Awesome speech by Cohen tonight.

[State82]

One of the best I have heard. I assume it is archived on hailstate.com somewhere. If you did not see it, you need to go find it somewhere. As far as him taking the high road with Ron Polk, he outdid himself. Outstanding. Stricklin too. Both are to be highly commended.

[bulldogcountry1]

Very classy and a perfect delivery.

[Coach34]

any announcement of future plans?

[SnakePlissken]

any announcement of future plans?

No plans hinted at or announced

[bobcat91]

That was a wasted opportunity. When is a better time than off of a National Championship run? I know we are finishing up football but are there any rules that you can't do two things at once. And honestly, if we don't have solid plans ready to go for DN then Stricklin should be fired. It has been known for years that we need a major upgrade, it is in the MSU master plan and both Stricklin and Cohen toured facilities such as FSU and Arkansas to get ideas. Get the damn thing done.

[Todd4State]

That was a wasted opportunity. When is a better time than off of a National Championship run? I know we are finishing up football but are there any rules that you can't do two things at once. And honestly, if we don't have solid plans ready to go for DN then Stricklin should be fired. It has been known for years that we need a major upgrade, it is in the MSU master plan and both Stricklin and Cohen toured facilities such as FSU and Arkansas to get ideas. Get the damn thing done.

I have to wonder if it is possible that Stricklin had some ideas and they were floated around on our message boards as rumors (aka removing the bleachers for hills) and once he saw how unfavorable that was, he decided to go back to the drawing board.

[Homedawg]

That was a wasted opportunity. When is a better time than off of a National Championship run? I know we are finishing up football but are there any rules that you can't do two things at once. And honestly, if we don't have solid plans ready to go for DN then Stricklin should be fired. It has been known for years that we need a major upgrade, it is in the MSU master plan and both Stricklin and Cohen toured facilities such as FSU and Arkansas to get ideas. Get the damn thing done.

So we should just go forward with an announcement ready or not. Major funds ready or not? Just because we were in the championship game? Yea he should be fired, right.

[Todd4State]

So we should just go forward with an announcement ready or not. Major funds ready or not? Just because we were in the championship game? Yea he should be fired, right.

Agree. I have no idea what is happening behind the scenes, but this CWS run may have caused some boosters to step up and who knows what kind of plans will change.

I know football pays the bills, but I would like to see us finish what we are working on with the football stadium right now, then do Dudy-Noble field, and then finish enclosing the football field.

Whatever we do with the baseball field, I think it will only take a year to do.

[bobcat91]

That's his job. Period. Do your job. Raise the funds and get it done.

[State82]

That was a wasted opportunity. When is a better time than off of a National Championship run? I know we are finishing up football but are there any rules that you can't do two things at once. And honestly, if we don't have solid plans ready to go for DN then Stricklin should be fired. It has been known for years that we need a major upgrade, it is in the MSU master plan and both Stricklin and Cohen toured facilities such as FSU and Arkansas to get ideas. Get the damn thing done.

Uh, no. Stricklin does not need to be fired. What Stricklin does need, however, is $$$$. He is in the process of dropping 100 mil on football facilities. I realize we are in the SEC, but that ain't chump change, especially for us. Also, determining a course of action with an existing facility that needs upgrading to the extent DNF needs it, located within a confined space, is no easy task. Can you honestly see him trying to put together such a course of action within a couple of years of the 2008-2010 era of MSU baseball? That period was abysmal. And that's being kind. He would have been laughed out of his office had he suggested that even a new bucket of baseballs be purchased, considering what Polk left us with. Then, Cohen makes a dramatic turn around in 2011 that no one really saw coming and it has escalated from there. This resurgence has rapidly fueled the fire for facility upgrades, but we don't have Warren Buffett kind of money rolling in to finance such ventures. Stricklin can't pull it out of his butt and add zeros to it. It is true that we are in dire need of it, but this is serious business. We aren't talking about a few hundred thousand here. We are talking tens of millions. I honestly don't know what the answer is, but if somebody wants it done sooner rather than later, well, they are going to have to really step up to the plate (no pun intended) with check book in hand. And it needs to be a big checkbook.

[Homedawg]

That's his job. Period. Do your job. Raise the funds and get it done.

Write a check for 20-30 mil and it's done. It's so simple.

[bobcat91]

Write a check for 20-30 mil and it's done. It's so simple.

I'm in the top 1000 in the bulldog club. I write my checks. You just run your mouth. Stricklin is just LT 2 with personality. Zero vision. This should have already been ready to go. And its not. Why don't you tell me who has worse facilities in SEC baseball? Jim said a couple of years back that we were in the bottom third. That was before A&M got in the conference and major or upgrades at a couple of places. Cohen was promised he would be taken care of when he got here. Time to walk the walk .

[Todd4State]

I think it's worth noting that the grand stand was built in 1987, which was two years after the 1985 team. My point is, it's going to take a little bit of time to make sure we do this right. I don't have a problem with that. Now, if there isn't anything in three years- then I'm going to question it.

I think the real issue is we were so damn far behind in football, it's taking a toll on the entire athletic program. We should have enclosed Scott Field in 2001.

[Coach34]

Damn, lots of good points in this thread

I dont think Strick is LT 2.0- but he isnt Greg Byrne either. He's kind of a happy medium. Considering how long LT was here, I can deal with Strick...I think. He just needs to be led where we need to go sometime. But he is a certifiable upgrade from LT. I give him a pass on the NCAA investigation, I think that was a Keenum-Bracky mistake.

I'm pretty sure our success in baseball will trigger the upgrades needed. It's been talked about numerous times, and everybody knows what the problems are. The higher ups need to make a decision on what we will get done- and get a plan. Then let the fanbase know that something is in the works.

Football expansion has to take prioriety- we lag behind there and that takes precendent. It's the money-maker. But as soon as we are able- baseball expansion/upgrades need to begin. Cohen has earned it.

[bobcat91]

Stricklin could have announced that were beginning a funds drive and talking to an architect, J Smith, about a major upgrade. And yes the plans should have already been ready. We have needed an upgrade for 10 years. If you get a chance, look in the dug outs during a game. There are rotten wood doors on some of the cabinets. If you could really see how bad we have let this go down then you would know my passion for it. This is the one sport we can win a national championship in.

[HereComesTheSpiral]

I doubt an announcement will be made within the next 6 months. I'm sure there are several meetings going on with architectural and engineering firms to decide on the best plan to move forward. Right now they're having to weigh the options in terms of cost effectiveness. Will it be cheaper to renovate the current stadium or just demo and build new. Like someone pointed out, the stadium is almost 30 years old and there are several problems that must be corrected. You also have to look at it 20 years from now if you want to do additional expansions down the road. With the current stadium, you might get this one in, but the down the road upgrades are off the table and you have to build a new stadium anyway. Whatever route they decide to take, it's going to be expensive so now they have to determine what is the greater value.

[The Croom Diaries]

I doubt an announcement will be made within the next 6 months. I'm sure there are several meetings going on with architectural and engineering firms to decide on the best plan to move forward. Right now they're having to weigh the options in terms of cost effectiveness. Will it be cheaper to renovate the current stadium or just demo and build new. Like someone pointed out, the stadium is almost 30 years old and there are several problems that must be corrected. You also have to look at it 20 years from now if you want to do additional expansions down the road. With the current stadium, you might get this one in, but the down the road upgrades are off the table and you have to build a new stadium anyway. Whatever route they decide to take, it's going to be expensive so now they have to determine what is the greater value.

These are the best points I've seen in this thread.

You can't just go hire an architect, produce a set of plans and announce something. For one thing you'd have no idea of the cost because Architects know nothing about cost. You have to get general contractors involved, create budget numbers with several plans to see which is the best fit. Then before you announce it you have to make sure there is a plan to pay for it - and that may also determine which route to go with as far as how much to renovate/expand. This is a very long process that can drag on for a while. If you think Strick is ignoring DNF - that is dumb. He isn't. But there are a lot of jirations you have to go through before you can announce this type of stuff. It would be irresponsible to announce it with no intentions of building it for 2-3 years and then the fanbase would feel disillusioned, like we want to but can't.

[bulldogcountry1]

I can't speak for Stricklin's vision because I don't know him, but it's very easy to see that he pays attention to fan's opinions and makes decisions accordingly. To compare him to LT in any way is laughable. LT had no connection to the common fan in any way. In my 4 years on campus, the only times I saw LT, he was isolated in some form or fashion. I have every confidence in Stricklin. I'm sure the guy has him own ideas and pitches them to others, but there's no way he's going to go forward with a plan without consulting Cohen, other ADs, design professionals, and the fans.

I guess I wasn't really expecting them to reveal a plan last night, but I think it would have been a good opportunity for him to mention growth and rewarding the fans in the near future. This would have piqued everyone's interest and really got a buzz going. Strike while the iron is hot.

[SaltyDawg]

I doubt an announcement will be made within the next 6 months. I'm sure there are several meetings going on with architectural and engineering firms to decide on the best plan to move forward. Right now they're having to weigh the options in terms of cost effectiveness. Will it be cheaper to renovate the current stadium or just demo and build new. Like someone pointed out, the stadium is almost 30 years old and there are several problems that must be corrected. You also have to look at it 20 years from now if you want to do additional expansions down the road. With the current stadium, you might get this one in, but the down the road upgrades are off the table and you have to build a new stadium anyway. Whatever route they decide to take, it's going to be expensive so now they have to determine what is the greater value.

^This. I don't think a lot of you realize how long it takes to put something like a stadium expansion/renovation together. There are a ton of factors in play, you don't just throw plans together overnight.

We'll be lucky if the football expansion finishes on the scheduled date. I'd imagine as soon as that project nears completion, the baseball plans will be announced and it will break ground shortly after.

[The Croom Diaries]

We'll be lucky if the football expansion finishes on the scheduled date. I'd imagine as soon as that project nears completion, the baseball plans will be announced and it will break ground shortly after.

On a project like building a stadium that has to be ready in time for the start of a football season, I'm sure there are some nasty liquidated damages clauses in the contract. Probably whatever would be lost in ticket revenue plus some. My estimated guess would be somewhere in the neighborhood of $50K per calendar day past the contracted schedule. The GC will work through the night to make sure this job is done on time.