Brad

I don't have a whole lot to add except I like everything I have read about Taurus. He sounds like he'll be a team leader in no time.

Try and tell me these two things aren't related...

Morning right time for UCF O'Leary decides team should avoid practicing in afternoon By Alan Schmadtke Sentinel Staff Writer May 6, 2005 A UCF football team looking to change its game-day fortunes will alter dramatically when it practices in the days before kickoff. The Golden Knights are going to be morning people. UCF Coach George O'Leary told players to schedule afternoon classes for the fall semester and to prepare for mandatory breakfasts and 9 a.m. practices. "I'm not sure why, but we practice better, more consistent, when we go in the mornings," O'Leary said. "I've never done this before, so we'll see. But I think it'll work out." Less than a handful of Division I-A programs like rising with the sun. According to a survey of conference sports information directors, UCF will join Kentucky, Hawaii, San Jose State and San Diego State as schools with pre-lunch practices. Kentucky Coach Rich Brooks made the change following the Wildcats' recently completed spring drills, school spokesman Tony Neely said. "I'm thrilled," said Kristy Belden, UCF's football academic adviser. "Consistency is the key. We'll have morning practices throughout the year, which means we can keep the same schedule for study halls." She said more flexibility for classes should be available to players in the fall than before. Afternoon practices mean an 8 a.m.-to-1 p.m. class window. Morning practices give a window between 1 and 10 p.m. Elliot Vittes, director of a liberal-studies program that many football players favor, said UCF may not have more classes available in the afternoons, but there are more available spaces in classes that start after 10 a.m. Many students like to go home or work in the afternoons, he said. O'Leary was less than enthusiastic about morning workouts during his first spring practice at UCF last year, but class schedules already were set, and he couldn't change practice times. The Knights had a stellar semester academically. Last fall, UCF practiced from 4 to 6 p.m. -- and did well in school again as a group. Coaches learned this spring that players liked getting practice over with by noon, and O'Leary became a convert. "There are days you get done, and you have to go to the training room or meet with a coach," linebacker Chris Welsh said. "Sometimes guys don't make it to the cafeteria before it closes. Then you go eat the greasy [fast-food] stuff no one wants you to eat." The time change has nothing to do with the Knights trying to snap a 15-game losing streak, the longest current one in I-A. UCF was 0-11 in 2004, the country's only winless team. "It's going to make Sunday a busy day for the coaches," O'Leary said. "There's going to be pressure to get in and get a plan together. But there will be more time to be rested between Thursday [the final practice of the week] and Saturday [game day]." One thing for 2005 won't change: UCF's games all will kick off after noon. Alan Schmadtke can be reached at aschmadtke@orlandosentinel.com. Story Link

Besides, did they ever consider how sensitive we are to the term "Gold"?  This is really going to mess up our cheers.

Warrior a "controversial" term? GarySJ addressed this in the "GOLD" thread from the Big East board here: http://www.thebullspen.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?board=BigEast;action=display;num=1115258688 I think if anything, they could have given up the indian logo in '91 as they did and kept the name. A "Warrior" is likely one that takes part in war...any other connotation or denotation is left to the individual. I think the husband and wife in the movie "War of the Roses" could each be considered "Warriors". But "GOLD" - ridiculous. Why not the "Marquette NonSpecifics" - that would have left them more options on their color selection.

Seth's class with Asbury, Brown, Jackson, Smith, and Reeves..Top 40

I thought it sounded like an indoor soccer team...

That's what bothers me, the old BE teams threw a shut out at the new members....

WVU Sports May 05 2005 Part of settlement is WVU football series with Seminoles By The Associated Press BOSTON -- The Big East and Atlantic Coast Conference are ready to stop fighting and start playing football again. As part of a multimillion dollar settlement over the defection of three schools, the conferences have scheduled nine additional football games from 2008-12, including a home-and-home series between West Virginia and Florida State. The two schools met in the Gator Bowl in January, with the Seminoles' Bobby Bowden prevailing over his former school, 30-18. The only other previous meeting between the schools was a 1982 Gator Bowl win by Florida State, 31-12. The settlement, first reported by The Hartford Courant, was also obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday. The agreement didn't specify how much each Big East school will receive, but a UConn bank statement obtained by the AP shows that $1 million was deposited on April 27, the day the settlement was finalized, by the law firm assigned to distribute the cash. "The state of Connecticut and the University of Connecticut have made a tremendous investment in the university's football program,'' UConn president Philip E. Austin and athletic director Jeff Hathaway said in a statement. "Initiating this litigation was one part of a larger effort to protect that investment.'' The settlement bars the parties from discussing the terms or even announcing an agreement unless required to do so. The Courant obtained the settlement through Connecticut's open records law; a copy was also obtained by the AP. The newspaper reported that the total value of the settlement was $5 million. While not directly addressing the report, ACC lawyer Erik Albright said in a statement: "Reports suggesting the extent to which the ACC contributed to the settlement are inaccurate and misleading. We are limited by the express terms of the agreement from commenting further.'' The ACC courted several Big East schools in 2003 in an attempt to expand to 12 teams and hold a lucrative conference championship. Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College were eventually invited to join the Greensboro, N.C.-based conference; commissioner John Swofford likened the acquisition of BC to "a good marriage.'' But, as these things sometimes go, BC was still married to someone else. Complaining that they spent millions of dollars to upgrade their programs based on the presumed loyalty of the defectors, four Big East schools that were left behind sued. In a flurry of lawsuits and countersuits, Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal accused Miami and Boston College of conspiring with the ACC to weaken the Big East by luring away some of its biggest football powers. The settlement includes the $1 million exit fee Boston College was required to pay the Big East under the league's constitution. Miami and Virginia Tech have already joined the ACC, and Boston College is now cleared to join on July 1. But this divorce also includes visitation, a sign that the conferences are willing to put their bitterness aside when it's in their mutual financial interest. In addition to Florida State and West Virginia, the settlement also specifies home-and-home series between North Carolina and Rutgers, North Carolina State and Pittsburgh, and Virginia and Connecticut. Miami will receive an appearance fee of $225,000 for playing at Pittsburgh on Sept. 11, 2010. The presidents of Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and West Virginia signed off on the agreement, which drops lawsuits between the conferences, their member schools and officers. Both commissioners also endorsed the deal. The loss of BC, Miami and Virginia Tech prompted the Big East to look elsewhere to rebuild its ranks. This fall, the conference will add football members Cincinnati, Louisville and South Florida to round out the eight-member league. Story Link

Rattlers would need 'A' game to play 'Noles Column by Randy Beard DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER If it were left up to Bobby Bowden, it would be the one game he'd keep off Florida State's schedule. "There's nothing to gain from it," said the FSU head coach Wednesday. It wasn't the mention of Miami that elicited such concern from major college football's victory leader, either. It was Florida A&M. Although the NCAA Board of Directors did what it could last week to make it easier for Division I-A schools to schedule a I-AA opponent every season, don't look for Tallahassee's two college football teams to share a field anytime soon. From a national perspective, an FSU-FAMU matchup might make perfect sense. From a Tallahassee perspective, probably not. At least that's how Bowden and FAMU head coach Billy Joe feel. "I love FAMU, and I think ol' Billy is really one of the finest coaches around. But golly, I'm afraid if we played, it could get heated and separate us," said Bowden. "We've got too great of a relationship right now to have that happen." Joe agrees. Although the Rattlers have played Miami twice and Florida once in the past six years, Joe doesn't want any part of the Seminoles. "Bobby Bowden and FSU, we have such a good relationship, we're family," said Joe. "Miami and Florida aren't family to us." Suffering a 63-3 loss to Florida two seasons ago was tough for the Orange & Green crowd to swallow. But even if the Rattlers were guaranteed to stay within 30 points of FSU, Joe believes the disappointment still would be twofold for the FAMU faithful. "Losing to FSU would touch every community in Tallahassee," said Joe. "Education. Government. Business ... There would be a lot of hard feelings ... We can play FSU in softball or volleyball without causing many hurt feelings, because those sports don't have the following that football has." Even so, the door was at least opened for the two universities to meet in a Tallahassee Bowl after the NCAA Board of Directors signed off on a 12-game schedule for I-A schools beginning in 2006 - and also decided that one victory over a I-AA team could be counted toward the six wins currently needed to qualify for a bowl game every season. Previously, I-A teams were allowed to count a win over a I-AA school only once every four years. The fact that a cash-strapped FAMU could receive a $400,000 payday from playing FSU without having to incur any travel costs would seem to give the Rattlers incentive to push for a game against the Seminoles, too. Bowden did concede that he would agree to play FAMU if FSU Athletic Director Dave Hart or President T.K. Wetherell decided it was the right thing to do. "The game might happen one of these days," said Bowden. "And I would not stand in the way. But, gosh, it would be awful to me if we had a situation that was divisive." Joe doesn't believe the matchup will make sense until FAMU is in better position to make the jump up to I-A competition full time. "I think that will happen at some point, and then I'd be willing to play FSU. I think the community would even support the game then," said Joe. "But right now, I wish the NCAA had a rule that said we couldn't play." Story Link

More... The settlement specifies home-and-home series between Florida State and West Virginia, North Carolina and Rutgers, North Carolina State and Pittsburgh, and Virginia and UConn. Story Link

ACC, Big East plan to meet in football By Omar Kelly Staff Writer Posted May 5 2005 With the legal battles between the Big East and Atlantic Coast Conference concluded and most of the ill feelings subsided, Miami intends on forging new partnerships with its former conference members. UM Athletic Director Paul Dee would not discuss details of the settlement that ended a two-year legal battle because of a confidentiality agreement. But Dee called the four Big East schools -- UConn, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and West Virginia -- that sued Miami and Boston College for defecting to the ACC "good teams and good friends." "It's wonderful to have all of these issues resolved," Dee said. "Now it's going to open up opportunities for future games, especially with the 12th game. This really helps us with scheduling." According to the Hartford Courant, as part of the settlement that was finalized on April 27, the ACC and Big East also agreed to the scheduling of nine football games between 2008 and 2012, including a home-and-home series between UConn and Virginia. It's likely UM will be involved in those series. Dee has previously spoken about his desire to schedule games against Pittsburgh and Rutgers, two schools in areas of the country where UM has a strong alumni base and a large pool of prospective students. The $5 million settlement, which came as a result of mediation, also frees Boston College to leave the Big East on June 30 and join the ACC on July 1. Miami and Virginia Tech left the Big East and joined the ACC for the 2004-2005 season, which triggered the initial wave of lawsuits that blamed Miami officials and the ACC for conspiring to weaken the Big East by luring away its biggest football powers. Story Link Um, so the legacy Big East teams are crafting their own benefit while the new Big East members are left looking for quality OOC games?

FSU QB set for surgery BY IRA SCHOFFEL Herald Writer Redshirt freshman Drew Weatherford, who likely will compete for Florida State's starting quarterback job this fall, is scheduled to undergo ankle surgery today and faces at least two months of rehabilitation. Randy Oravetz, FSU's director of sports medicine, said doctors will repair a tendon in Weatherford's left ankle. In 2004, Weatherford received a medical hardship after spraining his right ankle against North Carolina. The Land O'Lakes native is coming off an impressive spring when he and Xavier Lee closed the gap on junior starter Wyatt Sexton. In the spring game, Weatherford completed 5 of 9 passes for 24 yards. It's too early to know whether the injury will hamper Weatherford's chances this fall. After rehabilitation, Weatherford expects to have a full month to get in shape before two-a-day practices begin in August. Weatherford said team doctors told him the injury was the result of ''normal wear and tear.'' An MRI this week revealed the tendon injury. Andrew Borom, a Tallahassee foot and ankle specialist, is slated to perform the surgery. Link

Dawn of a new Day for the Gators Ex-UNHstar assisting Florida rebirth  Ray Duckler Monitor Staff May 05. 2005 8:00AM Some people are born to coach. You can see it in their eyes, hear it in their words, sense it from the positions and roles they played back in high school. Meet Ryan Day. That's Coach Ryan Day, the former Manchester Central High quarterback who used to torch Concord High back in the mid 1990s. Day went on to break records at the University of New Hampshire, and now he's in the early stages of what he hopes will be a big-time coaching career, somewhere. He's in his first season as a graduate assistant coach at the University of Florida under first-year head Coach Urban Meyer. His focus is offense, and he's working in one of the biggest pressure cookers in the country. These are the Gators, whose fan base rivals that of Red Sox Nation when it comes to passion, expectations and scrutiny. These are the Gators, who, under former coach Steve Spurrier, won the 1996 national championship, claimed the Southeastern Conference title six times and finished ranked in the final coaches' poll 15 straight years.  Those Gators. "I'll see how coaches handle it and kind of learn from them," Day said by phone, referring to the pressure that accompanies working on this sort of staff. "You can't be afraid to fail. That's why I came here. If I didn't want to do that, I wouldn't have come down here." Day, 26, is part of a new era in Gainesville, albeit a small part at this early stage in his coaching career. The Gators, like the Yankees, are not permitted to retool or rebuild, which is why Ron Zook, who replaced the legendary Spurrier for the 2002 season, was axed after three seasons and a 23-14 record. It's a decent winning percentage, true, but it's also just 13 fewer losses than Spurrier had in 12 seasons in Gainesville. Zook guided the Gators to the Outback Bowl twice and the Peach Bowl last season, but to Gator Nation, that's like three straight trips to the Toilet Bowl. It's no wonder, then, that fireronzook.com, established two days after Zook was hired, proclaimed after Zook was fired in October, "It's happening. It's happening. Oh my God, it's happening." Such is the nature of college football at Florida. Day, a hardened New England sports fan who has seen coaches barbecued around here, grew up in a Gator-like climate. "Gator Nation is like Red Sox Nation back home," Day said. "If you don't win for the Red Sox, there are people on the radio cursing you out and second guessing every move. In Gainesville, everyone second guesses, and if you're not winning, you will be run out of town. If you want to be in a high profile place, it comes with the territory." Day has the sports background to coach, having played the three thinking positions - quarterback, catcher and point guard - at Central. During those days, he began coaching informally and unofficially, as a surrogate coach for his two younger brothers. Tim is the starting quarterback at the University of Massachusetts and Chris pitched at Saint Anselm College. "I had a certain coaching mentality with them growing up," Day said. "I was fairly athletic, but not that athletic, so I had to figure out how to play the game with my mind to beat the other guy, and even more so, that was the case in college. I had to understand the game like a coach." Day was a walk-on at UNH and finished his career with a full scholarship, not to mention school records for career completion percentage at 60 percent and career touchdown passes with 53. UNH head Coach Sean McDonnell sensed he had more than a quarterback when Day arrived in Durham. "He was like a sponge in that he wanted to soak up as much as he could," McDonnell said. "He loved discussions about the how, the why and the where. He was pretty impressive. He was great with X's and O's, and he was a very good recruiter with the parents and kids. He had all of it." This is Day's third coaching stop. He coached the tight ends at UNH after graduating in 2002, and spent the last two years working with the wide receivers at Boston College. Manchester native Dan Mullen, Florida's offensive coordinator, followed Meyer from Bowling Green to Utah to Florida and brought Day to Gainesville as a graduate assistant coach. Day is taking courses and is compensated as though he's on full scholarship. He'll learn and then check the coaching landscape. In Meyer, Florida has one of the hottest young coaches in the nation, having led Utah to a win over Pittsburgh in the 2005 Fiesta Bow. The expectations are enormous in Gainesville after a three-year lull. Witness the 58,000 fans who showed up for Florida's annual spring game, an event that traditionally draws no more than 35,000 people. "I would say there's little bit of excitement with Coach Meyer coming in," Day said. "And with that comes expectations, so we have our hands full. You're in the limelight, and if you don't produce, there will be a lot of people upset." We'll watch and gauge Day's progress, now that he's getting a taste of the really big time. He's setting no timetable as far as landing a head coaching slot, but his goal and passion are clear. "I'm going to keep my head down and work hard and come up for air and see where I stand," Day said. "Ideally, sure, everybody's goal is to be a Division I coach. "We'll see." (Ray Duckler can be reached at rduckler@cmonitor.com.) [url=http://www.concordmonitor.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050505/REPOSITORY/505050310/1222] Good luck, it's a long hike back to New Hampshire.

Is there a monthly charge to get in depth with it? I have the game from two years ago. I'll probably buy this when it comes out in July. I'm not interested in recruiting fantasyland, but I do demand the new logo and an RJS like stadium. Add to that a memory card with the rosters and you're all set to go. On the old game, UCF comes up as USF's rival. For no reason other than convenience my son and I have beat down the Knights dozens of times. The Gators were another story. :-[

They don't have to worry until the bills ($$) catch up with them.

Well it is coming up on Mothers Day and I want to get my wife something nice... if coffee cups are out, I need to know this.

;D ;D ;D ;D I voted once and it was for USF - yes - surprise, surprise...Now I am nervous if the math proves there were 20 others so inclined.

Which BIG EAST men's basketball team will be ranked the highest in the 2005-06 preseason national polls? Marquette 22% Connecticut 19% Cincinnati 16% Louisville 14% West Virginia 11% Villanova 11% Syracuse 3% DePaul 1% Rutgers 1% Seton Hall 1% Georgetown 1% Pittsburgh 1% USF 1% St. John's 1% Providence 1% Notre Dame 0% TOTAL VOTES: 2140 Link to poll

Just curious.

Currently you have capacity for 50 in each your inbox and outbox and 200 in your storage file. On Sunday, we will need to reduce the totals to original levels of 20 in your inbox and outbox and 50 in your storage. As we work towards improving this behemoth of a board, we may have to ask you to work with changes like these. Please save anything you need to save. On Sunday afternoon, the change will go into effect. Thank you. Brad, aka Bulliever

Good to see someone nominate The Reaper for the 2006 class.

"Live from the Rold Gold Center"

I'm starting to like it now...

Alternate logo: And you wonder what they paid to come up with this wiity name...