Howdy!
It's been an exciting ride during these first 67 days. Fall sports are underway, the students are back (They didn't properly warn me about the traffic at the beginning of a new semester!), and most importantly, meeting as many Aggies as possible has allowed me to fully comprehend the true meaning of the "Spirit of Aggieland." It is important that you have faith in the vision we are creating for our Athletics Department. To accurately develop our direction moving forward, I'm spending time with staff, donors, former students, fans and friends of A&M. So far, I've had over 315 meetings or events in just over two months. While we can always improve at a certain level, I've never heard so much passion and optimism about our present and future. One thing is clear. There is no place like Texas A&M, and our best days are yet to come.
It is hard to put into words the emotions I felt while standing on the field to be part of my first Yell Practice. It's a little overwhelming to see almost 35,000 people show up to support the Fightin' Texas Aggies, preparing to do what makes the 12th Man the best student section in all of college football. Little did I realize, that was just the warm-up for something even greater. The next evening, on a Thursday, the 12th Man set a record in the Student Section with over 36,000 in attendance! A&M continues to lead the nation in student support, and for that, we say THANK YOU.
Our work never ends and this summer was a great example of constant progress on the facility front. We're surrounded by progress thanks to aggressive timelines and dedicated crews who worked throughout the summer to improve our facilities. The women's basketball locker room project will set us apart from all other schools in the conference. A dedicated nutrition center and weight room improvements to the Davis Player Development Center are working to enhance the student-athlete experience. We have new lighting in both basketball practice gyms and a new player floor in Reed Arena. And Saturday against Lamar, Texas A&M sets a new standard when the team enters the field from the south end zone tunnel. New lighting and branding will set the tone for the team entrance and the Kyle Field experience will be even better than before. Pictures that capture the moment will be posted to our social media accounts. There will be nothing like it in college football.
Thank you for continuing to welcome me to the Aggie family. We're just getting started.
Gig 'Em.
Ross
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First Football Game
As mentioned, August 29 will always be a special day for me as it was my first football game at Kyle Field as your Director of Athletics. From Yell Practice to sawing 'em off postgame, the gameday experience is something I will never forget.
98,016 witnessed the dominant, 41-7 victory over Texas State, including 36,567 students, which set a new school record. An unbelievable turnout for a Thursday night game.
A special thanks to Dr. Jerry Strawser and the Football Thursday Task Force that ensured a successful class day and game experience!
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Aggie Hospitality
Our local Levy Concessions team, Aggie Hospitality, was tasked with a decision made this summer as we began selling alcohol throughout Kyle Field. During the game against Texas State, sales totaled $176,231. Throughout the evening, Aggie Hospitality exceeded expectation for first game execution. Feedback was overwhelmingly positive as our friends at Levy launched several enhancements in the stadium while making tremendous strides in customer service.
Thanks to Levy and their leadership team for taking this challenge head on. We are proud to have them as our concession partner in all athletic venues.
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Summer Project Update
As we remain dedicated to providing an unmatched student-athlete experience, we have several projects underway or recently completed which will upgrade a number of our athletic facilities.
Football's Davis Player Development Center
- A 2,000-square foot expansion now features branded recruiting and performance nutrition spaces.
- The nutrition bar food service is supported by a dedicated pantry as well as "reach-in grab-n-go" refrigerators for hydration.
- The weight room was also renovated to include new flooring and equipment, including a state-of-the-art sports analytics performance measuring system.
- Entrances to the weight room were upgraded through the addition of free-standing canopies while respecting the integrity of the original building's design.
Men's and women's basketball practice gyms
- We repainted the men's and women's basketball practice gym courts to reflect the new NCAA rules on changed lines.
- The weight room utilized by both teams was completely overhauled with windows, graphics, new equipment and brand new flooring.
- New LED lights were installed in both gyms.
- New graphics were put up in the men's practice gym to reflect Coach Williams' philosophy and honor our history.
Men's basketball coaches offices
- The men's basketball coaches office area was rebranded with digital enhancements while Coach Williams' office is getting refurnished with new flooring.
- The practice gym balcony is being made into a viewing space for workouts and practice including a granite drink ledge.
Women's basketball locker room
- The 4,500-square foot locker room has been stripped to the bones and has been designed to showcase what our program is capable of: National Championships.
- A living room space has been added and will feature nostalgic photographs and a replica NCAA Championship trophy.
- A versatile film room seamlessly opens up into the spacious player's lounge which features a fully-stocked, top-of-the-line nutrition center.
- Sixteen custom-built lockers are filled with its own desk and wall-mounted computer with programmable video panels above.
- Other highlights include the Aggie Salon as well as a sleep room with state-of-the-art sleep pods.
Football Tunnel
- A concept and design that was developed by Advent, the football tunnel features a dynamic light show.
- Lights react to the beat of the music playing in the stands to create a high, intense energy prior to the team's entrance.
- The project contains 277 lighting elements.
- This will be a huge enhancement for Coach Fisher and staff's recruiting efforts
- The east side of the tunnel features "Gig 'Em Aggies" and are positioned to read on the way from the field to the locker room.
- The west side is highlighted by Coach Fisher's pillars of championship football: Toughness, Effort, Discipline, Pride, Grit and Attitude.
- This project could not have happened without the heroic effort by Jesse Janosky and the 12th Man Productions team. Jesse's crew installed all of the data cables and programmed the system.
You can view photos of all the projects here.
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Hooey Yell Fest
Texas Country superstar Cory Morrow headlines the first "Hooey Yell Fest" in the Pepsi Fan Zone at Kyle Field on Friday, September 20 prior to the football game against Auburn.
This free concert and entertainment event starts at 8 p.m. and concludes in time for Midnight Yell Practice. Texas A&M Class of 2011 graduate Ross Cooper opens the concert followed by Morrow.
In addition to the live music, Hooey Yell Fest includes a robust array of Pepsi Fan Zone activations, as well as local food trucks and beer available for purchase.
Hope to see you all there!
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Diversity and Inclusion
September 15 marks the start of Hispanic Heritage Month. We are celebrating the outstanding contributions made by soccer's Jimena Lopez and volleyball's Camila Gomez at the Pan American Games at the September 15 soccer game and September 17 volleyball match.
Both events feature a special edition Spanish promotion. At the soccer game against UNLV, the first 500 fans will receive a Spanish "Home of the 12th Man" noise maker. The first 250 fans at the volleyball game against Oklahoma will receive a Spanish "Home of the 12th Man" poster.
Playing in her first tournament with the Mexico Women's National Team, Lopez started all four matches as El Tri earned a fifth-place finish. Lopez played 309 of 360 minutes for Mexico at the tournament as they posted a 2-1-1 record.
Gomez helped the Colombian National Team to its first-ever Pan-American Games final, but came up just short in the championship match to earn silver. Gomez was Colombia's Libero and registered double-digit digs in every match. Throughout five matches, Gomez finished as the Best Digger with 104 total digs, the Best Receiver recording a 49.23% efficiency and 72 excellents. She was the Best Libero recording 176 total digs, 8.38 digs per set.
Additionally, former softball All-American Tori Vidales and Team Mexico qualified for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo following a stellar performance at the WBSC American Qualifiers. Vidales hit .500 in the tournament, notching team-highs of nine hits and seven RBIs. She posted a .524 on base percentage and a .667 slugging percentage for a 1.191 OPS.
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AD Honor Roll
During the Texas State game, I had the privilege of celebrating with our 332 student-athletes that were recognized on the field for being named to the AD Honor Roll! The honor roll awards those who earn a semester grade point average of 3.0 and above.
Men's basketball led all men's teams with a 3.166 GPA last spring, while the women's golf team captured the women's top honor with a 3.439 GPA.
171 student-athletes earned a 3.5 or above GPA, and 61 of those outstanding student-athletes earned a perfect 4.0. All teams combined, Aggie student-athletes produced the highest recorded semester GPA in athletics department history with a 3.016.
Our student-athletes represent 11 different colleges across campus and are earning their degrees in over 50 different majors.
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Traditions Night
Traditions Night kicked the 2019-20 academic year off with a bang. On August 19th, 113 incoming student-athletes participated in the interactive walking tour of campus that included stops at the Lettermen's Club, VPSA Residence, Quad, Academic Plaza, Bonfire Memorial, and ended with a yell practice at the Association of Former Students.
Students were guided by 56 student and student-athlete Huddle Leaders who engaged and shared their experiences in hopes of providing a better welcome to our institution. The evening was highlighted with the return of two Aggie greats, Jessica Beard '11 and Dat Nguyen '98, who served as Namesakes for the evening.
Traditions Night is a partnership with the Division of Student Affairs and their Office of Extended Orientation and provides student-athletes with a similar experience to Fish Camp and Aggie Transition Camp.
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Aggie Family Reunion
On August 26th, the Center for Student-Athlete Services welcomed our student-athletes back to campus at the Aggie Family Reunion. Aggie Yell Leaders hosted a yell practice in preparation for the first home game, student-athlete leaders spoke about the upcoming year, and I shared my vision for their experience a student-athlete at Texas A&M.
The keynote speaker was Dr. Tim Elmore, President and Founder of Growing Leaders. Dr. Elmore is an international speaker and best-selling author who imparts practical life and leadership skills to young adults that will help them navigate through life, as well as teaches leadership habits and attitudes through specific imagery. His message encouraged our student-athletes to utilize their leadership skills to create a culture of excellence on their teams.
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More Good Bull
I look forward to working with Clay Harris, who was recently hired as the new general manager of Texas A&M Ventures ... Best of luck to our cross country teams as they open the season at the Texas A&M Invitational Friday morning ... One of our tennis Lettermen, Dessie Samuels, was recognized at the US Open ... The men's basketball schedule is complete and features top-ranked opponents coming to Reed Arena.
Thanks & Gig 'em!
Ross
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