Go, MLB is struggling big time. Attendance way down. Only 7% of under 18s even watch the sport. The over 70s are the most loyal and dying fast. How on earth could a mid major and poor BB team like UCD do any better? I would bet on Equestrian or Field Hockey over MBB to survive this predicament. Please note: Title IX. . . . I am also very sorry. I was a die hard Giants fan back in the day. I loved going to the Stick. Cold and blowing wind to see Gaylord and Juan pitch. It was great!

Movie: you are making me very nervous. Are my worst fears coming true?

Very proud of our team! I must say the transfer portal thing still has me freaked out. Especially for our Frosh and Soph guys. because of our/their academics they could transfer anywhere they wanted to and soon, apparently, w/o a sit year. And we have no idea what the Supreme Court will rule in Alston. Maybe I’m just the nervous type.

I agree. I was (mis)using the term “transfer portal” to mean the one year mandatory sit rule. And, also, reading the NYT article it appears the new rule will apply to all D-1 sports, not just BB.

In a significant move, NCAA committee recommended last Thursday that the transfer portal for MBB and WBB be eliminated. Any player can transfer to any team one time without sitting a year. It pointed out that 30% of most teams have players in the portal looking for a new team. It is expected to pass easily. Frankly, if passed for MBB and WBB, I don’t see how the transfer portal rule can Stand up for all the other sports. I would guess that Aggie MBB would not be effected much by this, but WBB could benefit from this rule change. Why? Players love great coaches and want to play for them. We have one!

Really wonder about the negativity on this issue. Hey, either give or not. No big deal. I dont see any pressure. This is really an athletic team donation choice. I have no idea if it did well or not. Like Momma used to say: its the thought that counts!

GoAgs I feel your pain. Taking the politics out of it (Giant owner is a die hard right winger-Trump supporter- who cares?) the problem is the game experience. I guess its OK if you are up in the celebrity boxes or what ever they are call now. So, I went to a Giants game maybe 2016-17 at AT&T. Did all the green things and took the Smart Train to San Raphael then to Larkspur Ferry, then to AT&T. Had a Bloody on the way. Very cool. Then the game: starting pitcher: Matt Cain in probably his last ever start. He threw 20+ balls and a few strikes i n the first inning. Walked 5. Then we have this lady next to us speaker phoning her husband on the game progress: “Cain has thrown no f***king strikes and Bochy won take the F**ker out. I miss you dear! Cain is a f**cking loser. Oh, finally, he comes out and were down 2 runs! What an a**shole!” So, thats a nice feature to a game you paid $40 dollars to go to . . . Then two rows down we have a young lady who had a little too much beer throw up on the person in front of her. Much confusion. Security takes her out. Hey! Not going back. Trip back to San Raphael the best. Right under San Quintin prison and all the inmates look down at you from their exercise cage as we go by. What the hell do they think about us? Two bloodies in the way back. Not enough. Bad!

Hey, we still have a field hockey team! Is it safe? Is baseball safe? According to the Washington Post 75 DI sports have been cut in the last year ostensibly due to the pandemic and resultant loss of income. Most if not all are “none-revenue sports” or “Olympic” sports. Most recently Minnesota and Iowa cut men’s gymnastics, men’s tennis and indoor track and field. Only 12 men’s gymnastics program are left in the entire country. Are these cuts truly necessary? Not according to Knight Commission CEO Amy Perko. Minnesota has an athletic budget of $130M. These cuts totaled $1.6M are are minuscule next to the total deficit of $65M. What is more? Most of these cuts have wound up in increasing the coaching salaries of the “revenue sports” i.e football and MBB. Some members of congress are rightly very concerned that that we may soon be non competitive in the Olympics because we rely on colleges to supply the athletes, not the federal government like most other countries and the colleges are bailing out on this. See Stanford’s recent cuts: all Olympic sports. Maybe we are lucky being mid-major? We dont need a $100M+ athletic budget to survive. So, its “give week” and I am directing my donation to: FIELD HOCKY!

Just to clarify. I was addressing the entire sport of baseball from an article in the Washington Post yesterday. Seems that the sport is less popular now than in years past. Will 12” added to the pitchers throw really help? Time will tell.

One of the main problems with baseball at any level is that many people find it downright boring. It is a slow game with long periods of nothing much happening, and then, BLAM someone finally hits the ball and wakes you up. So to try and fix this the minor league Atlantic Coast League has come up with a possible solution or improvement: move the pitching mound 12” further from the plate. This will improve “contact” and liven up the game. Also, DH allowed only as long as the starting pitcher is in the game. This will reduce the use of the very unpopular “openers” and the also increasing unpopular trend of taking out starting pitchers after 4 or 5 innings. MLB starters now average less than 5 innings and are often removed for seemingly no reason. HEY- someone has do do something to fix this game!

OK this will fix it: “Golden Grasshopper on 4: No, check that:” Golden Butterfly on me” then: hand off to UG right up the middle. We will go with our strengths this fall. We have many. UG the best!

Remember when football was played with the single wing formation? You have yo be very old!! I think UCLA was the last major power to use it, although not with an uneven line.. Then came the “T” formation which was the dominating offense for 70-80- years and here we go now evolving back toward the SW formation- direct snaps, reverses (see double), inside (buck) laterals, double passes, etc. i have not seen HR o under center this entire short season. Always the pistol-wildcat, which is of course where the single wing tail back got the ball or the fullback got the ball- direct snap. Note: the single wing QB was actually a blocking back. I know because I am too old and remember seeing UCLA use it- very well! Red Sanders must be really enjoying this trend from his grave. I really don't know why this is going on. . . .

A very sad event, but the Corona funeral service was exceptionally well done. I agree the space has its limitations, but all in all it is a very user friendly and versatile event space. Acoustics are very good as well for such a big place.

I love it! “Golden Dragonfly on Three” and what would it be with LL on the field? The Hawk cannot pass up on a name like that. . . . Too cool!

Ag alum.NC, Movie. Oh, since I (we) have become such great on-line offensive coordinators, I have a dream of may greatest play! ! HR at QB. UG at RB. TT second back or slot. OK. Imagine HR gets the snap. Fakes to UG, hands to TT who fakes thru the line. TT then pitches back to HR who throws to TT for the TD to .

Fug we all very much appreciate your expert input; but we are a small D-1 program. We do not have 8000 attendance at the Pavillion and will never have that. Gonzaga has a 6000 court. UCLA has a 13,800 at Pauley. I think we are OK with the size. Amenities we can work on. Fug you are a great resource we love you.

May be way off topic but does Davis have a sports bar or anything close to what the Grad was? Thinking of making a visit. Have not been to Davis in a long time.

Elf, I agree this isn’t high school football. TT did not play wildcat a lot in HS as far as I see. He was an excellent passer (see stats). He ran when he had to and was great with the run, option or not. In fact, he was recruited on the basis of those HS abilities. In my opinion the coaches had a unique problem or opportunity with this hybrid season, however your view. They had HR, a junior who was a very good QB and who had played well last season. They also had TT who was a great talent but unproven. So they had to start with HR who did very well! And they used TT at the wildcat to see what he could do there. He excelled. If he was told last year that he had a chance to be the next Aggie QB if he muscled up and stayed quick, he certainly did that. Put on 20 lbs of pure muscle and won the iron man competition as a QB! This is the players decision not the coaches. I think as a QB he will put fear into the opposition defense with his skill set. Injures: TT played after his RS got hit. Not serious. HR not serious. UG getting better with time (do not think it was an in game injury either). Again, all IMHO. Look forward to your thoughts. We have a lot to be happy about for Aggie football next season.

I have to disagree with NC about Tompkins. The guy had incredible passing numbers in HS, but he could also run the ball. He has not been used as a passing QB this year and yes, versus EW, he got hit in the throwing arm and still completed passes. One way to stop the defensive rush is to have a QB who can run the ball exceptionally well and even ram it right up the middle on a RO play and Tompkins has shown he can do just that. He also put on 20 lbs. since last year and won the “iron man” award on the team. He is a very strong young man and very fast. My vote is that Tompkins should be our next QB this fall. And this is with no criticisms of HR who is also a great player, but more limited than is Tompkins. And: HR can be a great WR.

NCAA v. Alston argued Wednesday before SCOTUS.
Bad call on the “targeting” but we will get over it.
So Alston was argued and the justices were all over the place in their questioning. Liberals disagreeing with liberals and conservatives agreeing with liberals. Basic question: can the NCAA prevent schools from giving “compensation” above and beyond a mere athletic scholarship? This would be in the form of computers, grad school money, education abroad money and internships, etc. But, and it is a big but, could the court just blow up the whole NCAA monopoly on college sports because it is a monopoly? Yes, but not probable. Could it effect the transfer portal? Possible (see blow-up scenario). Not likely. One interesting question from one of the justices was: what if a recruited player was offered a $500,000. “Internship” with Nike? Would that be OK? So Oregon could offer that and Oklahoma could offer a $500 internship at McDonalds. Aggies could offer a volunteer internship at the CoOp or Coffee House. Is this Fair? I find this stuff absolutely fascinating. SCOTUS is the last place that these questions should be answered. Not one of them played in the game. Nerds one and all.