FanSpeak 11/24/02

Make the awards count

WE WERE at a school basketball function and heard several people discussing how the all-conference teams are selected. We were told that a player received honorable mention without even playing one game. How does this happen? We are sure that he is a good kid and all, but we thought honors such as all conference had to be earned. I think this needs to be addressed because things like this demean the whole process and belittle the players who actually earn the honor.

It's the Eagles' year

I THINK this year is the year for the East Prairie Eagles. They have three sophomores, one senior and a junior starting varsity this year. The starters are Jordan Sanders, Matt Boyer, Jared Carden, Brent Harland and Roger Swann. Now tell me that they aren't going to have a good season this year.

It sounds logical

TO THE caller in FanSpeak who asked why Central gets more coverage than Notre Dame, I state the obvious: Subscriber base equals money. Central has more followers and subscribers than Notre Dame. There's awesome Class 1 dominance going on right under our nose and all the Missourian writes about is Central and Notre Dame.

Sharing responsibility

I CONTINUALLY read where people complain of the amount of coverage Notre Dame gets. I realize Notre Dame does get a lot of press, but I think it might be that the coaches have a good working relationship with the reporters and the coaches take the time to call in the info. My child has played sports for a very small school in the area and has always received fair coverage. Yes, there were records and things that happened that could have been reported, but the coach did not relay this to the paper. So maybe we should look at the coach first and see if he or she is actually the one responsible for lack of coverage.

No care in the world

TO THE people who complain about no coverage for Leopold and Notre Dame, don't you ever think that no one else in Cape Girardeau cares about your team?

Coaches, players did well

THIS IS in regards to the Central Tiger football team and its staff. I'm a parent of one of the players on the team and I can't tell how much we appreciate all the hard work and the effort that went in on the part of the coaches and the boys. These boys were out there and so were most of the coaches. There is no way the district pays them enough to where it comes out to more than pennies on the hour of what they spend with these boys. What these kids need in our schools today are people that are willing to do these things. Both the boys and the coaches should be very proud of what they accomplished. We fans certainly are, and we look forward to another great year next year.

More congratulations

I WOULD like to commend the Central Tiger football team on yet another great season. Those guys should be very proud of what they have accomplished over the past few years. This season especially has been full of excitement. Congratulations.

A double twist

I FIND few things surprising when dealing with Southeast administration. The president and athletic administration want to drop gymnastics, but they get so much flak they decide to form a committee to take the heat and give them the answers they want. But no, the committee does not want the heat either so now they spend money to hire a consultant to give them the recommendation they want. Who is this consultant and who did they talk to? No one seems to know, and Southeast isn't telling. Come on, Southeast. If you put as much support and money into the team to help it as you have to try to drop it, it would again be a national-level program. What a lack of guts and a waste of time and money.

No cheers for the outfits

WAS THERE a shortage of material when they made the uniforms for the Southeast basketball cheerleaders? They are too immodest. What a shame.

'Did you say something?'

AS A supporter of Southeast Indian basketball, I'm encouraged to see that we appear to have an exciting team this year. But I'm not encouraged at the prospect of having to sit through frequent barrages of loud, offensive rap just to be able to attend the games. Can anyone do anything to change this policy?

Bonds was a typical pick

I BELIEVE that Barry Bonds winning the MVP for the second year in a row represents how baseball is today. What they look for in a MVP is someone who will bring in the money and not necessarily someone who represents the best in baseball -- someone who appreciates being with MLB and who goes out there and tries his best. If MLB wants to be respected and keep their following, they will need to re-learn what baseball is really all about.

Beef it up

NOW THAT Southeast has established itself as a football team to contend with, Ihope the administration continues to look for other well-known opponents to add to future schedules, whether it's Arkansas State, Vanderbilt, Kentucky or even a lesser team that we know Southeast will beat, likeMiddle Tennessee. Nah, never mind, let's not stoop to playing MTSU again. There's nothing left to prove against them.

Rallying behind the team

I CALLED 42 businesses with marquees along Kingshighway and Broadway asking them if they could put up something like "Good luck, Tigers," or "Congratulations, Tigers" to show their support for the high school football team that was playing in the quarterfinals. I just want to thank all the people I called who could not have been more gracious. It was a wonderful response from a lot of people.

Cut the double life

I STRONGLY feel that the principal should not be the coach of a team. There is no fairness in that situation. Also he chooses his favorites while the rest sit on the bench all season, even though they have missed no practices or games. He chooses to not let them play for fear his team will lose -- now that's showing real sportsmanship. This situation needs to be addressed because there are boys who really want to play, and because of this coach they can't.

Leopold or Winona?

I WAS wondering if you were going to publish an end-of-season volleyball poll. I think the No. 1 would be a toss-up between Winona and Leopold. Leopold won Class 1, but Winona finished second in Class 2. Either way, both teams were great -- that's why I like small-school volleyball.

The final volleyball poll of the season was published just after the district tournaments.

The good, the bad ...

CONGRATULATIONS, Notre Dame on a spectacular victory to claim the soccer state championship. Shame on you, Southeast Missourian, for such a small article and no photos of the event. It would have been a nice keepsake for the players and their families.

... Part II ...

I CAN'T believe that Central gets beaten badly and they get a bigger story than Notre Dame gets. Notre Dame has proven to be a better team this year by beating Central, so why do they get more coverage? Last year they made the final four in baseball. This year they're right back and have made the final four in soccer. We don't hear anything from the newspaper about any of that stuff.

... and Part III

WE ARE appalled by your lack of coverage on the Notre Dame soccer state championship. It's the first time Notre Dame has ever gone to state in soccer and they didn't get so much as a picture in the Sports section. Some schools receive front-page coverage with a picture even when they lose. For example, Central lost a quarterfinal soccer game and still made the front page, while at the same time Notre Dame won a game and only received a paragraph. For a local school to win a state championship is quite an accomplishment for our community.

Now, just the bad ...

DO YOU have a map of all 50 states? If you do, would you look between Kentucky and Virginia and find a university called UT, as in University of Tennessee? Yes, I know I could move back to Tennessee if I wanted to, but why not try to see if there are other colleges out there besides Southeast.

We'll submit a budget request immediately for a new map.

... and, finally ...

WHY IS there no story on the Southeast football victory over Samford? Central wins a game and it's on the front page of the Web site, but Southeast wins its eighth game for the first time since 1969 and there's not one single article about it anywhere to be found.

There was a Southeast football game against Samford?

Distant memories

I ALREADY miss high school football. Can't we just skip the seasons that nobody watches and just go back to football? We don't really need basketball season, do we?

The crystal ball says ...

MARK MY words that Mizzou will win the Big 12 Conference Tournament this year in Kansas City.