100 Days
Howdy!
A heartfelt "Thank You" for what I can only refer to as the most rewarding 100 days of my career in college athletics. Starting this position mid-summer meant there was work to do, as the start of all programs were about to get underway.
Without hesitation, Aggie fans, contributors to the 12th Man Foundation, former students, coaches and student-athletes were quick to welcome me to the Aggie Family. As your Athletic Director, I have an obligation to give you my best every day, as together we work toward creating the most respected and successful program in all of college athletics. This starts with finding out all I can about how we operate, how we think, and about the vision everyone shares for this great university. The categories include meetings with staff and coaches, individual donors, system and university personnel, speaking engagements, staff and candidate interviews, and meetings with local and regional community leaders.
In total, 436 meetings in 100 days!
This isn't about a big number. This is about the information gathered that will help guide our decisions, a process that will help establishing a vision for Texas A&M Athletics. This is also about improving communication in all things we do with regard to athletics. Another new communication platform is our monthly all-department staff meeting. This month, our meeting is Wednesday, October 16th. Breakfast is from 7:30-8:30 a.m., followed by our meeting at 8:30. In addition to department updates, our guest speaker is Texas A&M Swimmer Jake Gibbons, who also serves as Chair of the SEC's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. We are proud of Jake and his accomplishments and look forward to hearing from him.
The top takeaway from these visits: there is deep love for Texas A&M University and for Texas A&M Athletics.
There is also an impressive commitment to being the best. A sincere "thank you" to all donors through our 12th Man Foundation whose work is evident through the world-class facilities, a true point of pride for our great University and for the student-athletes we serve.
Fall sports are well underway, and basketball season will soon start, likely to produce one of the most exciting times in our school's history. New leadership means the process is underway to build a championship program for men's basketball under new head coach, Buzz Williams. Texas A&M women's basketball is ranked pre-season No. 4, led by our hall of fame coach, Gary Blair. Our swimming and diving facility is starting an impressive upgrade, and other facility plans will soon be announced.
We are stronger together, and our best days are ahead of us. Thank you for allowing me to be part of this incredible journey. There is indeed a spirit that can ne'er be told. Though I've admired it from afar, there is nothing like living in it, the true Spirit of Aggieland.
Gig 'Em!
Ross
|
Michael Thompson Jr. Named Deputy AD for External Relations and Business Development
I am extremely excited to welcome Michael Thompson Jr. and his family to Aggieland as the new Deputy Athletic Director for External Relations and Business Development. Michael served in a similar role while we were at Ole Miss and is someone I know will take us to the next level.
Michael will provide oversight and leadership of Texas A&M Athletics interests through unified efforts designed to maximize revenue potential, expand the brand both nationally and globally and further enhance opportunities for engagement. He will also lead collaborative initiatives with multiple entities regarding external communications and marketing, ticketing, licensing and merchandising, information technology and multimedia rights.
|
|
|
|
Jacob Green
Texas A&M Football icon Jacob Green, who was recently named the Seattle Seahawks' first-ever "Legend of the Year", was honored at Saturday's game with an on-campus salute from the National Football Foundation. Green will be enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame at the 62nd NFF Annual Awards Dinner at the New York Hilton Midtown on Tuesday, December 10.
This is an incredible honor for Jacob and I couldn't be more excited for him. He becomes the 11th Aggie player to be inducted, joining greats such as Ray Childress, John David Crow, Dave Elmendorf, Joel Hunt, John Kimbrough, Charlie Krueger, Dat Nguyen, Jack Pardee, Joe Routt and Joe Utay.
Congrats on this honor, Jacob, and we look forward to continuing this celebration in December!
|
|
 |
|
Team USA Comes to Aggieland
Reed Arena will be rocking on November 7 as the USA Basketball Women's National Team takes on the Aggies in a "friendly" at 7 p.m.
Team USA embarks on its collegiate tour in preparation for the 2020 Olympics and the team will feature Seimone Augustus (Minnesota Lynx), Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Layshia Clarendon (Connecticut Sun), Napheesa Collier (Minnesota Lynx), Elena Delle Donne (Washington Mystics), Skylar Diggins-Smith (Dallas Wings), Sylvia Fowles (Minnesota Lynx), Chelsea Gray (Los Angeles Sparks), Nneka Ogwumike (Los Angeles Sparks), Kelsey Plum (Las Vegas Aces), Diana Taurasi (Phoenix Mercury) and A'ja Wilson (Las Vegas Aces).
Fans can secure tickets for the game by purchasing season tickets, which includes the game against the USA Basketball Women's National Team as a benefit of being a season ticket holder. Click here to buy now.
Fans may also secure their tickets for the game against the USA by purchasing a Flex Pack. Select any 4 games of your choice, including the USA National Team game, starting as low as $24. Click here to purchase.
|
|
|
Diversity and Inclusion
Earlier this month, our men's and women's swimming and diving teams partnered with Special Olympics and volunteered at several events.
The men's team spent time at Veterans Park on October 4 playing games with the particpants, helped out with the photo booth and cheered on the competitors. On October 5, the women's team assisted with timing, escorting athletes to the blocks and awards ceremony and helped stage the swimmers in the appropriate heats and lanes.
This is just one example out of many of how our student-athletes and staff can make an impact throughout our community in a true display of Selfless Service.
|
|
|
Academics Update
Three members of our softball team, Riley Sartain, Blake-Ann Fritsch and Gabby Moreno, were named Easton/National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-America Scholar Athletes. To qualify for the honor, student-athletes must have earned a 3.5 grade-point average for the 2018-19 academic year. Texas A&M has had 19 student-athletes achieve this award in the last four years.
On September 16, student-athletes had the opportunity to network with a variety of employers at a mixer hosted by Student-Athlete Engagement. Attendees interacted with company recruiters in a low stress environment. Students that registered early were even given personalized business cards!
|
|
 |
|
IAAF World Championships
Texas A&M track and field alums collected five medals--four gold and a bronze--during the IAAF World Championships held this month in Doha, Qatar.
Donavan Brazier became the first American to win an 800m title at the World Outdoor Championships and his winning time of 1:42.34 broke the American record (1:42.60) set by Johnny Gray in 1985 along with the Championship record (1:43.06) established in 1987.
Fred Kerley claimed a bronze medal in the 400m (44.17) and collected a gold medal in the 4x400m relay as the United States produced a 2019 world-leading time of 2:56.69, which is the fastest time recorded since the Americans won gold at the Beijing Olympics in 2008 and is the fourth fastest time ever run at the World Championships.
Jessica Beard ran in the prelims of the women's 4x400m relay and the mixed 4x400m relay and earned gold medals from each when the United States won both finals. For her career, Beard has earned five relay gold medals and six medals overall from five appearances in the World Outdoor Championships.
|
|
|
12th Man Green Team
With the addition of alcohol sales in Kyle Field this season, the 12th Man Green Team and Levy have teamed up with Brazos Valley Recycling to enhance the sustainability efforts on game days. Each portable "packaged beer" bar is equipped with up to 6 large receptacles just for recycling.
Cups given to customers are compostable and all cans are recycled. In just three games, 12,000 pounds of cans have been recycled!
Let's keep up the great work!
|
|
|
More Good Bull
Men's golf's Jimmy Lee tied for eighth at the Asia-Pacific Amateur in Shanghai and was just three shots behind the winner, who earned an exemption into next year's Masters ... Volleyball's Hollann Hans was named a Senior CLASS candidate ... The 12th Man Tradition was featured on ESPN's The Greatest program which highlighted the greatest walk-ons ever in college football ... I hope you can find time to listen to my interview on Studio 12 as I talked with Andrew Monaco and Will Johnson on a variety of topics ... Check out this feature on Aggie legend Arturo Barrios in advance of the cross country team's Arturo Barrios Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 19.
Thanks & Gig 'em!
Ross
|
|
|
To receive From the Desk of Ross Bjork in your inbox each month, click here. |
|
