Wednesday Bulldog Update - 4/20/11
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As I drove back north on Highway 25 late last night, contemplating the contents of this weekly column, I wondered exactly how many times I had made that Jackson to Starkville trek during my life. I am sure many of you have considered the same thing. It is a road well traveled.
Since Jackson is my hometown, and so many Mississippi State events take place in the Capital City, the number of passes both ways on that stretch of road is in the hundreds, if not thousands. During that two-hour drive, you have a lot of time to think about things.
And I was reminded again last night, that one thing is for sure. That drive on a star-lit night is a whole lot more fun after a big Mississippi State win over Ole Miss.
Those contests between in-state rivals have always been important to us. Winning that game is important to our university’s efforts to attract students, it’s essential to our coaches in recruiting, and it is certainly vital to our alumni and fan base.
We talk regularly about the importance of beating our rival. There is not a coach or sport team on our campus that does not realize it. We track how our sports do in head-to-head competition with Ole Miss, and share that information with our coaches to enforce the significance of the series.
So, congratulations to Coach Cohen and his Diamond Dawg baseball team for their 6-1 victory last night at beautiful Trustmark Park in Pearl. And thank you for making my drive back home so enjoyable!
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SPEAKING OF THE STATE/OLE MISS RIVALRY
Last Saturday, our men’s tennis team closed its regular season with a spirited 5-2 win over Ole Miss at the Pitts Tennis Centre. It was an exciting victory in front of a packed house on our campus by Coach Per Nilsson and his team.
Our men’s and women’s tennis teams play in Southeastern Conference tournament action this week. The women play Vanderbilt Thursday in Knoxville, Tenn., while the men play the Florida/Arkansas winner Friday in Gainesville, Fla.
Best of luck to both squads. You can track their progress at mstateathletics.com.
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ROAD DAWGS TOUR DESTINATIONS ANNOUNCED
The Alumni Association and Bulldog Club have announced their schedule for the 2011 BancorpSouth Road Dawgs Tour, set to begin on May 9. Head football coach Dan Mullen will headline the 12-stop tour, which will include visits to nine Mississippi cities and a trio of stops in Tennessee and Georgia.
This annual circuit is an opportunity for university and athletic department officials to visit fans throughout the region. This year's tour begins with lunch in Brookhaven on Monday, May 9, and concludes Friday, May 13, in Atlanta, Ga.
According to NCAA legislation, head football coaches cannot have any contact with high school coaches or prospects during the time that Mullen will be traveling with the Road Dawgs Tour.
A schedule overview can be found below. For more detailed information, please visit www.alumni.msstate.edu/roaddawgs.
Monday, May 9 - Brookhaven, MS (lunch)
Monday, May 9 - Biloxi, MS (dinner)
Tuesday, May 10 - Lucedale, MS (breakfast)
Tuesday, May 10 - Laurel, MS (lunch)
Tuesday, May 10 - Meridian, MS (dinner)
Wednesday, May 11 - Vicksburg, MS (lunch)
Wednesday, May 11 - Greenville, MS (dinner)
Thursday, May 12 - Columbus, MS (breakfast)
Thursday, May 12 - Tupelo, MS (lunch)
Thursday, May 12 - Memphis, TN (dinner)
Friday, May 13 - Nashville, TN (lunch)
Friday, May 13 - Atlanta, GA (dinner)
Obviously, one frequent stop that isn’t listed is Jackson. We try to maximize the number of locations we visit over the five-day period, and this year we’ve added several locations we don’t visit very often. Jackson, however, is a place we visit quite often. In fact, Coach Mullen and many of us were in Jackson last week for the Central Mississippi Alumni Golf Tournament, and we will be back in Jackson for the Summer Extravaganza.
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LESS THAN 2 WEEKS LEFT FOR FOOTBALL TICKET RENEWAL
With just 13 days remaining until the football season ticket priority renewal deadline, the renewal rate has increased its pace, and the customer waiting list for any season tickets that may become available has grown.
With the priority deadline looming, the ticket office last week processed the most renewal orders of any week yet. Nearly 3,000 orders were logged over the last five days, and renewals continue to flood in. We are over half way toward reaching 100 percent renewal retention. Officially, we sold 43,387 season tickets a year ago, obviously an all-time record, and a credit to our great Bulldog fan base.
The interest is certainly unprecedented. When you consider that we have orders from almost 1,000 accounts totaling in excess of 2,400 tickets from new customers or existing fans looking to increase their order, tickets will be in high demand for this coming year. As happens every year, the rush to submit ticket orders in the final two weeks prior to the renewal deadline will logjam the ticket office. It could be well into May or early June before we know if any season tickets were not renewed.
Remember, the season ticket order renewal deadline is May 2. You don’t want to miss that deadline this year, because any non-renewed season tickets will be sold to those on the waiting list.
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TODAY. TOMORROW. FOREVER….PART 2
As we announced last week in this column fund-raising has begun toward the construction of a new football training facility on our campus.
To help answer many of the questions about the exciting future of our football facilities, both the training facility and future stadium expansion, Dan Mullen and I taped a four-part video series that discusses our needs and plans. Last week, we released the first installment in the four-part series. The second video segment can be viewed here.
All Bulldog Club members, alums, fans, and friends can now contribute to this effort through the Bulldog Club. Please follow this link for more information.
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RUNNERS FROM OUR STATE MAKE A NAME IN BOSTON
As you may have heard, one of my hobbies is running. So I'm always interested in people who accomplish special things, like finishing a marathon. Well, this past Monday was the 115th running of the Boston Marathon, and a pair of Bulldog Club members, running in Maroon and White gear, posted exceptional times.
Ryan Henderson of Madison (who also happens to be my brother-in-law) was the fastest Mississippian in the race, posting a time of two hours, 53 minutes. That's an astounding pace of 6:38 per mile. Another loyal Bulldog, Jim Phyfer of Jackson, crossed the finish line in 3 hours, 38 minutes.
I'm sure there were some other Bulldogs who had the honor of participating, so let us know is you'd like us to share your accomplishment with our readers.
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MISSISSIPPI STATE WEEKEND HOME SPORTS SCHEDULE
Friday, April 22 – Baseball v South Carolina, 7 pm
Saturday, April 23 – Baseball v South Carolina, 6 pm
Sunday, April 24 – Baseball v South Carolina, 1:30 pm
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WEAR YOUR COLORS FOR NATIONAL NO. 2 USC
It’s a big baseball weekend as defending national champion and current No. 2-ranked South Carolina comes to Dudy Noble Field. Make sure you have your school colors in full display this weekend. Are you in the maroon?
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We appreciate what you do for Mississippi State Athletics and want to encourage you to get others involved. There are three things you can do to help the athletic department at Mississippi State reach its desired goals –
1. Buy Season Tickets
2. Financially Support the Bulldog Club
3. Get Others To Do The Same
Thanks for taking the time to read this Update.
Go Dawgs!
Scott Stricklin