(03-10-2023 09:45 AM)Tomball Owl Wrote:  

(03-10-2023 09:21 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  Bailiff didn't get much support with 10 win years and a conference championship. I guess we need 12 win years, back to back to back to back, and a berth - or two - in the CFP.

I seem to remember plenty of support sitting in a cold, damp HRS for the CUSA Championship win over Marshall and the very cold Armed Forces Bowl vs Air Force in Fort Worth. Even better in the comfy seats at NRG for the Texas Bowl. Consistent, quality play would bring consistent support I believe. Likely not 100k type support like the TAMUs & UTs garner, but 20-30k support, which is almost an order of magnitude better than what we see currently.

Truth. We lose too much for fans to care

(03-10-2023 10:26 AM)Grungy Wrote:  

(03-09-2023 02:44 PM)Ourland Wrote:  

(03-09-2023 01:38 PM)Hambone10 Wrote:  

(03-09-2023 12:44 PM)Ourland Wrote:  The thing I hate most about NRG is that Rice fans never show up. That's the biggest drawback. We need 15k Rice fans at those games, but I doubt we bring 3k.

This. This is perhaps the biggest drawback. No students. Few fans. The seats aren't as good unless we're all in the suites.... and you really can't hear the MOB

The mob needs t be clearer... we need to fix that. I miss half their jokes... and given that I'm not the audience for half of them, that leaves me with very little

Me too. The MOB is too small. They should be paid, like BOB.
They need to be 60-strong, like in the SWC days. Do whatever it takes to get numbers. Entice students with stipends, and road trips to UNT/SMU, UTSA, and Tulane.

Agree completely with the too small.

The BOB was not paid, except for one, maybe two seasons, and even that wasn't consistent.
Not everyone that was told they would be paid did get paid.
That funding came from the Athletic Department, not out of the Rice Bands budget.

The OPB is paid by the Athletic Department, because they are an Athletic Department creation.

Rick Mello said (paraphrasing): "You should pay the people in The MOB".
With what?
The band's budget won't support that kind of expenditure.

And we'd have to square any payments with the office that handles financial support for the students.
A previous attempt at paying the students resulted in a one-for-one swap - every dollar The MOB gave them was matched by a decrease of a dollar in their other financial aid package(s).

60 in the SWC days?
We were larger than that back to the 50s.

There were over 150 when I joined in '73.
There were 305 signed up for the '75 season.
Ken Dye's MOB ranged from about 180 to 240, and he was leading the band in '95, at the end of the SWC era.

Being forced out of the basement of OEDK and into the east practice gym did significant damage to membership - most middle schools have better rehearsal space.
We were starting to rebuild in size, after our move to the former John L. Cox Fitness Center, when COVID hit.
Hopefully, membership will increase now that COVID restrictions are minimal.
The creation of the OPB has done significant harm - removing the second half of our season - and efforts to continue to engage the band members are not seeing the attendance that we would have liked.

We were also allowed to recruit over the summer, back before everything was done in email.
The band piggy-backed a trifold brochure and letters to the incoming freshlings with all of the mailings that Rice mailed out.
That's gone too.
I would have us mailing to all of the prospies, if the administration would allow it.

Okay, I thought the pep band was referred to as the 'BOB.' That's incredible that students used to 'flock' to the MOB like that. I never remember more than 60-80 members. The pep band needs to be killed off.

(03-10-2023 09:45 AM)Tomball Owl Wrote:  

(03-10-2023 09:21 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  Bailiff didn't get much support with 10 win years and a conference championship. I guess we need 12 win years, back to back to back to back, and a berth - or two - in the CFP.

I seem to remember plenty of support sitting in a cold, damp HRS for the CUSA Championship win over Marshall and the very cold Armed Forces Bowl vs Air Force in Fort Worth. Even better in the comfy seats at NRG for the Texas Bowl. Consistent, quality play would bring consistent support I believe. Likely not 100k type support like the TAMUs & UTs garner, but 20-30k support, which is almost an order of magnitude better than what we see currently.

I remember that Texas Bowl in 2008. 9-3 regular season and box score says attendance was 58,880. But that was 14 years ago.

(03-10-2023 01:51 PM)ESE84 Wrote:  

(03-10-2023 09:45 AM)Tomball Owl Wrote:  

(03-10-2023 09:21 AM)OptimisticOwl Wrote:  Bailiff didn't get much support with 10 win years and a conference championship. I guess we need 12 win years, back to back to back to back, and a berth - or two - in the CFP.

I seem to remember plenty of support sitting in a cold, damp HRS for the CUSA Championship win over Marshall and the very cold Armed Forces Bowl vs Air Force in Fort Worth. Even better in the comfy seats at NRG for the Texas Bowl. Consistent, quality play would bring consistent support I believe. Likely not 100k type support like the TAMUs & UTs garner, but 20-30k support, which is almost an order of magnitude better than what we see currently.

I remember that Texas Bowl in 2008. 9-3 regular season and box score says attendance was 58,880. But that was 14 years ago.

It can happen again. People have an affinity for Rice. Everyone loves an underdog. That night, the entire Rice side was blue.

BTW, saw another 'battery' idea the other day.... essentially they store heat (which we have a lot of) in a siloh filled with sand... the heat is later released to generate power. The research possibilities are almost unlimited... and there is obviously money there... and 'sand' and 'heat' don't require 'rare earth' metals or radioactivity. Heck, even if all we did was use more power from the grid during periods where we AREN'T using the stadium and store it for those periods where we ARE using it, it would be valuable and have practical applications globally... lots of sand in places where there isn't a grid.... heck, you could use it to power an EV charging station in the middle of nowhere or in a walmart parking lot. You could concievably add it to a home that doesn't have enough grid or even just electrical panel bandwidth to charge their EV and/or provide them with backup power.

(03-13-2023 09:47 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  BTW, saw another 'battery' idea the other day.... essentially they store heat (which we have a lot of) in a siloh filled with sand... the heat is later released to generate power. The research possibilities are almost unlimited... and there is obviously money there... and 'sand' and 'heat' don't require 'rare earth' metals or radioactivity. Heck, even if all we did was use more power from the grid during periods where we AREN'T using the stadium and store it for those periods where we ARE using it, it would be valuable and have practical applications globally... lots of sand in places where there isn't a grid.... heck, you could use it to power an EV charging station in the middle of nowhere or in a walmart parking lot. You could concievably add it to a home that doesn't have enough grid or even just electrical panel bandwidth to charge their EV and/or provide them with backup power.

lol...orrrrrr...Nuclear, which is actually right up Rice's engineering alley...but...

(03-13-2023 10:16 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  lol...orrrrrr...Nuclear, which is actually right up Rice's engineering alley...but...

I can't see your youtube so forgive me if I'm missing a good joke... It's not me being obtuse.

Sure, for powering a grid.

I'm talking about 'local' power.... and while maybe I'm wrong, I just don't see you being able to go down to Home Depot and buy a nuclear backup power generator.... or that we might leave a nuclear reactor in the Arizona desert on I-10 as an unmanned power station, or ship a nuclear reactor to some native tribe in Africa and not think the warlords there might steal it. I sure as hell don't want some gas station bubba in rural Alabama (or Texas or wherever) having access to a nuclear reactor and an opportunity to ask a friend to 'hold my beer'.... a scene out of 'Joe Dirt' comes to mind.

To me, there is little difference (other than the weaponization) between lithium and uranium. They're both rare earth metals that are environmentally questionable and often give 'power' to unstable regions of the world.

Sand, or many other natural substances that could store and then release heat (even compost potentially could) are cheap, abundant and often present in many of the places where grid access is an issue.

I don't disagree with the potential for a lot more nuclear generation.... but that's not a solution for places that aren't (or don't want to be, or become 'dis') connected to the grid


I guess what I'm getting at is that you seem focused on generating more energy or powering the stadium... which are two issues.... one political (meaning public) and the other 'personal' (to athletics). What I'm focused on is University research that has commercial potential... and can be applied to the stadium such that it integrates athletics (including puiblicity) into traditional University actions.

I don't see any University research application to buying a grease generator for the stadium, and I don't see a stadium application for a nuclear reactor. Neither are bad ideas... they just aren't integrated

(03-13-2023 10:46 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  

(03-13-2023 10:16 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  lol...orrrrrr...Nuclear, which is actually right up Rice's engineering alley...but...

I can't see your youtube so forgive me if I'm missing a good joke...

can you see this one (similar to the posted video)?



edit: at least with your idea of a 'sand silo', our AD could tell the Parliament's posters' calls to fire the coach to 'go pound sand!' That's integrated publicity right there! (and what you got against Gomer and Goob, cuz?)

(03-13-2023 11:13 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  

(03-13-2023 10:46 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  

(03-13-2023 10:16 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  lol...orrrrrr...Nuclear, which is actually right up Rice's engineering alley...but...

I can't see your youtube so forgive me if I'm missing a good joke...

can you see this one (similar to the posted video)?



edit: at least with your idea of a 'sand silo', our AD could tell the Parliament's posters' calls to fire the coach to 'go pound sand!' That's integrated publicity right there! (and what you got against Gomer and Goob, cuz?)

I can... thanks....

And aren't they already mostly telling us that??

Gomer and Goob were good people, but I don't think they drank beer

(03-13-2023 09:47 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  BTW, saw another 'battery' idea the other day.... essentially they store heat (which we have a lot of) in a siloh filled with sand... the heat is later released to generate power. The research possibilities are almost unlimited... and there is obviously money there... and 'sand' and 'heat' don't require 'rare earth' metals or radioactivity. Heck, even if all we did was use more power from the grid during periods where we AREN'T using the stadium and store it for those periods where we ARE using it, it would be valuable and have practical applications globally... lots of sand in places where there isn't a grid.... heck, you could use it to power an EV charging station in the middle of nowhere or in a walmart parking lot. You could concievably add it to a home that doesn't have enough grid or even just electrical panel bandwidth to charge their EV and/or provide them with backup power.

From what I can tell from a very short look at what the inventor of the "sand battery" (Finnish company Polar Night Energy) says, this technology has potential for storing excess renewable energy (via resistive heating of the sand) and later output hot air (not electricity) for local home/commercial space heating.

https://news.abplive.com/science/sand-ba...ks-1541062

https://polarnightenergy.fi/technology

They say it's very efficient, but I bet they're not considering the net energy loss along the pipes from the battery to the end users (unless they are located adjacent to the users).

I wonder how this could be efficient in converting the heat back to electricity in the high voltage/amp levels needed for car chargers.

BTW, this subject probably needs its own thread ... possibly in the Quad (sad to say).

(03-16-2023 12:26 PM)Almadenmike Wrote:  

(03-13-2023 09:47 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  BTW, saw another 'battery' idea the other day.... essentially they store heat (which we have a lot of) in a siloh filled with sand... the heat is later released to generate power. The research possibilities are almost unlimited... and there is obviously money there... and 'sand' and 'heat' don't require 'rare earth' metals or radioactivity. Heck, even if all we did was use more power from the grid during periods where we AREN'T using the stadium and store it for those periods where we ARE using it, it would be valuable and have practical applications globally... lots of sand in places where there isn't a grid.... heck, you could use it to power an EV charging station in the middle of nowhere or in a walmart parking lot. You could concievably add it to a home that doesn't have enough grid or even just electrical panel bandwidth to charge their EV and/or provide them with backup power.

From what I can tell from a very short look at what the inventor of the "sand battery" (Finnish company Polar Night Energy) says, this technology has potential for storing excess renewable energy (via resistive heating of the sand) and later output hot air (not electricity) for local home/commercial space heating.

https://news.abplive.com/science/sand-ba...ks-1541062

https://polarnightenergy.fi/technology

They say it's very efficient, but I bet they're not considering the net energy loss along the pipes from the battery to the end users (unless they are located adjacent to the users).

I wonder how this could be efficient in converting the heat back to electricity in the high voltage/amp levels needed for car chargers.

BTW, this subject probably needs its own thread ... possibly in the Quad (sad to say).

For a detailed discussion, you are correct... My point in having it here was simply as a means of demonstrating how you can tie an athletic facility and need to the research potential of the university. I am literally throwing things against the wall... but I am 100% convinced that there are (or could or should be) parts of the university focused on alternative energy storage and generation.

UT can't do this because they can't spare the space at their stadium and don't care about attracting 'research geeks' to visit.

WOW! So this is one way to get to the Final Four these days...

Quote:As (Miami Head Coach) Larrañaga basked in it all Sunday, John Ruiz -- the billionaire Miami booster and CEO of LifeWallet -- mingled with Hurricanes supporters, players and coaches after Miami became the fourth team since 1979 to defeat a 1-seed, 2-seed and 4-seed en route to the Final Four. They all knew the man who sported an Adidas track suit and a pair of bright New Balance shoes. Ruiz has not been shy about his effort to fund a new era of Miami athletics, as he has made a push to build a new football stadium and has opened his wallet for both the men's and women's basketball programs.

Ruiz's company gave Nijel Pack a two-year, $800,000 name, image and likeness deal last summer; Isaiah Wong, Norchad Omier and Miller all have deals with him, too. LifeWallet also has NIL deals with Haley and Hanna Cavinder, who play for the Miami women's team that just reached the Elite Eight for the first time in program history.

Pack had a multitude of suitors, many attached to NIL deals, when he decided to leave Kansas State because he wanted to prove to NBA executives that he could play point guard at the next level, a job Markquis Nowell had already secured with the Wildcats.

Miami's win over Texas is a program-altering victory. It might also suggest that the traditional powers will face more challenges as they attempt to hold on to their places in college basketball's hierarchy as more teams -- backed by diehard fans with deep pockets -- push to build rosters that can make an immediate run.

"This is a new day in college basketball and when you look at the rosters across the country, some return many players -- in our league, we had a couple of teams like that, including North Carolina -- and for others, it's a complete transformation," ACC commissioner Jim Phillips told ESPN. "I don't think there is any question that it's a new day. I will also say that some of these programs aren't ready at the level they want to be at in November and December. The amount of transition and transactions that are happening in college basketball, I think these teams start to get molded as the season goes on."

"TV makes money, right? The shoe companies make money," Larrañaga said Saturday. "The universities make money. The athletic directors, they run the program, and they benefit from their relationship with the shoe companies. And the coaches make a hell of a living. Well, what's wrong with that filtering down? It's a natural progression to our players."

link: https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basket...final-four

I wonder how FAU did it?

$800,000 for 2 years on a NIL basketball deal. Wow. If they don't pi$$ away the money like a lottery winner, some of these kids can really set themselves up to a great life. Somehow, I don't think too many will have the discipline and foresight not to spend it all as fast as it comes in.

(03-16-2023 12:26 PM)Almadenmike Wrote:  

(03-13-2023 09:47 AM)Hambone10 Wrote:  BTW, saw another 'battery' idea the other day.... essentially they store heat (which we have a lot of) in a siloh filled with sand... the heat is later released to generate power.

From what I can tell from a very short look at what the inventor of the "sand battery" (Finnish company Polar Night Energy) says, this technology has potential for storing excess renewable energy (via resistive heating of the sand) and later output hot air (not electricity) for local home/commercial space heating.

Mike.... As the sand is heated to temperatures of 600+ degrees celsius, I don't think it unreasonable to think that 'local' generation of power would not be possible. Heck, steam suddenly sounds possible... maybe we can combine it with some sort of water treatment or desalinization... again, the idea is to generate research possibilities... they don't have to be (currently) compact nor efficient... just 'safe' enough to house at the stadium.

If people would actually like to get involved in a specific idea, that is a vastly more technical conversation than I would remotely be qualified to engage in.... I'm just giving an example of the sort of technology that could be researched that doesn't involve rare metals, mining or obvious environmental issues...

It's April 6th and, well, you know what that means...

Quote:April 6

Oregon rock band The Kingsmen recorded one of the most influential and controversial songs of all time on April 6, 1963.

Louie Louie was loud, raucous, sloppy and incredibly rough.

Initial sales were so poor that the band considered breaking up, but it found a mass audience after Boston's biggest DJ put it on his "Worst Record of the Week" segment.

Teenagers were struck by the wild nature of the song and rumours of its lurid lyrics.

Because singer Jack Ely sang so incoherently, it was impossible to tell what the words were.

Ely had to shout the song because there was only one microphone recording the entire band, several feet above his head.

The FBI spent 31 months investigating the song before concluding they were "unable to interpret any of the wording in the record".

But they did not notice the band's drummer shouted "F—" on the record after fumbling a drum fill.

The lyrics to the song are clearly distinguishable in the original version of the song, recorded in 1957 by Richard Berry.

Louie Louie is believed to be the world's most recorded rock song.

(04-05-2023 11:01 PM)GoodOwl Wrote:  It's April 6th and, well, you know what that means...

Quote:The lyrics to the song are clearly distinguishable in the original version of the song, recorded in 1957 by Richard Berry.]

The original "Louie Louie" was also released in April:



I remember hearing some version in about 1960.

Also, Happy Birthday (87) to Wayne Graham.

Wondering if the new AD will lean more towards Transformation vs Incrementalism? For that matter, wonder which one DesRoches embraces more?

(06-22-2023 11:34 AM)GoodOwl Wrote:  Wondering if the new AD will lean more towards Transformation vs Incrementalism? For that matter, wonder which one DesRoches embraces more?

I hope they lean toward winning more, sooner, and being consistently competitive in all sports, especially the big 3 Men's sports

While running the outer loop this evening (before the thunderstorm), I noticed that the football "grass" practice field was now all dirt. My guess is that better drainage is being installed before resodding?

(06-23-2023 09:02 PM)WRCisforgotten79 Wrote:  While running the outer loop this evening (before the thunderstorm), I noticed that the football "grass" practice field was now all dirt. My guess is that better drainage is being installed before resodding?

I was told it's for a modern watering system.
Drainage probably isn't being ignored.