringer.
Bryan Newton, director of the Grizzly Scholarship Association, told the panel he flew to Maine with Edwards, and Edwards told him he booked the trip for a vacation he planned with his wife.
Edwards did not use the tickets, but from records Capp reviewed, it appears he did not reimburse the department for the airfare. UM officials agreed to research the transaction and present more details at the panel's next meeting.
University officials also were unable to explain why Robin Selvig, UM's women's basketball coach, needed to purchase two road bicycles for preseason training given the equipment available through the school's new state-of-the-art fitness facility. If the team did need the bicycles, Capp asked, how would just two be beneficial to an entire team in training?
UM officials also couldn't explain why a coach's $500 purchase at a Nike store included wallet organizers, or exactly how many of the athletic department's procurement cards are currently active.
Also Friday, a subcommittee of the inquiry panel reported flaws in how the department reviewed program budgets.
After talking with the head football coach, women's basketball coach and the men's basketball coach, it was evident that none of the coaches were allowed much input into developing their budgets, said Mark Bruno, higher education analyst for the governor's budget office.
Coaches were aware of initial budgets and recruiting costs but apparently received no formal budget review, either quarterly or semi-annually, Bruno said.
The coaches, he said, have no insight as to what caused the deficit but all felt Edwards, the department's fiscal manager, was overwhelmed by his job.
Interviews also revealed that the athletic department did not take advantage of the easy-to-use, easy-to-access budgeting tools offered by UM's office for budgeting and planning, said Trudy Collins, a budget officer and internal auditor at Montana State University-Billings.
Athletic department personnel could have called up a report to review at any time through the university's Banner computer system. Had they they used the system, she said, they would have caught problems earlier.
Budget variances began to show up late in the 2002 fiscal year, when the department was closing out its books, Collins said. It appears, though, that no immediate action was taken to resolve those variances as fiscal year 2003 unfolded.
"The budget didn't appear to be on track at the end of '03," she said. And because of that, "they were still trying to get a handle on '03 while going into '04."
The subcommittee will follow up on why the athletic department failed to respond in a timely fashion to the variances and to UM budget officials who questioned the figures in the spring of 2002.
The athletic department, Collins said, "did not give a prompt or detailed or full response to requests from the budget office. Our feeling was the budget officers were trying to get answers from the athletic department, but they weren't getting a full response."
Despite their concerns, UM's top administrators did not order auditors to give the athletic department special attention, said Jim Salisbury, a former bank financial officer.
Following Friday's questioning, chairwoman Diane Barz asked panel members to compile their research findings and suggestions, and submit them at the next meeting.
Findings and suggestions will be discussed, revised and adopted on a rolling basis until the the panel's final report is completed on May 14.
"We will start on the final report immediately," Barz said.
Barz asked the panel to meet every Friday through May 8. On May 13-14, the panel will spend two days preparing its final report to present at the Board of Regents' meeting in Havre on May 20.
That report and presentation will end the panel's work, Barz said.
If the work falls short of regents' expectations, she said, "so be it."
Reporter Betsy Cohen can be reached at 523-5253 or at bcohen@missoulian.com
If you're interested
The UM Athletics Inquiry Panel will convene for its third meeting at 10 a.m.
Friday at the University of Montana's Gallagher Building, room 382. The panel will meet every Friday leading up to a two-day session May 13-14 to hammer out a final report on its investigation of the University of Montana's nearly $1 million deficit in the athletic department budget. The panel will present its findings and recommendations to the state Board of Regents at the regents' May 20 meeting in Havre.
The meetings are open to the public.
*** ***
UNC Offense Explodes for 58 Points in Final Spring Scrimmage
Bears complete their spring drills by scoring eight offensive touchdowns.
University of Northern Colorado
GREELEY, Colo. -- After delaying the Bears' final scrimmage because of weather for two days, the University of Northern Colorado offense could not wait to put on a show. The Bears' offense exploded for 58 points, including eight touchdowns, in the finale to spring drills on Monday at Nottingham Field.
The Bears' offense simply could not be slowed down for an extended period of time during the scrimmage and rolled up 711 yards of total offense on 111 plays. UNC scored eight offensive touchdowns and added a field goal for the 58-point outburst.
Starting quarterback Tony Christensen rolled to a nearly perfect afternoon as he passed for 292 yards on 17-of-28 passing. Christensen tallied three touchdown passes and was victimized by only one interception.
Junior wide receiver Vincent Jackson nabbed four catches for 113 yards, including a 36-yard scoring strike from Christensen.
The Bears' offense received a tremendous effort from backup tight end Clint Wright. Wright was seeing action after Steven Bailey was moved to right tackle and Paul Sweitzer suffered a broken hand. Wright stepped right into the lineup and garnered four catches for 101 yards, which included a 56-yard score on a fourth-and-1 flare pass from Christensen.
Sophomore running back Jahir Waterman gave a glimpse of what he has to offer as backup to sophomore Andre Wilson. Waterman rushed for 112 yards on 21 carries and a touchdown. Wilson, not to be out-down, rushed for 91 yards on
21 attempts.
The biggest surprise of the scrimmage came from the play of Trenton Dietz.
Dietz, who played defensive line for the Bears last season, made the transition to starting fullback in the intra-squad game. Dietz rushed the ball twice for 19 yards and caught three passes for 32 yards. Dietz scored on a 19-yard screen from backup quarterback Craig Blaser.
Although the UNC defense did not have its brightest day, there were several individuals who shined. Defensive end Matt West notched two quarterback sacks and defensive back Jason Hildenbrand recorded an interception.
Hildenbrand returned the interception for what looked to be a 44-yard touchdown, but an illegal block wiped out the score.
The intra-squad scrimmage brings an end to the spring drills. The UNC Bears will open the 2004 season at home on Sept. 4 against Great West Conference foe North Dakota State.
SCORING
FG - Justin Zaitz 22 FG
TD - Jamar Farbes 5 yd pass from Tony Christensen (Zaitz kick) TD - Jens Lundeen 19 yd pass from Miles Scheer (Zaitz kick TD - Vincent Jackson 36 yd pass from Tony Christensen (Zaitz kick) TD - Clint Wright 56 yd pass from Tony Christensen (Zaitz kick failed) TD - Jahir Waterman 6 yd run (Zaitz kick) TD - Greg Geske 10 yd pass from Matt Thomas (Zaitz kick) TD - Trenton Dietz 19 yd pass from Craig Blaser (Zaitz kick) TD - Greg Geske 11 yd pass from Craig Blaser (Zaitz kick)
PASSING: Tony Christensen (17-28, 292 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT), Craig Blaser (7-10,
87 yds, 2 TD), Miles Scheer (3-8, 40 yds, 1 TD), Matt Thomas (3-6, 18 yds, 1
TD)
RUSHING: Jahir Waterman (21 att, 112 yds, 1 TD), Andre Wilson (21 att, 91 yds), Casey Goodrich (5 att, 9 yds), Matt Thomas (2 att, 27 yds), Trenton Dietz (2 att, 19 yds), Miles Scheer (2 att, 11 yds), Craig Blaser (1 att, 4 yds), Miles Scheer (1 att, 1 yd)
RECEIVING: Jamar Farbes (5 rec, 39 yds, 1 TD), Vincent Jackson (4 rec, 113 yds, 1 TD), Clint Wright (4 rec, 101 yds, 1 TD), Greg Geske (4 rec, 63 yds,
2 TD), Trenton Dietz (3 rec, 32 yds, 1 TD), Jens Lundeen (2 rec, 37 yds, 1 TD), Zac Carlson (2 rec, 14 yds), Jahir Waterman (2 rec, 6 yds), Tyrees Bingham (1 rec, 11 yds), Andre Wilson (1 rec, 9 yds), Nick Hager (1 rec, 7 yds), Casey Goodrich (1 rec, 5 yds)
INTERCEPTIONS: Jason Hildenbrand (1 INT)
FUMBLE RECOVERIES: None
QUARTERBACK SACKS: Matt West (2 sacks), Derek Aber (1 sack), Team (1 sack)
***
Billings Bear finds better fit at fullback position
By Sherrie Peif, Greely Tribune
Sometimes, no matter what an athlete does, he just can't move up from the
second- or third-team squad, and no matter what a coach does, he can't get the athlete out of his mind.
For the University of Northern Colorado's Trenton Dietz and head football coach Kay Dalton, that has been the case for the past two years.
But Monday, the two found an answer to their problems.
Dietz switched from defensive end to fullback, and during the football team's final spring scrimmage, accounted for 19 rushing yards, 32 receiving yards and one touchdown. It was a fit both player and coach couldn't be more pleased about.
"I was very happy with his play," head coach Kay Dalton said. "Sometimes he didn't know what he was doing, but when he knew what he was doing, he did it very well."
Dietz has played defensive end for as long as he can remember. Sure, he dabbled at fullback once and awhile early in his prep career, but when Dalton found him in Billings, Mont., Dietz's dabbling days were done.
The only way he'd ever get his hands on the pigskin again would be if he was in the right place at the right time.
April 8 was the right time.
Four days after the Bears' first spring scrimmage, Dalton felt he needed to beef up his backfield a bit, so he moved the sophomore to fullback.
"He was a very good athlete in high school," Dalton said. "He's been one of our top athletes in terms of all the standards we keep. And yet he's only been playing third-team defensive end for us. You've always got to find room for a good athlete. Here's kid who's third team and we're hurting at fullback. So we moved him, and I see a lot of good things coming from it."
Dietz knows he has some studying to do during the off-season, but he's confident the X's and O's will fall into place.
"I'll probably be in my playbook all the time," Dietz said. "I was just excited to get the chance to be on the field. I've got a lot to learn on the offense, but it will be a challenge I can face, and I'm real excited to do it."
Notes:
* GREELEY WATCH: Red-shirt freshman Clint Wright continues to show what he can do. In two scrimmages, the Northridge graduate caught seven passes for
142 yards and two touchdowns. The tight end admits, though, that he needs to work on his blocking to be able to compete for the job. And Dalton agrees, though he knows the talent is there.
"He is a very fine receiver," Dalton said. "He can catch, and he runs good routes. But he's got to work on his blocks to be a complete player."
Source: Tom Griz Fan
April 13, 2004
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