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  • Ground Hog Day-Chris Solari today

    Chris Solari has written a great article about SDSU and the Big Sky. If he read the letters to the editor yesterday he did not read the one from Douglas C. Morrison. Hence the name for this thread was born.

    http://www.argusleader.com/sports/Mondayarticle1.shtml

    Hey Big Sky, SDSU making a good case
    Chris Solari
    csolari@argusleader.com

    published: 10/25/2004

    Jackrabbits showing the ability to belong in a solid D-I league

    An open letter to Doug Fullerton, Big Sky Commissioner:

    Re: Conference expansion, i.e. South Dakota State University

    Did you see what happened Saturday in Bozeman, Doug? If not, go watch the tape because South Dakota State made a compelling case to become the newest member of the Big Sky.

    Everyone knows that football and basketball steer the ship at Division I universities, and that certainly is the case among all of your conference schools. And although it will take more than one game in one sport for you and the Big Sky presidents to decide if and how an association will be formed, league member Montana State and SDSU played a football game that showed how extending your borders to the east might be the best idea.

    Drama? How about the never-say-die Jackrabbits putting two touchdowns on the board in 33 seconds to tie the game. Or MSU, riding junior Travis Lulay's arm to a game-winning field goal?

    Competition? SDSU flew into Bozeman with just 38 scholarship bodies to face the 60-plus their opponent boasts per Big Sky league mandate and had the Bobcats on the ropes. The Jackrabbits are building toward that scholarship level and have talked about adding more if they are invited into the Big Sky. Imagine how much a few extra players would have meant for the Jacks on Saturday.

    Intensity? The feisty slugfest, at times, got vicious. Yellow flags for personal foul penalties flew like the mountain snow flurries that started flying after E.J. Cochrane's game-winning kick. And the pads were popping as loudly as at any SDSU game this season - both from doling out the blows and from taking the punishment from a fierce, hard-hitting MSU defense. Glares, jawing, and jostling after plays made this feel like a lot more than a meaningless non-conference game.

    Rivalry? Not right now, but it sure felt like one was developing between the third and fourth quarters when a Montana State student ran by the SDSU cheering section and gave them a not-so-friendly hand gesture.

    "Any game, I guess, can become a rivalry throughout time," Jackrabbit safety John Perry said. "This being the first time we played them in a long time, so it's way too early to tell, but it was a physical game today."

    There are obvious things SDSU must do sooner rather than later to make itself more attractive to the Big Sky. The need to add scholarships is No. 1, but improving Coughlin-Alumni Stadium is a close second. Montana State's Bobcat Stadium, which was renovated in 1998, is a fan-friendly venue with plenty of modern conveniences. It's the type of stadium that a recruit or casual follower can walk into and smell the Saturday afternoon excitement, even in the heat of July.

    The entire state of Montana, on Saturday's statewide television broadcast, found out plenty about South Dakota State. And to think, a basketball school provided that much excitement on the football field.

    "I don't know how it's going to play out," SDSU coach John Stiegelmeier said. "I think it's tremendously important for us to get into a conference for all our sports, and I think the Big Sky would be a great opportunity for us."

    Doug, it's no secret that SDSU views a marriage with your conference as the best fit for the university. Membership would validate administrators' decision to move to Division I. They and the rest of state of South Dakota are eagerly awaiting your decision as to whether that feeling is mutual.

    Reach Chris Solari at 977-3923

  • #2
    Re: Ground Hog Day-Chris Solari today

    Good story.

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