Saturday, December 20, 2008
HSU Wins in Overtime
Newcombe MVP and Allen on the all-tournament team. Check the web site in about an hour for the story and boxscore.
I think that was the 35th walk called in this game
Has to be an NCAA record. Make that 36 before I could type it.
Block by Kristen- LAyup Kenzie tie game
Babson then scores with 22.1 seconds to play HSU ball trailing 71-69.
Cowgirls Trailing with 5:06 to Play
Cowgirls trail 61-58. It has been an ugly last 10 minutes from the field.
55-53 Babson on a 7-0 run
Babson converts four straight HSU turnovers into eight quick points tied at 55 with 7:37 to play.
Different Look
The Cowgirls lead 53-43 with 10:00 to play and have a lineup of Hayleee Allen, Angels Newcombe, Kenzie Tarpley, Sarah Sides and Lara Colsman. The group has pushed out the lead.
Sarah Sides Scores And One
Sarah Sides is playing much more of late and she just had an old-fashioned 3-point play to give the Cowgirls a 51-42 lead with 11:07 to play.
Bo Warm has been out about six minutes and has gone back to the locker room with what appears to be a shin or ankle injury. Dot Fero is warming her up now.
Bo Warm has been out about six minutes and has gone back to the locker room with what appears to be a shin or ankle injury. Dot Fero is warming her up now.
Playing Really Well Out of The Break
The Cowgirls are playing really well out of the break and now lead 44-32. Newcombe and Bo have been hot since halftime.
Cowgirls Lead 34-28 At Halftime
Cowgirls have 11 assists on 12 made baskets, but Babson is outrebounding HSU 31-16 on the boards, including 15 on the offensive end. They had 16 turnovers we had 11.
Scoring
Haylee Allen 9
Mollie 7
Kristen and Lindsey 6 each
Bo, Jasmine and Kenzie have 2 points each.
Scoring
Haylee Allen 9
Mollie 7
Kristen and Lindsey 6 each
Bo, Jasmine and Kenzie have 2 points each.
Cowgirls Are Ice Cold
HSU has missed five straight FTs and even more easy shots it could be a 15-point lead or more but it is now 28-20 with 3:39 to play.
24-15 - 7:55
Newcombe has come back and been a force and Haylle Allen has run the floor well to get to the foul line.
Cowgirls looking good.
Cowgirls looking good.
Newcombe Goes Out
Newcombe just went out with her second foul with 13:30 to play in the half. Babson has cut it to 14-11. They are a very big and also athletic team.
Hot Early
Mollie is 3-for-3 early with seven points. Newcombe has the other four and the Cowgirls lead 11-5 with 14:49 to play in the half.
Championship Game
We are at the gym and getting ready for the championship game. The third-place game has about eight minutes left. I have posted a photo gallery from different things during the trip. I will have some more pics of the game tonight. Send me an e-mail at cgrubbs@hsutx.edu if you have any questions you want answered on the blog.
Friday, December 19, 2008
HSU 75, Gettysburg 61 (Final)
Played through a physical game. Haylee Allen had 18 points in the second half and 21 in the game. All five starters were in double figures.
Check the main site for a complete recap in an hour or so.
Check the main site for a complete recap in an hour or so.
Halftime
We played a lot of players during the first half, but we are in foul trouble. Haylee and Lindsey Newcombe have three each. Bo has two fouls.
First half numbers.
Newcombe 10
Harris 8
Warm 6
Brawner 5
Allen 3
Lewis 2
We held them to 23 percent shooting and forced 11 turnovers. Outrebounded them 29-20.
First half numbers.
Newcombe 10
Harris 8
Warm 6
Brawner 5
Allen 3
Lewis 2
We held them to 23 percent shooting and forced 11 turnovers. Outrebounded them 29-20.
Getting Sloppy
Lots of turnovers and fouls for both teams and Haylee has three fouls and Bo has two. Harris and Newcombe lead the way with eight each.
18-5
Running them out of the gym. Harris two breakaways she has six. All five starters have scored it is 18-5.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Checking In
The Cowgirls had a good day in the Bahamas. The team went snorkeling and also mixed in a practice. We will play at 11 a.m. (CST) on Friday and I will try to blog from the gym.
I don't have any pics from the snorkeling trip, but I have attached some from the area that we are in. It has been a very relaxing day and the weather is nice, but not all that warm. 70's with a sea breeze can actually feel chilly when the sun is behind a cloud.
Wednesday, December 17, 2008
Hello From Nassau
Greetings from Nassau.
Well the Hardin-Simmons Cowgirls and the traveling party have made it safely to the Bahamas. We had a relatively uneventful day on our flights and everyone’s bags made it safe and secure.
It has been a long day as the girls left Abilene at 5 a.m. and after a quick stop to drop some cars off at the Newcombe’s house in Keller it was on to DFW and a flight that finally left around 12:15. We arrived in Miami at 4:20 and then on to our connecting flight (a turbo prop) and then to Nassau.
It was dark when we got here so we have not actually seen the ocean yet but our hotel is really nice. We had a quick buffet meal.
To show how small of a world it is, we met a Hardin-Simmons alum and relatives of John and Tina Hunter in line checking in at the international section at the Nassau airport. We also saw former Cowgirl Rachel Cisneroz at dinner as she is here with the UT-Arlington women’s team, where she is the director of basketball operations.
Everyone is getting their bearings tonight and tomorrow is a relative free day until a 6 p.m. practice.
Send in your questions to my e-mail and I will try to answer them in this blog over the weekend.
Just to answer a question I have received – we will not be broadcasting the games. I will try my best to update the game score frequently on the main HSU athletics site during the game, depending on our internet access at the gym.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
This and That
I apologize it has been so long since I blogged. The crossover season is a really hectic time, but I wanted to mention a few odds and ends.
Basketball season is in full swing and both teams look to be contenders in the ASC again.
The men came away with an exciting win over Mississippi College on Saturday. That is the first time the Cowboys have ever defeated MC and they did it on a night when MC played really well. MC shot 48 percent in the game and had only 15 turnovers. HSU countered by hitting 15 3-pointers. This is a really fun style of play to watch, especially when the 3’s are going in.
The women are off to a 3-1 start and are a last-second shot from being 4-0. The Cowgirls definitely have the meat of the conference schedule at the front end. HSU plays MC, Louisiana College, UT-Tyler and McMurry in the first four games and that is probably four of the top five opponents in the league this year. If they can get through the gauntlet, they will be in good shape going into ASC West play.
I am really looking forward to the games at UT-Tyler on Thursday and then on the Monday after finals (Dec. 15) the two teams will play at home against McMurry. Both games should be great games and we encourage as many students to stay around for those games as possible. It is always fun to play in front of the big crowds for our players. Both teams are exciting to watch, so come out and cheer on your teams, you will not be disappointed.
Just a quick reminder that all of the games can be heard on the Internet at www.hsuathletics.com. Jay Ashby will bring the call of all of the home games and either him or I will call the road games at least until ASC West play begins.
Congrats go out to Justin Feaster as he was named the ASC player of the year and also is one of 10 finalists for the Gagliardi trophy, given to the top player in Division III.
I just wanted to give a congrats to all of our fall sport seniors. You all had great careers and to make it four years is a special feat. Hopefully, all will finish their degrees and look back on the great times they had at Hardin-Simmons. If you see one of these seniors around campus or anywhere be sure to tell them how much they are appreciated, because they really do take a lot of time and personal sacrifice to not only be at Hardin-Simmons, but to also represent the school on their respective teams.
I hope everyone will remember the reason for the season as we hit Christmas time. Be sure to enjoy the time with your families.
Basketball season is in full swing and both teams look to be contenders in the ASC again.
The men came away with an exciting win over Mississippi College on Saturday. That is the first time the Cowboys have ever defeated MC and they did it on a night when MC played really well. MC shot 48 percent in the game and had only 15 turnovers. HSU countered by hitting 15 3-pointers. This is a really fun style of play to watch, especially when the 3’s are going in.
The women are off to a 3-1 start and are a last-second shot from being 4-0. The Cowgirls definitely have the meat of the conference schedule at the front end. HSU plays MC, Louisiana College, UT-Tyler and McMurry in the first four games and that is probably four of the top five opponents in the league this year. If they can get through the gauntlet, they will be in good shape going into ASC West play.
I am really looking forward to the games at UT-Tyler on Thursday and then on the Monday after finals (Dec. 15) the two teams will play at home against McMurry. Both games should be great games and we encourage as many students to stay around for those games as possible. It is always fun to play in front of the big crowds for our players. Both teams are exciting to watch, so come out and cheer on your teams, you will not be disappointed.
Just a quick reminder that all of the games can be heard on the Internet at www.hsuathletics.com. Jay Ashby will bring the call of all of the home games and either him or I will call the road games at least until ASC West play begins.
Congrats go out to Justin Feaster as he was named the ASC player of the year and also is one of 10 finalists for the Gagliardi trophy, given to the top player in Division III.
I just wanted to give a congrats to all of our fall sport seniors. You all had great careers and to make it four years is a special feat. Hopefully, all will finish their degrees and look back on the great times they had at Hardin-Simmons. If you see one of these seniors around campus or anywhere be sure to tell them how much they are appreciated, because they really do take a lot of time and personal sacrifice to not only be at Hardin-Simmons, but to also represent the school on their respective teams.
I hope everyone will remember the reason for the season as we hit Christmas time. Be sure to enjoy the time with your families.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Cowboys Right Back For A Score
Long return by Robbins, long run by Carrillo and a 19-yard fade on 4-and-9 to Baker for a touchdown. 9:45 to play. Cowboys need a stop right here.
Headed to the Fourth 21-21
Stephens stopped two inches short on fourth down. UMHB ball 2-and-10 as we start the fourth quarter.
Punt Exchange II
Both teams exchange punts again and it is HSU ball at the Cru 46 with 2:51 to play in the third quarter.
Teams Exchange Punts
Both teams forced punts on the first drive. HSU takes the ball at 9:15 to go in the third quarter.
Halftime
30 minutes down and nothing has been decided. The game turned into a defensive battle the last six minutes of the second quarter. HSU has 272 yards of offense at the half with Feaster going 14-for-19 for 166 yards and two scores.
We get the ball first. Settle in it should be a good one.
We get the ball first. Settle in it should be a good one.
Feaster Scrambles For a Touchdown
Feaster avoids a rush and scrambles 15 yards for a touchdown. Shootout in Belton. 6:09 to play in the first half.
14-14 2nd Period
Carrillo with a highlight reel 30-yard one-handed touchdown catch. Both teams are moving the ball at will.
UMHB's returned a kickoff for a touchdown and the second TD came after a roughing the punter penalty.
Stay tuned UMHB driving at the 3.
UMHB's returned a kickoff for a touchdown and the second TD came after a roughing the punter penalty.
Stay tuned UMHB driving at the 3.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Championship Week
Can you believe the fall sports are winding down? It always amazes how fast the time flies when you get into postseason play.
I think all three teams playing in the championships this weekend are legitimate contenders for the title. The women’s soccer team is looking for its sixth straight title and will host the tournament at the HSU Soccer Complex on Friday through Sunday. If you get a chance come out and support the Cowgirls. They play at 11 a.m. on Saturday and if they win the championship will be on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The men play at UT-Tyler in what is shaping up to be a competitive tournament. The top five seeds were separated by just four points in the final standings. The Cowboys play at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The game can be heard on the Internet via the UT-Tyler tournament site.
The Cowgirl volleyball team will head to Seguin for the league tournament. HSU opens the tournament with a noon game on Friday against UT-Tyler. If they win they will play UT-Dallas at 5 p.m. Friday and the finals are slated for 2 p.m. Saturday. The championship game can be seen live by an audio stream. The Cowgirls came in eighth in the regional rankings this week.
All three tournaments will have livestats for all of the games and you can access those by clicking here.
The football team looks to continue its late season roll with the regular-season finale against McMurry at Shelton Stadium. The Cowboys look to be in good shape for a Pool C slot into the NCAA playoffs. HSU was ranked fourth in the region this week. Game time is set for 2 p.m. at Shelton Stadium.
I got a chance to watch the men and women’s basketball teams at their scrimmages this week and both looked very good. They both have a lot of experience returning and both have brought in a talented class. Believe it or not the Cowboys open the season on Nov. 15 at UT-Arlington. That game is set for 8 p.m.
I encourage all of you to come out to the games this weekend and if you can’t be there follow the games on our web site. The new site has been averaging about 1,300 unique visitors per day, so we hope you keep www.hsuathletics.com as your main source for Hardin-Simmons athletic news. The site has been a great investment in promoting HSU athletics.
I think all three teams playing in the championships this weekend are legitimate contenders for the title. The women’s soccer team is looking for its sixth straight title and will host the tournament at the HSU Soccer Complex on Friday through Sunday. If you get a chance come out and support the Cowgirls. They play at 11 a.m. on Saturday and if they win the championship will be on Sunday at 1 p.m.
The men play at UT-Tyler in what is shaping up to be a competitive tournament. The top five seeds were separated by just four points in the final standings. The Cowboys play at 2 p.m. on Saturday. The game can be heard on the Internet via the UT-Tyler tournament site.
The Cowgirl volleyball team will head to Seguin for the league tournament. HSU opens the tournament with a noon game on Friday against UT-Tyler. If they win they will play UT-Dallas at 5 p.m. Friday and the finals are slated for 2 p.m. Saturday. The championship game can be seen live by an audio stream. The Cowgirls came in eighth in the regional rankings this week.
All three tournaments will have livestats for all of the games and you can access those by clicking here.
The football team looks to continue its late season roll with the regular-season finale against McMurry at Shelton Stadium. The Cowboys look to be in good shape for a Pool C slot into the NCAA playoffs. HSU was ranked fourth in the region this week. Game time is set for 2 p.m. at Shelton Stadium.
I got a chance to watch the men and women’s basketball teams at their scrimmages this week and both looked very good. They both have a lot of experience returning and both have brought in a talented class. Believe it or not the Cowboys open the season on Nov. 15 at UT-Arlington. That game is set for 8 p.m.
I encourage all of you to come out to the games this weekend and if you can’t be there follow the games on our web site. The new site has been averaging about 1,300 unique visitors per day, so we hope you keep www.hsuathletics.com as your main source for Hardin-Simmons athletic news. The site has been a great investment in promoting HSU athletics.
Sunday, October 26, 2008
Celebration and Sadness In One Day
I have to admit that Saturday was one of the more memorable days in my time at Hardin-Simmons.
No it wasn’t a 55-10 win over Sul Ross State or senior days for the soccer program, but it was about the 500th game in the coaching career of coach Keeling.
People inside the program know what a special man that Coach K is. They know him as a fair man that loves his players no matter what. He will do whatever is in the best interest of his team no matter what.
He has taken a program and built it from scratch and it is one of the most respected programs in the country. His teams always play hard. They might not be the most talented, team on the field every Saturday, but you never see them not playing hard. With that simple mantra that his players have heard daily, the Cowboys have built that program.
I got the chance to talk to coach Keeling before the game. Every game he makes the walk from the fieldhouse, down the middle of the field and then to through the press box. I am not sure of the exact time, but my guess is it starts somewhere around 10:15 (Keeling time that is) and it probably hasn’t ever changed.
As he was going through the press box he stopped briefly and he thanked me for writing the story I wrote about him last week. In his usual manner, he said it was a pretty good story considering the content I had to work with. I have to disagree with coach on this one. He is a legend, even if he doesn’t want to admit it, and it has been a pleasure to work with him over the last 10 years.
As he was walking out the door he said I just want to win A game. I am sure he was talking about the Sul Ross State game, but I get the feeling that he wants to win THE game. You know the one that is played in Salem, Virginia on Dec. 20th.
This year’s team has overcome some adversity, come together as a group and they get better and better every week. Yesterday was about as perfect of a game as you can play offensively and the defense has improved leaps and bounds. From week one to now it has been an amazing transformation.
Back to the game, the Cowboys took control from the opening kickoff when ZaVious Robbins returned it 100 yards for a score. You could see how special the game was to the players and staff after the game in the celebration honoring their coach. There were many former players at the game, and that included some from his high school coaching days as well.
At a gathering at the Keeling’s after the game the gleam was still there and it was a celebration, but he asked me for scores around the league, like he always does on Saturday nights. He was already thinking ahead to next week.
There is no doubt Keeling is a special coach, but to many he is known more for being a special person.
I got to see how strong of a person coach Keeling was in January when Cowboy player Brentdrick Walker was killed in a motorcycle accident. He held his team together in a very emotional time. There is no book on how to handle that situation at Books-A-Million, but he could probably write one and make some money.
The loss of Brentdrick has had a big impact on this team. You may notice that the Cowboys have been late getting to the field for each of the home games. The reason for that is that every player goes by and touches the locker of their fallen teammate.
Unfortunately, coach Keeling may have to go back to that unwritten book this week as the Cowboy family has lost another one of its own way to early. Former Cowboy Ke-Ke Sims, who played in the 2005 and 2006 seasons for HSU as a cornerback, was killed last night in a car wreck in Abilene. Many of the current Cowboys were teammates with Sims.
The Cowboy family needs your prayers once again. It is so great to have a leader like coach Keeling in charge during the tough times. It is easy to be a leader in the good times, it is the bad times where your true identity is formed.
So what turned into a great day of celebration, turned into tragedy, but with the Lord’s guidance we will get through this again, because He has promised not to give us more than we can handle.
No it wasn’t a 55-10 win over Sul Ross State or senior days for the soccer program, but it was about the 500th game in the coaching career of coach Keeling.
People inside the program know what a special man that Coach K is. They know him as a fair man that loves his players no matter what. He will do whatever is in the best interest of his team no matter what.
He has taken a program and built it from scratch and it is one of the most respected programs in the country. His teams always play hard. They might not be the most talented, team on the field every Saturday, but you never see them not playing hard. With that simple mantra that his players have heard daily, the Cowboys have built that program.
I got the chance to talk to coach Keeling before the game. Every game he makes the walk from the fieldhouse, down the middle of the field and then to through the press box. I am not sure of the exact time, but my guess is it starts somewhere around 10:15 (Keeling time that is) and it probably hasn’t ever changed.
As he was going through the press box he stopped briefly and he thanked me for writing the story I wrote about him last week. In his usual manner, he said it was a pretty good story considering the content I had to work with. I have to disagree with coach on this one. He is a legend, even if he doesn’t want to admit it, and it has been a pleasure to work with him over the last 10 years.
As he was walking out the door he said I just want to win A game. I am sure he was talking about the Sul Ross State game, but I get the feeling that he wants to win THE game. You know the one that is played in Salem, Virginia on Dec. 20th.
This year’s team has overcome some adversity, come together as a group and they get better and better every week. Yesterday was about as perfect of a game as you can play offensively and the defense has improved leaps and bounds. From week one to now it has been an amazing transformation.
Back to the game, the Cowboys took control from the opening kickoff when ZaVious Robbins returned it 100 yards for a score. You could see how special the game was to the players and staff after the game in the celebration honoring their coach. There were many former players at the game, and that included some from his high school coaching days as well.
At a gathering at the Keeling’s after the game the gleam was still there and it was a celebration, but he asked me for scores around the league, like he always does on Saturday nights. He was already thinking ahead to next week.
There is no doubt Keeling is a special coach, but to many he is known more for being a special person.
I got to see how strong of a person coach Keeling was in January when Cowboy player Brentdrick Walker was killed in a motorcycle accident. He held his team together in a very emotional time. There is no book on how to handle that situation at Books-A-Million, but he could probably write one and make some money.
The loss of Brentdrick has had a big impact on this team. You may notice that the Cowboys have been late getting to the field for each of the home games. The reason for that is that every player goes by and touches the locker of their fallen teammate.
Unfortunately, coach Keeling may have to go back to that unwritten book this week as the Cowboy family has lost another one of its own way to early. Former Cowboy Ke-Ke Sims, who played in the 2005 and 2006 seasons for HSU as a cornerback, was killed last night in a car wreck in Abilene. Many of the current Cowboys were teammates with Sims.
The Cowboy family needs your prayers once again. It is so great to have a leader like coach Keeling in charge during the tough times. It is easy to be a leader in the good times, it is the bad times where your true identity is formed.
So what turned into a great day of celebration, turned into tragedy, but with the Lord’s guidance we will get through this again, because He has promised not to give us more than we can handle.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
500 and Counting
As we head down the stretch toward the postseason the soccer, volleyball and football teams are still in the hunt for conference titles.
The soccer teams have the most realistic shots at regular-season conference titles. The women’s soccer team needs three wins in their last four games to secure hosting the American Southwest Tournament for the sixth straight year. The Cowgirls have not allowed a goal in conference play this season.
The Cowboy soccer team is still in the hunt for the regular season title, but they do not control their own destiny for that title. They would need UT-Dallas to lose a game. However, if they win out they will finish no lower than second and that would get them a first-round bye in the ASC Tournament. That makes the last four games extremely important.
Saturday will mark senior day for the soccer programs and a tip of the cap goes out to the five seniors for the soccer programs. Kelly Watson, Cassie Sandifer and Morgan Loyd have all overcome huge obstacles to be factors for the Cowgirls. Watson has played her entire career despite being diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. Sandifer has been a solid contributor and may be one of the hardest workers on the team. Loyd has played through some chronic back pain and other painful injuries throughout the years and ranks fifth in school history in scoring with 120 points.
On the men’s side, Berto Martinez and Chinedu Okoro are a pair of players that have been significant contributors. Okoro did not play last year and has come back to lead a Cowboy defense that is one of the tops in the conference. Martinez has been a solid midfielder for the Cowboys.
The volleyball team is preparing for its final two weeks of the season. The Cowgirls play at McMurry tonight and then play in the Trinity Tournament this weekend. HSU needs to win its final four conference games and have McMurry beat Texas Lutheran to have a chance at sharing the conference regular-season title.
The football team continues to improve each week and that is a bad sign for opponents. I don’t know if it is possible to play a more perfect game of offensive football than the Cowboys played last week. The Cowboys set a school record with 499 yards rushing and set a Division III high with 692 yards of total offense. That is with starter Justin Feaster not even touching the field in the second half.
HSU needs to take care of its business the last three weeks of the season and the Cowboys would likely see themselves in the playoffs again.
I would be remiss if I didn’t congratulate coach Keeling for coaching in his 500th career game this weekend. It is amazing to have the passion and longevity that Keeling has displayed. Not only has he coached for 500 games he has won over 71 percent of them. I had the chance to set down with coach this week for a story and rest assured that the legendary coach is not slowing down any at all.
Not only is Coach Keeling a great leader, he does it the right way. His players respect him, they graduate and they go on and are productive citizens. I have never heard anyone that really knows anything about coach say a bad word about him. He is tough and fair and that approach has proven to be successful.
I have had a chance to watch the men and women’s basketball team practice a couple of times over the last week and they both look to be very exciting for this year. Both teams have brought in some great new talent and with both teams returning a lot of talent it could be a VERY, VERY exciting year for both teams.
The women’s basketball team will be having a BBQ dinner this Saturday at the football game for a fundraiser. They will be serving sandwiches, chips and a drink for $5. It is a fundraiser to help support their trip to the Bahamas in December so go out and get a nice meal before the game.
The soccer teams have the most realistic shots at regular-season conference titles. The women’s soccer team needs three wins in their last four games to secure hosting the American Southwest Tournament for the sixth straight year. The Cowgirls have not allowed a goal in conference play this season.
The Cowboy soccer team is still in the hunt for the regular season title, but they do not control their own destiny for that title. They would need UT-Dallas to lose a game. However, if they win out they will finish no lower than second and that would get them a first-round bye in the ASC Tournament. That makes the last four games extremely important.
Saturday will mark senior day for the soccer programs and a tip of the cap goes out to the five seniors for the soccer programs. Kelly Watson, Cassie Sandifer and Morgan Loyd have all overcome huge obstacles to be factors for the Cowgirls. Watson has played her entire career despite being diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. Sandifer has been a solid contributor and may be one of the hardest workers on the team. Loyd has played through some chronic back pain and other painful injuries throughout the years and ranks fifth in school history in scoring with 120 points.
On the men’s side, Berto Martinez and Chinedu Okoro are a pair of players that have been significant contributors. Okoro did not play last year and has come back to lead a Cowboy defense that is one of the tops in the conference. Martinez has been a solid midfielder for the Cowboys.
The volleyball team is preparing for its final two weeks of the season. The Cowgirls play at McMurry tonight and then play in the Trinity Tournament this weekend. HSU needs to win its final four conference games and have McMurry beat Texas Lutheran to have a chance at sharing the conference regular-season title.
The football team continues to improve each week and that is a bad sign for opponents. I don’t know if it is possible to play a more perfect game of offensive football than the Cowboys played last week. The Cowboys set a school record with 499 yards rushing and set a Division III high with 692 yards of total offense. That is with starter Justin Feaster not even touching the field in the second half.
HSU needs to take care of its business the last three weeks of the season and the Cowboys would likely see themselves in the playoffs again.
I would be remiss if I didn’t congratulate coach Keeling for coaching in his 500th career game this weekend. It is amazing to have the passion and longevity that Keeling has displayed. Not only has he coached for 500 games he has won over 71 percent of them. I had the chance to set down with coach this week for a story and rest assured that the legendary coach is not slowing down any at all.
Not only is Coach Keeling a great leader, he does it the right way. His players respect him, they graduate and they go on and are productive citizens. I have never heard anyone that really knows anything about coach say a bad word about him. He is tough and fair and that approach has proven to be successful.
I have had a chance to watch the men and women’s basketball team practice a couple of times over the last week and they both look to be very exciting for this year. Both teams have brought in some great new talent and with both teams returning a lot of talent it could be a VERY, VERY exciting year for both teams.
The women’s basketball team will be having a BBQ dinner this Saturday at the football game for a fundraiser. They will be serving sandwiches, chips and a drink for $5. It is a fundraiser to help support their trip to the Bahamas in December so go out and get a nice meal before the game.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Another Big Week
One of my favorite days of the year comes on Wednesday when the basketball teams open practice.
It has been a long offseason for both teams, but both teams should be among the favorites for ASC titles this year which makes it even more exciting.
The Cowgirls return three starters and six of the top eight scorers from last season. They have also added an extremely talented class of newcomers and this could be the year the Cowgirls make it back to the NCAA Tournament.
The men had an interesting offseason with coach Howard leaving and new coach Craig Carse coming in late in the summer. It will be interesting to watch how the team of talented players comes together. Cowboy fans will enjoy watching the up-tempo style of play. This team should score a lot of points, but must find a way to replace All-American Mardochee Jean in the middle.
It was nice to see the Cowboy football team play a fourth quarter with some breathing room on Saturday. HSU put away East Texas Baptist in the third quarter and how about the defensive effort. HSU picked off five passes in the game and you can see that unit starting to get more and more comfortable with the new scheme of Jay Niemann and Steve Barrows. The offense continues to move the ball at an amazing rate and they have improved their drive finishing rates.
It is good to see the team getting more and more confident each week and if they continue to get better a deep run in the playoffs is not out of the question. Before that can happen they have to play it one week at a time.
The soccer and volleyball teams continued their good seasons with strong weekends. The women’s soccer team beat Mississippi College 3-0 in a first-place showdown and also handled Louisiana College 8-0. They have the inside track on hosting the American Southwest Conference Tournament for the sixth straight year.
The Cowboys beat Louisiana College 4-1 and then got what has became par for the course treatment in Mississippi on Saturday. The Choctaws received a penalty kick with 22 seconds to go in the game to tie it and MC won it in overtime. This came after MC had twice tackled an HSU player in the box that should have been penalty kicks in the final minutes of the game. Such is life when you play at Mississippi College and you know going in you have to overcome it.
The volleyball team pushed its home winning streak to 15 and its streak over McMurry to eight with a win last Wednesday. The Cowgirls also won at Concordia. HSU will play at UMHB in the other crossover this weekend after playing at Howard Payne on Tuesday night.
HSU cleaned up on the ASC player of the week awards. Justin Feaster won his second of the year, Morgan Loyd won for women’s soccer and Kaela Parnell and Gracen Harris swept the offensive and defensive awards for the week.
The women’s cross country team had a fourth place finish at the UTPB meet on Saturday. Ashley (Allen) Huston ran her first meet of the year and finished eighth overall.
There are just three weeks left of the regular season for soccer and volleyball and it is on to the playoffs. The soccer teams have a light conference week as they only have one game this weekend against McMurry. The Cowgirls will host Southwestern on Friday in non-conference action.
Just a few other odds and ends.
• The Howard Payne game on Saturday is at 1 p.m. rather than the normal 2 p.m. start.
• The Cowgirl basketball team will have a BBQ sandwich dinner prior to the football game next Saturday. Check back for more details.
• The Sul Ross State game will be the 500th of the distinguished career of coach Keeling.
• How about my OSU Cowboys ranked eighth in the nation. I take a lot of grief about my alma mater in these parts, but it is nice to see them doing well.
It has been a long offseason for both teams, but both teams should be among the favorites for ASC titles this year which makes it even more exciting.
The Cowgirls return three starters and six of the top eight scorers from last season. They have also added an extremely talented class of newcomers and this could be the year the Cowgirls make it back to the NCAA Tournament.
The men had an interesting offseason with coach Howard leaving and new coach Craig Carse coming in late in the summer. It will be interesting to watch how the team of talented players comes together. Cowboy fans will enjoy watching the up-tempo style of play. This team should score a lot of points, but must find a way to replace All-American Mardochee Jean in the middle.
It was nice to see the Cowboy football team play a fourth quarter with some breathing room on Saturday. HSU put away East Texas Baptist in the third quarter and how about the defensive effort. HSU picked off five passes in the game and you can see that unit starting to get more and more comfortable with the new scheme of Jay Niemann and Steve Barrows. The offense continues to move the ball at an amazing rate and they have improved their drive finishing rates.
It is good to see the team getting more and more confident each week and if they continue to get better a deep run in the playoffs is not out of the question. Before that can happen they have to play it one week at a time.
The soccer and volleyball teams continued their good seasons with strong weekends. The women’s soccer team beat Mississippi College 3-0 in a first-place showdown and also handled Louisiana College 8-0. They have the inside track on hosting the American Southwest Conference Tournament for the sixth straight year.
The Cowboys beat Louisiana College 4-1 and then got what has became par for the course treatment in Mississippi on Saturday. The Choctaws received a penalty kick with 22 seconds to go in the game to tie it and MC won it in overtime. This came after MC had twice tackled an HSU player in the box that should have been penalty kicks in the final minutes of the game. Such is life when you play at Mississippi College and you know going in you have to overcome it.
The volleyball team pushed its home winning streak to 15 and its streak over McMurry to eight with a win last Wednesday. The Cowgirls also won at Concordia. HSU will play at UMHB in the other crossover this weekend after playing at Howard Payne on Tuesday night.
HSU cleaned up on the ASC player of the week awards. Justin Feaster won his second of the year, Morgan Loyd won for women’s soccer and Kaela Parnell and Gracen Harris swept the offensive and defensive awards for the week.
The women’s cross country team had a fourth place finish at the UTPB meet on Saturday. Ashley (Allen) Huston ran her first meet of the year and finished eighth overall.
There are just three weeks left of the regular season for soccer and volleyball and it is on to the playoffs. The soccer teams have a light conference week as they only have one game this weekend against McMurry. The Cowgirls will host Southwestern on Friday in non-conference action.
Just a few other odds and ends.
• The Howard Payne game on Saturday is at 1 p.m. rather than the normal 2 p.m. start.
• The Cowgirl basketball team will have a BBQ sandwich dinner prior to the football game next Saturday. Check back for more details.
• The Sul Ross State game will be the 500th of the distinguished career of coach Keeling.
• How about my OSU Cowboys ranked eighth in the nation. I take a lot of grief about my alma mater in these parts, but it is nice to see them doing well.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
On The Rise
I talked last week about what a big week it was for the Cowboy and Cowgirl soccer, football and volleyball teams.
It was a milestone weekend for the soccer teams as the men defeated Ozarks and tied UT-Dallas. With the win over Ozarks Dan Heger became the school’s all-time leader in wins. What a great accomplishment for him and his team.
Ozarks and UT-Dallas have been right at the top of the list along with the Cowboys as the top teams in the conference. The Cowboys head into another big weekend as the leader of the ASC and it has already played three of the top contenders. The schedule is lighter on the back end, but a trip to Mississippi College this weekend could be the determining factor if the Cowboys are to claim one of the top two seeds and allow HSU a bye in the first round of the conference tournament.
If you haven’t watched this team yet there are only two more chances and that is October 24th and 25th when Cowboys will play UMHB, led by former Cowboy Brad Bankhead, and Howard Payne. They are really a fun team to watch play.
Congratulations are also in order for the Cowgirl soccer team as they pushed their ASC unbeaten streak to 100 games. What an amazing feat. Coach Wood and the Cowgirls earned a 0-0 tie against old rival UT-Dallas.
This is a big weekend for the Cowgirls again, especially the game at Mississippi College. Currently, the Cowgirls are 5-0-1 in league play and Mississippi College is 5-0-0. If the two teams tie or if MC wins the game and wins out then Mississippi College would host the ASC tournament. HSU has hosted the last five ASC tournaments and probably not coincidentally have won the last five ASC titles.
I have been asked a couple of times about who would host if the men and women both were regular season champions. The quick answer is the women would host if they both won the right to host this season.
In the 2005 season both of our teams won the right to host and we hosted both tournaments. Honestly, it was not the championship experience that the league or anyone really wanted to put on. Without lights, there were games played not only at HSU but at Shotwell Stadium. Without lights the games obviously had to be played in the daytime. With shorter daylight hours in late November and four games having to be played on one day we had games starting at 8 a.m. and no one should have their season determined at 8 in the morning.
After that season the league’s coaches, then AD’s, then president’s voted that one school could not host both events anymore. They put in a system where if both teams won the right to host that the men would get the right in odd years and women in the even years. There are similar rules in NCAA Tournament play as well with both teams hosting. It is the only sport in the ASC that has this problem, because the other sports have divisions that alternate between the East and West.
The volleyball crossover tournament went well last weekend with the Cowgirls winning all three matches. They are currently one game behind Texas Lutheran in the standings and they still get to play TLU at home. The Cowgirls host McMurry tonight at 7 p.m. and can put some distance between themselves and McMurry. The Cowgirls have won 14 matches in a row at home and have won seven straight matches against McMurry.
The football game last weekend was really exciting and we had a legitimate chance to win the game. I think the team really believes it is making progress and if they can win out they would have a great shot at making the NCAA playoffs.
This weekend marks the 200th football game of the Jimmie Keeling era. The Cowboys host East Texas Baptist for Homecoming. HSU has never lost to ETBU, but the Tigers are undefeated in league play and have the lead on the Cowboys in the standings.
It was a milestone weekend for the soccer teams as the men defeated Ozarks and tied UT-Dallas. With the win over Ozarks Dan Heger became the school’s all-time leader in wins. What a great accomplishment for him and his team.
Ozarks and UT-Dallas have been right at the top of the list along with the Cowboys as the top teams in the conference. The Cowboys head into another big weekend as the leader of the ASC and it has already played three of the top contenders. The schedule is lighter on the back end, but a trip to Mississippi College this weekend could be the determining factor if the Cowboys are to claim one of the top two seeds and allow HSU a bye in the first round of the conference tournament.
If you haven’t watched this team yet there are only two more chances and that is October 24th and 25th when Cowboys will play UMHB, led by former Cowboy Brad Bankhead, and Howard Payne. They are really a fun team to watch play.
Congratulations are also in order for the Cowgirl soccer team as they pushed their ASC unbeaten streak to 100 games. What an amazing feat. Coach Wood and the Cowgirls earned a 0-0 tie against old rival UT-Dallas.
This is a big weekend for the Cowgirls again, especially the game at Mississippi College. Currently, the Cowgirls are 5-0-1 in league play and Mississippi College is 5-0-0. If the two teams tie or if MC wins the game and wins out then Mississippi College would host the ASC tournament. HSU has hosted the last five ASC tournaments and probably not coincidentally have won the last five ASC titles.
I have been asked a couple of times about who would host if the men and women both were regular season champions. The quick answer is the women would host if they both won the right to host this season.
In the 2005 season both of our teams won the right to host and we hosted both tournaments. Honestly, it was not the championship experience that the league or anyone really wanted to put on. Without lights, there were games played not only at HSU but at Shotwell Stadium. Without lights the games obviously had to be played in the daytime. With shorter daylight hours in late November and four games having to be played on one day we had games starting at 8 a.m. and no one should have their season determined at 8 in the morning.
After that season the league’s coaches, then AD’s, then president’s voted that one school could not host both events anymore. They put in a system where if both teams won the right to host that the men would get the right in odd years and women in the even years. There are similar rules in NCAA Tournament play as well with both teams hosting. It is the only sport in the ASC that has this problem, because the other sports have divisions that alternate between the East and West.
The volleyball crossover tournament went well last weekend with the Cowgirls winning all three matches. They are currently one game behind Texas Lutheran in the standings and they still get to play TLU at home. The Cowgirls host McMurry tonight at 7 p.m. and can put some distance between themselves and McMurry. The Cowgirls have won 14 matches in a row at home and have won seven straight matches against McMurry.
The football game last weekend was really exciting and we had a legitimate chance to win the game. I think the team really believes it is making progress and if they can win out they would have a great shot at making the NCAA playoffs.
This weekend marks the 200th football game of the Jimmie Keeling era. The Cowboys host East Texas Baptist for Homecoming. HSU has never lost to ETBU, but the Tigers are undefeated in league play and have the lead on the Cowboys in the standings.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
How Do I Know It Is Fall?
There are the obvious signs – the cool, crisp mornings and evenings, the weatherman said it turned to fall last week and tomorrow the calendar turns to October.
Then there are the signs that anyone around campus this week will see. There is the pep in the step of all of our fall sport athletes this week, there is the business-like feeling at the football fieldhouse and most obviously there is the schedule on my desk that says HSU and UMHB are playing football this week and HSU and UT-Dallas are playing soccer.
Since I have been at Hardin-Simmons there have been some rivalries that have come and gone, but two have remained at the top of the rivalry list. The football game with Mary Hardin-Baylor and the women’s soccer game with UT-Dallas.
Rivalries are good for teams. Rivalries are good for fans. Rivalries are good for the schools. Sometimes you can see rivalry games get ugly. Maybe a cheap shot here and there, some fierce competition and general disregard for the other team.
That is not what I have noticed with these two rivalries. I think there is total respect for the programs on both sides.
The football game has quickly become one of the top rivalries in Division III. Why? The biggest reason is that both teams have been good over a period of time. Both teams have had success (although UMHB has had the edge of late). The winner of the game has been the ASC champion every year since 1998 (there was a three-way tie one year).
The question for this week is how far has the Cowboy program come in a year. Last year UMHB won 47-14. I feel confident the Cowboys are better this year. I expect a close game on Saturday. It will probably come down to who can take care of the ball and who can come up big on special teams.
Now to the women’s soccer game with UTD. Granted there is a game with Ozarks on Friday, but make no mistake the big game for the Cowgirls is on Saturday. UTD and HSU have been the top teams in the ASC for many years. They have played for four of the last six conference titles.
HSU has gotten the better of the play of late. Since 2002, the teams have met 10 times and every one of the games has been decided by one goal or resulted in a tie. HSU is 6-1-2 in that time frame. The two ties are the only two ties during the Cowgirls run of 98 straight unbeaten league games that were not wins. The loss came in the 2002 ASC Championship (and the tournament games don’t count as conference games, thus not the ASC unbeaten streak).
The Cowgirls have won the games in painstaking ways against the Comets as well. UTD led 1-0 until the 88th minute of the game when Kelsey Jensen tied it up and then Amy Kuykendall gave the Cowgirls the win in overtime. In 2005, defender Natalie Longhofer scored in overtime to give the Cowgirls a win.
If the Cowgirls don’t lose either of the games this weekend it would push the streak to 100 games, which is the longest in the nation. What a sweet way it would be to get to 100. The games are always close and the Cowgirls more often than not have found a way to come out on top.
I talked to a former Cowgirl the other day about the streak and what it meant to them and her response was interesting to me. She said there is so much pride in the streak that they will fight to do whatever to keep the streak alive. She said she was part of the team that lost a home winning streak that had gone into the 50’s. It was the lowlight of her career at HSU to have that happen and each team’s leaders have done what it takes to relay that on to the newcomers.
That is the true definition of tradition.
You talk about the two rivalries, but it is also a big weekend for the men’s soccer and volleyball teams. The men take on Ozarks and UT-Dallas in a key weekend in ASC play. One of the three teams has won nine of the last 10 ASC titles and all three are expected to be at the top again this year. With a couple of wins the Cowboys would be in good shape heading into the back half of the league schedule.
The volleyball team is hosting the ASC Crossover for the first time in school history. HSU will play at 4:30 on Friday and will play at 9:30 and 2:30 on Saturday. There will be six games at the Mabee Complex over two days.
I encourage the HSU fans and students to come out to some of the games this weekend. You will not be disappointed and the players would enjoy your vocal support.
Then there are the signs that anyone around campus this week will see. There is the pep in the step of all of our fall sport athletes this week, there is the business-like feeling at the football fieldhouse and most obviously there is the schedule on my desk that says HSU and UMHB are playing football this week and HSU and UT-Dallas are playing soccer.
Since I have been at Hardin-Simmons there have been some rivalries that have come and gone, but two have remained at the top of the rivalry list. The football game with Mary Hardin-Baylor and the women’s soccer game with UT-Dallas.
Rivalries are good for teams. Rivalries are good for fans. Rivalries are good for the schools. Sometimes you can see rivalry games get ugly. Maybe a cheap shot here and there, some fierce competition and general disregard for the other team.
That is not what I have noticed with these two rivalries. I think there is total respect for the programs on both sides.
The football game has quickly become one of the top rivalries in Division III. Why? The biggest reason is that both teams have been good over a period of time. Both teams have had success (although UMHB has had the edge of late). The winner of the game has been the ASC champion every year since 1998 (there was a three-way tie one year).
The question for this week is how far has the Cowboy program come in a year. Last year UMHB won 47-14. I feel confident the Cowboys are better this year. I expect a close game on Saturday. It will probably come down to who can take care of the ball and who can come up big on special teams.
Now to the women’s soccer game with UTD. Granted there is a game with Ozarks on Friday, but make no mistake the big game for the Cowgirls is on Saturday. UTD and HSU have been the top teams in the ASC for many years. They have played for four of the last six conference titles.
HSU has gotten the better of the play of late. Since 2002, the teams have met 10 times and every one of the games has been decided by one goal or resulted in a tie. HSU is 6-1-2 in that time frame. The two ties are the only two ties during the Cowgirls run of 98 straight unbeaten league games that were not wins. The loss came in the 2002 ASC Championship (and the tournament games don’t count as conference games, thus not the ASC unbeaten streak).
The Cowgirls have won the games in painstaking ways against the Comets as well. UTD led 1-0 until the 88th minute of the game when Kelsey Jensen tied it up and then Amy Kuykendall gave the Cowgirls the win in overtime. In 2005, defender Natalie Longhofer scored in overtime to give the Cowgirls a win.
If the Cowgirls don’t lose either of the games this weekend it would push the streak to 100 games, which is the longest in the nation. What a sweet way it would be to get to 100. The games are always close and the Cowgirls more often than not have found a way to come out on top.
I talked to a former Cowgirl the other day about the streak and what it meant to them and her response was interesting to me. She said there is so much pride in the streak that they will fight to do whatever to keep the streak alive. She said she was part of the team that lost a home winning streak that had gone into the 50’s. It was the lowlight of her career at HSU to have that happen and each team’s leaders have done what it takes to relay that on to the newcomers.
That is the true definition of tradition.
You talk about the two rivalries, but it is also a big weekend for the men’s soccer and volleyball teams. The men take on Ozarks and UT-Dallas in a key weekend in ASC play. One of the three teams has won nine of the last 10 ASC titles and all three are expected to be at the top again this year. With a couple of wins the Cowboys would be in good shape heading into the back half of the league schedule.
The volleyball team is hosting the ASC Crossover for the first time in school history. HSU will play at 4:30 on Friday and will play at 9:30 and 2:30 on Saturday. There will be six games at the Mabee Complex over two days.
I encourage the HSU fans and students to come out to some of the games this weekend. You will not be disappointed and the players would enjoy your vocal support.
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Wow what a weekend!
If this past weekend is any indication of what we have in store it is going to be another great year. The soccer, volleyball and football teams had a perfect 7-0 weekend.
I got my first live look at soccer and volleyball and was really encouraged by what I saw.
Soccer and volleyball had taken their lumps with demanding preconference schedules. Part of that was youth, and part of that was by design. They all played tough competition with November in mind. I think all three of those coaches think they have very talented teams, but they are also all three relying on young players in key positions.
There is no doubt that all three did a solid job on the recruiting trail. That is a key part of the job that people on the outside don’t realize how hard our coaches work on. It is probably the biggest part of their job, because a coach is only as good as their players.
To be successful at Division III, you have to go hard after kids that have the talent to play at scholarship schools. That makes the job even tougher. Not only do they have to get the kids to not take scholarships they have to get them to sometimes win over parents egos regarding the prestige of getting a scholarship.
The reality is hardly anyone at Division II, NAIA or Junior Colleges are getting full scholarships. Most are on one-quarter or less scholarships. With the right combination of financial aid, a lot of times they would pay less bottom-line at Hardin-Simmons or other Division III schools. Getting parents, often-times more so than the potential student-athletes, to realize that is the toughest part of the recruiting battle.
HSU has a lot of things to sell – a beautiful campus, great and getting better athletic facilities, a great school where a degree means a lot, the Christian environment and an unmatched overall athletic tradition when compared to other schools in the conference.
All of that said, you can see the work our coaches have done on the trail and the success is evident on the field. There is another cycle of great young talent on campus, how they continue to progress will be the difference in a good year and a great year.
The volleyball team looked dominant in a pair of sweeps. The Cowgirls are still trying to mix the new players in with the large group of returners, but should be contenders for the league title.
The women’s soccer team won 9-0 and 5-0 and the men won 3-0 and 1-0. The tennis teams both had solid showings at the ASC Individuals Tournament in Tyler.
The football game was another barn-burner that didn’t feel as close as the final score indicated. The Cowboys moved the ball well between the 20’s and had to settle for three field goals. This team is getting better and better every week. The defense again shows continued signs of improvement and with more and more of the injured players getting back this team has the chance to be really good. They keep finding ways to win.
As good of a week as this past one was, the week ahead will tell a lot in the ASC races.
In case you haven’t seen, the women’s soccer team is on a 96-game unbeaten streak in ASC play. That streak will get a test this week. The Cowgirls hit the road to UT-Tyler on Thursday. HSU and the Patriots played for the ASC title and anytime you take a young team on the road it is a test. It will be the first road conference games and will be against one of the contenders. There have been several of these tests during the streak, but the Cowgirls have found a way to come through.
Not to be overshadowed is the men’s game at UT-Tyler. The Patriots are one of the top contenders in the league and a Cowboy win or tie could go a long way in the ASC race.
Both teams also play at Concordia on Saturday. Those games will be at Cedar Park High School.
The volleyball teams hit the road for an improved Schreiner team on Friday and on Saturday play at ASC West rival Texas Lutheran. HSU and TLU shared the conference title last year and then they played an epic five-game match in the ASC final that TLU won. The winner of the ASC West gets the right to host the ASC Tournament so a win on the road could go a long way in earning the right to host.
The football team returns home to host Mississippi College, who got on track last weekend with a 44-7 win over McMurry. MC and HSU tied for second in the league last year and were considered preseason contenders for the title this year. MC started 0-2 but is a talented team.
Everyone knows that injuries are part of the game, but when it comes to marquee players it is potentially team-changing. Our thoughts and prayers go out to two of the top players in the ASC in football. Adam Shaffer, who is the quarterback at MC, had a season-ending knee injury. It is the second-time in three years his knee has been injured in the opening weeks of the year. He was a preseason All-American and the preseason player of the year. Mary Hardin-Baylor star running back Quincy Daniels has an apparent season-ending knee injury as well suffered on Saturday.
I got my first live look at soccer and volleyball and was really encouraged by what I saw.
Soccer and volleyball had taken their lumps with demanding preconference schedules. Part of that was youth, and part of that was by design. They all played tough competition with November in mind. I think all three of those coaches think they have very talented teams, but they are also all three relying on young players in key positions.
There is no doubt that all three did a solid job on the recruiting trail. That is a key part of the job that people on the outside don’t realize how hard our coaches work on. It is probably the biggest part of their job, because a coach is only as good as their players.
To be successful at Division III, you have to go hard after kids that have the talent to play at scholarship schools. That makes the job even tougher. Not only do they have to get the kids to not take scholarships they have to get them to sometimes win over parents egos regarding the prestige of getting a scholarship.
The reality is hardly anyone at Division II, NAIA or Junior Colleges are getting full scholarships. Most are on one-quarter or less scholarships. With the right combination of financial aid, a lot of times they would pay less bottom-line at Hardin-Simmons or other Division III schools. Getting parents, often-times more so than the potential student-athletes, to realize that is the toughest part of the recruiting battle.
HSU has a lot of things to sell – a beautiful campus, great and getting better athletic facilities, a great school where a degree means a lot, the Christian environment and an unmatched overall athletic tradition when compared to other schools in the conference.
All of that said, you can see the work our coaches have done on the trail and the success is evident on the field. There is another cycle of great young talent on campus, how they continue to progress will be the difference in a good year and a great year.
The volleyball team looked dominant in a pair of sweeps. The Cowgirls are still trying to mix the new players in with the large group of returners, but should be contenders for the league title.
The women’s soccer team won 9-0 and 5-0 and the men won 3-0 and 1-0. The tennis teams both had solid showings at the ASC Individuals Tournament in Tyler.
The football game was another barn-burner that didn’t feel as close as the final score indicated. The Cowboys moved the ball well between the 20’s and had to settle for three field goals. This team is getting better and better every week. The defense again shows continued signs of improvement and with more and more of the injured players getting back this team has the chance to be really good. They keep finding ways to win.
As good of a week as this past one was, the week ahead will tell a lot in the ASC races.
In case you haven’t seen, the women’s soccer team is on a 96-game unbeaten streak in ASC play. That streak will get a test this week. The Cowgirls hit the road to UT-Tyler on Thursday. HSU and the Patriots played for the ASC title and anytime you take a young team on the road it is a test. It will be the first road conference games and will be against one of the contenders. There have been several of these tests during the streak, but the Cowgirls have found a way to come through.
Not to be overshadowed is the men’s game at UT-Tyler. The Patriots are one of the top contenders in the league and a Cowboy win or tie could go a long way in the ASC race.
Both teams also play at Concordia on Saturday. Those games will be at Cedar Park High School.
The volleyball teams hit the road for an improved Schreiner team on Friday and on Saturday play at ASC West rival Texas Lutheran. HSU and TLU shared the conference title last year and then they played an epic five-game match in the ASC final that TLU won. The winner of the ASC West gets the right to host the ASC Tournament so a win on the road could go a long way in earning the right to host.
The football team returns home to host Mississippi College, who got on track last weekend with a 44-7 win over McMurry. MC and HSU tied for second in the league last year and were considered preseason contenders for the title this year. MC started 0-2 but is a talented team.
Everyone knows that injuries are part of the game, but when it comes to marquee players it is potentially team-changing. Our thoughts and prayers go out to two of the top players in the ASC in football. Adam Shaffer, who is the quarterback at MC, had a season-ending knee injury. It is the second-time in three years his knee has been injured in the opening weeks of the year. He was a preseason All-American and the preseason player of the year. Mary Hardin-Baylor star running back Quincy Daniels has an apparent season-ending knee injury as well suffered on Saturday.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Cardiac Cowboys
Something special seems to be brewing with the Cowboy football team.
The Cowboys in the last two weeks have defeated two of the most storied programs in the nation and both times did it with scores on their final drive.
Yesterday felt almost like the opposite of last week. The Cowboys seemed to be the ones in control this week and all of a sudden a couple of good drives by Linfield and HSU looked up at a late deficit. Once again Justin Feaster and the Cowboy offense were up to the challenge.
Feaster appears to be the most comfortable in the two-minute, hurry-up situations. The Cowboys scored three straight touchdowns and a field goal last week in the hurry up. HSU scored at the end of both halves yesterday in a speed-up mode. The Cowboys have come up with ways to make big plays in tough situations.
While the Cowboys offense has come up big in the clutch, it is the defense that is the difference. The unit has forced six turnovers in two games, which have resulted in 28 points. They fly around to the football better and are more confident. The majority of the players playing on defense were on the unit last year. They are just a year more mature and the new scheme appears to be working, especially against the pass.
Overcoming adversity against good teams, teaches you a lot about a team. This team has done that twice and the good thing is that the Cowboys have not fired on all cylinders and are by no means healthy. This team will get better and better.
There are several players that are within a week or two of making it back. M.J. Hatchett, Garrison Hardin and Adam Rogers should be ready soon on the defensive line and that will add some depth especially inside, where the Cowboys have been really thin and playing four freshmen.
Kurston Williams should be back on the offensive line and Adam Podzemny and Matt Fields could be back to play wide receiver. The receiving corps has been productive, but there is little depth.
You add those six players and the depth is improved. All six can and all but Hardin have been impact players for the Cowboys. Things are looking up with this team and by the end of the year could be a national contender.
Just a Few More Things
This is a busy week at Hardin-Simmons. The soccer and volleyball teams will be home for the first time this weekend. All three squads open American Southwest Conference action. The women’s soccer team plays at Abilene Christian on Tuesday.
I am anxious to see all three teams play for real for the first time this season. All three teams have great talent and should all three contend for ASC titles.
For those of you that tried to listen to our game Saturday on the internet, we apologize for the mixup. It is never good to turn on the HSU game and hear the ACU broadcast. There was a communication breakdown between our internet streaming provider and the radio station. Fortunately it was back on for the exciting fourth quarter and the issues have been worked out.
I hope you have been enjoying the photo galleries, video and livestats on the new web site. The video is the viewer on the front page, the livestats can be found on the livestats button on the middle of the front page and the photo galleries are under the multimedia tab.
All of the photos have been taken by my graduate assistant R.C. Waters. He has done a great job with the number of photos we are able to get on the web.
Also the fall sport media guides (football, soccer and volleyball) are on the web. You can see them on each sports page.
The Cowboys in the last two weeks have defeated two of the most storied programs in the nation and both times did it with scores on their final drive.
Yesterday felt almost like the opposite of last week. The Cowboys seemed to be the ones in control this week and all of a sudden a couple of good drives by Linfield and HSU looked up at a late deficit. Once again Justin Feaster and the Cowboy offense were up to the challenge.
Feaster appears to be the most comfortable in the two-minute, hurry-up situations. The Cowboys scored three straight touchdowns and a field goal last week in the hurry up. HSU scored at the end of both halves yesterday in a speed-up mode. The Cowboys have come up with ways to make big plays in tough situations.
While the Cowboys offense has come up big in the clutch, it is the defense that is the difference. The unit has forced six turnovers in two games, which have resulted in 28 points. They fly around to the football better and are more confident. The majority of the players playing on defense were on the unit last year. They are just a year more mature and the new scheme appears to be working, especially against the pass.
Overcoming adversity against good teams, teaches you a lot about a team. This team has done that twice and the good thing is that the Cowboys have not fired on all cylinders and are by no means healthy. This team will get better and better.
There are several players that are within a week or two of making it back. M.J. Hatchett, Garrison Hardin and Adam Rogers should be ready soon on the defensive line and that will add some depth especially inside, where the Cowboys have been really thin and playing four freshmen.
Kurston Williams should be back on the offensive line and Adam Podzemny and Matt Fields could be back to play wide receiver. The receiving corps has been productive, but there is little depth.
You add those six players and the depth is improved. All six can and all but Hardin have been impact players for the Cowboys. Things are looking up with this team and by the end of the year could be a national contender.
Just a Few More Things
This is a busy week at Hardin-Simmons. The soccer and volleyball teams will be home for the first time this weekend. All three squads open American Southwest Conference action. The women’s soccer team plays at Abilene Christian on Tuesday.
I am anxious to see all three teams play for real for the first time this season. All three teams have great talent and should all three contend for ASC titles.
For those of you that tried to listen to our game Saturday on the internet, we apologize for the mixup. It is never good to turn on the HSU game and hear the ACU broadcast. There was a communication breakdown between our internet streaming provider and the radio station. Fortunately it was back on for the exciting fourth quarter and the issues have been worked out.
I hope you have been enjoying the photo galleries, video and livestats on the new web site. The video is the viewer on the front page, the livestats can be found on the livestats button on the middle of the front page and the photo galleries are under the multimedia tab.
All of the photos have been taken by my graduate assistant R.C. Waters. He has done a great job with the number of photos we are able to get on the web.
Also the fall sport media guides (football, soccer and volleyball) are on the web. You can see them on each sports page.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Land of 10,000 Lakes
Being from Oklahoma, I always have scoffed at the idea that everything’s bigger in Texas. On our trip to Minneapolis, I think Minnesota should use the logo “Everything’s Bigger in Minnesota”.
Everything seemed bigger to me. The Mall of America is ridiculous. Grapevine Mills would fit in the amusement park area of the thing. I have never seen so many stores. Then there steaks – wow – I have had a lot of good steaks in a lot of places, but I put our pregame steak up there with anything I have had. Not to mention the coconut cream pie. I love my grandma to death, but she got outdone on my favorite dessert.
Some other things that I noticed on the trip to.
The Republicans were leaving and that’s a good thing. They thought the election was apparently held last week. The election can wait until November.
The Metrodome is starting to show its age, but is a great place to watch a game. One question though, is 21 not the drinking limit there, because it seemed everyone over about the age of 14 had a beer (or maybe I am getting older and those 21-year olds look 14).
Saturday night games make Sunday’s very long. We got out of the stadium at Winona State around 10:15 and we got to our hotel about 1:15 a.m. By the time I did some work updating the web it was 2 a.m., which made that 4 a.m. wakeup call come very early. Fortunately we were back in Abilene by 11:30, but that doesn’t matter much when you have a four-year old and naps are not an option.
Chris McNair is probably the smartest person I know and he can explain things to dummies (like me) where they can understand it.
It has been a fast a furious start to the fall sport season, despite the fact that we have not had a home event so far.
The football game was quite an adventure. It definitely had its ebbs and flows. It seemed like we dominated the first quarter and you look up and it is still 0-0. They were able to break a long run to take a 7-0 halftime lead and there was not a sense of doubt at that point.
Two short fields led to a couple more scores for UWL and at 21-0 some doubt had started to creep in. Then a quick score and a couple of turnovers by them and scores by us and suddenly it is 21 all with a little over nine minutes to play.
Then they drive it down to the two and we come up with a big stop to keep the emotion on our side. Then the first play a mishandled snap causes a safety with just over three minutes to play. We get the key defensive stop and a clutch drive and kick for the win. It was the biggest deficit the Cowboys have overcome for a win in the Keeling era.
Men’s and women’s soccer got their first wins of the season last weekend and both of those young teams continue to grow each week. Both coaches say the same thing in the fact that by November they could be scary good.
Volleyball went 2-2 on its trip to Atlanta. Men’s and women’s tennis played at ACU over the weekend and I am still waiting on those results. The cross country teams had their first ever meet on Saturday at ACU. Women’s golf opened the season with a fourth-place finish at the UT-Dallas Tournament.
Everything seemed bigger to me. The Mall of America is ridiculous. Grapevine Mills would fit in the amusement park area of the thing. I have never seen so many stores. Then there steaks – wow – I have had a lot of good steaks in a lot of places, but I put our pregame steak up there with anything I have had. Not to mention the coconut cream pie. I love my grandma to death, but she got outdone on my favorite dessert.
Some other things that I noticed on the trip to.
The Republicans were leaving and that’s a good thing. They thought the election was apparently held last week. The election can wait until November.
The Metrodome is starting to show its age, but is a great place to watch a game. One question though, is 21 not the drinking limit there, because it seemed everyone over about the age of 14 had a beer (or maybe I am getting older and those 21-year olds look 14).
Saturday night games make Sunday’s very long. We got out of the stadium at Winona State around 10:15 and we got to our hotel about 1:15 a.m. By the time I did some work updating the web it was 2 a.m., which made that 4 a.m. wakeup call come very early. Fortunately we were back in Abilene by 11:30, but that doesn’t matter much when you have a four-year old and naps are not an option.
Chris McNair is probably the smartest person I know and he can explain things to dummies (like me) where they can understand it.
It has been a fast a furious start to the fall sport season, despite the fact that we have not had a home event so far.
The football game was quite an adventure. It definitely had its ebbs and flows. It seemed like we dominated the first quarter and you look up and it is still 0-0. They were able to break a long run to take a 7-0 halftime lead and there was not a sense of doubt at that point.
Two short fields led to a couple more scores for UWL and at 21-0 some doubt had started to creep in. Then a quick score and a couple of turnovers by them and scores by us and suddenly it is 21 all with a little over nine minutes to play.
Then they drive it down to the two and we come up with a big stop to keep the emotion on our side. Then the first play a mishandled snap causes a safety with just over three minutes to play. We get the key defensive stop and a clutch drive and kick for the win. It was the biggest deficit the Cowboys have overcome for a win in the Keeling era.
Men’s and women’s soccer got their first wins of the season last weekend and both of those young teams continue to grow each week. Both coaches say the same thing in the fact that by November they could be scary good.
Volleyball went 2-2 on its trip to Atlanta. Men’s and women’s tennis played at ACU over the weekend and I am still waiting on those results. The cross country teams had their first ever meet on Saturday at ACU. Women’s golf opened the season with a fourth-place finish at the UT-Dallas Tournament.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Losing A Great One
It was a day we have all prepared ourselves for mentally several times over the last several years, but we lost a great friend this morning.
Glen Casselberry not only worked in maintenance for the school, but for many years served as the video coordinator for the football team. He was at ever game and took every win with pride and hurt with every loss.
He loved the Cowboys and he loved the university, but the thing he loved more than anything he loved his son and wife Brenda. Hunter has been the ball boy for the Cowboys since he could walk. I can't believe he is already playing high school ball for the Jim Ned Indians. Their interaction showed love. They both loved the road trips, even in the early days of the cancer.
There is little doubt in my mind that Glen fought the painful disease so long for Hunter. There were things he wanted to see him do and he fought hard to the end to see those things.
Hunter had to grow up all too soon with this, but he is a great kid. Brenda is a loving mom and was a trooper through the whole process. They both need our prayers and our support.
Heaven found another Cowboy today. Glen is in a better place, he fought the fight and should be admired for his strength, toughness, spirit and the love of his family.
I am sure Glen will be up there with a view of the whole field, not just that two inch viewfinder.
Glen Casselberry not only worked in maintenance for the school, but for many years served as the video coordinator for the football team. He was at ever game and took every win with pride and hurt with every loss.
He loved the Cowboys and he loved the university, but the thing he loved more than anything he loved his son and wife Brenda. Hunter has been the ball boy for the Cowboys since he could walk. I can't believe he is already playing high school ball for the Jim Ned Indians. Their interaction showed love. They both loved the road trips, even in the early days of the cancer.
There is little doubt in my mind that Glen fought the painful disease so long for Hunter. There were things he wanted to see him do and he fought hard to the end to see those things.
Hunter had to grow up all too soon with this, but he is a great kid. Brenda is a loving mom and was a trooper through the whole process. They both need our prayers and our support.
Heaven found another Cowboy today. Glen is in a better place, he fought the fight and should be admired for his strength, toughness, spirit and the love of his family.
I am sure Glen will be up there with a view of the whole field, not just that two inch viewfinder.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
An Interesting First Week
Well it has been an interesting first week – in more ways than one.
Football reported last Thursday for its first day of practice. We also took their publicity pictures that day and I was able to finish up the media guide and send it to the printer. Feeling, I was really actually ahead of where I needed to be in preparation for the season. I was pretty far ahead in the soccer and volleyball media guides so I decided to get out of Abilene for the weekend.
The family and I went for a great relaxing weekend on the river and at the Zetsch Ranch in Mason (thanks Jimmie and Susan). Apparently the rain moved in early Saturday and has played havoc ever since with practice schedules and the like.
I was all refreshed and ready for the onslaught of Monday. Then in the middle of the night my wife and I got what we thought was some sort of bug. I missed out on work on Monday and went in on Tuesday but still did not feel great. My wife had kicked her virus and was back to work.
I got the new rosters on the web for soccer and volleyball and was catching up some other items and decided I was going to stop by the clinic for a shot just to get to feeling better. When I went in he sent me straight to the emergency room with a dangerously low oxygen saturation level. He suspected pneumonia, but wanted me to go to the ER.
The ER tested me for several things and they admitted me at about 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday. They did more tests on Wednesday and finally ruled out anything cardiac. Finally, on Wednesday afternoon they diagnosed me with bilateral pneumonia.
I am on the mend, but they will probably keep me around through the weekend (much to my shagrin). I actually feel great now, and am tired of sitting around in the hospital, but they want to make sure my oxygen levels get back to normal and the IV antibiotics work faster than the oral ones.
I guess the fall sport teams are still progressing in their process toward the seasons. The volleyball team is on the new Mabee Gym floor and the soccer teams are finally getting some nicer weather. The cross country teams are running in the mornings. Here are some photo galleries from soccer, volleyball and football. Look for more galleries coming up. They are located on the front page of the new web site under the Multimedia tab.
Hopefully I am back to work next week. I really do miss not being around for this time of the year.
I would be remiss if I didn’t think a few people. My new graduate R.C. Waters has done a great job this week, running the office with little direct training. Those of you that know R.C., know that he is going to do his best to get the job done and with his addition to the office this year we are going to be able to kick out even more content than ever before.
I have mentioned this several times before on this blog, but I work with the best coaches and staff in America. Almost all of them have called, e-mailed or been by the hospital. I thank everyone for all of their gifts, prayers and communication.
Good friends John Neese and Jeff Smith have been by a couple of times and I appreciate that. Not everyone can work under parameters that their boss is also a good friend, but as much time as John and I spend together we better like each other. I really do have one of most unique situations in all of college sports, because not only is he my boss, but he has also been an SID and knows the time commitment and knows what is important for the department (i.e. the commitment to a new web site, a new digital camera, a graduate assistant for the first time, etc.).
Oh well, I guess if this had to happen it is better this week than next, or the week after that, because we are going to have a great fall and I am looking forward to it.
Football reported last Thursday for its first day of practice. We also took their publicity pictures that day and I was able to finish up the media guide and send it to the printer. Feeling, I was really actually ahead of where I needed to be in preparation for the season. I was pretty far ahead in the soccer and volleyball media guides so I decided to get out of Abilene for the weekend.
The family and I went for a great relaxing weekend on the river and at the Zetsch Ranch in Mason (thanks Jimmie and Susan). Apparently the rain moved in early Saturday and has played havoc ever since with practice schedules and the like.
I was all refreshed and ready for the onslaught of Monday. Then in the middle of the night my wife and I got what we thought was some sort of bug. I missed out on work on Monday and went in on Tuesday but still did not feel great. My wife had kicked her virus and was back to work.
I got the new rosters on the web for soccer and volleyball and was catching up some other items and decided I was going to stop by the clinic for a shot just to get to feeling better. When I went in he sent me straight to the emergency room with a dangerously low oxygen saturation level. He suspected pneumonia, but wanted me to go to the ER.
The ER tested me for several things and they admitted me at about 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday. They did more tests on Wednesday and finally ruled out anything cardiac. Finally, on Wednesday afternoon they diagnosed me with bilateral pneumonia.
I am on the mend, but they will probably keep me around through the weekend (much to my shagrin). I actually feel great now, and am tired of sitting around in the hospital, but they want to make sure my oxygen levels get back to normal and the IV antibiotics work faster than the oral ones.
I guess the fall sport teams are still progressing in their process toward the seasons. The volleyball team is on the new Mabee Gym floor and the soccer teams are finally getting some nicer weather. The cross country teams are running in the mornings. Here are some photo galleries from soccer, volleyball and football. Look for more galleries coming up. They are located on the front page of the new web site under the Multimedia tab.
Hopefully I am back to work next week. I really do miss not being around for this time of the year.
I would be remiss if I didn’t think a few people. My new graduate R.C. Waters has done a great job this week, running the office with little direct training. Those of you that know R.C., know that he is going to do his best to get the job done and with his addition to the office this year we are going to be able to kick out even more content than ever before.
I have mentioned this several times before on this blog, but I work with the best coaches and staff in America. Almost all of them have called, e-mailed or been by the hospital. I thank everyone for all of their gifts, prayers and communication.
Good friends John Neese and Jeff Smith have been by a couple of times and I appreciate that. Not everyone can work under parameters that their boss is also a good friend, but as much time as John and I spend together we better like each other. I really do have one of most unique situations in all of college sports, because not only is he my boss, but he has also been an SID and knows the time commitment and knows what is important for the department (i.e. the commitment to a new web site, a new digital camera, a graduate assistant for the first time, etc.).
Oh well, I guess if this had to happen it is better this week than next, or the week after that, because we are going to have a great fall and I am looking forward to it.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Summer Is Over
There are signs marking the different times of the year. There is Christmas lights telling you it is almost Christmas, there are fireworks for the Fourth of July and the crispness of the morning telling us that the summer heat is a thing of the past.
For me there is no better indicator that the summer is over and it is time for another year like this week. On Monday, we had the conference Sports Information Directors meetings. On Tuesday, we took pictures of the football coaching staff, which is in the middle of what I call their bunker down week before the players arrive. On Thursday, we have our annual beginning of the year staff meeting.
It just means is the anticipation of a new year is finally here. It is my favorite time of the year, even though it is the busiest. To actually see teams back on the field or court practicing and getting ready it gets you fired up for what is in store.
There have been some changes in the offseason – we have a new men’s basketball coach in Craig Carse. I think our fans are going to enjoy his style of play and Chuck Hudson better be practicing punching those scoreboard buttons, especially for when other up-tempo teams like Concordia come into the building.
Speaking of basketball, the Mabee Complex floor is currently in the process of being painted. It was totally stripped down and new markings are being painted for the new 3-point line and permanent volleyball lines.
The track is coming along as well and should be ready sometime in the fall. The soccer and track coaches have moved out to their new home in the Fieldhouse at Grape Street.
We also have the new web site for this year and I am anxious to see some of the new features in place.
I expect that this is going to be another exciting year. Several of our teams are the on-paper teams to beat going into the year. Some of them won’t be. That is why we don’t play the games on paper.
Just seven more days until football practice starts up and about 10 before the rest of the sports get ready to go.
One More Thing
Is the Brett Favre finally over?
For me there is no better indicator that the summer is over and it is time for another year like this week. On Monday, we had the conference Sports Information Directors meetings. On Tuesday, we took pictures of the football coaching staff, which is in the middle of what I call their bunker down week before the players arrive. On Thursday, we have our annual beginning of the year staff meeting.
It just means is the anticipation of a new year is finally here. It is my favorite time of the year, even though it is the busiest. To actually see teams back on the field or court practicing and getting ready it gets you fired up for what is in store.
There have been some changes in the offseason – we have a new men’s basketball coach in Craig Carse. I think our fans are going to enjoy his style of play and Chuck Hudson better be practicing punching those scoreboard buttons, especially for when other up-tempo teams like Concordia come into the building.
Speaking of basketball, the Mabee Complex floor is currently in the process of being painted. It was totally stripped down and new markings are being painted for the new 3-point line and permanent volleyball lines.
The track is coming along as well and should be ready sometime in the fall. The soccer and track coaches have moved out to their new home in the Fieldhouse at Grape Street.
We also have the new web site for this year and I am anxious to see some of the new features in place.
I expect that this is going to be another exciting year. Several of our teams are the on-paper teams to beat going into the year. Some of them won’t be. That is why we don’t play the games on paper.
Just seven more days until football practice starts up and about 10 before the rest of the sports get ready to go.
One More Thing
Is the Brett Favre finally over?
Monday, July 7, 2008
Good Luck Coach
One thing about working in athletics, much like the Texas weather, it is always changing.
John Neese and I were having a conversation the other day about the number of people that have been around the American Southwest Conference since 2000. We came up with about a list of 12-15 people quickly off the top of our head that have been around that long and that is about it. I further looked at it and amazingly there are just 32. Take out SIDs and Athletic Director’s and there are 22 coaches in the league that have been in the league that long.
With 15 schools and each averaging about 12-15 coaching or administrative people and that is a very low percentage that have been in the league at least nine years.
That just goes to show you how much things turn over at small colleges.
We have been very fortunate at Hardin-Simmons to have coaches that stick around. We say it a lot, but Hardin-Simmons is a great place to be. Most of us are not here for the money. We could all go somewhere else and make more money. Most of our coaches could go coach middle school P.E. in the Metroplex and make more money than we get at HSU.
But life is not all about money and for the most part if you get into college athletics you are not into it to get rich. We have a great support system at HSU and have a great camaraderie between our coaches and staff. We for the most part do the jobs we do because we love them. There is little stress on us, we work in a comfortable work environment and are pretty flexible with our work schedules. Every one of us on staff knows when it is time to work, we get the job done. We don’t have to be told we need to put in more effort.
I think that has a lot to do with our success as a department as a whole. All of us have pride in our area and we don’t want to be shown up.
All of that being said change does happen and we lost one of the more veteran members of our staff over the weekend. Head basketball coach Dylan Howard has taken a job at Mississippi Valley State.
Coach Howard has done a great job for us at Hardin-Simmons and has been a very good friend to me. From an up-and-back trip to Colorado College in his first year, to the ASC Tournament three of the last four years it has been a fun ride. He took the team to the ASC final in 2007 and had a shot to win the game. There is one good thing about Coach Howard leaving, those Mississippi referees will be on his side now, because he never could get them on his side while playing against the Choctaws.
We had a lot of good times both at games here and on the road. We often found ourselves after a game finding a restaurant to rehash the game good or bad. Sometimes I would have to tell him we would win another game, or he would say they are getting better. He brought a lot of excitement back to men’s basketball at HSU. He allowed me to get close to the team, even watching practice on a lot of days.
We sometimes disagreed on different players and what they could and could not do, but most of the time he came around to my way of thinking.
If he would ever come around to admitting that Coach K is the most overrated coach in basketball history, we would be getting somewhere.
Some players thought they were getting the short end of it. Some finally figured out that he just wanted them to be their best, some didn’t and quit. Some players figured out soon that it was his way or the highway. It took some longer than others to figure that out. I think at the end of the day, his players figured out that if they did things the way he wanted them done they would have no problems.
Coach I wish you the best of luck and I am going to miss you.
John Neese and I were having a conversation the other day about the number of people that have been around the American Southwest Conference since 2000. We came up with about a list of 12-15 people quickly off the top of our head that have been around that long and that is about it. I further looked at it and amazingly there are just 32. Take out SIDs and Athletic Director’s and there are 22 coaches in the league that have been in the league that long.
With 15 schools and each averaging about 12-15 coaching or administrative people and that is a very low percentage that have been in the league at least nine years.
That just goes to show you how much things turn over at small colleges.
We have been very fortunate at Hardin-Simmons to have coaches that stick around. We say it a lot, but Hardin-Simmons is a great place to be. Most of us are not here for the money. We could all go somewhere else and make more money. Most of our coaches could go coach middle school P.E. in the Metroplex and make more money than we get at HSU.
But life is not all about money and for the most part if you get into college athletics you are not into it to get rich. We have a great support system at HSU and have a great camaraderie between our coaches and staff. We for the most part do the jobs we do because we love them. There is little stress on us, we work in a comfortable work environment and are pretty flexible with our work schedules. Every one of us on staff knows when it is time to work, we get the job done. We don’t have to be told we need to put in more effort.
I think that has a lot to do with our success as a department as a whole. All of us have pride in our area and we don’t want to be shown up.
All of that being said change does happen and we lost one of the more veteran members of our staff over the weekend. Head basketball coach Dylan Howard has taken a job at Mississippi Valley State.
Coach Howard has done a great job for us at Hardin-Simmons and has been a very good friend to me. From an up-and-back trip to Colorado College in his first year, to the ASC Tournament three of the last four years it has been a fun ride. He took the team to the ASC final in 2007 and had a shot to win the game. There is one good thing about Coach Howard leaving, those Mississippi referees will be on his side now, because he never could get them on his side while playing against the Choctaws.
We had a lot of good times both at games here and on the road. We often found ourselves after a game finding a restaurant to rehash the game good or bad. Sometimes I would have to tell him we would win another game, or he would say they are getting better. He brought a lot of excitement back to men’s basketball at HSU. He allowed me to get close to the team, even watching practice on a lot of days.
We sometimes disagreed on different players and what they could and could not do, but most of the time he came around to my way of thinking.
If he would ever come around to admitting that Coach K is the most overrated coach in basketball history, we would be getting somewhere.
Some players thought they were getting the short end of it. Some finally figured out that he just wanted them to be their best, some didn’t and quit. Some players figured out soon that it was his way or the highway. It took some longer than others to figure that out. I think at the end of the day, his players figured out that if they did things the way he wanted them done they would have no problems.
Coach I wish you the best of luck and I am going to miss you.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Well, here it is
Well, here it is.
The new and improved version of the HSU Athletics site is finally available for your viewing pleasure. I would like to thank several people that have made this transfer as easy as possible.
First and foremost is Mike Donlin at Presto Sports. He has made the daunting transition process run as smoothly as possible. He was always there to answer my questions and no matter how repetitive they had to seem to him, he never made it seem like I was bothering him. It is a busy time for Presto as they have several launches going live soon with several former CSTV clients like ourselves making the switch.
The Presto design team was amazing. Although I never met them or even talked to them directly, through Mike I gave them my vision of what I wanted to see in the site and they hit it spot on with colors, design, etc.
I have had several people help me throughout the entire process, either indirectly or directly. Corrie Reed is serving an internship with me this summer and she has received a load of work on the site. It may have been more than she bargained for, but I thank her for a job well done. Kirk Ashby and James Sweatman served as interns for me in the spring semester and they did a lot of the record updating in the spring.
I would like to thank R.C. Waters and Josh Bowerman who provided me with great photographs for the site. They take a lot of pictures over the year and I appreciate all the work they have done.
Athletic Administrative Assistant Kim O’Dell has been a great help as well. She has helped me track down things I needed for the site. John Neese has been valuable to me as he basically gave me the free reign to go out and find a new web site company and bring us to this point. I appreciate the trust factor for this exciting challenge. Assistant basketball coach and resident computer expert Melanie Orsak also has been my go to person on this project. She gave valuable comments and suggestions and it is always good to have a professional eye that your trust.
Last but not least, I have to thank my wife Lori. She had a major surgery last week (she is doing great by the way) and I have been working from home the last two weeks. I have basically been stuck to my computer for the last two weeks, but she has been understanding and also appreciative that I was able to work from home during this time (although she is probably ready for me to go back to work).
As for the site, we hope you enjoy the new look. This is an ever-evolving site and there are things on it that will not work yet, because we haven’t had games. We will still have livestats for our home games, a lot of our games will be on the Internet and one thing I am excited about is we will have the ability to put video highlights on the web for the first time.
If you see something out of whack or you have a comment, query, question or complaint, please drop me an e-mail. We look forward to a great year.
Did I mention that it is just 50 something days before our teams start reporting for fall camps. I guess I better get to work on some media guides.
The new and improved version of the HSU Athletics site is finally available for your viewing pleasure. I would like to thank several people that have made this transfer as easy as possible.
First and foremost is Mike Donlin at Presto Sports. He has made the daunting transition process run as smoothly as possible. He was always there to answer my questions and no matter how repetitive they had to seem to him, he never made it seem like I was bothering him. It is a busy time for Presto as they have several launches going live soon with several former CSTV clients like ourselves making the switch.
The Presto design team was amazing. Although I never met them or even talked to them directly, through Mike I gave them my vision of what I wanted to see in the site and they hit it spot on with colors, design, etc.
I have had several people help me throughout the entire process, either indirectly or directly. Corrie Reed is serving an internship with me this summer and she has received a load of work on the site. It may have been more than she bargained for, but I thank her for a job well done. Kirk Ashby and James Sweatman served as interns for me in the spring semester and they did a lot of the record updating in the spring.
I would like to thank R.C. Waters and Josh Bowerman who provided me with great photographs for the site. They take a lot of pictures over the year and I appreciate all the work they have done.
Athletic Administrative Assistant Kim O’Dell has been a great help as well. She has helped me track down things I needed for the site. John Neese has been valuable to me as he basically gave me the free reign to go out and find a new web site company and bring us to this point. I appreciate the trust factor for this exciting challenge. Assistant basketball coach and resident computer expert Melanie Orsak also has been my go to person on this project. She gave valuable comments and suggestions and it is always good to have a professional eye that your trust.
Last but not least, I have to thank my wife Lori. She had a major surgery last week (she is doing great by the way) and I have been working from home the last two weeks. I have basically been stuck to my computer for the last two weeks, but she has been understanding and also appreciative that I was able to work from home during this time (although she is probably ready for me to go back to work).
As for the site, we hope you enjoy the new look. This is an ever-evolving site and there are things on it that will not work yet, because we haven’t had games. We will still have livestats for our home games, a lot of our games will be on the Internet and one thing I am excited about is we will have the ability to put video highlights on the web for the first time.
If you see something out of whack or you have a comment, query, question or complaint, please drop me an e-mail. We look forward to a great year.
Did I mention that it is just 50 something days before our teams start reporting for fall camps. I guess I better get to work on some media guides.
Monday, May 5, 2008
Summer Time
The athletic seasons are over and we are set for a three-month throw-your-feet-up vacation.
Of course that would be great, but to the surprise of many that is not really how it goes around here in the summer time.
Yes, there are some vacations taken, and yes there is more down time, but it is the time of year that we are the most normal as far as working hours. At least hours the rest of the non-athletic world enjoys for most of the year. There is not a lot of weekend work to be done and of course no games to attend, but there is still plenty of work to be done.
There are the media guides for next year, finishing up the schedules for next year, reworking the archives from the past year and adding and updating records. We have a letterman’s golf tournament, the Hall of Fame selection committee meets and there are conventions over the summer as well.
Before you know it you look up and the kids that are leaving this week are back on campus and it is time for the first days of soccer, volleyball and football practice and it all starts again.
I will be the first to admit that I go stir crazy after about the first two or three weeks of the summer. After nine months of seeing as many games as I see, just watching the Rangers on TV is not enough. I am ready to see our teams getting after it and getting ready for another exciting year.
This was a down year for athletic’s at Hardin-Simmons, with only one conference championship. After losing as many great players as we lost last year and the success of the previous two seasons prior to this last one, it was somewhat of a predictable outcome.
The thing that all of the teams had is a strong young nucleus this year that will be back next year and several teams should be the favorites to win league titles this next year.
As many of you know we have taken great pride in our relationship with CSTV now CBS. We were the first Division III school to go with them back in 2002. Our relationship with them is ending and we will be going with a new company. They have been a great solution for us in the past, but they have made it impossible for us to maintain the relationship with a doubling of the rate we have to pay.
What does that mean for you? It means we are going to have a brand new athletic web site. We are targeting a launch date of June 30th. There will be very little updating of archival information or anything like that the we usually do at this time of the year on our current site. We are full steam ahead in the design process of the new site and there is no need to double the work load.
There are some things about the new company Presto Sports that I really like. One, they already do a lot of Division II and Division III schools sites and they understand us more than CSTV did. CSTV was more geared toward to Division I schools with huge staffs.
Next, is they are not just a cookie-cutter site. We have had some initial design discussions and we were able to go from the top down and give ideas that we wanted the site to look like. We are going to have the ability to show video clips and we will still have live stats for our home matches.
I think this will be a good relationship for us in getting the word out about our school to you.
Don’t forget to get your registration in for the Letterman’s Golf Tournament on Friday, June 27. Come back to Abilene, enjoy a round of golf and lunch and help support the HSU Athletic Department. We want to see you there.
Of course that would be great, but to the surprise of many that is not really how it goes around here in the summer time.
Yes, there are some vacations taken, and yes there is more down time, but it is the time of year that we are the most normal as far as working hours. At least hours the rest of the non-athletic world enjoys for most of the year. There is not a lot of weekend work to be done and of course no games to attend, but there is still plenty of work to be done.
There are the media guides for next year, finishing up the schedules for next year, reworking the archives from the past year and adding and updating records. We have a letterman’s golf tournament, the Hall of Fame selection committee meets and there are conventions over the summer as well.
Before you know it you look up and the kids that are leaving this week are back on campus and it is time for the first days of soccer, volleyball and football practice and it all starts again.
I will be the first to admit that I go stir crazy after about the first two or three weeks of the summer. After nine months of seeing as many games as I see, just watching the Rangers on TV is not enough. I am ready to see our teams getting after it and getting ready for another exciting year.
This was a down year for athletic’s at Hardin-Simmons, with only one conference championship. After losing as many great players as we lost last year and the success of the previous two seasons prior to this last one, it was somewhat of a predictable outcome.
The thing that all of the teams had is a strong young nucleus this year that will be back next year and several teams should be the favorites to win league titles this next year.
As many of you know we have taken great pride in our relationship with CSTV now CBS. We were the first Division III school to go with them back in 2002. Our relationship with them is ending and we will be going with a new company. They have been a great solution for us in the past, but they have made it impossible for us to maintain the relationship with a doubling of the rate we have to pay.
What does that mean for you? It means we are going to have a brand new athletic web site. We are targeting a launch date of June 30th. There will be very little updating of archival information or anything like that the we usually do at this time of the year on our current site. We are full steam ahead in the design process of the new site and there is no need to double the work load.
There are some things about the new company Presto Sports that I really like. One, they already do a lot of Division II and Division III schools sites and they understand us more than CSTV did. CSTV was more geared toward to Division I schools with huge staffs.
Next, is they are not just a cookie-cutter site. We have had some initial design discussions and we were able to go from the top down and give ideas that we wanted the site to look like. We are going to have the ability to show video clips and we will still have live stats for our home matches.
I think this will be a good relationship for us in getting the word out about our school to you.
Don’t forget to get your registration in for the Letterman’s Golf Tournament on Friday, June 27. Come back to Abilene, enjoy a round of golf and lunch and help support the HSU Athletic Department. We want to see you there.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Well here it is, we are headed down the home stretch for the athletic season and all of the teams have either qualified for or are still in contention for a playoff spot.
The tennis teams continue on their amazing streak of American Southwest Conference victories and they will put those streaks on the line this weekend at UT-Tyler in the ASC Championships. The Cowgirls are looking for their eighth straight title and the Cowboys are looking for their seventh. The Cowgirls have a 74-match ASC winning streak and the men have won 68 matches in a row.
This year will mark the first time that either team will face another ranked team as UT-Tyler is ranked in both men and women. The finals are slated for Sunday. Both teams have first round byes and would need to win a semifinal match on Saturday.
The golf teams will play the ASC Championship next week in Anna, Texas. Freshman Ashley Luecke is one of the favorites for the individual title on the women’s side and the Cowgirls should be one of the contenders for the league crown. The Cowboys will be one of about six teams that could win the tournament.
Softball has their backs against the wall and need to come up with wins at Howard Payne and the final series of the year against Mary Hardin-Baylor, which wall mark senior day for Lydia Bradley and Sadye Hill. Only the top three teams in the ASC West make the tournament and currently the Cowgirls are in fourth place, two games behind Howard Payne for the third slot.
The Cowboy baseball team is hot and has won nine straight games heading into this weekend’s three-game set at Texas Lutheran. The Cowboys can finish anywhere from second to fifth in the ASC West. The Cowboys need one win to secure a playoff berth. There are several scenarios for the Cowboys this weekend. Those games can be heard on the Internet at www.hsuathletics.com.
One key date for former Cowboy and Cowgirl athletes is the Lettermen’s Golf Tournament on Friday, June 27. It will be played at Fairway Oaks and it is a great opportunity to catch up with old teammates and also support the HSU Athletic’s Department. You should be getting an invitation in the mail in the next few days, if you do no please contact us and we will make sure you are invited.
There was a reunion of sorts last weekend as former Division III Player of the Year Kendra Anderson got married in Abilene. Several former teammates were in town for the event and I got the chance to see former Cowboy baseballer John Schlaffer and his new son at the baseball game on Saturday. John was handling baby duty very well. Schlaffer is married to former Cowgirl basketballer Terri Robinson (the 6,000-point scorer out of Ira) and they live in the Metroplex. Both are physical therapists.
The tennis teams continue on their amazing streak of American Southwest Conference victories and they will put those streaks on the line this weekend at UT-Tyler in the ASC Championships. The Cowgirls are looking for their eighth straight title and the Cowboys are looking for their seventh. The Cowgirls have a 74-match ASC winning streak and the men have won 68 matches in a row.
This year will mark the first time that either team will face another ranked team as UT-Tyler is ranked in both men and women. The finals are slated for Sunday. Both teams have first round byes and would need to win a semifinal match on Saturday.
The golf teams will play the ASC Championship next week in Anna, Texas. Freshman Ashley Luecke is one of the favorites for the individual title on the women’s side and the Cowgirls should be one of the contenders for the league crown. The Cowboys will be one of about six teams that could win the tournament.
Softball has their backs against the wall and need to come up with wins at Howard Payne and the final series of the year against Mary Hardin-Baylor, which wall mark senior day for Lydia Bradley and Sadye Hill. Only the top three teams in the ASC West make the tournament and currently the Cowgirls are in fourth place, two games behind Howard Payne for the third slot.
The Cowboy baseball team is hot and has won nine straight games heading into this weekend’s three-game set at Texas Lutheran. The Cowboys can finish anywhere from second to fifth in the ASC West. The Cowboys need one win to secure a playoff berth. There are several scenarios for the Cowboys this weekend. Those games can be heard on the Internet at www.hsuathletics.com.
One key date for former Cowboy and Cowgirl athletes is the Lettermen’s Golf Tournament on Friday, June 27. It will be played at Fairway Oaks and it is a great opportunity to catch up with old teammates and also support the HSU Athletic’s Department. You should be getting an invitation in the mail in the next few days, if you do no please contact us and we will make sure you are invited.
There was a reunion of sorts last weekend as former Division III Player of the Year Kendra Anderson got married in Abilene. Several former teammates were in town for the event and I got the chance to see former Cowboy baseballer John Schlaffer and his new son at the baseball game on Saturday. John was handling baby duty very well. Schlaffer is married to former Cowgirl basketballer Terri Robinson (the 6,000-point scorer out of Ira) and they live in the Metroplex. Both are physical therapists.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Make The Big Time Where You Are
Coach Keeling is known for his crazy sayings and quirks. One of the first things you notice on his desk is a “Make The Big Time Where You Are” plaque. Those are the words of former Pacific Lutheran coach Frosty Westering and the title of one of his books. Those words were ringing home as I realized yesterday how great it is to be at Hardin-Simmons.
Anybody that really knows me knows that I am a die-hard Oklahoma State fan. I earned a bachelor’s from there (albeit with a gentleman’s D in Spanish), spent four years there (after two years at junior college), met my wife there, worked four years in the sports information office there. I totally enjoyed my time there and love the place.
However, today I am ashamed by the fact that is my school. They fired (don’t buy the resigned line) a legend’s son after two years with a winning record. No one in the history of Division I men’s basketball has been fired after two years with a 10 game over .500 record.
There are many reasons flying around about the reason for the dismissal. From everything I gather it had to do with a conflict between the athletic director and Eddie Sutton. Even if there are some long term grudges it makes little sense to take it out on Sean.
I could ramble on forever, but it just made me realize is the glamour of Division I what it is all about. If firing a coach because he did not make the NCAA Tournament with a roster that included only one senior that played and two juniors makes it the big time then no thank you.
I am blessed to work every day with hard-working coaches that could make a lot more money at “the Big Time” that make a lot of sacrifices to be at Hardin-Simmons.
I feel pretty confident in saying that you will not be fired at Hardin-Simmons if you have a winning record for two consecutive seasons for your job performance.
One of many things that makes Hardin-Simmons a great place, is that it is not all about winning, but winning is nice, too.
Around The Campus
Make sure to make it out to the baseball and softball fields as the two teams are fighting hard for postseason berths. Both teams are having solid seasons, but as I say in this blog a lot the league just keeps getting better and better.
The men’s and women’s tennis teams are through the rugged non-conference section of their schedule and now return to ASC play. Golf is winding down its season as well.
There is a chance for the second straight year all 12 HSU teams will qualify for some sort of postseason play. HSU became the first school in the conference for that to happen to last year.
Anybody that really knows me knows that I am a die-hard Oklahoma State fan. I earned a bachelor’s from there (albeit with a gentleman’s D in Spanish), spent four years there (after two years at junior college), met my wife there, worked four years in the sports information office there. I totally enjoyed my time there and love the place.
However, today I am ashamed by the fact that is my school. They fired (don’t buy the resigned line) a legend’s son after two years with a winning record. No one in the history of Division I men’s basketball has been fired after two years with a 10 game over .500 record.
There are many reasons flying around about the reason for the dismissal. From everything I gather it had to do with a conflict between the athletic director and Eddie Sutton. Even if there are some long term grudges it makes little sense to take it out on Sean.
I could ramble on forever, but it just made me realize is the glamour of Division I what it is all about. If firing a coach because he did not make the NCAA Tournament with a roster that included only one senior that played and two juniors makes it the big time then no thank you.
I am blessed to work every day with hard-working coaches that could make a lot more money at “the Big Time” that make a lot of sacrifices to be at Hardin-Simmons.
I feel pretty confident in saying that you will not be fired at Hardin-Simmons if you have a winning record for two consecutive seasons for your job performance.
One of many things that makes Hardin-Simmons a great place, is that it is not all about winning, but winning is nice, too.
Around The Campus
Make sure to make it out to the baseball and softball fields as the two teams are fighting hard for postseason berths. Both teams are having solid seasons, but as I say in this blog a lot the league just keeps getting better and better.
The men’s and women’s tennis teams are through the rugged non-conference section of their schedule and now return to ASC play. Golf is winding down its season as well.
There is a chance for the second straight year all 12 HSU teams will qualify for some sort of postseason play. HSU became the first school in the conference for that to happen to last year.
Friday, March 14, 2008
Spring Is Here
Spring has officially sprung and it is one of the busiest times of the year for our sports teams at HSU.
Coach Rita Jordan’s young softball team, that features 12 newcomers, is off to a 6-4 start against a very challenging schedule. The Cowgirls open league play this weekend at Schreiner. After that they will be home for a series Wednesday and Thursday against Sul Ross State.
It has been an amazing start to the senior year of All-American first baseman Sadye Hill. She is hitting .556 in the early going with two home runs and 11 RBIs. She has not struck out and has an on-base percentage of .625. She is also nearing the conference record for career hits, is the current leader in batting average and with five more home runs and 24 more RBIs will hold those records as well. She also is closing in on the walks record.
The key to the Cowgirls’ season will be how quickly the pitching staff develops. With three freshmen in the current rotation, all of whom have shown flashes of brilliance, this team will continue to get better as the season goes along.
The baseball team snapped a brief three-game losing streak with a come-from-behind win against UT-Tyler on Tuesday. Ryan Stepp and Wayne Pimpton hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth for the win. Kyle Barton continues to be unscored upon for the Cowboys this season in 19.2 innings of work.
They are home for a key three-game set with Mary Hardin-Baylor this weekend and then will play at ACU on Tuesday. Prior to that game on Tuesday, there will be a ceremony honoring Brad Coleman of HSU and Alec Sowards of ACU for their Rawlings Gold Glove Awards they won last season.
The tennis teams are set to embark on their Spring Break journey to California to get in some quality competition. The teams have extended their ASC winning streaks to 69 and 63 straight matches for the women and men respectively.
The men’s golf team will open its season on Monday and Tuesday at Texas Lutheran and the women just returned from a tournament in California, where they placed fourth. Ashley Luecke placed eighth for the Cowgirls.
Coach Rita Jordan’s young softball team, that features 12 newcomers, is off to a 6-4 start against a very challenging schedule. The Cowgirls open league play this weekend at Schreiner. After that they will be home for a series Wednesday and Thursday against Sul Ross State.
It has been an amazing start to the senior year of All-American first baseman Sadye Hill. She is hitting .556 in the early going with two home runs and 11 RBIs. She has not struck out and has an on-base percentage of .625. She is also nearing the conference record for career hits, is the current leader in batting average and with five more home runs and 24 more RBIs will hold those records as well. She also is closing in on the walks record.
The key to the Cowgirls’ season will be how quickly the pitching staff develops. With three freshmen in the current rotation, all of whom have shown flashes of brilliance, this team will continue to get better as the season goes along.
The baseball team snapped a brief three-game losing streak with a come-from-behind win against UT-Tyler on Tuesday. Ryan Stepp and Wayne Pimpton hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth for the win. Kyle Barton continues to be unscored upon for the Cowboys this season in 19.2 innings of work.
They are home for a key three-game set with Mary Hardin-Baylor this weekend and then will play at ACU on Tuesday. Prior to that game on Tuesday, there will be a ceremony honoring Brad Coleman of HSU and Alec Sowards of ACU for their Rawlings Gold Glove Awards they won last season.
The tennis teams are set to embark on their Spring Break journey to California to get in some quality competition. The teams have extended their ASC winning streaks to 69 and 63 straight matches for the women and men respectively.
The men’s golf team will open its season on Monday and Tuesday at Texas Lutheran and the women just returned from a tournament in California, where they placed fourth. Ashley Luecke placed eighth for the Cowgirls.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
It's Tourney Time
In case you haven’t noticed by the 80-degree temperatures outside that it has turned to Spring and as the basketball teams hit postseason play the spring sport teams are getting their seasons in high gear as well.
The basketball teams will play in their conference tournaments this weekend. I anticipate a pair of highly-competitive events. Both teams seem to be playing at a high-level going into the tournament and both have legitimate shots at the titles.
Anytime you don’t return a starter, a back slide is expected. That is not been the case with the Cowgirls, who once again have won 20 games. It marks the 10th straight year the Cowgirls have won 20 games, which is tied for the fourth longest streak in the nation. The young Cowgirls have continued to progress as the season has gone along.
If they play as well as they can there is no reason they won’t be cutting down the nets on Sunday. It is a tough road to get there. HSU has to play Mississippi College in the first round and the Choctaws have improved greatly since the first meeting. A date with Howard Payne is likely in the semifinals. There is no doubt that HPU is a great team, but HSU is not that far away. A well played 40 minutes could get the Cowgirls to the Championship, where a crosstown showdown would not be out of the question.
There are a lot of unknowns for several Cowgirls how they will play in their first ASC Tournament. The talent is there. Best of luck to Shanna Briggs and the ladies in their quest for a seventh ASC Tournament title.
The men’s tournament on paper looks as competitive as ever. A first round loss or a championship is not out of the question for any of the eight teams. The Cowboys have several players with experience of playing in the tournament and that should help their prospects.
HSU has won at least one game the two previous times in the tournament and last year went to the finals. A win would be a nice reward for the Jean brothers in their senior year. Mardochee has had one of the best careers ever by an ASC player and it would be nice to see him play in the NCAA Tournament.
If the Cowboys continue to hit shots, I expect them to be in need of a pair of scissors on Sunday as well. To do that they will have to beat a very tough UT-Tyler team, then probably Mary Hardin-Baylor on their home court. They have beaten both teams this season, so it is not like they go in as a underdog, but it won’t be easy either.
The baseball, tennis and softball teams are all on the road this weekend as well against quality opponents. Coach Steve Coleman’s Cowboys are off to a 6-2 start. The softball team swept a doubleheader last week and is 2-0 on the year and the tennis teams play at arch-rival Trinity and open league play at Texas Lutheran.
The basketball teams will play in their conference tournaments this weekend. I anticipate a pair of highly-competitive events. Both teams seem to be playing at a high-level going into the tournament and both have legitimate shots at the titles.
Anytime you don’t return a starter, a back slide is expected. That is not been the case with the Cowgirls, who once again have won 20 games. It marks the 10th straight year the Cowgirls have won 20 games, which is tied for the fourth longest streak in the nation. The young Cowgirls have continued to progress as the season has gone along.
If they play as well as they can there is no reason they won’t be cutting down the nets on Sunday. It is a tough road to get there. HSU has to play Mississippi College in the first round and the Choctaws have improved greatly since the first meeting. A date with Howard Payne is likely in the semifinals. There is no doubt that HPU is a great team, but HSU is not that far away. A well played 40 minutes could get the Cowgirls to the Championship, where a crosstown showdown would not be out of the question.
There are a lot of unknowns for several Cowgirls how they will play in their first ASC Tournament. The talent is there. Best of luck to Shanna Briggs and the ladies in their quest for a seventh ASC Tournament title.
The men’s tournament on paper looks as competitive as ever. A first round loss or a championship is not out of the question for any of the eight teams. The Cowboys have several players with experience of playing in the tournament and that should help their prospects.
HSU has won at least one game the two previous times in the tournament and last year went to the finals. A win would be a nice reward for the Jean brothers in their senior year. Mardochee has had one of the best careers ever by an ASC player and it would be nice to see him play in the NCAA Tournament.
If the Cowboys continue to hit shots, I expect them to be in need of a pair of scissors on Sunday as well. To do that they will have to beat a very tough UT-Tyler team, then probably Mary Hardin-Baylor on their home court. They have beaten both teams this season, so it is not like they go in as a underdog, but it won’t be easy either.
The baseball, tennis and softball teams are all on the road this weekend as well against quality opponents. Coach Steve Coleman’s Cowboys are off to a 6-2 start. The softball team swept a doubleheader last week and is 2-0 on the year and the tennis teams play at arch-rival Trinity and open league play at Texas Lutheran.
Monday, February 18, 2008
A Tip of the Hat To Four Seniors
Senior day is always one of those memorable events on campus in every sport. It truly is amazing the amount of work and dedication that our student-athletes put into their sports. We had the privilege of recognizing four seniors on Saturday at the Mabee Complex.
For the women Shelby Hodges and Rachel Cisneroz have been great ambassadors for the
the Final Four banquet. She has been a leader of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and is a great spokesperson for the school.
Rachel has one of the best voices I have ever heard. She does a great rendition of the national anthem. She has on a few occasions stepped in on no notice and belted out the anthem at events on campus.
I say all of that to say they are two of my favorite all-time Cowgirls since I have been here. Throughout their career they have been perfect role models and because of that I have also had them spend time with my daughter as not only a babysitter but just at games and to be honest I hope my daughter turns outs to be just like them. Not as an athlete, but as a person. I can tell you that my little girl looks up to those two like no one else and I am proud she does.
Now for the Jean brothers. I don’t think I have seen two players grow more in their time at Hardin-Simmons than those two. Mardochee and Dan came in as shy projects as freshmen and they are leaving HSU as mature men that are going to be productive members of society.
Saturday seeing the joy they brought to their entire family, and what a big family it is, when they would do something good on the court was something special. Getting to work with these type of people every day is what makes my job at HSU so special.
Mardochee has turned into one of the most well-spoken players on the team. I used to be worried when a reporter would ask to speak to him, but now I know he is going to give great answers to questions. He leads by example and has become an intense competitor every night. He will go down as one of the best, if not the best big men ever to play in the ASC. He has taken a team that had little experience and four starters to replace back to the playoffs and you never know, maybe they can get to the NCAA Tournament in a wide-open ASC race this season.
Dan came in as a freshman and he was a very raw basketball player. He had great athletic ability and came on down the stretch to make the travel squad. He transferred to McMurry as a sophomore in search of more playing time, but saw the light and came back to HSU for his final two seasons. There are certain teams that him and Mardochee together are an unstoppable combination.
Dan is a player that has to be challenged to bring out his best. He and I have had a good relationship. We like to talk smack to each other in a good way. During the preseason I walked in on the team in open gym and I saw Dan working on his 3-point shot. Let me tell you it needs some work. He got to the point in open gym that he thought he was a guard he was shooting so many 3-pointers. I challenged him to a 3-point shooting contest with one stipulation. If I beat him, he could not take 3-pointers for the rest of the year (because it is not like Coach Howard was going to let him shot any in the games any way). Well of course I beat him and now he just stays on the block and dunks on people.
I am so proud of the progress all four have made not only on the court, but off it as well. They are all four on course to graduate. It is amazing how fast four years go by.
News and Notes
I would like to welcome new track and cross country coach Rodney Smith to the campus. Track is something that has been discussed for years, but is finally a reality again.
Softball will finally get to open its season this weekend after weather caused delays last week. Baseball is back in action this week and tennis will finally play a dual that counts this week.
Where Are They Now
I heard from one of my all-time favorite Cowboys Ryan Smrkovsky this past week and he and his wife are expecting their first child any day now. He is living and working in Ozona. Smurf was an all-around good guy and unfortunately lost his senior year to a knee injury in a game at Menlo.
For the women Shelby Hodges and Rachel Cisneroz have been great ambassadors for the
the Final Four banquet. She has been a leader of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and is a great spokesperson for the school.
Rachel has one of the best voices I have ever heard. She does a great rendition of the national anthem. She has on a few occasions stepped in on no notice and belted out the anthem at events on campus.
I say all of that to say they are two of my favorite all-time Cowgirls since I have been here. Throughout their career they have been perfect role models and because of that I have also had them spend time with my daughter as not only a babysitter but just at games and to be honest I hope my daughter turns outs to be just like them. Not as an athlete, but as a person. I can tell you that my little girl looks up to those two like no one else and I am proud she does.
Now for the Jean brothers. I don’t think I have seen two players grow more in their time at Hardin-Simmons than those two. Mardochee and Dan came in as shy projects as freshmen and they are leaving HSU as mature men that are going to be productive members of society.
Saturday seeing the joy they brought to their entire family, and what a big family it is, when they would do something good on the court was something special. Getting to work with these type of people every day is what makes my job at HSU so special.
Mardochee has turned into one of the most well-spoken players on the team. I used to be worried when a reporter would ask to speak to him, but now I know he is going to give great answers to questions. He leads by example and has become an intense competitor every night. He will go down as one of the best, if not the best big men ever to play in the ASC. He has taken a team that had little experience and four starters to replace back to the playoffs and you never know, maybe they can get to the NCAA Tournament in a wide-open ASC race this season.
Dan came in as a freshman and he was a very raw basketball player. He had great athletic ability and came on down the stretch to make the travel squad. He transferred to McMurry as a sophomore in search of more playing time, but saw the light and came back to HSU for his final two seasons. There are certain teams that him and Mardochee together are an unstoppable combination.
Dan is a player that has to be challenged to bring out his best. He and I have had a good relationship. We like to talk smack to each other in a good way. During the preseason I walked in on the team in open gym and I saw Dan working on his 3-point shot. Let me tell you it needs some work. He got to the point in open gym that he thought he was a guard he was shooting so many 3-pointers. I challenged him to a 3-point shooting contest with one stipulation. If I beat him, he could not take 3-pointers for the rest of the year (because it is not like Coach Howard was going to let him shot any in the games any way). Well of course I beat him and now he just stays on the block and dunks on people.
I am so proud of the progress all four have made not only on the court, but off it as well. They are all four on course to graduate. It is amazing how fast four years go by.
News and Notes
I would like to welcome new track and cross country coach Rodney Smith to the campus. Track is something that has been discussed for years, but is finally a reality again.
Softball will finally get to open its season this weekend after weather caused delays last week. Baseball is back in action this week and tennis will finally play a dual that counts this week.
Where Are They Now
I heard from one of my all-time favorite Cowboys Ryan Smrkovsky this past week and he and his wife are expecting their first child any day now. He is living and working in Ozona. Smurf was an all-around good guy and unfortunately lost his senior year to a knee injury in a game at Menlo.
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Seasons Change
Sometimes it amazes me how fast time flies once we get into a season. It seems like just a few weeks ago we were starting basketball season and now we have two weeks left. It was a good start to the baseball seasons this weekend as well...
Saturday I saw or heard a few examples of what I think is the most important deciding factor if teams win or lose or if players have individual success – confidence.
In the women’s game, Howard Payne All-American Meia Daniels played her final career game at the Mabee Complex. She is a great player, and It wasn’t her best all-around game on Saturday, but as HSU made a run at the undefeated Lady Jackets she buried a pair of back-breaking 3-pointers. You could tell leaving her hand she wanted the ball in crunch time and knew they were going down.
In the men’s basketball game, junior forward Charlie Pannell has struggled of late with his shooting. Seeing him every day in practice and in games he is a great shooter, but he seemed to have lost some confidence in his shot. His teammates and coaches have done a good job of encouraging him to keep shooting and on Saturday he came out and hit his first three 3-pointers and had his best game this semester. It’s amazing the difference after you make a shot or two how easy it is to get it going.
The third example, I heard was talking to coach Coleman and Holcomb after the games on Saturday and they were discussing they saw the turning point in starting shortstop Brian Weeks was when they told him he had won the starting job and the job was his. Weeks, a freshman, had a solid opening weekend offensively and defensively and looks to have answered some of the Cowboys concerns defensively at shortstop.
It is so easy for the kids to go the other way on the confidence spectrum. What I saw this weekend reminds of how the good things that can be accomplished when you believe.
Former Student-Athlete
I got a chance to catch up with former Cowboy quarterback Jordan Neal on Saturday. He is in his new position as the offensive coordinator at Howard Payne. After playing professionally in Sweden this past summer and fall Neal took over at Howard Payne in December. He was taking in the games between HSU and HPU and then caught some of the Cowboys baseball game Saturday night.
Saturday I saw or heard a few examples of what I think is the most important deciding factor if teams win or lose or if players have individual success – confidence.
In the women’s game, Howard Payne All-American Meia Daniels played her final career game at the Mabee Complex. She is a great player, and It wasn’t her best all-around game on Saturday, but as HSU made a run at the undefeated Lady Jackets she buried a pair of back-breaking 3-pointers. You could tell leaving her hand she wanted the ball in crunch time and knew they were going down.
In the men’s basketball game, junior forward Charlie Pannell has struggled of late with his shooting. Seeing him every day in practice and in games he is a great shooter, but he seemed to have lost some confidence in his shot. His teammates and coaches have done a good job of encouraging him to keep shooting and on Saturday he came out and hit his first three 3-pointers and had his best game this semester. It’s amazing the difference after you make a shot or two how easy it is to get it going.
The third example, I heard was talking to coach Coleman and Holcomb after the games on Saturday and they were discussing they saw the turning point in starting shortstop Brian Weeks was when they told him he had won the starting job and the job was his. Weeks, a freshman, had a solid opening weekend offensively and defensively and looks to have answered some of the Cowboys concerns defensively at shortstop.
It is so easy for the kids to go the other way on the confidence spectrum. What I saw this weekend reminds of how the good things that can be accomplished when you believe.
Former Student-Athlete
I got a chance to catch up with former Cowboy quarterback Jordan Neal on Saturday. He is in his new position as the offensive coordinator at Howard Payne. After playing professionally in Sweden this past summer and fall Neal took over at Howard Payne in December. He was taking in the games between HSU and HPU and then caught some of the Cowboys baseball game Saturday night.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Here Is To A Better Week
I have always said that there is something special about Hardin-Simmons that you just can’t explain. Maybe it’s the people I work with, maybe it’s the students I get to see every day, maybe it is the Christian environment that I get to work in every day. In athletics you hear all of the time about the It factor, whatever that is, Hardin-Simmons has it.
Since I have been at Hardin-Simmons the good weeks outweigh the bad ones by about a 15:1 ratio. Sometimes when you see what our kids put into not only their sports, but just being good students and doing the right things off the court, course or field, you hurt a little more when they don’t reach the success they want to reach.
The last time I had been in the football locker room, prior to last Sunday, was after the Howard Payne loss. There was hurt on the faces of so many young men in that locker room. They were suffering from a loss, it was a loss on the football field in a game. It was a scene I had seen before after a Cowboy loss, but it is something that usually passes in a few hours.
Last Sunday, I knew I witnessed what it is like to really lose. What real suffering from a loss means. When there was a memorial to a fallen teammate there was hurt and pain in that room. They were still trying to comprehend the loss of a teammate that was taken away from them early. There was hurt in the eyes of close friends, not close friends, coaches and administrators. The Cowboy family vowed to come together as one, to get through this trying time together. That kind of hurt doesn't go away in a few hours or days.
Coach Keeling was so brave and such a leader for his group of men in that service, but you could feel the hurt and pain in his voice. He is a great example of a leader of men. Brentdrick Walker is gone from this life, but he will never be forgotten by the HSU family.
Emotions were still running high throughout Monday and then of all things HSU was set to play McMurry in basketball that night. The Cowgirls gave a great effort, battling back from a large deficit to make it a game late, before falling. The men’s game was an instant classic as both teams laid it all on the floor. HSU led by 10 late in the second half and McMurry came right back to send the game to overtime. It went to a second overtime and eventually the Cowboys won the game.
What happened after the buzzer has been played and replayed on the Internet and newspaper. There is a lot out there that is so far from what really happened. Coach Howard will be the first to admit he over reacted and let emotions get in the way of the situation and could have handled it better.
I want to start out by giving my view of what happened underneath the basket as time expired. McMurry missed the 3-pointer and Mardochee Jean grabbed the rebound. When he cleared the rebound he pushed off on Robert Moreno. It is not something more than what you see when battling for a rebound 10-15 times a game. There was not a malicious elbow thrown. Moreno went down and Jean asked him if he was alright (not trash talk as has been thrown out there). Moreno said he was fine and things were fine.
Casey Jones then threw the ball at Mardochee and words were exchanged, but nothing really happened as far as punches being thrown or anything. In Jones’ defense, you could tell from the film that he immediately felt bad for what he had done.
Coach Howard was walking away from where the player’s had the incident, toward the HSU bench and you can plainly see Garza yelling something at Howard. Howard turns around and you can see Coach Howard and Coach Garza in a verbal exchange and there were things said on both sides that neither is proud of. Coach Howard had to be restrained, which he was, he went and celebrated the win with our student section (which was the best they have been in several years by the way) and went back to the locker room.
There is a saying in sports that says the film doesn’t lie. A lot of what has been said about the whole situation has been over the top. Howard and Garza aren’t monsters. Moreno, Jones and Jean aren’t dirty players. Are there people that wish it had not gone down the way it did? Absolutely! Were there things said and done that should not have been? Absolutely! For the most part, it was the emotions of big rivalry game that got to the best of a few people.
The thing that many people don’t realize about the whole event that was blown out of proportion is that during the whole verbal exchange between the coaches players on both sides were talking, hugging and embracing each other on a game well played. Moreno and Mardochee were part of that. There was mutual respect being shown on the court.
I can’t tell you for sure what kind of person that Moreno is, but from everything I have heard he is a great guy and leader for their team. I can tell you FOR SURE that Mardochee is one of the most polite, engaging people you will ever meet. Trash talk and throwing elbows would be well out of the norm for him.
The thing the whole incident did was take the spotlight off of one of the best games ever in the series.
Those two things were the start to an emotional week. Walker’s memorial service was held at the school on Thursday and his funeral was in Dallas on Saturday.
The basketball teams were on the road at Texas Lutheran and Schreiner and it was a clean sweep on the road, which was a good end to an emotional week.
I am ready for the good 15 weeks in a row now. Even though a down-and-back trip to Alpine is on the agenda, this week has to be better.
Since I have been at Hardin-Simmons the good weeks outweigh the bad ones by about a 15:1 ratio. Sometimes when you see what our kids put into not only their sports, but just being good students and doing the right things off the court, course or field, you hurt a little more when they don’t reach the success they want to reach.
The last time I had been in the football locker room, prior to last Sunday, was after the Howard Payne loss. There was hurt on the faces of so many young men in that locker room. They were suffering from a loss, it was a loss on the football field in a game. It was a scene I had seen before after a Cowboy loss, but it is something that usually passes in a few hours.
Last Sunday, I knew I witnessed what it is like to really lose. What real suffering from a loss means. When there was a memorial to a fallen teammate there was hurt and pain in that room. They were still trying to comprehend the loss of a teammate that was taken away from them early. There was hurt in the eyes of close friends, not close friends, coaches and administrators. The Cowboy family vowed to come together as one, to get through this trying time together. That kind of hurt doesn't go away in a few hours or days.
Coach Keeling was so brave and such a leader for his group of men in that service, but you could feel the hurt and pain in his voice. He is a great example of a leader of men. Brentdrick Walker is gone from this life, but he will never be forgotten by the HSU family.
Emotions were still running high throughout Monday and then of all things HSU was set to play McMurry in basketball that night. The Cowgirls gave a great effort, battling back from a large deficit to make it a game late, before falling. The men’s game was an instant classic as both teams laid it all on the floor. HSU led by 10 late in the second half and McMurry came right back to send the game to overtime. It went to a second overtime and eventually the Cowboys won the game.
What happened after the buzzer has been played and replayed on the Internet and newspaper. There is a lot out there that is so far from what really happened. Coach Howard will be the first to admit he over reacted and let emotions get in the way of the situation and could have handled it better.
I want to start out by giving my view of what happened underneath the basket as time expired. McMurry missed the 3-pointer and Mardochee Jean grabbed the rebound. When he cleared the rebound he pushed off on Robert Moreno. It is not something more than what you see when battling for a rebound 10-15 times a game. There was not a malicious elbow thrown. Moreno went down and Jean asked him if he was alright (not trash talk as has been thrown out there). Moreno said he was fine and things were fine.
Casey Jones then threw the ball at Mardochee and words were exchanged, but nothing really happened as far as punches being thrown or anything. In Jones’ defense, you could tell from the film that he immediately felt bad for what he had done.
Coach Howard was walking away from where the player’s had the incident, toward the HSU bench and you can plainly see Garza yelling something at Howard. Howard turns around and you can see Coach Howard and Coach Garza in a verbal exchange and there were things said on both sides that neither is proud of. Coach Howard had to be restrained, which he was, he went and celebrated the win with our student section (which was the best they have been in several years by the way) and went back to the locker room.
There is a saying in sports that says the film doesn’t lie. A lot of what has been said about the whole situation has been over the top. Howard and Garza aren’t monsters. Moreno, Jones and Jean aren’t dirty players. Are there people that wish it had not gone down the way it did? Absolutely! Were there things said and done that should not have been? Absolutely! For the most part, it was the emotions of big rivalry game that got to the best of a few people.
The thing that many people don’t realize about the whole event that was blown out of proportion is that during the whole verbal exchange between the coaches players on both sides were talking, hugging and embracing each other on a game well played. Moreno and Mardochee were part of that. There was mutual respect being shown on the court.
I can’t tell you for sure what kind of person that Moreno is, but from everything I have heard he is a great guy and leader for their team. I can tell you FOR SURE that Mardochee is one of the most polite, engaging people you will ever meet. Trash talk and throwing elbows would be well out of the norm for him.
The thing the whole incident did was take the spotlight off of one of the best games ever in the series.
Those two things were the start to an emotional week. Walker’s memorial service was held at the school on Thursday and his funeral was in Dallas on Saturday.
The basketball teams were on the road at Texas Lutheran and Schreiner and it was a clean sweep on the road, which was a good end to an emotional week.
I am ready for the good 15 weeks in a row now. Even though a down-and-back trip to Alpine is on the agenda, this week has to be better.
Monday, January 14, 2008
A Trip Down Memory Lane
In a little over a month I will have been at Hardin-Simmons for nine years. I can’t believe how fast the time has flown by.
I have always been a list guy. I don’t know why, but I have been. I am going to drop a list of my 10 favorite games since being at HSU. I don’t know how much it means, but for whatever it is worth here goes.
10. NCAA Sweet 16, 2000 -- I have to put the second game I saw at HSU on this list. The 2000 Cowgirl basketball team was a very good team. If the bracket had been cross bracketed I think they would have been in the Final Four. However, the game I remember is a knock-down-drag-out with McMurry in the Sweet 16. It was a packed house at the Mabee Complex and a great game.
9. 2005 ASC Championships For Soccer -- Both the men and women won the ASC on their home field. It was the first year at the new field and both teams had exciting wins.
8. 2004 Regular Season Football Game at UMHB -- The Cowboys dominated that game from the onset and Will Galusha was a man among boys in the contest. It was the last time we beat the Crusaders. I’ve always wondered if he had played in the playoff game if that would have been the Cowboys in the Stagg Bowl that year and not the Crusaders.
7. 2000 Baseball at McMurry – Shawn Bigham threw a two-hitter in a night game against Josh Duwe. I think it was a 2-0 Cowboy win.
6. January 12, 2002 WBB vs. Howard Payne – Kendra Anderson had the performance of the ages. She had 38 points and 14 rebounds, including the tying and go ahead basket in the final minute. HPU then retied the game and Anderson was double teamed and kicked out to Terri Robinson for the eventual game winner with nine seconds left. Then on the other end Anderson blocked away a potential game-winning 3-pointer.
5. December 2006 – HSU rallies from 13 points down and Zach Pickelman hits a 3-pointer to beat McMurry .
4. Where’s The Defense – NCAA Quarterfinals 2000. Hardin-Simmons and Trinity had gone up and down the field all day long and Trinity had the ball last. They threw a fade into the end zone and the Cowboys’ Melvin Dudley knocked it away to send the Cowboys to the Semifinals.
3. Opening Day 2004 – Craig Foreman threw a no-hitter on opening day in a 1-0 win over Lubbock Christian. I missed most of it waiting on my wife to get out of the hospital a week before the birth of our daughter.
2. The Cowgirls are Going To The Final Four – There was little drama when the Cowgirls advanced to the Final Four. HSU had just stomped Randolph-Macon to go to the Final Four. The outcome was not in doubt from about 10 minutes into the game. The best thing was to watch the reaction on the girls and Coach Briggs face when the buzzer sounded. I will always remember that big hug Briggs and I shared. I think it was more shock than anything.
About 20 minutes after that game was one of the funnier things I have ever heard from a fan. This mother was mad at us because we had called RMC’s post player, who was about 6-5 and big “the big girl” throughout the contest on the air. In Texas, she was a big girl. Anyway she comes over and asks Do you call yourself the Big Boy on the air. I just laughed, because heck we were going to the Final Four.
1. The top game for me is not a game, but a series of games. It was February 21, 2004. I will never forget the day. We had senior day for basketball, which is always a big day. It was also the first softball games at Hardin-Simmons and then we had two baseball games. I knew it was going to be a hectic day from the get-go. I had told my wife, who was ready to pop we thought a week earlier, she had to wait until after I was done from that day on Saturday. I got home about 10 that night and had a quick dinner. I hit the pillow and was about to be out, when Lori says I think my water just broke. Those words will wake you up in a hurry. Sure enough it had and off to the hospital we went. I couldn’t tell you how we did in any of the games, but it turned out to be one of the most memorable days. She had held up her end of the bargain by waiting and the next day our daughter was born and life has never been the same.
There are plenty more, but these came to the top of the melon.
Well it is already time for ASC West play in basketball and the spring sports will be hitting the fields, courses and courts soon. This is a big week for both teams so I hope to see you at the game. Also, be collecting your change and bring it to the games on Saturday and Monday for the 11th Annual Kiwanis Club of Abilene Basketball Shootout with McMurry on Monday.
I have promised some Where are They Now’s and these three are courtesy of former basketball coach Dennis Harp. He got to see three former players on a recent trip to Boulder. He was there to see his son Ryan, who is starting at SMU as a true freshman.
Phil Gates played two seasons at Hardin-Simmons University. He received his B.A. Degree in Public Communications with a Marketing Minor in the spring of 1986. Phil ranked 5th in the nation in field goal percentage during the 1985-1986 season shooting 58.5% from the field. The Cowboys who were NCAA Division 1 during that era played against the likes of LSU, Wyoming, and Hawaii.
Phil resides in Boulder, Colorado with his wife Diane and daughters Brittani and Madeline. He is a sales consultant in Boulder for YBE. The YBE organization specializes in consumer products for convenient stores. Phil has over 20 years of experience in the business. Brittani received a full scholarship for swimming at Indian River Community College in Florida. Madeline is an 8th grader who participates in basketball and track. Diane is the Chief Financial Officer for Interweave Incorporated in Boulder. She is also a member of the Boulder Marathon Running Association and has competed in the Boston and Chicago marathon. Phil and Diane will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary this year. You can email Phil at pgshouse@aol.com.
Justin Moore played basketball at Hardin-Simmons University during the 1995-1996 and 1996-1997 seasons. He was selected Academic All-Conference, 1st Team All Conference, Honorable Mention All-America, and was selected Co-Captain during his senior season. He scored a career high 34 points against Howard Payne University. Moore received his degree in finance in 1997.
Justin shot .557% from the field and .792 from the free throw line during the 1996-1997 season which both ranked high in the record books. During the 1996-1997 season Moore averaged 9 rebounds per game and 13.7 points per game.
Justin resides in Parker, Colorado with his wife Dawn and their two children Haden and Madisyn. Dawn is a former school teacher. Justin is employed as a financial advisor for US Bank Corporation Assets Management Company in Denver, Colorado. He is a registered investment advisor. He has been an investment broker for ten years. Justin can be reached via email at jemoore4@aol.com.
Shannon Wood was a stand-out basketball player at Hardin-Simmons University where he played for one season (16 games) after transferring from BYU-Hawaii for his senior season. Wood averaged 22.6 points per game, 5.4 assists, 1.6 steals, and shot 53% from the field, .429 from the three point line, and 77% from the foul line. His 22.6 points ranked him as one of the top's in the history of HSU basketball.
Shannon owned and operated Showtime Videos, a family owned business for several years. They had several locations throughout the Southwest United States. They sold the franchise and are currently in the commercial development business and fitness center business. Their fitness centers Fitness One have several locations throughout the Southwest.
Shannon and his wife of 21 years Paige live in Bloomfield, Colorado with their two sons Zach who is a freshman at The University of San Diego and Austin who is an 8th grader. Paige is a former cheerleader at Hardin-Simmons University. You may contact Shannon via email at shannonwood10@comcast.net.
I have always been a list guy. I don’t know why, but I have been. I am going to drop a list of my 10 favorite games since being at HSU. I don’t know how much it means, but for whatever it is worth here goes.
10. NCAA Sweet 16, 2000 -- I have to put the second game I saw at HSU on this list. The 2000 Cowgirl basketball team was a very good team. If the bracket had been cross bracketed I think they would have been in the Final Four. However, the game I remember is a knock-down-drag-out with McMurry in the Sweet 16. It was a packed house at the Mabee Complex and a great game.
9. 2005 ASC Championships For Soccer -- Both the men and women won the ASC on their home field. It was the first year at the new field and both teams had exciting wins.
8. 2004 Regular Season Football Game at UMHB -- The Cowboys dominated that game from the onset and Will Galusha was a man among boys in the contest. It was the last time we beat the Crusaders. I’ve always wondered if he had played in the playoff game if that would have been the Cowboys in the Stagg Bowl that year and not the Crusaders.
7. 2000 Baseball at McMurry – Shawn Bigham threw a two-hitter in a night game against Josh Duwe. I think it was a 2-0 Cowboy win.
6. January 12, 2002 WBB vs. Howard Payne – Kendra Anderson had the performance of the ages. She had 38 points and 14 rebounds, including the tying and go ahead basket in the final minute. HPU then retied the game and Anderson was double teamed and kicked out to Terri Robinson for the eventual game winner with nine seconds left. Then on the other end Anderson blocked away a potential game-winning 3-pointer.
5. December 2006 – HSU rallies from 13 points down and Zach Pickelman hits a 3-pointer to beat McMurry .
4. Where’s The Defense – NCAA Quarterfinals 2000. Hardin-Simmons and Trinity had gone up and down the field all day long and Trinity had the ball last. They threw a fade into the end zone and the Cowboys’ Melvin Dudley knocked it away to send the Cowboys to the Semifinals.
3. Opening Day 2004 – Craig Foreman threw a no-hitter on opening day in a 1-0 win over Lubbock Christian. I missed most of it waiting on my wife to get out of the hospital a week before the birth of our daughter.
2. The Cowgirls are Going To The Final Four – There was little drama when the Cowgirls advanced to the Final Four. HSU had just stomped Randolph-Macon to go to the Final Four. The outcome was not in doubt from about 10 minutes into the game. The best thing was to watch the reaction on the girls and Coach Briggs face when the buzzer sounded. I will always remember that big hug Briggs and I shared. I think it was more shock than anything.
About 20 minutes after that game was one of the funnier things I have ever heard from a fan. This mother was mad at us because we had called RMC’s post player, who was about 6-5 and big “the big girl” throughout the contest on the air. In Texas, she was a big girl. Anyway she comes over and asks Do you call yourself the Big Boy on the air. I just laughed, because heck we were going to the Final Four.
1. The top game for me is not a game, but a series of games. It was February 21, 2004. I will never forget the day. We had senior day for basketball, which is always a big day. It was also the first softball games at Hardin-Simmons and then we had two baseball games. I knew it was going to be a hectic day from the get-go. I had told my wife, who was ready to pop we thought a week earlier, she had to wait until after I was done from that day on Saturday. I got home about 10 that night and had a quick dinner. I hit the pillow and was about to be out, when Lori says I think my water just broke. Those words will wake you up in a hurry. Sure enough it had and off to the hospital we went. I couldn’t tell you how we did in any of the games, but it turned out to be one of the most memorable days. She had held up her end of the bargain by waiting and the next day our daughter was born and life has never been the same.
There are plenty more, but these came to the top of the melon.
Well it is already time for ASC West play in basketball and the spring sports will be hitting the fields, courses and courts soon. This is a big week for both teams so I hope to see you at the game. Also, be collecting your change and bring it to the games on Saturday and Monday for the 11th Annual Kiwanis Club of Abilene Basketball Shootout with McMurry on Monday.
I have promised some Where are They Now’s and these three are courtesy of former basketball coach Dennis Harp. He got to see three former players on a recent trip to Boulder. He was there to see his son Ryan, who is starting at SMU as a true freshman.
Phil Gates played two seasons at Hardin-Simmons University. He received his B.A. Degree in Public Communications with a Marketing Minor in the spring of 1986. Phil ranked 5th in the nation in field goal percentage during the 1985-1986 season shooting 58.5% from the field. The Cowboys who were NCAA Division 1 during that era played against the likes of LSU, Wyoming, and Hawaii.
Phil resides in Boulder, Colorado with his wife Diane and daughters Brittani and Madeline. He is a sales consultant in Boulder for YBE. The YBE organization specializes in consumer products for convenient stores. Phil has over 20 years of experience in the business. Brittani received a full scholarship for swimming at Indian River Community College in Florida. Madeline is an 8th grader who participates in basketball and track. Diane is the Chief Financial Officer for Interweave Incorporated in Boulder. She is also a member of the Boulder Marathon Running Association and has competed in the Boston and Chicago marathon. Phil and Diane will celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary this year. You can email Phil at pgshouse@aol.com.
Justin Moore played basketball at Hardin-Simmons University during the 1995-1996 and 1996-1997 seasons. He was selected Academic All-Conference, 1st Team All Conference, Honorable Mention All-America, and was selected Co-Captain during his senior season. He scored a career high 34 points against Howard Payne University. Moore received his degree in finance in 1997.
Justin shot .557% from the field and .792 from the free throw line during the 1996-1997 season which both ranked high in the record books. During the 1996-1997 season Moore averaged 9 rebounds per game and 13.7 points per game.
Justin resides in Parker, Colorado with his wife Dawn and their two children Haden and Madisyn. Dawn is a former school teacher. Justin is employed as a financial advisor for US Bank Corporation Assets Management Company in Denver, Colorado. He is a registered investment advisor. He has been an investment broker for ten years. Justin can be reached via email at jemoore4@aol.com.
Shannon Wood was a stand-out basketball player at Hardin-Simmons University where he played for one season (16 games) after transferring from BYU-Hawaii for his senior season. Wood averaged 22.6 points per game, 5.4 assists, 1.6 steals, and shot 53% from the field, .429 from the three point line, and 77% from the foul line. His 22.6 points ranked him as one of the top's in the history of HSU basketball.
Shannon owned and operated Showtime Videos, a family owned business for several years. They had several locations throughout the Southwest United States. They sold the franchise and are currently in the commercial development business and fitness center business. Their fitness centers Fitness One have several locations throughout the Southwest.
Shannon and his wife of 21 years Paige live in Bloomfield, Colorado with their two sons Zach who is a freshman at The University of San Diego and Austin who is an 8th grader. Paige is a former cheerleader at Hardin-Simmons University. You may contact Shannon via email at shannonwood10@comcast.net.
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