just how fabulous are these t-birds?

I wonder if somewhere in the Utah desert is a feeling that tonight's game between the Jags and T-birds is something of a vengeance game in the name of Bill Evans.

Evans, the former coach at Southern Utah, was fired shortly after getting knocked out of last season's conference tournament by IUPUI in the quarterfinals.

Truth is, I wonder if Evans would still be coaching there had they not lost that one game. IUPUI was plagued by injuries last season...well, injurY is more like it. Without George Hill, the Jags were a different team; still highly competitive, but you just don't replace a guy like George Hill.

Nevertheless, tonight's game won't be about Bill Evans. For IUPUI, it's getting closer to locking up at least a #2-seed. As it stands, they're two games up on the nearest team (Oakland). With nine games left, IUPUI needs to win seven (right now).

We shall see.

Looking forward to tonight and Saturday. This is all a precursor to the Feb. 16 showdown against Oral Roberts.

If history is any sort of guide, it promises to be a classic. But first, SUU.

...like being shot out of a cannon.

Last evening's Jaguar Jamboree felt like getting shot out of a cannon. There's no other way to describe it. Once the volleyball game concluded, we had about 10 minutes to set up and get rolling. I'm used to about 45 minutes of prep time when I work a basketball game, but I figured it would be no sweat, since this isn't my first rodeo.

I was wrong.

It should've been received as a harbinger of things to come when I learned my standard headset mic was out of commission. The handheld mic I was using is what I absolutely hate because it's arguably the least sensitive of the bunch. So I spent most of the night having to SCREAM into the mic. Anyone who knows anything about public speaking can predict this is a recipe for disaster.

If that wasn't bad enough, we had sound issues all night long. We lost the right channel on our amp and, I'm learning, one entire side of the gym couldn't hear a thing because half the overhead speakers were out.

Everything sounded muddy, muffled and over/under-modulated. It may very well have something to do with the system I run (I run my computer into one of the inputs and play everything through iTunes). It worked fine last year. But now, something is amiss and I need a moment to figure it out. Being as how we only had 10 minutes to get things ready last night, there was no time for rehearsals or anything else.

The upside, however, is former player Angelo Smith did a fantastic job as the floor emcee. I knew he would. He's a good guy with a very warm, friendly personality and it came across well.

The new Jungle looks great. I just wish we had more butts in seats last night.

If I were compiling a wish list, it would begin and end with better equipment. What we need, though, would cost an additional few thousand dollars.

i guess this is an official announcement...or something.

Without making a big fuss over things, I hinted to IUPUI Jags personnel today that the upcoming soccer and basketball seasons will, most likely, be my final as PA announcer for the program.

Given my intentions to relocate to Las Vegas by as early as August 08, I think the distance would create a rather difficult commute.

Nothing is etched in stone and I certainly enjoy working for the program, but I have decided it's time to pursue other interests in the desert.

There's a good chance I could still be living in Indy well into 2009, depending on the Vegas job market, but after much consideration I felt it was probably best to step aside well before the 08-09 season to allow ample time for the SID to name a replacement.

It's not like my job is brain surgery or anything. They'll have no trouble filling the spot, I believe.

For me personally, though, I admit I'll miss being at the scorers table. I've always told people I get to watch basketball from the best seat in the house. And the camaraderie between myself and the guys at the table has always been great.

Also, it goes without saying that I'll miss the interaction with all the students: the athletes, cheerleaders, dancers and, last but not least, the Pep Band. I'm pushing 40 but always feel young when I'm around them.

So I'm going to savor as much of this season as possible. I'm going to enjoy every moment at every game. And I'll go to one more conference tournament to watch our teams compete.

I look forward to my future in Las Vegas, but I'll certainly miss the experience I've had as a PA announcer for the Jags.

Onward.

"winter break."

Sorry for the delay in posting. I've been all out of sorts since the holidays. It's a pretty quiet home schedule right now; our next game isn't until the 18th, so I'm taking the break to relax a bit and catch up on other blogs I write.

The last home game on the 30th, a women's game against Miami of Ohio, was a relatively well-played contest despite the home team coming up short in the end. Miami is highly athletic and its coach is in love with "line change" substitutions. Yeah, that was a hoot.

The Dance Team gave me a gift before the game: a picture frame they made for me with the title "#1 announcer" on it. Aw, shucks. They're good kids. I took a photo with them in the pre-game and put it in the frame and have it at home in my den. The photo we took is below. Yeah, I look like I'm off in the distance and don't know why.