Feb. 8, 2006

Friends,

This has been an exciting couple of weeks for Baylor Athletics. I want to congratulate Scott Drew, his staff and student-athletes for their win against Kansas State on Wednesday night. K-State is having a great year making it an especially impressive victory for the youthful Bears, who finished the game with four freshmen on the floor, in posting the win. I am sure that all of us recognize that the future of Baylor basketball is very bright!

Coach Morriss and his staff landed what they believe is their best recruiting class. The 28-player class is also the largest in Coach Morriss' four years. This recruiting success coupled with the excitement about the new offense has Baylor football fans anxiously awaiting our opening game against TCU at Floyd Casey Stadium on Labor Day weekend. We are looking forward to a great crowd being on hand for the TCU game and expect that season ticket sales will jump once again.

Congratulations are also in order for Coach Van Linder and his staff who signed 11 student-athletes on Wednesday. This class is highly acclaimed and is expected to make an immediate impact next fall.

If you have not done so already, please purchase baseball and softball season tickets as both programs get underway this weekend. Baylor Baseball is coming off a College World Series appearance and will be talented and exciting to watch. Baylor Softball is coming off a NCAA Super Regional appearance and the best year in the program's history. For ticket information, please call 710-1000.

Our staff has been working in concert with ISP Sports to secure satellite radio coverage for the 2006-07 year. We have had some very positive discussions and will let fans know once an arrangement has been secured. This week marks the first anniversary of the Board of Regents approving the Victory With Integrity campaign. In our first year, more than $16 million has been raised toward the five-year, $90 million goal. In addition, great progress has been made on several capital projects along with strong growth in the athletic endowment and Bear Foundation numbers. We still have a long way to go and we need the support of the entire Baylor Family to reach our goal.

Football season ticket information will be disseminated in the near future. It will include information about 2006 ticket pricing and seat options. It addition, we will announce plans to improve the Bear Club seating areas.

From the mailbag ...

Ian;

First of all, thanks for getting the speaker situation corrected at the Ferrell Center (regarding blocked views of the scoreboard). It makes the games much more enjoyable for all fans involved and is definitely appreciated.

My question is -- With the increased parking problems in the Ferrell Center / Baylor Ballpark area, is Baylor considering building any additional parking spaces in that area, possibly across LaSalle Ave. with a walkway above the street?

Thanks!

Patrick Ehlers
Waco, Texas

Patrick,

Thank you for the e-mail. We use temporary speakers at the Ferrell Center in order to improve the sound quality as the permanent speakers have reached the end of their useful life. We are hopeful to install a new, state-of-the-art sound system in the Ferrell Center for the 2006-07 year. At this time, we do not have plans to add a bridge or increase parking in the Ferrell Center. Once the construction of the basketball practice facility is complete later this year, we will regain a number of parking spaces which will alleviate some of the pressure on our parking lots.

Ian

Will Podcasts ever become available for Baylor sporting events? Video downloads of football, basketball and baseball games would be very popular for both Baylor students and alumni.

Phil Warner
Dallas, Texas

Phil,

Our staff has been working on Podcasts for Inside Baylor Sports as a first step. We strive to provide the best services possible for our fans and I expect that we will explore game Podcasts in the future.

Ian

We recently had a recruit that picked OSU over BU and one of his reasons was OSU has better facilities. I have tried to toe the company line since we have been in the Big 12 but it is becoming painfully obvious to everyone that our football facilities are significantly below the Big 12 norm. As athletic director what are you doing to make sure that our football facilities are competitive with the other 11 schools in our conference?

Rick
Tulsa, Okla.

Rick,

Thanks for the e-mail. Facilities play an important role in recruiting along with many other factors. Baylor has made significant strides in its athletic facilities in recent years and we have plans for many further enhancements.

In the past couple of years we have added several football specific enhancements including an athletic dining facility, new field surface, renovated visiting locker rooms, completed the Grant Teaff Plaza - I Believe Walkway along with several aesthetic improvements.

A core project in the above-mentioned Victory with Integrity campaign is an on-campus football practice facility. We need our alumni and friends to support this vital project. For more information, please contact the Bear Foundation at 710-4214.