WT Baseball

[MooseLodge]

TAMUC at Dallas does not fund athletics at Commerce.

man that sucks. Do the Dallas students count toward Commerce's enrollment totals?

[ASUPops]

Sounds like a decent plan to find more students to tax to fund the ball team.

TAMUC at Dallas does not fund athletics at Commerce.

[MooseLodge]

It currently is.

Sounds like a decent plan to find more students to tax to fund the ball team.

[ASUPops]

They are also changing the name in Commerce to Texas A&M university Dallas at Commerce. We are being relegated to a satellite of a satellite.

SMDH.

[ASUPops]

I wonder why it wasn't Texas A&M Commerce at Dallas? My goodness someone has a lot of free time on their hands.

It currently is.

[MooseLodge]

They are also changing the name in Commerce to Texas A&M university Dallas at Commerce. We are being relegated to a satellite of a satellite.

I wonder why it wasn't Texas A&M Commerce at Dallas? My goodness someone has a lot of free time on their hands.

[JakeTAMUC]

So Texas A&M University-Commerce at Dallas is changing to Texas A&M University Dallas?

They just announced a buildout in June:
https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/n...expansion.html

🤔

They are also changing the name in Commerce to Texas A&M university Dallas at Commerce. We are being relegated to a satellite of a satellite.

[ASUPops]

Soon to be Texas A&M University Dallas at Commerce. Least that’s the rumor at Old ET.

So Texas A&M University-Commerce at Dallas is changing to Texas A&M University Dallas?

They just announced a buildout in June:
https://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/n...expansion.html

🤔

[Rockofwesties]

Soon to be Texas A&M University Dallas at Commerce. Least that’s the rumor at Old ET.

I heard that the new school motto will be “ Should have taken that left turn in Albuquerque.”

[MooseLodge]

Soon to be Texas A&M University Dallas at Commerce. Least that’s the rumor at Old ET.

That sounds really out there, but whatever makes everyone happy.

[JakeTAMUC]

WT has never had enough students to tax to be a pretend D1. You can't double your athletics budget in hopes that twice as many students will then show up because you're playing Nichols State. WT needs a solid 10K undergrad to even be a shoestring pretend D1. They've never come close to that number in their history.

Wendler's comments about jucos were off for sure, but that is having little effect on enrollment - either at WT or the local junior colleges. Enrollments for all are declining. WT's enrollment decline rate is actually less than most directional schools right now. If you think WT is in bad shape, check out Kingsville, Corpus Christi, SFA, and Commerce. Three of those are "D1" (technically).

Things aren't too bad in Canyon.

Soon to be Texas A&M University Dallas at Commerce. Least that’s the rumor at Old ET.

[MooseLodge]

I agree with most of your take however Wendler is a part of not having enough students to tax if he is discouraging freshman and sophomore students from attending WT.

WT has never had enough students to tax to be a pretend D1. You can't double your athletics budget in hopes that twice as many students will then show up because you're playing Nichols State. WT needs a solid 10K undergrad to even be a shoestring pretend D1. They've never come close to that number in their history.

Wendler's comments about jucos were off for sure, but that is having little effect on enrollment - either at WT or the local junior colleges. Enrollments for all are declining. WT's enrollment decline rate is actually less than most directional schools right now. If you think WT is in bad shape, check out Kingsville, Corpus Christi, SFA, and Commerce. Three of those are "D1" (technically).

Things aren't too bad in Canyon.

[Buffalo/Islander Alum]

Wendler has boasted that this is one of the top D2 programs in the country, and I don't think he wants to mess that up as part of his legacy. D1 is out of the question, not because of Wendler, but because there are not enough students to tax to have a budget to work with.

D3 is out of the question, too, but I could see a very slimmed down D2 with fewer sports and scholarships. With Wendler and Rikel, my sense is that anything outside of football, basketball, volleyball, and softball could be fair game. Track would be the first to go.

I have a concern that there were several good candidates in the beginning, including the AD at UTPB. Why weren't terms made with that guy? He's done well. Could it be because, after looking behind the curtain, he didn't like what he saw? Was it a money issue? He was an obvious choice. I'm concerned that didn't happen. The fact that this is taking a while tells me that something is amiss.

I agree with most of your take however Wendler is a part of not having enough students to tax if he is discouraging freshman and sophomore students from attending WT.

[MooseLodge]

Well it sure as heck isnt going to be someone that gets in front of a microphone ramping up the alumni base to raise 100 million dollars so they can go D1.

Just talking to inside sources and alumni I am growing increasingly concerned that WT is going to wind down to Western Oregon type scholarship numbers or worse (D3).

At some point the old guard is going to pass on and the younger alumni isnt going to remember and/or care about the past/future to give consistent donations to support a D3 cause.

I really really really hope I am wrong.

Wendler has boasted that this is one of the top D2 programs in the country, and I don't think he wants to mess that up as part of his legacy. D1 is out of the question, not because of Wendler, but because there are not enough students to tax to have a budget to work with.

D3 is out of the question, too, but I could see a very slimmed down D2 with fewer sports and scholarships. With Wendler and Rikel, my sense is that anything outside of football, basketball, volleyball, and softball could be fair game. Track would be the first to go.

I have a concern that there were several good candidates in the beginning, including the AD at UTPB. Why weren't terms made with that guy? He's done well. Could it be because, after looking behind the curtain, he didn't like what he saw? Was it a money issue? He was an obvious choice. I'm concerned that didn't happen. The fact that this is taking a while tells me that something is amiss.

[MooseLodge]

Maybe there are some more candidates. I was told that Wendler was calling some other university athletic directors inquiring about potential prospects. I hope there are some good ones and WT doesn’t get a Wendler/Rikel lackey.

"Calling around" after over two months? That wouldn't be a good sign at all.