Dear Fans:

It’s hard to believe we are back to school.  It’s my favorite time of the year because campus comes to life with the excitement, enthusiasm and eagerness of the students as they settle back into being a college student after summer vacation.

To recap some of our summer activities, we had another successful Auction Benefitting Athletics on Aug. 15.  It’s always great to see our fans at this event which kicks off the athletic season.  I sincerely appreciate all the volunteers, staff and fans who attended and contributed to helping our student- athletes. 

Most of you know we have several new facilities on campus we are very proud of!  I first want to thank the students who passed the B.E.A.R. Fee for transforming our campus.  I can’t tell you the amount of comments I have received over the summer expressing amazement and admiration.  It’s so inspirational to be able to work with the students to accomplish such an amazing outcome.  I know I speak for our student-athletes, coaches and fans when I say ‘Thank you.’ It doesn’t seem quite enough but it’s truly a heartfelt appreciation for their belief in athletics and their recreation well-being. 

Speaking of kudos, let me personally thank a few individuals for their involvement in spearheading the new facility projects.  The first one is John Bollinger.  John graduated from MSU three years ago and is now working for a minor league baseball team in Michigan.  He had the same vision I did about improving our athletics department to be more competitive nationally.  John led the initial campaign to get the ball rolling regarding a student fee in 2011 and helped the project get a foot hold.

The other two individuals are David Schneider and Matthaus Klute.  David was the SGA president and Matthaus was in charge of the BEAR Fee campaign last year.  Students overwhelming supported the fee by a 75% approval rate.  These two individuals changed the face of the University, and it was a privilege working side by side with them to make our university better.   

Another individual who has taken it upon himself to improve the quality of life for all of our students and brand our university is Bobby Allison.  The scoreboards, sport branding and the Bear head logos are all Bobby’s doing.  He wanted to bring more statue and pride to our university.  It’s exactly what our students have been saying they wanted, so with Bobby’s help we have improved the branding on campus significantly.  I know all our students will join me in thanking Bobby for his support and love of the Missouri State University.

President Clif Smart has been a great advocate for MSU Athletics. He has led the transformation of our campus with branding and advocacy for these new projects. It’s great to be part of his team.

Another exciting project that is complete is the renovation of the Academic Achievement Center.  This area has been renamed for long-time athletic administrator Dr. Mary Jo Wynn.   This area received a much needed facelift over the summer and looks outstanding.  This area will be used by our student-athletes on a day-to-day basis and is a focal point for recruiting.  A personal thanks goes out to Cheryl Burnett for her fundraising and leadership efforts.  In addition to Cheryl, I want to thank the committee who worked so tirelessly to make ideas and suggestions for the renovation.  I know our student-athletes appreciate the time, money and effort to make the changes in this area. 

Likewise, a special thanks goes to Dr. Wynn for her donation, hard work and permission to name this facility in her honor.  We will be celebrating the dedication of the Dr. Mary Jo Wynn Academic Achievement Center and having a special dinner to celebrate her legacy on Sept 5. Go to MissouriStateBears.com for more details.  

The recently renamed Robert W. Plaster Stadium is now a football-only facility and is very close to being finished.  I’m so excited about how the stadium turned out.  We were able to do a lot of things to Plaster that needed a little tender loving care – sealing the west-side stands, power-washing the seating areas, painting the interior of the west side, replacing the lettering on the back of the press box, installing new scoreboard signage, and shining up a facility that is almost 75 years old in parts.  We will also be adding a new scoreboard to the east side, new sound system, creating a grass berm with landscaping and hedges on the north side of the stadium and decorating the game-day locker room with photos and memorabilia. 

Pregame festivities will be amped up this season as BearFest Village will move to the north side of the stadium, between Carrington Hall, McDonald Arena and Kings Street.   Students will be able to purchase food from various vendors via their BearPass cards thanks to Chartwells.  Likewise, adult beverages, inflatables, games and contests will be available for fans to enjoy in this area.  The Pride Band will perform on the steps of McDonald arena prior to entering the field for its pregame.  And a new tradition will feature the team walking through BearFest Village on its way to the field for pregame warmups.

Around seven minutes before kickoff, the team will start its new BearWalk from the game day locker room through BearFest Village, touch a new tradition bear statue, and take the field. The BearWalk will be led by an impressive percussion arrangement, with the spirit squads and students groups.  Thanks to Jerry Hoover for his helping make this happen. Please plan on being a part of this new tradition!

Many thanks to Mike Armentrout, John Cosentino and others for making the locker room and Bill O’Neill Way possible. So many former players and friends of Coach Bill O’Neill have given to this project to make it happen. The new Bear statue will not be in place for the first game as the artist is taking a little extra time to get it just the way we want it.  This impressive new addition to the stadium was made possible by the 2014 senior class gift, and we can’t thank them enough.

As you can tell, the summer has been extremely busy with the renovations and construction of the new fields, sand volleyball courts and track.  I hope you’ll find the new additions as exciting and game changing as we do.  As Bears’ fans, there is much to be proud of, and I look forward to seeing everyone on August 24 for our open house event as well as the numerous facility dedications planned through early September.

Please visit MissouriStateBears.com for team schedules and news. We need our fans to come to our games and see these new facilities while supporting our teams. Ticket information is also available on the website with a number of easy links to get your football and basketball tickets on-line, print your tickets at home and get to campus more frequently.

Finally, it gives me great pleasure to congratulate Linda Dollar on being selected for induction into the Missouri Valley Conference Hall of Fame.  Coach Dollar had an incredible career as MSU’s volleyball coach, and we will honor her legacy by retiring her jersey in the rafters of Hammons Student Center on September 5 as part of our tribute to Dr. Mary Jo Wynn.  Please check out the web site for more details or call (417) 836-4143 for tickets to the Dr. Wynn Legacy Celebration event.

We look forward to seeing you on campus this fall, particularly for our football home opener on Sept. 13 and all the events we have planned for you this fall.

Go Bears!!

 

Kyle Moats

MSU Director of Athletics