TCU's Amon G. Carter Stadium Facelift Progress Report

Clearing debris on west side

Those Frogs move fast.

The day they received their invitation to the Rose Bowl, TCU imploded the north and west sides of Amon G. Carter stadium.  That was December 5th and just a little more than a month later, structural elements of the new additions are already in place.  (here's a link to the plans)

The entire project is expected to be complete and ready for the 2012 season.  This means that construction will continue during the 2011 season.  Can you imagine the challenge this could present?  Construction will stop for the six gamedays next season and then resume as soon as possible once a game is complete.

What's the biggest concern with this entire $125 million renovation?  "The weather," according to TCU athletic director Chris del Conte.  Understandably.  Lengthy weather delays could be a nightmare.

During 2011, seating capacity for games will be limited to low to mid-30,000 range.  Once the renovation is complete, the school anticipates capacity to be a little more than 40,000.  The new stadium will also feature 25 luxury suites.

The pièce de résistance for anyone who has ever covered a TCU game is the proposed new press box.  The old one featured an old, creaky elevator that you literally had to pray to whatever God you worship on the ride up because you didn't know if you were going to make it.  The accordion-style gate and oh-so-popular handle that got passengers to the top will be on display in the new stadium.  Sweet, sweet memories.

Enough babble.

Here's a look at the progress, as off January 11, 2011:

Debris on the west side of stadium next to lower level which will remain for 2011 season

View to the north of Amon G. Carter stadium

Beams in place on the north side of the stadium for structural support for a future second level. 

Everything still coming up roses on-campus

Roddy B Free. Sorta

He's jumping!  And shooting.

Rodrigue Beaubois has been cleared to begin taking jump shots and showed off at Mavericks practice this morning.  His three-point shot was good enough to beat Dominique Jones and DeShawen Stevenson in a little competition.

Beaubois told me on a Mavericks pre-game show in November that he had hoped to be back around the first of the year but now admits it's going to be a while longer.

"I don't know," he said "I still need more time."

How important was being able to jump, finally?

"It's big because I've been on the floor so long. Now I can go up. It's a first step. Now the conditioning part is going to be hard because I can feel that I am getting tired very quickly."

Beaubois was scheduled to see a team doctor today to track his progress.

Super Bowl 45: Be Ready to Pay to Play

Few things Super Bowl related are a bargain.  And if you want to experience Super Bowl 45 to its fullest, be ready to hand over some cash (or high-interest rate plastic).  Email offering Super Bowl 45 "packages" is filling my inbox and it continues to amaze me how many people are buyers.

Jetsetter.com is a site that bills itself as "a private online community that provides members with insider access, expert knowledge, and exclusive deals on the world's greatest vacations."  I've bought one or two hotel stays on the site as it offers relatively decent bargains at good properties. 

Jetsetter is offering five Super Bowl 45 packages ranging in price from $8300 to more than $23,000.  Each package offers game tickets, a three-night stay at the Intercontinental Hotel in Addison, a bus ride to the game from the hotel and two tickets to the open-bar ESPN Game Day Super Party VIP Lounge.

The price for the Premium Package starts at $12,000 and offers two 100-200 level tickets in a corner and two tickets to the Pepsi Musica Super Bowl Fiesta at Nokia Live on February 4th.  There is a $14,000 Player Package that offers 100-300 level tickets between the end zone and 15 yard line and also comes with passes to the Leather & Laces party at Hotel Zaza (which I've also heard a certain musically-gifted celebrity couple is renting ....more on that later).

If you really want to break the bank, go for the MVP Package.  It features 100-200 Club level game tickets between the 15 and 25 yard lines, two VIP passes to the MAXIM Super Bowl Party, airport transfers, and an upgrade to a 750 square foot executive suite at the Intercontinental Hotel. 

How much will all this fabulocity set you back? $23,000.  Yeah.

Are you interested?

How much cash would you drop for a "Super Bowl Experience"?

Mavs Fan Therapy: Time for a Hug and a Question

You're not making this up.  It's not some self-hatred you manifest.  The Wall Street Journal notes today that it really is tough to be a Mavericks fan.

"The Mavericks have had the best-ever 10-year stretch in the NBA without winning a championship. Through Saturday, they had gone 534-236 (.694) in the regular season since 2001-02. During that stretch, they earned a top-four seed in the Western Conference playoffs six times and won at least 60 games three times, but they reached the finals just once—losing to Miami in 2006. They have fallen in the first round in three of the past four seasons."

The article goes on to compare the Mavericks to the Utah Jazz of the 90's, those John Stockton/Karl Malone led teams that won 50 or more games in all but two seasons during the 90's but made the playoffs every year.  They won 64 games in the 96-97 season, 62 in 97-98 only to lose to the Bulls in the Finals twice.

The Mavericks have had regular season success.  They are a playoff fixture, making the postseason 10 straight years, second only to the Spurs who have 13 consecutive playoff appearances. From every email, tweet and Facebook post I get from you, I get the impression you're a little tired of it. 

Soooooooooooooo, would you give up some of that regular season success for just one championship, one parade and one year of bragging rights?  Would you take an NBA title if, say, like the big, bad Heat you won just 15 games a two years later?

Why Cliff Lee is Forcing My 88-Year Old Neighbor to Drink More Scotch

The question “What will Cliff Lee do?” is on your mind, my mind and especially my fabulous 88-year old neighbor Frances' mind. (you MUST read the story the Dallas Morning News did on her during the MLB playoffs, click the link).  Every time she takes her four-pound yorkie Molly out for a walk, Frances stops by my place to ask if I have any updates on Cliff Lee.  I don't know what Lee's doing but I do have a little something from the Rangers.

I talked to CEO Chuck Greenberg on Friday.  He, of course, was part of a contingency that included assistant general manager Thad Levine and co-chairman of the board Ray Davis who visited with Lee, his wife Kristen and agent on Thursday at Lee’s home in Arkansas.

Greenberg wouldn’t divulge much other than to say they presented Lee with a complex menu of options.  I got the impression the Rangers weren't interested in a long term deal a la the Yankees seven year offer. Greenberg indicated that the Rangers would prefer to do a shortER term deal.  But when it's all over, what he indicates doesn't mean a dang thing.  It's all about what Lee agrees to do.

I could continue but you can watch the interview for yourself here.

Enjoy.

Mavs Don't Want to Get in a Small Ball Race with the Nuggets

Notice the new neck tatts

The Mavericks towered over the Nuggets shortened lineup on Wednesday night in a 102-101 win.  Dallas hopes to use size to its advantage again on Saturday when the two teams meet at the AAC.

With multi-tattooed tall guys Chris Andersen and Kenyon Martin recovering from offseason knee surgery and Nene a late scratch because of a groin strain, the Nuggets didn't have a player on the floor taller than 6'9 during the game's 48 minutes. 

Between us girls, if a roster says a player is 6'9, it's more like 6'7.   They all lie.  I got in trouble once when I interned for the Rockets for revealing a Hall of Fame player's real height.

I digress.

What's the Mavericks philosophy when playing a team that goes small?  Try and stay big.

"We've got to try to keep our length in game as much as we can," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle said after practice Friday morning.  "That’s one of our real defining attributes."

That doesn't mean the Mavericks are going to go big at all costs.  They'll size up the matchups and hope to take advantage.

"There are times when sizing down makes sense," Carlisle added.  "We looked at it a bit in the first game anything’s in play."

College Football......Boone Pickens Style...Trust Me, It's Good

There are times you shoot a story and it’s just fine. It’s lovely. You learn a thing or two and move on from there. Then there are times you spend an evening learning more than you ever thought you would and come away amazed. The latter was the experience I had shooting a piece with Dallas billionaire Boone Pickens.  Here's the link to the story that aired on CBS11.

I’ve wanted to attend an Oklahoma State football game with the 1951 graduate for years figuring a story would offer a unique perspective and interest viewers. Our schedules finally aligned and I got the chance to travel with him, some of his employees, friends and colleagues to Stillwater for the Cowboys game against Texas A&M.  I knew it would be fun but I didn’t know I would learn so much about this 82-year old man who has the stamina and character of someone 50 years his junior.

His schedule is exhausting. Take this particular Thursday, for instance: He worked a full day and then hopped on his plane to Oklahoma while still monitoring various business activities back in Dallas.  At the same time, he’s enduring my dumb questions, along with a more thought-provoking discussion with a newspaper reporter from the The Daily Oklahoman. He also had some employees on the plane so they could discuss a few issues. 

View from Suite

Once he’s off the plane, Pickens does a fair amount of entertaining and greeting the hoards of people who want to meet him.  From the OSU athletic director to the basketball coach to various school personnel, they all wanted to say hello. This was before Pickens had even walked into his eponymous facility. Once he was inside Boone Pickens Stadium and gotten his usual pre-game ice cream and tried to make his way to his suite, he was stopped time and again by friends, well-wishers and, frankly, fans. 

I walked around the stadium before the game to talk to people on campus. He has rock star status. One tipsy frat told me “T. Boone is my homie!!!!” Okay, a little beer might have gotten said frat a little more fired up than usual but I got the impression most of the students feel the same way. He has a real connection with the student body. They think he’s cool.

His suite, located on the 50-yard line and next to the university president’s box, is honestly one of the nicest I’ve ever seen. Rich wood cabinets, gorgeous wallpaper and beautiful furniture decorate the luxury box. That’s just the beginning. The food was amazing: freshly picked tomatoes and squash from a local farmer’s market were served for the halftime dinner along with some beautiful steak. Dried fruit, various dips and these amazing, impossible to stop eating jalapeno-cheddar pretzel bites served as appetizers.

I bring all this to your attention because Pickens doesn’t do anything halfheartedly. From his business interests to his passion for Oklahoma State, he’s all in at all times. We had a microphone on Pickens while he watched the game. We typically get the best stuff for our stories during these moments because many people forget they are on-camera. Pickens watched the Texas A&M/Oklahoma State game with binoculars. When I was logging the tapes we shot, I could hear him telling his wife, Madeleine, information on the players any college football scout would appreciate.  He understood the plays and knew in-depth details about almost every OSU player.

He’s a man concerned with details. He’s given around half a billion (with a B) dollars to Oklahoma State University. That money has gone towards both the athletic and academic programs. I asked him what was important to him in regards to the athletic department and the answer surprised me. Yes, the facilities are vital and, to me, Boone Pickens Stadium seems like the college football equivalent of JerryWorld.  Beyond that, Pickens is focused on two other elements: the food and beds.

“I am confident that a kid playing up here when he goes back to wherever it is Tulsa, Oklahoma City, Dallas, Houston, when he goes back in the summer what does he talk about?” Pickens asked me. “He doesn't talk about the stadium. He'll talk more about what he has to eat. We really have good food.”

He wants the athletes to eat well and knows how important it is to their success. He also knows how much it costs: about a million bucks a year.

Why beds?

"A bed is very important to an athlete,” he explains. “He wants one long enough.”

Pickens has had former Cowboys players who are now in the NFL tell him they miss the beds at Oklahoma State more than anything else.

We got back from Stillwater around 11:30 pm. On the way to the airport, I asked him what his upcoming schedule was like. He had a full work day on Friday before flying to his ranch later that evening for a function on Saturday. Then it was on to California for an event at the Ronald Reagan Library, followed by meetings in Washington D.C. before heading back to Dallas for a Thursday morning breakfast meeting.

I was tired from the trip and exhausted just hearing his schedule. How does he do it? 5-Hour Energy? Starbucks triple espressos?  My personal fave, Tall Skinny Caramel Lattes?  No. Pickens has never had a cup of coffee in his life. He’ll drink herbal tea. He eats pretty well, save for an admitted sweet tooth.

I think it all goes back to a certain passion for winning.

“I've always said show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser,” he said. “I am competitive and I want to win.”

Simply put, that’s his philosophy and he seemingly applies it to every, single thing he does.

It’s obviously working.

Leading the Band

My Favorite Story:

There were some good ones that night.  It was hard to pick one. 

Pickens is one of the most even keel men I've met, excuding a calm confidence.  He would cheer and "wave the wheat" when Oklahoma State scored.  He was cordial and friendly, yet pretty business-like during the game except when the band played outside his suite. Members of the OSU band stopped by his suite to perform. Pickens had grabbed a snack and was heading back to his Cowboy-orange leather seats when heard the band just outside his suite entrance.

“That’s my band!” he exclaimed with a huge smile.

Then he proceeds to go into the hallway of suite level at Boone Pickens Stadium and not just listen to the band. No no no, to borrow a phrase from Roy Williams. Pickens went out there to lead the band. He knew the words, he knew what to do and he proved to me, once again, that billionaires, at least this one, simply do it better.