Football No Longer a Pipe Dream at Lamar?

[TexasTerror]

Will football return? Long time columnist Bob West who has followed the Golden Triangle and Lamar sports for a long time thinks so...

From Bob West's Column in the Port Arthur News (courtesy of LamarFansBoard.com)

For the first time, I'm starting to believe the return of football is more than a pipe dream at Lamar. LU president Dr. Jimmy Simmons told me two weeks ago he's strongly in favor and it appears raising money to bring football back is going to be the top priority for Billy Tubbs as a full time athletic director. Tubbs, in fact, said last week that he thinks Lamar's long-term goal should be playing Division 1 football. In a meeting before he left for the Final Four, Tubbs said, “I think we need football. Right now, football has the best chance it's ever had of being revived at Lamar.” The key, of course, will be selling heavy-hitter type donors to step up with some serious money.

http://www.panews.com/articles/2006/04/02/sports/bob_west_columns/02news.txt

[*****]

... Tubbs, in fact, said last week that he thinks Lamar's long-term goal should be playing Division 1 football...They can't play anything else... :confused:

[TexasTerror]

They can't play anything else... :confused:

They are not as educated in the 'Golden Triangle' about any other football than HS football...may have to send you in to teach all the media, SIDs and the such about Div I football...whether it I-AA or otherwise (whatever we'll be)...

[*****]

I did send Bob a respectful note... you knew I would. :)

[TexasTerror]

I did send Bob a respectful note... you knew I would. :)

Go Ralph!

They're already turning into the 'next Texas State - San Marcos' and kicking up I-A talk...dreams of the WAC and C-USA. Very interesting to follow what the folks in the Golden Triangle are thinking...

http://www.websitetoolbox.com/tool/post/fnesports/vpost?id=1027881&trail=15

[igo4uni]

..dreams of the WAC and C-USA.

Wow, such lofty dreams.xcoffeex xidiotx xidiotx xcoffeex xcoffeex xcoffeex : smh : :( :( :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: xcoffeex xcoffeex xcoffeex :doh: :doh: :mad: :doh: :doh: :doh: :doh:

[TxSt02]

Go Ralph!

They're already turning into the 'next Texas State - San Marcos' and kicking up I-A talk...dreams of the WAC and C-USA. Very interesting to follow what the folks in the Golden Triangle are thinking...

http://www.websitetoolbox.com/tool/post/fnesports/vpost?id=1027881&trail=15

WAC??? you are way off base... this isnt the late 90's anymore cowboy...

[wannabegaucho]

The WAC is not made for teams in Texas anymore.

[Freightliner]

*sigh*

No large money donors and they are dreaming big time football in Beaumont?!?!?!

oh brother. :bang: xidiotx xidiotx :doh: xidiotx :doh::eek:


Good Luck Tubbs...yer gonna need it! xcoffeex xcoffeex

[TexasTerror]

WAC??? you are way off base... this isnt the late 90's anymore cowboy...

They were talking WAC...but I think that is what they used to want back when, but now it's more C-USA for them...the comparison to the Bobcat faithful is because of all these talks of I-A.

[*****]

I did send Bob a respectful note... you knew I would. :)Bob wrote back and said he fumbled it and meant I-A.

[Freightliner]

They were talking WAC...but I think that is what they used to want back when.

Lamar back then didnt want to move to I-A, they were content at the time for just trying to win games and have a winning season.

Probably the only guy there that remains from Lamar Football back then is Paul Zeek...the associate AD. he was the Athletic Trainer at the time.

*wondering what Ray Alborn thinks about this move*

ohh...btw...this is one member of the Bobcat Faithful that is AGAINST I-A movement.

[TexasTerror]

Lamar back then didnt want to move to I-A, they were content at the time for just trying to win games and have a winning season.

Talking about for basketball intentions. This was around the time when the American South folded and joined up with the Sun Belt, which led Lamar back to the SLC. Remember that?

[Freightliner]

Talking about for basketball intentions. This was around the time when the American South folded and joined up with the Sun Belt, which led Lamar back to the SLC. Remember that?

Ahh ok, my mistake :)

Yeah....all the sports except Football were a still a member of the American South Conference when I departed in Spring of 90 for SWT/TXST.
(remembers heckling Tim Floyd and Earvin Johnson for La Tech back in those days) Trying to remember when they moved to the SlumBelt. Might have been in 92 or 93.

[Retro]

One of the problems they face in beaumont is that all most people there care about is High School football and they have a shortage of stadiums as it is right now.. Many teams share stadiums and have saturday games.

Lamar would have a tough time drawing crowds until they started winning a lot and then would have to have a sprint turf field unless they kick the high school teams out of their own stadium.

[Freightliner]

One of the problems they face in beaumont is that all most people there care about is High School football and they have a shortage of stadiums as it is right now.. Many teams share stadiums and have saturday games.

Agreed. Back in 89 the only two stadiums were Babe Zaharias (where Central plays) and Westbrook's Stadium. Kelly played at Zaharias (they play at their own place now) and SouthPark renovated their small stadium a few years later to play football there, otherwise they were either playing at Westbrook or at Zaharias.


Lamar would have a tough time drawing crowds until they started winning a lot and then would have to have a sprint turf field unless they kick the high school teams out of their own stadium.

in 89 the Beaumont Bowl drew a full house (around 16,000) and then the Lamar/McNeese game Saturday night drew about 6,000. And we were 5-5 that year...first non-losing season in a LONG while.

Sprint Turf would be IDEAL for Cardinal Stadium.

[GeauxLions94]

If we were able to come up with the $$$, and sitting 45 minutes from LSU and an hour from New Orleans at that, then Lamar should have no problems bringing their program back.

Lamar supports hoops pretty well. Would probably do the same with FB :twocents:

[Freightliner]

If we were able to come up with the $$$, and sitting 45 minutes from LSU and an hour from New Orleans at that, then Lamar should have no problems bringing their program back.

Lamar supports hoops pretty well. Would probably do the same with FB :twocents:


Doubt it...since they couldnt do it back in 89.

I applaud them for trying though.:hurray:

[TexasTerror]

If we were able to come up with the $$$, and sitting 45 minutes from LSU and an hour from New Orleans at that, then Lamar should have no problems bringing their program back.

Lamar supports hoops pretty well. Would probably do the same with FB :twocents:

Completely different environment...

Golden Triangle is much different than southeastern Louisiana. You guys aren't as high school sports crazy as they are HS football crazy in Port Arthur, Orange, PNG, Beaumont, etc...

[GeauxLions94]

Completely different environment...

Golden Triangle is much different than southeastern Louisiana. You guys aren't as high school sports crazy as they are HS football crazy in Port Arthur, Orange, PNG, Beaumont, etc...

Wasn't talking about the high school aspect. Beaumont/Golden Triangle should have more heavy hitters than in the Hammond/Northshore area in terms of getting :twocents: plus more.

[Lionsrking]

Completely different environment...

Golden Triangle is much different than southeastern Louisiana. You guys aren't as high school sports crazy as they are HS football crazy in Port Arthur, Orange, PNG, Beaumont, etc...

I agree HS football may be bigger in Texas but we are most definitely HS football crazy in SE Louisiana. We don't have the mega high schools that draw 10,000 per game like Texas does but relative to the population and the size of our schools, high school football is a huge draw in this area.

I think Lamar will do well attendance wise. It's tough to compare times today with times 15 to 20 years ago and I think a second bite of the apple will help their fan base realize what they have and they'll respond. We didn't draw well either in the years leading up to us dropping our program in 1985 but we now have nearly double the student body and the product is marketed much better with television and the internet. I can remember our athletic dept doing a football feasibility study in the mid to late 90's and the administration at the time was hoping to just be able to draw 3 to 5 thousand on average at much lower ticket prices. And I can remember the pessemists saying we could never pull that off with LSU down the road. We've obviously exceeded that and then some our first three seasons and I don't see any reason why Lamar couldn't do the same.

[McTailGator]

Lamar back then didnt want to move to I-A, they were content at the time for just trying to win games and have a winning season.

Probably the only guy there that remains from Lamar Football back then is Paul Zeek...the associate AD. he was the Athletic Trainer at the time.

*wondering what Ray Alborn thinks about this move*

ohh...btw...this is one member of the Bobcat Faithful that is AGAINST I-A movement.


Lamar is thinking I-AA...

Their President is a McNeese Alum. He wants to see McNeese and their fans in Beaumont everyother year.

[Freightliner]

Lamar is thinking I-AA...

I would hope so.


Their President is a McNeese Alum. He wants to see McNeese and their fans in Beaumont every other year.

Kinda have a Lake Charles "Cowboy Stadium" West eh?

Least now they have a president that knows football....better than the clown they had back in 89 (Billy Franklin)

[TexasTerror]

Courtesy of the LamarFansBoard.com...


"From Chad Cooper, Sports Editor of The Examiner."
This info was taken from an article written by Mr. Cooper. Anything taken from this without consent or given proper credit, will be guilty of Plagiarism.

LU is due $43 million from FEMA, who has guaranteed that money will be paid before Dec 31, 2006.

LU has borrowed that $43 million against their budget for next year.

From what I hear, when FEMA sends LU that money, the football pursuit will begin.

That $43 million cannot be used for football, it goes to the $43 million that LU has borrowed from their budget.

Local attorney Kent Adams is on the Board of Regents & is on record stating he wants LU to take 1 more shot...

Guys, they are going to take a shot at raising the $$$. They will either fail or raise the needed money. At least it's a shot.