June 9, 2005
Ian,
I am not sure if you are the one responsible or not, but please pass my thanks on to whoever is responsible for making both the softball postseason and the baseball postseason available on BaylorVision. I would love to be at Baylor Ballpark and Getterman Stadium, but this sure is the next best thing. I will definitely be purchasing BaylorVision's Bearcasts next year.
You are doing such a great job with our athletic department and I am so grateful that we were able to bring you to Baylor. Thanks for all of your hard work and for the positive changes that you have made to not only make our athletics more competitive but also more fan-friendly.
Brad Oswalt
Baton Rouge, La.
Brad,
Thank you for the kind e-mail and positive comments about BaylorVision. We have had numerous positive comments about the coverage of this weekend's NCAA Baseball Regional from fans representing each of the participating institutions. In fact, there were over 3,900 fans who watched the Baylor - Stanford game via webcast on Monday afternoon, which was an all-time record by more than 2,000 over College Sports Online's previous high. We received permission from the NCAA to offer the webcast coverage for each of the regional games at no cost to fans.
Bryan Bray is our Director of BaylorVision and does a superior job in offering Baylor fans who cannot attend home contests an opportunity to view an outstanding production of the game. He and the staff deserve a great deal of credit for their excellent work during the regional and throughout the year.
Ian
Ian, Our tennis team did a great job and deserves BIG recognition. In the last post you mentioned that you hoped to have 2005 NCAA National Champion shirts available to honor the team. I'm proud of our team, that winning streak, the heart they showed, etc. I'm looking forward to buying my tennis shirt to honor the team. What a spring -- Lady Bears National Champs, Men's Tennis Single National Champ, Women's Tennis Single National Champ, Men's Tennis Big 12 Champs and No. 2 in the NCAA Tournament, Baseball Big X12 champs and Super Regional participant, Women's softball performance...Proud to be a BEAR!
Shirley Hunter
Katy, Texas
Shirley,
Thanks for the e-mail. It has been a remarkable year for Baylor Athletics and with the continued support of our alumni and friends the future looks very bright.
Four regular season Big 12 championships, two Big 12 tournament titles, one national team championship and two individual NCAA championships along with 12 teams advancing to NCAA post-season competition makes a strong case for 2004-05 being the greatest year in the history of Baylor Athletics.
We are fortunate to have outstanding coaches, staff and student-athletes at Baylor who are committed to excellence in all aspects of our program. We need to capitalize on this special year by growing our support base and raising funds towards the objectives identified in the Victory with Integrity campaign.
Ian
Ian, Now that the NCAA has approved a 12th game for every season, what schools are we looking to add to our football schedule?
Also, any update on the satellite radio contract?
Thanks for a great job!
Mark D. Johnson
Oviedo, Fla.
Editor's Note: Rick Anderson (Houston, Texas) sent a similar question.
Mark,
Thanks for the excellent and timely question. The NCAA Board of Directors recently approved 12 football games per season beginning in 2006. Some opponents already under contract in future years include SMU, Wake Forest, Washington State, Connecticut and TCU.
Jim Trego on our staff does an excellent job of coordinating our football scheduling and has begun to target prospective opponents. We are seeking to ensure that we have at least six and ideally seven home games per year and non-conference games versus teams that are attractive to fans, desirable for recruiting and balance the highly competitive nature of our Big 12 South competition.
There are several institutions that fit this criteria and we look forward to solidifying agreements in the near future for games.
Regarding satellite radio, we continue to pursue opportunities although the providers appear to have considerable inventory already in place. We should know more in the latter part of the summer.
Ian
Ian, We come often to Waco and Baylor University for all types of event on the campus. We have notice that there is no sigh/billboard "Welcome to Waco, The Home of Baylor University" on the North or South on I-35. Does the city or the University have any future plans to have such signs highlighting the University?
Thanks for all you do for Baylor.
Don Tarrant
Richardson, Texas
Don,
Thanks for the e-mail.
As you may know, we have a number of billboards in Waco promoting the Lady Bears national championship as well as marketing our sports programs.
We have recently made a proposal to a local foundation to fund a sign that would be visible from I-35 as passengers in vehicles travel past Baylor. We believe that this would be an excellent marketing initiative for Baylor and Waco, and hopefully this will come to fruition in the coming months.
Ian
Ian, Congratulations on winning a few more conference titles (baseball, tennis, and a few track and field). However, my question has to do with how the NCAA decides on host venues in contest. Looking at Auburn's web-site their softball facility doesn't seem to compare to Getterman not to mention that the Lady Bears are seeded higher.
In tennis looking at BYU's web site the Baylor tennis facility is nicer and the Lady Bears are also higher ranked their. Also would it be feasible for Baylor and the city of Waco to team up to possibly co-host the National Championships in Tennis with the Waco Regional Tennis Center in order to provide more high-quality stadium courts, that don't exist in other places like College Station.
Thank you for the time and sorry about the loaded question.
Wesley Dunlap
Riesel, Texas
Wesley,
I appreciate the good wishes the question about the NCAA softball committee's decision that led to Baylor playing in the regional at Auburn.
In softball and several other championships, the NCAA sport committee is required to regionalize competition in order to reduce travel associated with the championship. As the field was developed for the softball championship, three teams (#2 Auburn, #3 Florida State and #4 Florida A&M) were in close proximity as defined by the NCAA (within 400 miles) and Baylor as a number one seed was selected to travel to the host, Auburn.
Fortunately, the Lady Bears won the regional and advanced to host a super regional against California at Getterman Stadium the following weekend. Baylor and Waco did a wonderful job in hosting the super regional and we hope that will serve us well in future years as we seek to bring NCAA post-season competition to campus.
Ian
Ian, My question concerns the new style seating in certain sections of Floyd Casey Stadium. I have been a season ticket holder for more than 10 years and was wondering why season ticket holders were not at least asked for input before their seats were changed. I understand there were examples of the new seats at the spring game, but I was not able to attend.
I am a rather tall person and the decreased leg space due to the new seating arrangements has me concerned. Thank you in advance for your time and keep up the great work you are doing with Baylor athletics.
John Hayen
Hurst, Texas
John,
Thanks for the question about the Bear Club seating in Floyd Casey Stadium. We did seek input from fans at the spring football game as you mentioned and certainly have witnessed the increased demand for premium seating expressed by season ticket holders in recent years as the Bear Den, Bear Heights and Bear Place have filled.
The leg space between rows actually doesn't change in the Bear Club and in fact, we believe the wider seat, arm rest and cushion will improve comfort for fans in this section. We could not increase leg space without triggering a variety of code issues that would prohibit the project from moving forward.
Ian
Ian, I want to thank you for getting us alumni caps and tee shirts when we win conference or national championships. I would suggest that we as alumni be offered nice polo shirts to celebrate there achievements also. Baylor alumni like clothes that are upscale. You are doing a great job. Keep it up. My Aggie friends are envious of Baylor's great accomplishments lately.
Dale T. Williamson
Missouri City, Texas
Dale,
I know that our staff enjoys working with the Baylor Bookstore to acquire caps and t-shirts that commemorate national and conference championships! We hope to have many opportunities to do so.
I have been pleased with the demand from the Baylor family for these items. We continue to make progress in expanding the distribution and increasing the products lines of Baylor apparel throughout the marketplace and better serve our fan base throughout the state.
Ian
Closing Comments Congratulations to Coach Smith and the Baylor baseball team for winning the Waco Regional and advancing to host a NCAA Super Regional against Clemson this weekend at Baylor Ballpark. I want to commend our administrative and support staff for a terrific job in hosting the event. We received numerous compliments from the visiting teams and fans on the event. Thank you to all of the fans who came out to support the team over the weekend and let's cheer them on again this weekend as they seek to advance to the College World Series.
We had the privilege of hosting a FCA sports camp at Baylor this past week as well. More than 375 participants enjoyed Baylor's first class athletic facilities and engaging with camp counselors along with Baylor coaches and student-athletes. This was the first FCA camp held at Baylor in nearly a decade and based upon the overwhelmingly favorable response we look forward to hosting many more in the years to come.
Football season ticket sales are going very well and I encourage each of you to purchase your tickets today if you have not already done so. We have a limited number of premium seats still available by contacting the Bear Foundation at 254-710-4214, or the ticket office at 710-1000. We are looking forward to an exciting season!
