Oct. 15, 2008

Letters, we get letters. I commend Aggies everywhere on your letter writing abilities. We've certainly heard from a lot of you on a variety of issues, and not all the notes were related to our football team.

I've been pleasantly surprised with the number of positive notes I've received from Aggie fans relating to football. You are obviously students of the game because you understand our team's pluses and minuses. Many of you are agreeing with me when I say it will take longer than most of us would like to turn this around, but turn it around we will.  

In your notes, many of you are expressing concerns relating to recruiting. I can assure you the youngsters who have given verbal commitments to us are continuing the enrollment process to play for Texas A&M, including sending in their standard university application fee and other paperwork.

Our coaches are also very pleased with the level of recruits we have committed. And I'm pleased to report we have reached the number of NCAA permitted commitments of 25. Now our coaches are evaluating high school underclassmen, while also maintaining communications and visits with our verbal commitments. At the same time, they are keeping an eye on some key high school seniors in case a vacancy happens.

Remember this week's game against Texas Tech will kickoff at 11 a.m. at Kyle Field to accommodate national television on FSN. If you will be unable to join us at Kyle Field, please check your local listings to see if the game will be available on your FSN affiliate.

You can also listen to the game on your local radio affiliate of the Texas A&M Sports Network or via Sirius Satellite Radio on channel 121.

We have a handful of tickets remaining for the game. Click here to purchase or call us at 1-888-99-AGGIE.

With an earlier kickoff, we've adjusted the times for Kid's Yell Practice and Sprit Walk. Kid's Yell Practice will start at 8:25 a.m. with Spirit Walk happening at 8:40, which is 30 minutes later than normal.

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I heard from many of you asking why we did not recognize Jorvorskie Lane after he became the school's all-time touchdown leader last week. Some suggested we should have stopped the game to present him a game ball, but stopping the game was not appropriate. The media was alerted in the press box when Jorvorskie broke the record, and when Ryan Tannehill and Jerrod Johnson broke records, too. Ryan set the single-game record for most receiving yards by a freshman, while Jerrod set the single-game record for passing yards. Many times, we have waited until the end of the football season to make formal recognition of such milestones. This was true in the past when Dat Nguyen set the A&M record for career tackles and was not recognized until senior day. The same was true when Reggie McNeal set the career passing yards record. Rest assured Jorvorskie will be properly recognized for his efforts.

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I got the chance on Saturday to meet Miss Reveille. What a beautiful mascot we have! I'm sure many of you have noticed she is getting more extended stays during her appearances at Kyle Field as the season progresses. I am looking forward to the day when Miss Rev will be on the sidelines for an entire game. The University is being cautious introducing her to the noise levels and amount of people at Kyle Field. However, Reveille seems to be responding well to the attention she is receiving. I know her handlers are hoping to have more lengthy appearances each week.

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The Big 12 Office informed us Monday our football game at Iowa State on Oct. 25 will be televised by Fox College Sports (FCS) beginning at 6 p.m. We've told you in recent weeks about the significant revenue we receive when we appear on television. However, no money will be coming our way because the game at Iowa State is outside the financial terms of the league's television contract. A quirk in the Big 12 television schedule with Fox Sports allowed all six games next week to be televised. FCS is a cable-only channel owned by Fox Sports, but its distribution is not very wide. The channel is not available on Direct TV or Dish Network. Call your local cable operator to see if you receive FCS.

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Several of you have noticed our faster elevators and express service on other elevators during recent games at Kyle Field. We spent more than $1 million this summer to make much needed renovations to four of the eight elevators on the west side of the stadium. With faster elevators we are able to transport folks quicker, and it also allows us to designate other elevators for express service. I have heard from some of you who want to ride the same elevator each time you come and go from the stadium, but offering express service allows us to serve more fans more efficiently. If you have questions about which elevator to ride, please ask one of the elevator attendants or look for the signs located near every elevator door.

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Some of you who attended the Kansas State game discovered a few bat carcasses on the ramps and more residue along the concourses than usual. For several years, Kyle Field has been inhabited by the official flying mammal of the State of Texas the Mexican Free-tailed Bat. I'm told this is the migration season, but I hope Kyle Field does not become a rest stop of sorts for the bats. We already have plenty of bats using Kyle as a place to hang-out without bringing in their friends and neighbors.

These bats help us by eating a lot of bugs around the stadium, but unfortunately, what goes in also comes out. We have crews which spend hours each week power washing Kyle Field and the Zone Plaza specifically for bat residue. We also spend quite a bit of money on deodorizers, and we even have a crew which does a last-minute sweep for residue just before gates open. It's a never ending chore, but we promise to continue to do our best to keep Kyle Field clean.

Please, for your safety, if you encounter a bat at one of our events, don't touch it. Instead, notify an usher or uniformed officer, and we'll have it removed.

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It's not often I get an email with a subject line of "Big Butts," but it really is appropriate because we are not getting smaller. An emailer asked me to address the physical overflowing of fans into other seats. I hear this concern often. Part of our recommendation comes in the form of diets, and seat cushions or chair back rentals.

While not everyone has success with diets, many of our fans are having success designating their space at Kyle Field by using a seat cushion or renting a chair-back from AggieCushion.com.

If you choose to bring your own seat cushion to Kyle Field, please make sure it is not in excess of 16-inches wide. Many retailers are offering 22-inch wide seat cushions with the Texas A&M logo and arm rests, but these cushions are too big for our venues and will not be allowed inside. For those who have thought about bringing the seat from your bass boat, the answer is no, unless it's less than 16-inches wide.

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Our soccer team continues to impress. We are unbeaten in the Big 12 and have won five straight league matches. Coach G and our team have put together a 12-1-1 overall record and a 5-0-1 Big 12 record. We're doing this typically with nine freshmen and sophomores in our starting 11.

Last weekend, we beat a very good Nebraska team 2-0 before beating Iowa State by the same 2-0 score. Congratulations to goalkeeper Kelly Dyer who named Big 12 Player of the Week for a third time this season.

This Friday, our No. 6-ranked team will be on the road to face Kansas at 4 p.m. It's a short road trip, because we will return to the Aggie Soccer Stadium to host Missouri on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. Let's have a big crowd on Sunday to support our league-leading Aggies, and to show a full house for the ESPNU live telecast.

By the way, our attendance is usually a little lower on Sunday afternoons than for our big Friday night soccer events. Our record crowd for a Sunday match is 4,049 set against Clemson back in 2004. Wouldn't it be great if we could break that record this Sunday in front of a national television audience?

At the soccer match last Sunday, I had several questions from fans asking me about the yellow line painted in front of the east stands. In the off-season, the Big 12 senior women administrators, a governing committee for soccer in our conference, voted on a recommendation from the league coaches that our Yell Leaders needed to be restrained during conference play.

Apparently, at most soccer venues in the league, teams play in front of a small group of friends and family and are not used to performing in front of record setting crowds like we have in Aggieland.

We've won four straight Big 12 Championships and have put together a remarkable 40-4-1 home record over the last four seasons. That's a 90 percent winning percentage in front of the 12th Man. 

Because so few of our opponents have managed to win in Aggieland, the league's coaches have attempted to level the playing field by passing a rule designed to keep our Yell Leaders, and any other school's spirit leaders, in a box on the sideline, and away from the end lines near the goal.

Unfortunately, not every school has elected to follow the rule, but we understand that the Conference office is aware of these problems and is requiring all institutions to come into compliance.

We have a large bull's eye on us in soccer after winning four straight titles and 10 in the past 11 years, and because few teams have been successful on our field. Our opponents are doing everything possible to try to change our momentum. I'm happy to report it's not working.

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Our volleyball team has won three straight Big 12 matches. Two of the matches were great wins on the road last week in Lawrence, Kan., and Lubbock. Our team is playing with a lot of confidence.

We'll host our friends from the state capital tonight at 6:30 p.m. at G. Rollie White Coliseum. One-half point will be available in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown. Let's have a full house at G. Rollie and try to set a new attendance mark as part of "Break the Record Night." The record of 3,778 was set in 2003 against this same opponent. Fans with a ticket from the Kansas State football game will be admitted for $2, and members of Texas A&M affiliated Greek organizations wearing their letters will get in free.

On Friday, we'll host Baylor at 6:30 p.m. and it will be Texas A&M Faculty and Staff Appreciation Night. University employees will receive an email with a special invitation and ticket purchase code from President Murano during the week.

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Our No. 3-ranked equestrian team will host SMU on Friday at 10 a.m. at the Brazos County Expo Complex. We are 2-0 this season, and we have won 11 straight shows in Aggieland. Good luck to our riders!

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Saturday, our cross country teams will be running at the Chili Pepper Festival in Fayetteville, Ark. Last week, our men's team broke into the top 25 at No. 20 in the United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association poll.

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Basketball season tickets are now on-sale. Season tickets for men's basketball start at $250, while women's season tickets start at $85. You can click here for more information or you can call our ticket office at 1-888-99-AGGIE.

It's Maroon Madness time again. Both of our teams will be at Kyle Field Friday night as Maroon Madness caps each end of Midnight Yell Practice. Our No. 4-ranked women's team will start the madness at 11:30 p.m., while our men's team will follow Yell Practice at approximately 12:25 a.m.

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One person wrote me this week because they wanted to bring their six-month old to a men's basketball game and not have to pay admission for the child. As our demand for tickets increases in men's basketball, we've had to adopt a similar policy as we have at Kyle Field which requires all persons, regardless of age, to have a ticket.

It's no secret small children come with an assortment of yells, smells, and diaper bags which can be offensive to others sitting around them. We have limited space at each seat and this policy is not meant to discourage children from coming to our events, but it is designed to ensure the comfort of all in attendance.

Our other sports beside football and men's basketball allow children age two and under to be admitted free in general admission areas. Another economical way for kids to attend A&M athletic events is through our Junior Aggie Club. Membership is $25 and provides several benefits including free admission to soccer, volleyball, softball, tennis, women's basketball, track and field, golf, equestrian, swimming and diving, and select baseball and men's basketball games. For more information, click here.

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It's going to be an exciting day Thursday when our basketball teams will be able to move into the first floor of the new Cox-McFerrin Center for Aggie Basketball. Our players, coaches, and athletic trainers will gain use of the locker rooms, player's lounge, meeting rooms, and athletic training room just in time for our first official practices on Friday. We'll get to utilize the second floor practice gyms and weight room in a few weeks, and we expect access to the third floor coaches' offices by Christmas.

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Congratulations to senior basketball player Danielle Gant for being named a recipient of the Academic Momentum Award presented by the Scholar-Baller Program, in conjunction with the National Consortium for Academics and Sports (NCAS). The award recognizes student-athletes who make significant academic improvement throughout their collegiate careers and celebrates them for having the ability to balance textbooks with playbooks.

Also congratulations to senior Takia Starks for being named Preseason All-America First Team by The Sporting News. She's the first women's player at A&M to receive this honor.

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Special thanks to everyone who donated canned food or made monetary contributions to Aggies CAN last weekend. Our student-athletes conduct this annual drive to benefit the Brazos Valley Food Bank. They collected more than $13,000 and also reached their goals in actual canned food.

I love to brag about the quality of student-athletes we have at Texas A&M. Their efforts with Aggies CAN, and the numerous community services projects they are involved in throughout the year, speaks volumes about the type of students-athletes representing us.

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I've always been impressed with how many people read this column. Over the years, I've heard from people all over the world who have commented on something I've written.

Case-in-point happened recently. Last week, I told you how I drove over a parking lot tire barrier at the Bright Complex. Well, early Saturday morning I had a message from my car dealer concerned about the welfare of my car. Well, it runs great and I'm happy to report there was no damage.

Looking forward to seeing y'all Saturday at Kyle Field.