 | | Ian McCaw |
Chat with Athletic Director Ian McCaw Welcome to BaylorBears.com's online chat, where Baylor athletic director Ian McCaw will join us at 11 a.m. CDT on Friday, June 5. McCaw won't be dropping by until Friday morning, but you can submit your questions now, and we will hold them until then. |
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| Moderator: We're about ten minutes out from starting our chat with Ian McCaw. Continue to post any questions that you may have and we'll begin shortly. |
 |  | Ian McCaw: Good morning. Thank you for joining our chat session today. |
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| Jacob (Houston): Mr. McCaw, Thanks again for the great work in the athletic dept. I was just wondering what the plans were for Floyd Casey Stadium. The north endzone complex, video board and old practice fields? Thank you very much. |
| | Ian McCaw: Jacon, we have retained SPARKS Sports, the same architect that worked on the Simpson Athletics and Academic Center, to develop a master plan for Floyd Casey Stadium. They are developing plans for renovation of the North End Zone complex, parking and tailgating areas, aesthetics of the stadium and the creekside area. Some of the improvements that fans can expect this year include additional parking and tailgating space , along with an expanded creekside tailgating area. |
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| Brandon Boyd (Addison, TX): I've heard that the football team will be in new uniforms this year. Typically other programs have an event to unveil the uniforms before media day, will Baylor do this? |
| | Ian McCaw: Brandon, thank you for the question. The football team willl have a new look in 2009. I saw the initial shipment of the new uniforms yesterday for the first time. Once everything arrives, we plan to unveil the new uniforms. |
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| Stud Duck: Man, I was glad to see the BU - Wake game on ABC. I cant remember the last time that Baylor made the ABC game of the week. Sic'em! |
| | Ian McCaw: Stud, I am as excited as you regarding the Baylor - Wake Forest game being on ABC and ESPN2. It is the first time in more than 12 years that Baylor will have an ABC appearance. It took a lot of work on the part of Coach Briles and our administration to get this accomplished. While I can't make any promises, there is a good chance that we will land a second ABC appearance in 2009. These are strong positive signals about the direction of Baylor football. |
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| Bob (Frisco): What buidling projects does athletics have coming up. |
| | Ian McCaw: Hi Bob. The Jay and Jenny Allison Football Practice Facility is job #1 at this time. It is expected to be completed at the end of next month. Check out the webcam to stay current on this project. We expect to begin the Getterman Stadium softball training facility, renovations to the Baylor Tennis Center and three new outdoor tennis courts later this month. In all, it will be another summer of progress for Baylor Athletics. |
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| Jason (Lorena): I read about the AD mission trip to Kenya. Praise God for such witnesses and reaching out to the third world! |
| | Ian McCaw: Jason, earlier this week I had a chance to speak with Athletics Chaplain Wes Yeary who led the athletics mission trip to Kenya. He was blessed by the trip and a number of our student-athletes described it as "life changing". I know that they made a huge impact on the lives of the people of Kenya who they met. This is the second foreign mission trip of 2009 for Baylor Athletics, and both have been very special. |
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| Adam Kaye (Bakersfield,CA): Ian, I was wondering if you could help clear up some confusion for some of us. I had heard mention that our football team would be switching to UnderArmour uniforms and apparel, but I then saw that the new coaches hat and polo shirt are made by Nike. Which brand will our football team be outfitted in this season? Thanks. |
| | Ian McCaw: Adam, Baylor football has a great relationship with Nike and we will be wearing these new uniforms this season. |
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| Kate (Waco: Ian, congratulations on another successful year for the Bears and Lady Bears. I am wondering where Baylor will finish in the Directors Cup? |
| | Ian McCaw: Kate, thank you for the e-mail. Late spring does bring projections of where Baylor will finish in the Leerfield Director's Cup. Presently, we are in 48th place. However, we have five sports that will score for us remaining to be calculated. With that, my sense is that we will break into the Top 40. In addition, Baylor had a school-record 14 teams advance to post-season play. |
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| Jim in Dallas: Hello Ian. I spoke to you at the opening of the new Cowboys Stadium. What did you think about the Stadium and how are tickets selling for the BU - TT game? |
| | Ian McCaw: Jim, we had a great time at the opening of Cowboys Stadium last evening. The facility is "breath-taking" and it is clearly the best football facility that I have ever seen. Tickets for the Baylor - Texas Tech football game at Cowboys Stadium on November 28 are going fast! In particular, the Club level seats are in demand and after last night I can understand why. Call 710-1000 to order your tickets for this game today. Even if you are not a big football fan, attending a game in Cowboys Stadium and seeing all of the incredible amenities will be a special treat. |
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| Adam Kaye (Bakersfield,CA): Ian, Any news on either of the football team's two most appealing non-conference games (at Wake Forest and vs Connecticut) being picked up for television broadcasts? Thanks. |
| | Ian McCaw: Adam, as mentioned above, we are excited about Baylor - Wake Forest being televised on ABC/ESPN2. At this point, the home opener against UConn game will not be televised and we will kick at 4:00. That will be Parents Weekend at Baylor, and we are looking forward to a great home crowd to cheer the Bears on to victory! |
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| Jim (Dallas): Ian, I hope you were able to make it clear to the NCAA tennis selection committee that what they did to our men's tennis team was completely unacceptable. Speaking of tennis, after the indoor football practice facility is completed, do you foresee an indoor tennis building as the next major athletic project or are there other potential projects that take priority? |
| | Ian McCaw: Good morning, Jim. I did have the opportunity to share my concerns about our men's tennis team traveling during the first/second rounds of the NCAA tournament with the appropriate parties. This message seemed well received and my hope is that we will avoid a similar outcome in the future. We are continuing to explore funding and options for an indoor tennis facility, and hopefully will be able to get this long-awaited project moving forward before too long. |
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| Jeff (Dallas): Ian, I'd like to say how proud I am of the job that Coach Briles and his staff have done in their short time at Baylor. Their work and passion are evident in the product they put on the field. My family and I are really looking forward to the upcoming season at Floyd Casey and were wondering about some new options for tailgating. I have heard some rumors about an expanded Creekside area and the old practice fields. Thanks for your work! |
| | Ian McCaw: Jeff, there is already a great deal of excitement building for the 2009 football season. Coach Briles and his staff are doing an outstanding job and we are looking forward to a great season. The university has acquired additional land adjacent to the creekside tailgate space, so we do anticipate having expanded space for fans to park and tailgate. Also, we will be using the former football practice fields for additional parking, tailgating and hospitality/entertainment. The atmosphere at Floyd Casey should be better than ever! |
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| Houston Welch (Horseshoe Bay,Tx): Is there any chance the Lady Bear Basketball team will have either the University of Houston, TCU or SMU on their 2009-2010 pre-conference schedule? I believe it would attract more fans interest than some of the smaller schools which have been scheduled in previous years. |
| | Ian McCaw: Hi Houston. The Lady Bears do not have any of the teams that you mentioned on the 2009-10 schedule. They do have a game at Tennesee and will play in the Maggie Dixon Classic in New York in early season competition. I encourage our coaches to schedule games against in-state rivals for the same reasons that you mention. Although, I don't look for the Lady Bears to have difficulty generating fan interest this season! |
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| Alton Hassell (Waco): How is recruiting going for all of our sports? Do we anticipate bringing in some quality young people? |
| | Ian McCaw: Alton, good morning. Recruiting across all of our sports is going extremely well. This should not be a surprise to anyone because of Baylor's beautiful campus, outstanding athletics facilities, great academic reputation and small class sizes, Christian environment coupled with the outstanding coaches, staff and student-athletes that we have in place. I am looking forward to some great years ahead! |
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| Rick (Wac0): Hello Mr. McCaw, Just wondering...We got such a great communicator in Coach Briles. Any plans for a Coach Briles show? I think that would be GREAT for recruiting. Thanks, |
| | Ian McCaw: Rick, Art Briles is a great coach and person, and we are blessed to have him at Baylor. We have moved away from traditional coaches shows because in today's world few people take time to watch this type of programming. We will be featuring more video content on baylorbears.com and will use the website to feature all of our outstanding coaches and student-athletes. |
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| Don in Conroe: Now that the Bear Foundation fund drive is over is there any projection as to how we did. I know that all of the volunteers and staff worked their tails off. |
| | Ian McCaw: Don, thanks to you and many other loyal and generous Bear Foundation donors we just had our fifth consecutive record year. In addition, last month (May) was the best month in the history of the Bear Foundation. This year's success is especially impressive in light of the economic challenges that we face. This success speaks well of Baylor alumni and friends, and will position the athletics program for a great year in 2009-10! |
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| Matt Wigtil (Friendswood, Tx): Are there any plan currently in the works to build a new football stadium near campus? |
| | Ian McCaw: Matt, thank you for the question. There are no plans in place at this time to develop a new football stadium near campus. We are focusing our energies on enhancing Floyd Casey Stadium and filling it up on game day to make it a great home environment for the Bears! |
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| Pressley (Boerne): Will anyone from the football staff be in San Antonio before the 2009 season. We have not had a get together down here in a long time. |
| | Ian McCaw: Pressley, Coach Briles will be making a number of stops throughout the State prior to the start of the football season. Fans should check with the "Baylor Network" to find the date and location of these events when they come to your city. |
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| | Ian McCaw: Thank you for joining us for this morning's chat. I appreciate each of you for your strong support of Baylor Athletics. Have a great summer! |
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