kemajic said:
NavyBlue said:
I know this isn't Griz football relatted but I thought it was worth sharing since Wayne Estes was a native Montanan. Utah State is naming its new basketball practice facility after Wayne Estes.
http://www.usufans.com/Forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=26919" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.utahstateaggies.com/genrel/050913aaa.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
We are also building a brand new weight training facility.
http://www.utahstateaggies.com/strengthandconditioningcenter.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Thanks for sending this along NB. Estes is still revered up here. USU has really moved forward in the last few years; must be some strong leadership there; leadership we could only dream about.
Thanks, Kem. We have been lucky and really moved forward the last five years or so with the President we have who FINALLLY get how important a good football program is, and the atheletic director we have (came from EWU) is top notch, I hope we can hang on to him a few more years.
Considering how many times I have heard Griz fans complain of UM hiring too many in-house people and that they should do more "national searches" for coaches, I thought this quote on the USU board, by "Aggies Forever", was interesting.
"I think the single biggest thing that allowed Aggie athletics to finally flourish is when they quit hiring all the "local guys" to run the program and began to look nationally. George Emert was a tough pill to swallow for many USU faithful, but he got the university thinking of itself from a national perspective instead of a "Cache Valley" perspective. He changed enough things that those who followed him, particularly Stan Albrecht, could do the things USU needed to do to become a truly great world university, not just one for northern Utah.
It's the same with Scott Barnes coming along. While Randy Spetman did some great things, he was a B-52 pilot. That works well at the Air Force but it left him ill-equipped to carry out the sea change that needed to occur at USU. Scott Barnes, however, is a former player and a career athletic department type who has had experience in several key areas (fundraising leading among them) that none of those who went before him at USU had. He bought experience with national programs to the fray, which has significantly elevated the sights and profile for Aggie athletics.
The right people at the right time made it possible for us to get Gary Andersen in here to complete the transformation. In basketball, you're only dealing with a small number of people, so Stew Morrill could do what he's done pretty much by his own sheer will. But football requires everybody to be on the same page. And the combination of Albrecht and Barnes, supporting the vision of Gary Andersen, has revitalized our football program (and facilities) to where we can be a player again. Matt Wells can continue building on that foundation.
That's how I see it."