Steve Fischer's column in today's EP Times

[unihorn]

Some good thoughts, but few solutions.

"Time to return to (UTEP) basketball glory days":

http://www.elpasotimes.com/story/op...her-make-utep-basketball-competitive/80359002

 

[Minerforlife]

I think one overlooked fact is how the basketball landscape has changed in Texas in the last twenty years. In the old days UTEP was one of the top programs in the state. That is no longer the case we have fallen way down the totem pole. We arent even in the top ten anymore. The big 12 is the best hoops conference in America. All of the Texas big 12 schools will make the tournament except TCU. However, TCU just finished a 70 million dollar remodel of their arena. They are a natonal power in football and baseball and will be in basketbal soon.

In the American SMU is a national power. Moody is best basketball atmosphere in the state. They've invested big money in basketball and will be a perennial threat to make the final four.
Houston is going to make the tournament. Sampson has got that program going in the right direction. Sampson was promised a 60 million dollar renovation of hoffeinz when he accepted the job. The renovation was delayed because of poor attendance at the new football stadium. With Tom Herman at Houston now off a 12-1 season revenues are up and the cougs are going to start the hoffeinz renovation. Houston basketball is on the rise.

The small guys: SFA is on the verge of going to third straight tournament. Theyve won a game in the tournament. The key to their success is Brad Underwood. Hes had big schools offer but seems happy in Nac and is building quite a program.

UTA has been irrelevant on the sports scene However, the college park center is nicer than any non power five arena in Texas except for Moody. They are a huge school 51,000 students. Their president seems uninterested in bringing back football. They looked to be a sweet 16 team before Hervey blew his knee in warmups. They could definitely become the Wichita State of Texas.

The basketball landscape in Texas is every bit as difficult for UTEP as the football landscape. The fact is we play in the 22nd ranked rpi conference in America. CUSA is a horrible hoops league. We spend more on hoops than any school in cusa. Having said that its unacceptable to miss the tournament for six years. If Floyd misses the tournament its time to burn the house down and rebuild. If we dont we will slide farther into irrelevancy and farther down the hoops pecking order in Texas.

On a side note now that the fiftieth anniversary has passed its time to retire the Texas Western Jerseys forever.

 

[unihorn]

Great post.

It's all about recruiting. Jarrett Allen will be the next big commit from the state of Texas. Texas and Houston seem to be his finalists. It's a credit to Sampson that he's even in the running for Allen. If Floyd has lost his recruiting mojo, he's done.

The 1966 NCAA championship should be a feather in UTEP's recruiting cap -- a minor one, but a feather nonetheless.

 

[miner1liner]

Please educate me. Who is Steve Fischer?

 

[unihorn]

Please educate me. Who is Steve Fischer?

I don't know -- "guest columnist:"

Attorney Steve Fischer was UTEP student body president in 1974-5 and had his hamster elected the following year.

 

[kappy600]

Steve will be joining us today on Sportstalk around 5pm to talk more about his guest column as well as solutions.

 

[Voice of the Mosquito]

Exactly.....Great Post and you can add that most Texas schools have access to excellent recruiting grounds, DFW, Houston and even central and east Texas have many high quality recruits close at hand. We always seemed to land a good player or two from these areas in the past. Kids that kind of fell thru the cracks, those kids don't exist much anymore for us. The upgrade in arenas and venues is dramatic, places like Baylor and Texas A$M even UTA have places which far surpass the Haskins Center (which we need to upgrade) BTW. The biggest thing with these places is games are events and often teams have recognition. At SMU and Houston you are playing the UCONN and Temples of the college basketball world in front of TV and 1000's of fans. IN CUSA we are stuck with empty arenas and unknowns. The quality of football in our conference is almost passable but most in our conference invest exclusively for football. Basketball is horrid and under supported and is an afterthought for most of our conference mates like FIU, FAU, UTSA where 1200 is an averaged attended game. UTEP needs to step up and out of CUSA.

 

[MinerMambo]

Fischer hit the nail on the head. I cringe whenever Limberg announces the "only men's team in Texas..." as that rings more and more hollow as the years go on. It's almost as if the work of UTEP basketball is done because of the '66 team. Don't get me wrong, I love the '66 team, but it's now time to move on. The reality is that UTEP has not won a NCAA Tournament game in nearly a quarter century and Limberg could announce that and it would be just as true as the '66 intro that he does. This stings for a school that brands itself as a basketball school.

Fischer also notes the downgrade in conference. We went from good in the WAC, to decent in CUSA, to %#&#show in the current CUSA. The teams don't inspire emotion, many of the gyms are no better than high school gyms, and it's tough to get pumped up for the teams in this conference. Add a mediocre last 6 years to the mix and there's your explanation as to declining attendance and waning interest in the men's basketball team.

The decline in conference affiliation is Stull's biggest black mark on his legacy. He's done some good things, but the conference degradation hurts. Floyd won't say it publicly, but he thinks that if UTEP is going to be where the community deserves it to be, then the Miners need a new conference affiliation.

 

[unihorn]

So what are our competitive advantages and weaknesses?

+ solid local fan support/attendance
+ "Glory Road"/Haskins legacy

~ facilities
~ Floyd(?)

- remoteness
- lack of awareness/exposure
- CUSA

How do we maximize our strengths and minimize our weaknesses?

 

[Minerforlife]

So what are our competitive advantages and weaknesses?

+ solid local fan support/attendance
+ "Glory Road"/Haskins legacy

~ facilities
~ Floyd(?)

- remoteness
- lack of awareness/exposure
- CUSA

How do we maximize our strengths and minimize our weaknesses?

We need a young forward thinker with good relationships with AAU coaches. We need to sell UTEP for what it can be. We need someone to bring excitement and invigorate the program. Recruits dont care about the Haskins or the 66 team. They care about now. We dont sell now we sell the past. The present state of the program is terrible and thats what recruits, fans, and the media care about.

We have alot of positives. No other school in the country could consistently average 8000 a game when they have been irrelevant for almost a quarter of a cenury. Thats a testimony to our fan base. We have great facilities. We outspend everyone in cusa in hoops. With a young bright coach we could dominate cusa in no time.

Remoteness is not an issue. If we would the University of Texas at Presidio not El Paso we could complain about remoteness. Fact is El Paso is the 18th biggest city in America its not a little cow town. Its a cheap flight to pretty much anywhere in the us. There are much more remote places than El Paso.

The 66 team is special and will be beloved forever. However, its time to stop wearing Texas Western Jerseys. Its terrible brand messaging. We arent a small directional school, we are a rapidly advancing research University with a national brand. Stop clinging desperately to the past. Instead continue to build the UTEP brand.

 

[unihorn]

We need a young forward thinker with good relationships with AAU coaches. We need to sell UTEP for what it can be. We need someone to bring excitement and invigorate the program. Recruits dont care about the Haskins or the 66 team. They care about now. We dont sell now we sell the past. The present state of the program is terrible and thats what recruits, fans, and the media care about.

We have alot of positives. No other school in the country could consistently average 8000 a game when they have been irrelevant for almost a quarter of a cenury. Thats a testimony to our fan base. We have great facilities. We outspend everyone in cusa in hoops. With a young bright coach we could dominate cusa in no time.

Remoteness is not an issue. If we would the University of Texas at Presidio not El Paso we could complain about remoteness. Fact is El Paso is the 18th biggest city in America its not a little cow town. Its a cheap flight to pretty much anywhere in the us. There are much more remote places than El Paso.

The 66 team is special and will be beloved forever. However, its time to stop wearing Texas Western Jerseys. Its terrible brand messaging. We arent a small directional school, we are a rapidly advancing research University with a national brand. Stop clinging desperately to the past. Instead continue to build the UTEP brand.

So fire Floyd, hire a young, dynamic coach, and "build the brand."

Another small, although not unique, benefit we offer student athletes is ease of acceptance and, I would also think, relative ease of maintaining academic eligibility and getting a degree.

I disagree that El Paso isn't remote. Flights have decreased since the expiration of the Wright Ammendment, and they're not cheap since driving is rarely a viable option. Families of players won't be able to see them play often.

 

[Minerforlife]

El paso should be an advantage in recruiting. I believe El Paso is the second largest city in the United States without a pro sports team. UTEP is the defacto pro sports team in El Paso. If you come to UTEP you play in one of the country's 20 biggest cities, where you are always the top sports story. You want to be a celebrity lead all the local tv sports coverage, be the main topic on talk radio and in the local sports pages come to UTEP. If you want to play anonymously for a program that gets no attention in their market go somewhere else. We dont sell that angle nearly enough if at all.

 

[JeepJackson22]

I agree that conference affiliation is hurting us the most right now- just look at other schools that used to be in our conference at some point but have now moved on to better conferences...

 

[e-rick]

So fire Floyd, hire a young, dynamic coach, and "build the brand."

Another small, although not unique, benefit we offer student athletes is ease of acceptance and, I would also think, relative ease of maintaining academic eligibility and getting a degree.

I disagree that El Paso isn't remote. Flights have decreased since the expiration of the Wright Ammendment, and they're not cheap since driving is rarely a viable option. Families of players won't be able to see them play often.

Who has no loyalty to UTEP and moves on and builds nothing except his resume!!! Do you always want to be a stepping stone program and never get traction?

 

[miner1liner]

El paso should be an advantage in recruiting. I believe El Paso is the second largest city in the United States without a pro sports team. UTEP is the defacto pro sports team in El Paso. If you come to UTEP you play in one of the country's 20 biggest cities, where you are always the top sports story. You want to be a celebrity lead all the local tv sports coverage, be the main topic on talk radio and in the local sports pages come to UTEP. If you want to play anonymously for a program that gets no attention in their market go somewhere else. We dont sell that angle nearly enough if at all.

The problem with your theory regarding..."top sports story", "celebrity lead", "main topic", etc., which boils down to the only game in town is IMHO the pathetic coverage by our El Paso Times Sports section which sometimes consists of three pages. During my recent visit I was agog at the ineptness. Never saw photos of the games, players, quotations from players, box scores, CUSA standings, stories on other CUSA games. They sometimes can't even get all the scores posted from NBA games until two days later. UTEP may be the only game in town, but it takes about 90 seconds to read the coverage. I get my info from the UTEP website or Miner Digs. Potential recruits; I guarantee would not be dazzled by the attention and notoriety seen the EP Times. I can't speak for the the TV and radio coverage, so please correct me on that matter. In The Dallas Morning News today there are nine pages of sports (less than usual). The top front page headline is "SMU forges on despite barriers". The story continues on page 9 with a photo of Coach Brown and one of the players celebrating a victory from two days ago. Even though SMU competes with the Mavericks, Stars, Rangers, Cowboys, FC Dallas, etc., they get plenty of coverage although a few years ago when they stunk, it was hard to find anything.

 

[unihorn]

The problem with your theory regarding..."top sports story", "celebrity lead", "main topic", etc., which boils down to the only game in town is IMHO the pathetic coverage by our El Paso Times Sports section which sometimes consists of three pages. During my recent visit I was agog at the ineptness. Never saw photos of the games, players, quotations from players, box scores, CUSA standings, stories on other CUSA games. They sometimes can't even get all the scores posted from NBA games until two days later. UTEP may be the only game in town, but it takes about 90 seconds to read the coverage. I get my info from the UTEP website or Miner Digs. Potential recruits; I guarantee would not be dazzled by the attention and notoriety seen the EP Times. I can't speak for the the TV and radio coverage, so please correct me on that matter. In The Dallas Morning News today there are nine pages of sports (less than usual). The top front page headline is "SMU forges on despite barriers". The story continues on page 9 with a photo of Coach Brown and one of the players celebrating a victory from two days ago. Even though SMU competes with the Mavericks, Stars, Rangers, Cowboys, FC Dallas, etc., they get plenty of coverage although a few years ago when they stunk, it was hard to find anything.

Both are true -- the Miners are the only game in town, and the media coverage in El Paso sucks.

Bill Knight is a tired, formulaic writer.

Floyd should constantly be interviewed on TV, but must not enjoy the spotlight, or be compelled to put himself out there by his boss. He's borderline reclusive.

And don't get me started about UTEP's weak marketing, particularly when it comes to leveraging social media and the Internet.

 

[utep2step]

CUSA is a lackluster league this year, however, given the circumstances UTEP was in at the time we jumped ship from the WAC, Stull did make the right move.

Second, Floyd went high risk, high reward as far as recruiting and got burned so now this team is in "rebuilding" stage. If Hamilton, Hunter and Washburn would have stayed committed, this thread possibly would be full of fans hoping UTEP gets seeded in the west bracket.

 

[Voice of the Mosquito]

I long for those Glory Years like every Miner fan who experienced them does. However college basketball and sports have changed form those times and I don't expect a return to those era's anytime in the future. I would love to place all of this in a time machine a put us back in the 60's, 70's, 80's etc. when we mattered more in college sports, but as far as I know no time machine exists. So what does this mean for us in the here and now? well we are not a university overly endowed with position, money or clout, but we do have a nice history and a cultural legacy and support wise we can punch above our weight when things are going well. What we do to position ourselves to be more relevant will have to be highly unique, innovative and we have to take risks. We can't just copy some success model as some have proposed because there is no "model" for UTEP to copy. TCU, Boise, Gonzaga whom ever all had unique situations to overcome and in some cases blind luck. My point being, UTEP is at a different place, time and situation then others and we are going to have to find our own path. Much of our plight is in the political realm and we should not omit looking in that direction to advance ourselves. We are a branch of the University of Texas System and we need to seek some kind of separation from this situation if we want to advance our cause, we can't leave major decisions too those in Austin or anywhere else, we have to make them. As a university UTEP on all fronts has been way too passive and patient on everything, sports included. We need to become more aggressive and confrontational when it comes to advancing our cause. Universities and college athletics can be economic drivers in communities and regions and we have not to my knowledge approached the issue from this angle either. Conference affiliation should be approached in the same way. It is often mentioned we need to invest in......we do, but we need something to invest with.....ie cash which we don't have an excess of. Milking the same tired donors over and over is not an option here, they gave already and a few are still waiting to see a return on the past money they "invested" (Hey, Larry). Students, fans, season ticket holders and alumni likely have to take the hit on this one. Finally, we can "fire" and "hire" anybody we want but there are no saviors out there on our budget so we need to discard this idea that who sits at the top is the only one who can foster a change, it takes a village.

 

[unihorn]

I long for those Glory Years like every Miner fan who experienced them does. However college basketball and sports have changed form those times and I don't expect a return to those era's anytime in the future. I would love to place all of this in a time machine a put us back in the 60's, 70's, 80's etc. when we mattered more in college sports, but as far as I know no time machine exists. So what does this mean for us in the here and now? well we are not a university overly endowed with position, money or clout, but we do have a nice history and a cultural legacy and support wise we can punch above our weight when things are going well. What we do to position ourselves to be more relevant will have to be highly unique, innovative and we have to take risks. We can't just copy some success model as some have proposed because there is no "model" for UTEP to copy. TCU, Boise, Gonzaga whom ever all had unique situations to overcome and in some cases blind luck. My point being, UTEP is at a different place, time and situation then others and we are going to have to find our own path. Much of our plight is in the political realm and we should not omit looking in that direction to advance ourselves. We are a branch of the University of Texas System and we need to seek some kind of separation from this situation if we want to advance our cause, we can't leave major decisions too those in Austin or anywhere else, we have to make them. As a university UTEP on all fronts has been way too passive and patient on everything, sports included. We need to become more aggressive and confrontational when it comes to advancing our cause. Universities and college athletics can be economic drivers in communities and regions and we have not to my knowledge approached the issue from this angle either. Conference affiliation should be approached in the same way. It is often mentioned we need to invest in......we do, but we need something to invest with.....ie cash which we don't have an excess of. Milking the same tired donors over and over is not an option here, they gave already and a few are still waiting to see a return on the past money they "invested" (Hey, Larry). Students, fans, season ticket holders and alumni likely have to take the hit on this one. Finally, we can "fire" and "hire" anybody we want but there are no saviors out there on our budget so we need to discard this idea that who sits at the top is the only one who can foster a change, it takes a village.

Interesting point you surface re: whether or not UTEP is better off in or out of the UT system. I had always assumed it better to be in, but I don't know the ins and outs.

 

[Imaminer]

CUSA is a lackluster league this year, however, given the circumstances UTEP was in at the time we jumped ship from the WAC, Stull did make the right move.

Second, Floyd went high risk, high reward as far as recruiting and got burned so now this team is in "rebuilding" stage. If Hamilton, Hunter and Washburn would have stayed committed, this thread possibly would be full of fans hoping UTEP gets seeded in the west bracket.

Very good point, 2step. The "burn the house down" critics would have us believe that suddenly some new coach is going to change the physics of the modern basketball universe and build a program overnight that will vault UTEP into the stratosphere of basketball elitism. That didn't happen at Gonzaga or Wichita State or other mid-major schools, it took a good coach time to build the program and UTEP is no different. Floyd knows how to build a successful program and he will.

 

[Minerforlife]

Interesting point you surface re: whether or not UTEP is better off in or out of the UT system. I had always assumed it better to be in, but I don't know the ins and outs.

The UT system is good for UTEP. The UT system is one of two best university systems in the country. If we left the UT system the state would not fund the school. In the best case scenario we would lose half our funding and have to cut the budget by half. All the gains the University has made in the last twenty years would be immediately erased. It would be an epic disaster and devalue every alumns degree. We are the second oldest school in the UT System. We have been a member since our inception. I dont think we could leave the UT system, nor should we ever consider it.

 

[UTEPy79]

Floyd knows how to build a program (@UTEP)? He's been on a rebuid status every year. Better he & the university part ways at the end of the year.

 

[SteveFischer]

Thanks for the comments. On the ESPN Radio they suggested I look at the comments here- and maybe I can answer a few things.
1. Who am I? In an El Paso Times Column words are limited so I cut the bio because UTEP BBall is more interesting than I am -except to my dog. I write columns on law -politics for about 10 Texas Papers. I am a long time fan -that's it- but I went to Law at Indiana and have a degree from Cal so it gives me some perspective. I was a small but original stockholder in the Seattle Supersonics till coffee people forced a buyout.

2. UTEP spends in the $3.6 million dollar range- about #75 in spending. Other teams in that category include , Wichita State, Bulter, UNLV, San Diego State, Rice, Oregon State and South Florida. Louisville spends close to $10 million but many programs spend under $1. Do we get what we pay for?

3. The poster who said I offer few solutions is correct. I don't hold myself out as an expert. I do wish we were in a better conference. CUSA is ranked #21 - that's sad.

4. The Times sports reporters are good but I have an issue with their reporting. They build up our opponents -often omitting their records and always ignoring their rankings. This gives some fans a false sense of how good we are. Being ranked below 200 is depressing because there really aren't that many serious programs below 120-especially money-wise. In the end there is often let down and bitterness.

5 I remember during the 70s and at other times even when I was at Cal and Indiana, UTEP was a respected program. Good even ranked teams would know coming out of El Paso with a "W" was not easy. I l loved seeing Arizona, ASU, UTAH and BYU come every year. I am not impressed with FIU. FAU etc ( I barely know the difference) .

6 They asked me back on the radio and I may do a column on UTEP Football have way through the season. I will never claim to be an expert as from your comments many of you know more than I do. I'm just a fan who wants better. Thanks

 

[UTEPy79]

Steve, do you still wear or keep those orange and white low cut cloth Converse All-Stars? That was your signature footwear when you were the S.A. Prez!! Good to know you're still around. Salud!

 

[kickballpro]

I agree @SteveFischer. Are we getting the most bang for our buck? I cringe when I see we offer guys who have zero other offers. Then we build them up prior to their arrival, because they have a sick mix tape. Then only to be dissapointed when they aren't very good. We have a very healthy recruited budget as you mentioned.

As far as our conference affiliation, we had to leave the WAC. Mountain West formed without us and the WAC was dying. Joining C-USA was a matter of survival at the time. I think it's obvious to 100% of Miner fans that we need to change our affiliation and it's a horse that has been beaten to death. But the question remains, who wants us?

 

[unihorn]

Thanks for the comments. On the ESPN Radio they suggested I look at the comments here- and maybe I can answer a few things.
1. Who am I? In an El Paso Times Column words are limited so I cut the bio because UTEP BBall is more interesting than I am -except to my dog. I write columns on law -politics for about 10 Texas Papers. I am a long time fan -that's it- but I went to Law at Indiana and have a degree from Cal so it gives me some perspective. I was a small but original stockholder in the Seattle Supersonics till coffee people forced a buyout.

2. UTEP spends in the $3.6 million dollar range- about #75 in spending. Other teams in that category include , Wichita State, Bulter, UNLV, San Diego State, Rice, Oregon State and South Florida. Louisville spends close to $10 million but many programs spend under $1. Do we get what we pay for?

3. The poster who said I offer few solutions is correct. I don't hold myself out as an expert. I do wish we were in a better conference. CUSA is ranked #21 - that's sad.

4. The Times sports reporters are good but I have an issue with their reporting. They build up our opponents -often omitting their records and always ignoring their rankings. This gives some fans a false sense of how good we are. Being ranked below 200 is depressing because there really aren't that many serious programs below 120-especially money-wise. In the end there is often let down and bitterness.

5 I remember during the 70s and at other times even when I was at Cal and Indiana, UTEP was a respected program. Good even ranked teams would know coming out of El Paso with a "W" was not easy. I l loved seeing Arizona, ASU, UTAH and BYU come every year. I am not impressed with FIU. FAU etc ( I barely know the difference) .

6 They asked me back on the radio and I may do a column on UTEP Football have way through the season. I will never claim to be an expert as from your comments many of you know more than I do. I'm just a fan who wants better. Thanks

Thanks for your thoughts. Where do you stand re: Floyd?

 

[SteveFischer]

Good question -we need a convincing leader and some luck to get us admitted the next time there is an opening. Mountain West -American Athletic. A problems is in the CUSA we are in a bad enough conference to get only 1 bid but we are not good enough to consistently win that bid. Maybe a worse conference would be better. We are however the biggest spender --by far in CUSA.

 

[PURPLEFIRE]

I don't understand how some of you are complaining about recruiting.... You cringe when we get players with 0 offers?? Umm Cedric Lang turned out to be great.... And this year Paul Thomas was a 3 star, jones was a 3-4 star depends where you look Artis and Moore were 2-4 stars even romine was a 1-2 star....

 

[Metal Mania Joe]

The problem with your theory regarding..."top sports story", "celebrity lead", "main topic", etc., which boils down to the only game in town is IMHO the pathetic coverage by our El Paso Times Sports section which sometimes consists of three pages. During my recent visit I was agog at the ineptness. Never saw photos of the games, players, quotations from players, box scores, CUSA standings, stories on other CUSA games. They sometimes can't even get all the scores posted from NBA games until two days later. UTEP may be the only game in town, but it takes about 90 seconds to read the coverage. I get my info from the UTEP website or Miner Digs. Potential recruits; I guarantee would not be dazzled by the attention and notoriety seen the EP Times. I can't speak for the the TV and radio coverage, so please correct me on that matter. In The Dallas Morning News today there are nine pages of sports (less than usual). The top front page headline is "SMU forges on despite barriers". The story continues on page 9 with a photo of Coach Brown and one of the players celebrating a victory from two days ago. Even though SMU competes with the Mavericks, Stars, Rangers, Cowboys, FC Dallas, etc., they get plenty of coverage although a few years ago when they stunk, it was hard to find anything.

The problem with your theory regarding..."top sports story", "celebrity lead", "main topic", etc., which boils down to the only game in town is IMHO the pathetic coverage by our El Paso Times Sports section which sometimes consists of three pages. During my recent visit I was agog at the ineptness. Never saw photos of the games, players, quotations from players, box scores, CUSA standings, stories on other CUSA games. They sometimes can't even get all the scores posted from NBA games until two days later. UTEP may be the only game in town, but it takes about 90 seconds to read the coverage. I get my info from the UTEP website or Miner Digs. Potential recruits; I guarantee would not be dazzled by the attention and notoriety seen the EP Times. I can't speak for the the TV and radio coverage, so please correct me on that matter. In The Dallas Morning News today there are nine pages of sports (less than usual). The top front page headline is "SMU forges on despite barriers". The story continues on page 9 with a photo of Coach Brown and one of the players celebrating a victory from two days ago. Even though SMU competes with the Mavericks, Stars, Rangers, Cowboys, FC Dallas, etc., they get plenty of coverage although a few years ago when they stunk, it was hard to find anything.

Bring back the El Paso Herald Post !

 

[Minerinciter]

There maybe an opening in the AAC sometime soon...
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/02/13/inside-ucs-bid-join-big-12/80280488/

 

[Voice of the Mosquito]

The UT system is good for UTEP. The UT system is one of two best university systems in the country. If we left the UT system the state would not fund the school. In the best case scenario we would lose half our funding and have to cut the budget by half. All the gains the University has made in the last twenty years would be immediately erased. It would be an epic disaster and devalue every alumns degree. We are the second oldest school in the UT System. We have been a member since our inception. I don't think we could leave the UT system, nor should we ever consider it.
The UT system has been good to UTEP, but consider this there is no major (Tier 1) university in the Texas or in the US which is controlled by a BOR which is not directly tied to that University and there will never be one. If we cannot separate from the UT system we must a least seek greater autonomy. We are perceived as a branch of the University of Texas and will never be perceived as anything else if we remain as we are. I agree it is a very comfortable umbrella we sit under, however we cannot evolve until we control our own destiny make our own decisions. Our case is not as different as that which occurred at UAB and their fight for football. We just can't depend on people 400 miles away to serve our interests or fight our fights.The UT system is not as benevolent as they now appear. You mention all the gains the last twenty years would be erased, why did we need to play catch up in the first place? What or who prohibited our natural evolution to become a regional or national university? UTEP has been around 100 years and we don't have a dedicated law school, medical school, or near the number of doctorial degrees that most universities at 75 years old have yet we are located in one of the largest binational/bicultural areas of the United States. UTEP should have used it's location to become a premier university in language, international law, medicine, or arid lands research but something held us back. Those areas of expertise an other possible areas of specialization were then dolled out to others or reserved for "UT". Being a member of the UT system is prestigious and beneficial but we don't sit at the table as equals, we are not treated as equals and if we want to be taken as such we have to get out from under the umbrella. This pretty much applies to our sports situation as well we have been to passive, to silent and have delegated ourselves out to people and organizations who we feel will serve our best interests and we are surprised when they don't.

 

[Minerforlife]

The UT system is good for UTEP. The UT system is one of two best university systems in the country. If we left the UT system the state would not fund the school. In the best case scenario we would lose half our funding and have to cut the budget by half. All the gains the University has made in the last twenty years would be immediately erased. It would be an epic disaster and devalue every alumns degree. We are the second oldest school in the UT System. We have been a member since our inception. I don't think we could leave the UT system, nor should we ever consider it.
The UT system has been good to UTEP, but consider this there is no major (Tier 1) university in the Texas or in the US which is controlled by a BOR which is not directly tied to that University and there will never be one. If we cannot separate from the UT system we must a least seek greater autonomy. We are perceived as a branch of the University of Texas and will never be perceived as anything else if we remain as we are. I agree it is a very comfortable umbrella we sit under, however we cannot evolve until we control our own destiny make our own decisions. Our case is not as different as that which occurred at UAB and their fight for football. We just can't depend on people 400 miles away to serve our interests or fight our fights.The UT system is not as benevolent as they now appear. You mention all the gains the last twenty years would be erased, why did we need to play catch up in the first place? What or who prohibited our natural evolution to become a regional or national university? UTEP has been around 100 years and we don't have a dedicated law school, medical school, or near the number of doctorial degrees that most universities at 75 years old have yet we are located in one of the largest binational/bicultural areas of the United States. UTEP should have used it's location to become a premier university in language, international law, medicine, or arid lands research but something held us back. Those areas of expertise an other possible areas of specialization were then dolled out to others or reserved for "UT". Being a member of the UT system is prestigious and beneficial but we don't sit at the table as equals, we are not treated as equals and if we want to be taken as such we have to get out from under the umbrella. This pretty much applies to our sports situation as well we have been to passive, to silent and have delegated ourselves out to people and organizations who we feel will serve our best interests and we are surprised when they don't.

You make some valid points. However, I dont think it would be possible to get the state to fund us as an independent entity at anywhere near the current levels of funding. Alot of the improvements of the last twenty years are a direct result of the University becoming a major research university. Without the UT system most of those grants and public partnerships would go to other schools. The other problem is the coming legislative session. Public education funding in Texas is already down. Now we have oil prices below $30 and the "Texas miracle" that was always smoke and mirrors is drying up. This state is going to face a deficit and rather than roll back tax cuts that were always going difficult to pay for, they will gut public edication. In the best of times the state would never fully fund and independent school in El Paso. In the present climate the state would not fund it at all. There is just no way to leave the UT system and remain a research intensive university. The UT system isnt perfect but we have steadily improved our place at the table through the years.

 

[kickballpro]

I don't understand how some of you are complaining about recruiting.... You cringe when we get players with 0 offers?? Umm Cedric Lang turned out to be great.... And this year Paul Thomas was a 3 star, jones was a 3-4 star depends where you look Artis and Moore were 2-4 stars even romine was a 1-2 star....

So you're happy with the talent level?

Our RPI is in the 200's. We lost to UT-Arlington, UTSA, and Norfolk State. Must be the coaching then if our talent is so good?

 

[Voice of the Mosquito]

I wholly admit the UT system has been a positive for UTEP. But UTEP continues to suffer from the stigma of being a "branch" of the UT system in many areas and in Athletics. UNCC now the University of Charlotte suffered in much the same way and had to reinvent a new identity for themselves, many schools are now going this route and I think it is a valid move for UTEP as well. I don't feel UTEP could ever sever ties with the UT system but they have to approach this relationship as an equal and peer, not with the passivity and sometimes step-child like manner we have in the past. We should not be afraid to be aggressive in getting our needs served. This applies not just to UTEP but or elected officials as well.
To ADD
You said the state would never fully fund a separate University in El Paso because of economics, yet the UT BOR recently made overtures to opening a new branch campus in Houston or UTH as it will be called. The Houston area is the most over served region of the state in terms of higher education, with 10+ institutions of higher learning. I suspect that funding this endeavor will be given as reason that UTEP will be denied Tier I status.

 

[PURPLEFIRE]

So you're happy with the talent level?

Our RPI is in the 200's. We lost to UT-Arlington, UTSA, and Norfolk State. Must be the coaching then if our talent is so good?

Actually we add a good inside presence next year jones gets stronger and yes I do like our talent and now it seems this team is figuring out how to win and will know what it takes to improve this offseason ! So yes I do