CSTV Slog

BYU: 52 Days and counting

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 16:29:28 -0500

With BYU's football opener just 52 days away people need to start getting ready. BYU opens the season at home against Arizona who beat us last year, which makes it clear that we are out for revenge. Also, we play UCLA who has a former Cougar as their starting QB. I'm sure we will show him what he is missing out on. Plus, who can forget that memorable game against Utah last year. This year will be even better because we get them at home in Lavell Edwards Stadium. Fui Vakapuna was having a very good year last year until his ankle injury and luckily he is only a junior, which means we will hopefully have him for 2 more years. Also, Austin Collie, who set a couple BYU freshman receiving records and was named a freshman all-american, is back from his mission and hopes to take the Cougars to a BCS bowl game. Even though we did lose John Beck to the Dolphins we do have Max Hall who went to the same high school as Beck and is supposed to be very good. If he can step in right where Beck left off then the Cougars will be looking at a great season. Finally, don't forget about their defense, which is often forgotten because of their dominating offense, who gave up only 14 points a game last season and should be even better this year. So here's to another MWC championship this year and hopefully some more national respect for BYU's football program. Good luck Bronco and boys.

BYU: Poor Tournament Performance

Tue, 20 Mar 2007 12:33:20 -0500

After a great season and very high hopes for the post season, the men's basketball team played like...well let's just say the picture to the right explains it all. The Cougars had a 9 point lead at one point in the second half and ended up losing by 2, 79-77, to Xavier (pronounced Zavier no eX-avier). I could go off on this one about unfair "home court advantage", but I wont because BYU still should have won. Actually I will...it is ridiculous that the 9 seed gets better home court advantage than the 1 seed. There has got to be something against BYU and I am sure that will continue until we actually prove that we deserve some respect.
The women on the other hand...well, again look at the picture on the right. The ladies lost by 26, 80-56. They would have won, but they left 2 key components to their game in Provo: their 3 point shooting and their defense. Hopefully they will remember those next time.
Ok...enough Cougar bashing. Both teams did have great seasons and we had a lot of great individual performances. Both coaches won coach of the year, Keena Young won MWC player of year, Dani Wright won MWC co-player of the year, Mallary Gillespie won MWC player of the week 3 times, and other individual awards. Both teams won the regular season conference title and both made it to the MWC tournament finals as well. Both teams also are looking pretty good for next year with some key players coming back and some good recruits coming in.
Good luck to all the seniors who will be moving on to different en devours next year. You will be missed.

BYU: It's Tournament Time

Mon, 12 Mar 2007 16:33:49 -0500

Although the men's basketball team did not win the Mountain West Conference Tournament (don't get me started on this because it was rediculous that UNLV played the tournament on their home court) they were still invited to the big dance as an eight seed. They will be playing this Thursday against Xavier at 9:30 eastern time on CBS. The eight seed is BYU's highest since 1995 and if they win, they will most likely go up against arguably the best team in the country. If you don't get the game on your TV you can always go to cbssportsline.com and sign up to watch every game of the tournament for free online. Go Cougars!

BYU: TCU to be first victim

Wed, 07 Mar 2007 12:10:53 -0500

After trashing Utah by 23 on Saturday in front of a sellout crowd, the Cougars won the Mountain West Conference and will be the #1 seed in the MWC tournament. Yesterday TCU beat New Mexico and will play BYU on Thursday at 12:30p MST. There were also some big awards handed out yesterday. Keena Young was awarded player of the year in the MWC and Dave Rose won coach of the year for the second year in a row. You can watch the MWC tournament on CSTV.
Jeff Judkins, the women's coach, also won Coach of the Year in the MWC for the second year in a row and Dani Wright is the co-player of the year in the MWC. The women will play their first game of the MWC tournament against Air Force on Wednesday at 6:00p on the Mountain.

BYU: Women & Men back to back

Fri, 02 Mar 2007 19:27:09 -0500

On Wednesday the women's basketball team beat Utah at home. The men's team hopes to make it a sweeps week when they take on Utah at home on Saturday. The game begins at 5:30pm and will be televised on yours truly, CSTV. Don't forget to wear white to support our Cougars as they look to win the Mountain West Conference outright. A win could also put the Cougars back into the top 25 and in very good position to make the NCAA tournament.

Game Notes

photo courtesy of www.byucougars.com

BYU: Cougars take Mountain West Conference

Wed, 28 Feb 2007 14:32:14 -0500

After overcoming an 11 point deficit in the second half, the Cougars were able to pull out the victory on the road against Air Force last night. Not only did this win end the Falcon's 30 game home win streak, giving us the nations longest home win streak at 30 by ourselves, but it also wrapped up the regular season Mountain West Conference title for the first time since 2002-03. Right now we are gauranteed at least a share of the conference title and with a win against rival Utah on Saturday we won't have to share it with anyone else.
Students with All Sport passes don't forget to pick up your tickets for this Saturday's big game against the Utes tonight at the women's game. The women will host the Utes at 8pm in the Marriot Center and the tickets to the Men's game will be handed out after the women's game tonight. It will be first come first serve so the first ones to the women's game tonight will get the best seats at the men's game this weekend.

photo courtesy of www.byucougars.com

BYU: Watch it again

Thu, 28 Dec 2006 02:56:38 -0500

It never gets old!!!

BYU: Win a 42" Plasma TV

Wed, 15 Nov 2006 16:58:39 -0500

Send a holiday e-card to your friends and family. The card is a funny mad-lib style holiday request for a Panasonic Plasma TV. Each time someone sends the card, he/she is entered to win a Panasonic 42’ Plasma TV. Not too shabby eh? The more you enter, the better your chances to win!

Starting Wednesday the 22nd of November go to www.cstv.com/iloveplasma/byu/ in order to send the e-card and be entered to win the 42" Panasonic Plasma TV.

BYU: Mens BBall opens with biggest game of the season

Mon, 13 Nov 2006 15:18:50 -0500

The Cougars are ready to get their season started in Southern California against the UCLA Bruins, who were the runners up in the NCAA tournament last year. The #5 ranked Bruins look to be the Cougars' toughest opponent of the year and if the Cougars come home with a win then they could find themselves ranked in the top 25 very shortly. Don't forget to watch the game on Wednesday night and come to their first home game on Saturday night at 7:30p.

BYU: Rain couldn't put damper on Cougars home opener

Mon, 11 Sep 2006 15:11:45 -0500

With their offense back in full force, the Cougars posted an impressive 49-24 win over the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Saturday.
The rain tried to put a damper on the afternoon by delaying the game for 40 minutes, but the Cougar faithful stuck around during the delay and were able to see the Cougars pull off their first win of the season.
The run game really gave us something to cheer about as we saw a couple powerful runs by Curtis Brown and Fui Vakapuna. Curtis Brown not only had a couple of impressive runs, but he also gained a total of 207 yards from scrimmage.
The Cougars have possibly their biggest challenge of the season next week when they play in Chestnut Hill, MA against the Boston College Eagles. The Eagles just came off a big win against 18th ranked Clemson in double overtime. The game against the Eagles will be shown on ESPN2 at 12pm this upcoming Saturday.

UCF: Packing The House.....FINALLY!!!

Sat, 26 Aug 2006 12:03:41 -0500

I never thought in my time here at UCF that I would see people along the railing at the UCF Arena watching a volleyball match on a Friday night. NEVER, EVER EVER did I picture in my wildest Black and Gold dreams that I would hear a ruckus for a service ace and a double block at the net. I never know that there could be people in the stands with body paint with Lorin Lukas' number in the middle and Rowdy Knights watching the game with vouge and rabid interest. Well, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the new era that is UCF Volleyball. It was kicked off last night as the Golden Knights manhandled their arch-rival Stetson 30-14, 30-18, 30-26. The fact that UCF defeated their rival for the 37th time in their last 38 matches was not the key focus of the night. Neither was freshman Erin Campbell starting her first game ever as a Golden Knight. It was the home crowd that packed the UCF Arena which made the headlines at the home opener. The 376 in attendence was larger than any home crowd UCF had last season and junior outside hitter Lorin Lukas talked about the factor they played in their game 3 victory.

"The crowd was amazing out there and we could definately feel their presence in that thrid game." Lukas stated.

Let me be the first to tell you guys that the team wants all of your support. They will be grateful for it!!

UCF: Volleyball Preview Part 1

Wed, 23 Aug 2006 18:07:53 -0500

2006 UCF Volleyball Preview

The day is coming! The day that all the workouts in spring, all the two-a-days, all the lifting, conditioning, and practicing begins to pay off. Friday is the day that UCF Volleyball begins its 2006 season. Head Coach Meg Colado will look to bring her team back to UCF’s traditional winning ways after going through a rough 9-18 season. She hired former UCF All-American setter Jenny Frank as an assistant coach to help the setters. Colado knows that in order to improve on the record, her team has to not be satisfied with taking the elite teams in Conference USA to a 5-game match.

Outside Hitter

Outside hitter looks to be the strongest and deepest position on this 2006 volleyball squad. The group is lead by senior Maina Heming and juniors Lorin Lukas and Schanell Neiderworder. In her first season with the Black and Gold, Heming led the team in kills (317) and kills per game (3.20) while starting all 26 games she appeared in. Lukas had a standout sophomore season with 201 kills and double digit kills in six of her last seven matches played. Neiderworder showed herself as a force to be reckoned with last season finishing second on the team in kills (286), kills per game (2.96), and third in service aces (26). Schanell also was in the top 10 in C-USA averaging 1.03 blocks per game. Senior Vesna Ukic will also be a contributor for this bottomless of talent on the outside. Also, look for freshman Erin Campbell to make an immediate impact on this group as they look to continue their rise among the leagues elite.

Libero
With the graduation of Katie Kohnen, this year’s competition to become the starter at libero is bound to be a wide-open battle throughout the season. Junior Alesha Busch (Gainesville/Buchholz) will look to win the job to start the season while JUCO transfer Cassie Ramaekers and freshman Tricia Scott will be batting for a starting position. Last season, Busch played in only 11 matches, but recorded a career high 14 digs in a November 8th match versus North Florida. Cassie Ramaekers (Indian Hills CC/Blue Grass, Iowa) comes into the program after leading the NJCAA in digs (1,007) and taking her team to a 38-6 mark. Scott (Miami/St. Thomas Aquinas) is no stranger to playing for a championship caliber team. Last season as a senior, she helped lead St. Thomas Aquinas to a Florida 5A State Championship and was for the third year in a row all-Broward County performer.

Setter
Last year, the question was “Who would win the job?” Well, this year it’s pretty more clear-cut as to who will be setting the tone (pun intended) for that deep core of outside hitters. Senior Leah Alexander will be looking to continue her solid play in her second year in the program after transferring in last year from San Jacinto (TX) College Central. Once she emerged as the everyday starter, Alexander recorded five games of 50 or more assists including 60 in their season-ending loss in the Conference USA Tournament to eventual champion Marshall. Alexander should improve leaps and bounds this season with the hiring of former UCF All-American setter Jenny Frank to the coaching staff.

“Not only has she (Frank) been through all the 2-a-days, but she knows what she’s talking about and she really has an understanding of the game,” Alexander said. “

Looking to make her mark along with Alexander will be freshman Andrea Youngblood. A former all-state performer in Colorado, Youngblood will push Alexander for playing time early on in the season and will eventually become a starter for the team down the line.

UCF: Did Somebody Say McDonalds????

Thu, 17 Aug 2006 12:00:31 -0500

When you came to a UCF voleyball or soccer game, students would usually be the only ones who got in free. However, with the recent partnership between McDonalds and UCF Athletics, now EVERYONE gets in free for ALL home matches for Men's and Women's Soccer as well as Volleyball starting with this Firday's Women's Soccer Exhibition versus that school up in Tampa (USF for those who really want to know).

This is a great chance for the freshmen and the rest of the UCF community to show their support and love to these programs who (with the exception of Men;s Basketball and Softball) have been the winningest programs here at UCF in the past 5 years. Combined between the 3 teams, they have totalled for 10 NCAA Tournament Appearences, 18 Regular Season and Conference Tournament Titles, and numerous all-conference selections.
This move will only stregthen a fan base which, to be honest, has been disappointing in my eyes. I understand fully how people don't want to come out and watch these teams play and wait till Saturday and show their love for football. However, from talking to Coach Colado, Cromwell, and Erwin, they understand that moving to a new conference require the further committment from its fans and alumni. So having said that, I am offically making a challenge to the UCF Students, Fans, And Alumni. There are a total of 29 events that YOU can get in free

UCF: No Ordinary Joe

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 17:26:14 -0500

Last year, Joe Burnett broke onto the scene and help lead UCF to their first ever bowl game en route to an 8-5 season. For his efforts both in the secondary and on special teams, he was a 1st-Team All Conference USA Selection on Defense and Special Teams; the only player to recieve both honors. Not only that, he was the only freshman selected to the 1st team for the 2005 campaign (RB Kevin Smith was named to the 2nd team). In addittion, he was named Freshman All-American by the Football Writers Association of America, Rivals.com, and Collegefootballnews.com.

This year, the sophomore from Eustis, Florida is expected to play a bigger role on defense and special teams (perhaps on offense too??) and will look to aviod the ever-persistant 'Sophonore Slump'. Today, he was named to the watch list for the Jim Thorpe Award, awarded annually to the nations' most outstanding defensive back. Burnett, along with 3 other DB's from Conference USA comprise the list of 33 players who look to take home the award named after one of the greatest athletes of all-time. Many magazines and media outlets have tabbed Miami (FL) strong safety Brandon Merriweather as the preseason favorite to take of the award. Other canidates for the award include LSU FS LaRon Landry, Texas SS Michael Griffin, and Cal CB Daymeion Hughes. The Thorpe Award will be announced during the 2006 Home Depot College Football Awards Show on December 7th from Disney World.

UCF: Here Come's The Bride.......

Fri, 04 Aug 2006 17:13:28 -0500

D'Quarius Stewart, a former UCF men's basketball player is back in the spotlight. Stewart, along with his fiancée Morgane, are competing with six other couples for a dream wedding on NBC's "Today" show. Viewers of the program will vote for their favorite couple and NBC will help plan the couple's wedding, which will be shown live on national television.
This year marks the seventh time that NBC has organized the contest. Stewart played from 1996-00 for head coach Kirk Speraw and finished his career with 1,387 points, good for sixth all-time at UCF. He earned All-Atlantic Sun Second Team honors in 1999-00. Stewart is one of only nine players in school history to score at least 1,200 points. Since leaving UCF, Stewart has played professionally in both the United States and overseas. Stewart began his professional career in 2000 with Grand Rapids of the Continental Basketball Association.
He spent the 2005-06 season with Harlem in the American Basketball Association.

Visit today.msnbc.com for more information about the contest and to support your former Golden Knight as he and his bride-to-be look to walk down the isle in a Black and Gold ceremony.