Griz punter Johnson fastest toe in the West (Missoulian, Aug. 13).
Grizzlies rebuild receiving corps (Missoulian, Aug. 12).
Griz hope to settle openings left by graduations (Missoulian, Aug. 11,
2005).
---
Griz Second Among 8 I-AA Polls (Massey).
Enthusiastic Skyhawks open football drills (Ft. Lewis; The Durango Herald).
Altitude Sports Fall Schedule for the Big Sky Conference.
---
Schools with the Top Fans of I-AA, #16-#20 (Burton, I-AA.org, Aug. 11).
JMU ahead of Bowling Green and Oregon in final 2004 Sagarin's.
Glenn's success at Wyoming no surprise (The Denver Post, Aug. 15).
McBride winning big before games even start (Salt Lake Tribune, Aug. 15).
Tough schedule of Beavers and Broncos looms for the Vikings (AP, KGW News,
Aug. 11, 2005
What's in a name? (Daily Interlake, Aug. 7).
***
Griz punter Johnson fastest toe in the West
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 13, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/13/sports/sports01.txt
Tyson Johnson may be the fastest punter in the Big Sky Conference. His
intention is to be the best one.
The 192-pound junior out of Stevensville finished last season with the
15th-best average in Division I-AA, at 41.4 yards per punt. Trouble was, he
ranked fifth in the Big Sky, where Northern Arizona, Portland State, Montana
State and Idaho State all ranked in the top five in net punting.
He was also a little uneven. In Montana's losses to Sam Houston State and
Portland State, Johnson averaged 33.3 and 25.8 yards. That stuck with him.
"It's kind of a big year for me," Johnson said Friday. "I had a couple games
where I struggled last year, and hurt our team. I want to work on my
consistency."
In spring drills, the ball was consistently flying off Johnson's foot, and
he has continued to boom punts the first three days of fall camp.
*To see more click link above
***
Grizzlies rebuild receiving corps
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 12, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/12/sports/sports01.txt
If a football coach could have his druthers, he probably wouldn't want to
rebuild his receiving corps at the same time he's holding quarterback
auditions.
That's the situation for the Montana Grizzlies, where third-year coach Bobby
Hauck has 57 receptions returning from his 2004 group of wideouts.
Fifty-five of those belong to senior Jon Talmage, and the other two to
sophomore Ryan Bagley.
"The flip side of the coin is last year we were breaking in basically a new
offensive line," said Hauck, who is overseeing a quarterback battle between
Cole Bergquist and Jason Washington. "That's college football. You replace
your guys."
Gone are Jefferson Heidelberger, Tate Hancock and Levander Segars, who
combined for 203 receptions last season. After Talmage the next closest
pass-catcher is all-Big Sky running back Lex Hilliard, with 22.
So a fleet of receivers, led by Talmage and Bagley, tooled around the South
Campus fields trying to make an impression Thursday. When the smoke cleared
- or didn't clear - Bagley had made a circus catch during 7-on-7 drills,
beating two defenders to a bomb from Washington.
*To see more click link above
***
Griz hope to settle openings left by graduations
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/11/sports/sports01.txt
It's a position left unsettled by the graduation of a couple seniors, a spot
that, if deemed a weakness, could quickly be exploited by Montana's football
opponents.
The Grizzlies need to find a starting quarterback, as well.
The University of Montana opened its 2005 fall camp with 90 players
Wednesday, practicing on the fields adjacent to Dornblaser and the South
Campus stadiums.
A handful of those players - Jesse Carlson, Alan Saenz, Gabe Brown, Kerry
Mullan, Kyle Gallagher, Kelly Kain and Craig Mettler - will be looking to
shore up the defensive tackle spot for the '05 Griz. It's a position that
lost three seniors off last year's 12-3 team, in John Cahill, Jonny Varona
and Blake Horgan. By Sept. 3, when the Grizzlies open their season against
Fort Lewis (Colo.) College, they plan to have a set rotation of four
tackles, with a couple more waiting in the wings.
"We hope," third-year coach Bobby Hauck said. "We've got guys listed on the
depth chart, obviously, but we need to get production out of that position.
And we lost a lot of production at that spot, and at wide receiver. The
fellas that are playing those positions need to show up and produce at the
same level of the guys they're replacing."
*To see more click link above
*** ***
Griz Second Among 8 I-AA Polls
College Football Ranking Comparison (8 Rankings)
Laz Index Keeper
Claassen CSL
Matthews Any Given Saturday
Massey
Dwiggins
Rank, Team
1 James Madison
2 Montana
3 Delaware
4 S Illinois
5 Harvard
6 Furman
7 Ga Southern
8 New Hampshire
9 E Washington
10 William & Mary
11 W Kentucky
12 Villanova
13 Cal Poly SLO
14 Massachusetts
15 N Iowa
16 Penn
17 Sam Houston St
18 Lehigh
19 Northwestern LA
20 Portland St
21 N Dakota St
22 Jacksonville St
23 Northeastern
24 Appalachian St
25 Maine
26 Lafayette
27 Hampton
28 Montana St
29 Hofstra
30 Colgate
41 S Dakota St
47 N Arizona
56 Idaho St
68 CS Sacramento
72 Weber St
***
Enthusiastic Skyhawks open football drills
By Aaron Unterreiner, The Durango Herald
http://durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=sports&article_path=/sports/05/sports050813_2.htm
The players on the Fort Lewis College football team know exactly what is
ahead of them, and they are embracing the challenge.
"Oh yeah," said junior offensive lineman Jon Call. "We're bubblin' over
right now. We've got 20 seniors out here, and we're out for vengeance."
Call might as well have been the Skyhawks spokesman for the 100-plus who
suited up in their purple and gold practice digs for the first time in 2005.
Friday marked practice No. 1 of the '05 season, and rather than going
through the motions, Call and crew exploded from break knowing full well who
awaits them in Week 1: the University of Montana.
As in, Montana, the third-ranked team and perennial powerhouse of Division
I-AA football.
*To see more click link above
***
Altitude Sports Fall Schedule for the Big Sky Conference
http://www.altitude.tv/news/newsDetails.aspx?NID=103
Sat., Oct. 1 Idaho St. @ Montana St. 1:30 PM
Sat., Oct. 8 Montana St. @ Weber St. 1:30 PM
Sat., Nov. 12 Sam Houston State @ Northern Colorado 12 PM
Sat., Nov. 19 Montana @ Montana St. 12 PM
[Note: Sat., Sept. 3 Ball State @ Iowa 10 AM]
[Note; Sat., Sept. 3 Northern Colorado vs. Colorado Mines 3 PM]
***
Schools with the Top Fans of I-AA
Chuck Burton, I-AA.org, Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.i-aa.org/article.asp?articleid=71441
I make no bones about it: I'm a Lehigh guy. The Mountain Hawks are my team -
when they win, it's all smiles and back-slapping in the office. When they
lose, no client or co-worker is safe from my sneering and foul mood. Like it
or not, my quality of life is affected by Lehigh wins and losses.
This year, however, I'm going to be writing a series of game diaries for
many schools other than my beloved Mountain Hawks. As a result, I thought it
might be worthwhile to ask the question - what are the fans like around
I-AA? How similar are they to Lehigh's special bunch of crazed, yet cynical,
fans?
As I study the rest of the "cult of I-AA", it's beginning to dawn on me that
there are legions of fans of other I-AA schools that feel exactly the way I
do. Yet even though there are similarities, every I-AA school has their own
set of unique fans with their own idiosyncracies. It's not just the Lehigh
Valley that has their share of passionate fans, school spirit and
pathological behavior. It's a syndrome that affects millions across the USA.
As I understand it, nobody has ever taken on the Herculean undertaking which
is analyzing, studying, even getting into the skins of those fans at other
I-AA schools other than their own. Until now, that is. Through intense hard
work, determination, and expert googling skills, I was able to rate the 20
schools with the most intense fans, and find what sort of fans they are. All
live and die with their teams, and have lots of passion. But they're all
unique.
Let's jump right into the party. In this installment, I'll rank #20 to #16.
*To see more click link above
***
Sagarin Ratings: Final for 2004
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/sagarin/fbt04.htm
36 James Madison AA
37 Harvard AA
39 Bowling Green A
49 Wyoming A
50 New Hampshire AA
51 Oregon A
58 William & Mary AA
64 Montana AA
70 Delaware AA
80 Villanova AA
84 Georgia Southern AA
86 Sam Houston State AA
87 Northeastern AA
88 Eastern Washington AA
89 Southern Illinois AA
93 Maine AA
95 Cal Poly-SLO AA
96 Furman AA
97 Massachusetts AA
99 Hofstra AA
100 Pennsylvania AA
106 Marshall A
108 Washington A
109 Portland State AA
***
Glenn's success at Wyoming no surprise
By JOSEPH SANCHEZ - The Denver Post - 8/15/05
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2005/08/15/sports/b01081505_02.txt
LARMAMIE, WYO. — Joe Glenn could finally relax. Back home in Lincoln, Neb.,
a couple of weeks ago, he was enjoying some hard-earned vacation time in the
historically preserved, 100-year-old home of his daughter, Erin, and her
husband, Jim Glenn-Hash.
On his last day in town, he challenged his son-in-law to a ‘‘World Series''
of pingpong in the basement. Showing his competitive fire, Glenn rallied
from a 14-7 deficit to win the seventh and deciding game in a best-of-seven
series, then put his sweat-soaked Wyoming T-shirt back on and went upstairs
to say goodbye to his daughter.
Kneeling, he put his face to her belly and sang ‘‘Ragtime Cowboy Joe'' to
the baby that's due any day now.
Jim Glenn-Hash said, ‘‘You know, he's just a fierce competitor. I was
undefeated until he came into my house and beat me. But, oh, my gosh, did we
have fun.''
Erin said, ‘‘I was like, ‘Oh, my God, he's not doing this.' But you know,
that's just my dad.''
Yes, that's Joe Glenn, head football coach at Wyoming.
And that, in a couple of family snapshots, is probably the secret of Glenn's
success.
He loves to win, and he loves to love.
*To see more click link above
***
McBride winning big before games even start
By Kurt Kragthorpe, Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_2928103
OGDEN -- After a year when Weber State lost 10 of 11 football games and
never attracted as many as 10,000 fans to Stewart Stadium, the Wildcats will
open the 2005 season Sept. 3 against Western State, a lower-level school
that's not exactly a major draw.
None of which explains why grounds crews are clearing the surrounding
hillside and school officials are arranging for temporary bleachers, while
hoping to break an attendance record at the 17,500-seat stadium.
As a Division I-AA program in a state with three I-A schools, WSU
struggles even to be the biggest deal in Ogden. But things are much
different these days. Coach Ron McBride's only problem is that now his team
actually has to play the games.
William Weidner was WSU's athletic director for only five months before
moving on, but he made the biggest impact of any administrator in school
history by hiring McBride, the former University of Utah coach. Measured by
an unofficial scale of preseason buzz, the move rivals Utah's hiring of
Urban Meyer as the replacement for McBride.
"It's been a blast," said Chad Gerrety, WSU's marketing director.
"Ever since he got here, everyone in town has just been talking about
Coach Mac," said Wildcat quarterback Ian Pizarro. "There's a big hype, which
is good. Now, we just have to prove to everyone that we are good."
*To see more click link above
***
Tough schedule of Beavers and Broncos looms for the Vikings
By ANNE M. PETERSON / Associated Press (KGW News, Portland), Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8BTU25G0.html
Sawyer Smith spent two seasons as quarterback Joe Wiser's understudy. Now
he's ready to make the Portland State Vikings his own.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound junior opened fall practice with the Vikings this
week, in preparation for one of the school's toughest-ever schedules.
Smith, who is from Chehalis, Wash., looks to add a new dimension to a team
that for the past two seasons has been best known for its running game.
"My build, athletically, I'm probably more of a pocket passer. Joe was
pretty good at scrambling," he said. "I think it will help our passing game
a lot this year with the addition of (receiver) Nic Costa — we're deeper in
our receiving corps than we were last year, because we pretty much have
everybody back."
Portland State, picked by the Big Sky coaches to finish third in the
conference, opens the season Sept. 3 against Oregon State at the newly
expanded Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore.
*To see more click link above
***
What's in a name?
Andrew Hinkelman, Kalispell Daily Interlake, Aug 07, 2005
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articles/2005/08/15/sports/sports01.txt
Only the NCAA could come up with a policy as stupid as the one on Indian
nicknames and mascots announced Friday.
Well, the NCAA and pretty much any government agency.
And Bud Selig. And Gary Bettman.
And the people behind some of the nuttier ballot initiatives.
And this wacky CEO of a software company I once worked for.
This is the same outfit (talking about the NCAA, here) that rather than
having its top-tier football teams play for a national championship came up
with a popularity contest instead.
So the NCAA has deemed certain mascots and nicknames (Braves, Indians,
Seminoles, Redmen and Savages are but a few) to be "hostile" and "abusive."
That's fine, it's within their purview to do so and we can agree or
disagree.
But to then decide on this half-baked, dim-witted, wishy-washy lunacy of
only banning these particular nicknames and mascots during postseason
tournaments is a feat of remarkable incompetence, even for an organization
that has given us the BCS.
*To see more click link above
Grizzlies rebuild receiving corps (Missoulian, Aug. 12).
Griz hope to settle openings left by graduations (Missoulian, Aug. 11,
2005).
---
Griz Second Among 8 I-AA Polls (Massey).
Enthusiastic Skyhawks open football drills (Ft. Lewis; The Durango Herald).
Altitude Sports Fall Schedule for the Big Sky Conference.
---
Schools with the Top Fans of I-AA, #16-#20 (Burton, I-AA.org, Aug. 11).
JMU ahead of Bowling Green and Oregon in final 2004 Sagarin's.
Glenn's success at Wyoming no surprise (The Denver Post, Aug. 15).
McBride winning big before games even start (Salt Lake Tribune, Aug. 15).
Tough schedule of Beavers and Broncos looms for the Vikings (AP, KGW News,
Aug. 11, 2005
What's in a name? (Daily Interlake, Aug. 7).
***
Griz punter Johnson fastest toe in the West
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 13, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/13/sports/sports01.txt
Tyson Johnson may be the fastest punter in the Big Sky Conference. His
intention is to be the best one.
The 192-pound junior out of Stevensville finished last season with the
15th-best average in Division I-AA, at 41.4 yards per punt. Trouble was, he
ranked fifth in the Big Sky, where Northern Arizona, Portland State, Montana
State and Idaho State all ranked in the top five in net punting.
He was also a little uneven. In Montana's losses to Sam Houston State and
Portland State, Johnson averaged 33.3 and 25.8 yards. That stuck with him.
"It's kind of a big year for me," Johnson said Friday. "I had a couple games
where I struggled last year, and hurt our team. I want to work on my
consistency."
In spring drills, the ball was consistently flying off Johnson's foot, and
he has continued to boom punts the first three days of fall camp.
*To see more click link above
***
Grizzlies rebuild receiving corps
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 12, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/12/sports/sports01.txt
If a football coach could have his druthers, he probably wouldn't want to
rebuild his receiving corps at the same time he's holding quarterback
auditions.
That's the situation for the Montana Grizzlies, where third-year coach Bobby
Hauck has 57 receptions returning from his 2004 group of wideouts.
Fifty-five of those belong to senior Jon Talmage, and the other two to
sophomore Ryan Bagley.
"The flip side of the coin is last year we were breaking in basically a new
offensive line," said Hauck, who is overseeing a quarterback battle between
Cole Bergquist and Jason Washington. "That's college football. You replace
your guys."
Gone are Jefferson Heidelberger, Tate Hancock and Levander Segars, who
combined for 203 receptions last season. After Talmage the next closest
pass-catcher is all-Big Sky running back Lex Hilliard, with 22.
So a fleet of receivers, led by Talmage and Bagley, tooled around the South
Campus fields trying to make an impression Thursday. When the smoke cleared
- or didn't clear - Bagley had made a circus catch during 7-on-7 drills,
beating two defenders to a bomb from Washington.
*To see more click link above
***
Griz hope to settle openings left by graduations
By FRITZ NEIGHBOR of the Missoulian, Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.missoulian.com/articles/2005/08/11/sports/sports01.txt
It's a position left unsettled by the graduation of a couple seniors, a spot
that, if deemed a weakness, could quickly be exploited by Montana's football
opponents.
The Grizzlies need to find a starting quarterback, as well.
The University of Montana opened its 2005 fall camp with 90 players
Wednesday, practicing on the fields adjacent to Dornblaser and the South
Campus stadiums.
A handful of those players - Jesse Carlson, Alan Saenz, Gabe Brown, Kerry
Mullan, Kyle Gallagher, Kelly Kain and Craig Mettler - will be looking to
shore up the defensive tackle spot for the '05 Griz. It's a position that
lost three seniors off last year's 12-3 team, in John Cahill, Jonny Varona
and Blake Horgan. By Sept. 3, when the Grizzlies open their season against
Fort Lewis (Colo.) College, they plan to have a set rotation of four
tackles, with a couple more waiting in the wings.
"We hope," third-year coach Bobby Hauck said. "We've got guys listed on the
depth chart, obviously, but we need to get production out of that position.
And we lost a lot of production at that spot, and at wide receiver. The
fellas that are playing those positions need to show up and produce at the
same level of the guys they're replacing."
*To see more click link above
*** ***
Griz Second Among 8 I-AA Polls
College Football Ranking Comparison (8 Rankings)
Laz Index Keeper
Claassen CSL
Matthews Any Given Saturday
Massey
Dwiggins
Rank, Team
1 James Madison
2 Montana
3 Delaware
4 S Illinois
5 Harvard
6 Furman
7 Ga Southern
8 New Hampshire
9 E Washington
10 William & Mary
11 W Kentucky
12 Villanova
13 Cal Poly SLO
14 Massachusetts
15 N Iowa
16 Penn
17 Sam Houston St
18 Lehigh
19 Northwestern LA
20 Portland St
21 N Dakota St
22 Jacksonville St
23 Northeastern
24 Appalachian St
25 Maine
26 Lafayette
27 Hampton
28 Montana St
29 Hofstra
30 Colgate
41 S Dakota St
47 N Arizona
56 Idaho St
68 CS Sacramento
72 Weber St
***
Enthusiastic Skyhawks open football drills
By Aaron Unterreiner, The Durango Herald
http://durangoherald.com/asp-bin/article_generation.asp?article_type=sports&article_path=/sports/05/sports050813_2.htm
The players on the Fort Lewis College football team know exactly what is
ahead of them, and they are embracing the challenge.
"Oh yeah," said junior offensive lineman Jon Call. "We're bubblin' over
right now. We've got 20 seniors out here, and we're out for vengeance."
Call might as well have been the Skyhawks spokesman for the 100-plus who
suited up in their purple and gold practice digs for the first time in 2005.
Friday marked practice No. 1 of the '05 season, and rather than going
through the motions, Call and crew exploded from break knowing full well who
awaits them in Week 1: the University of Montana.
As in, Montana, the third-ranked team and perennial powerhouse of Division
I-AA football.
*To see more click link above
***
Altitude Sports Fall Schedule for the Big Sky Conference
http://www.altitude.tv/news/newsDetails.aspx?NID=103
Sat., Oct. 1 Idaho St. @ Montana St. 1:30 PM
Sat., Oct. 8 Montana St. @ Weber St. 1:30 PM
Sat., Nov. 12 Sam Houston State @ Northern Colorado 12 PM
Sat., Nov. 19 Montana @ Montana St. 12 PM
[Note: Sat., Sept. 3 Ball State @ Iowa 10 AM]
[Note; Sat., Sept. 3 Northern Colorado vs. Colorado Mines 3 PM]
***
Schools with the Top Fans of I-AA
Chuck Burton, I-AA.org, Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.i-aa.org/article.asp?articleid=71441
I make no bones about it: I'm a Lehigh guy. The Mountain Hawks are my team -
when they win, it's all smiles and back-slapping in the office. When they
lose, no client or co-worker is safe from my sneering and foul mood. Like it
or not, my quality of life is affected by Lehigh wins and losses.
This year, however, I'm going to be writing a series of game diaries for
many schools other than my beloved Mountain Hawks. As a result, I thought it
might be worthwhile to ask the question - what are the fans like around
I-AA? How similar are they to Lehigh's special bunch of crazed, yet cynical,
fans?
As I study the rest of the "cult of I-AA", it's beginning to dawn on me that
there are legions of fans of other I-AA schools that feel exactly the way I
do. Yet even though there are similarities, every I-AA school has their own
set of unique fans with their own idiosyncracies. It's not just the Lehigh
Valley that has their share of passionate fans, school spirit and
pathological behavior. It's a syndrome that affects millions across the USA.
As I understand it, nobody has ever taken on the Herculean undertaking which
is analyzing, studying, even getting into the skins of those fans at other
I-AA schools other than their own. Until now, that is. Through intense hard
work, determination, and expert googling skills, I was able to rate the 20
schools with the most intense fans, and find what sort of fans they are. All
live and die with their teams, and have lots of passion. But they're all
unique.
Let's jump right into the party. In this installment, I'll rank #20 to #16.
*To see more click link above
***
Sagarin Ratings: Final for 2004
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/sagarin/fbt04.htm
36 James Madison AA
37 Harvard AA
39 Bowling Green A
49 Wyoming A
50 New Hampshire AA
51 Oregon A
58 William & Mary AA
64 Montana AA
70 Delaware AA
80 Villanova AA
84 Georgia Southern AA
86 Sam Houston State AA
87 Northeastern AA
88 Eastern Washington AA
89 Southern Illinois AA
93 Maine AA
95 Cal Poly-SLO AA
96 Furman AA
97 Massachusetts AA
99 Hofstra AA
100 Pennsylvania AA
106 Marshall A
108 Washington A
109 Portland State AA
***
Glenn's success at Wyoming no surprise
By JOSEPH SANCHEZ - The Denver Post - 8/15/05
http://www.helenair.com/articles/2005/08/15/sports/b01081505_02.txt
LARMAMIE, WYO. — Joe Glenn could finally relax. Back home in Lincoln, Neb.,
a couple of weeks ago, he was enjoying some hard-earned vacation time in the
historically preserved, 100-year-old home of his daughter, Erin, and her
husband, Jim Glenn-Hash.
On his last day in town, he challenged his son-in-law to a ‘‘World Series''
of pingpong in the basement. Showing his competitive fire, Glenn rallied
from a 14-7 deficit to win the seventh and deciding game in a best-of-seven
series, then put his sweat-soaked Wyoming T-shirt back on and went upstairs
to say goodbye to his daughter.
Kneeling, he put his face to her belly and sang ‘‘Ragtime Cowboy Joe'' to
the baby that's due any day now.
Jim Glenn-Hash said, ‘‘You know, he's just a fierce competitor. I was
undefeated until he came into my house and beat me. But, oh, my gosh, did we
have fun.''
Erin said, ‘‘I was like, ‘Oh, my God, he's not doing this.' But you know,
that's just my dad.''
Yes, that's Joe Glenn, head football coach at Wyoming.
And that, in a couple of family snapshots, is probably the secret of Glenn's
success.
He loves to win, and he loves to love.
*To see more click link above
***
McBride winning big before games even start
By Kurt Kragthorpe, Salt Lake Tribune
http://www.sltrib.com/sports/ci_2928103
OGDEN -- After a year when Weber State lost 10 of 11 football games and
never attracted as many as 10,000 fans to Stewart Stadium, the Wildcats will
open the 2005 season Sept. 3 against Western State, a lower-level school
that's not exactly a major draw.
None of which explains why grounds crews are clearing the surrounding
hillside and school officials are arranging for temporary bleachers, while
hoping to break an attendance record at the 17,500-seat stadium.
As a Division I-AA program in a state with three I-A schools, WSU
struggles even to be the biggest deal in Ogden. But things are much
different these days. Coach Ron McBride's only problem is that now his team
actually has to play the games.
William Weidner was WSU's athletic director for only five months before
moving on, but he made the biggest impact of any administrator in school
history by hiring McBride, the former University of Utah coach. Measured by
an unofficial scale of preseason buzz, the move rivals Utah's hiring of
Urban Meyer as the replacement for McBride.
"It's been a blast," said Chad Gerrety, WSU's marketing director.
"Ever since he got here, everyone in town has just been talking about
Coach Mac," said Wildcat quarterback Ian Pizarro. "There's a big hype, which
is good. Now, we just have to prove to everyone that we are good."
*To see more click link above
***
Tough schedule of Beavers and Broncos looms for the Vikings
By ANNE M. PETERSON / Associated Press (KGW News, Portland), Aug. 11, 2005
http://www.kgw.com/sharedcontent/APStories/stories/D8BTU25G0.html
Sawyer Smith spent two seasons as quarterback Joe Wiser's understudy. Now
he's ready to make the Portland State Vikings his own.
The 6-foot-5, 230-pound junior opened fall practice with the Vikings this
week, in preparation for one of the school's toughest-ever schedules.
Smith, who is from Chehalis, Wash., looks to add a new dimension to a team
that for the past two seasons has been best known for its running game.
"My build, athletically, I'm probably more of a pocket passer. Joe was
pretty good at scrambling," he said. "I think it will help our passing game
a lot this year with the addition of (receiver) Nic Costa — we're deeper in
our receiving corps than we were last year, because we pretty much have
everybody back."
Portland State, picked by the Big Sky coaches to finish third in the
conference, opens the season Sept. 3 against Oregon State at the newly
expanded Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore.
*To see more click link above
***
What's in a name?
Andrew Hinkelman, Kalispell Daily Interlake, Aug 07, 2005
http://www.dailyinterlake.com/articles/2005/08/15/sports/sports01.txt
Only the NCAA could come up with a policy as stupid as the one on Indian
nicknames and mascots announced Friday.
Well, the NCAA and pretty much any government agency.
And Bud Selig. And Gary Bettman.
And the people behind some of the nuttier ballot initiatives.
And this wacky CEO of a software company I once worked for.
This is the same outfit (talking about the NCAA, here) that rather than
having its top-tier football teams play for a national championship came up
with a popularity contest instead.
So the NCAA has deemed certain mascots and nicknames (Braves, Indians,
Seminoles, Redmen and Savages are but a few) to be "hostile" and "abusive."
That's fine, it's within their purview to do so and we can agree or
disagree.
But to then decide on this half-baked, dim-witted, wishy-washy lunacy of
only banning these particular nicknames and mascots during postseason
tournaments is a feat of remarkable incompetence, even for an organization
that has given us the BCS.
*To see more click link above
