I saw another thread on this already started on the football board, but I figured some of the volleyball fans might have a more passionate interest than football fans. I posted my thoughts on the matter over there. I'm also going to post a copy of a letter I sent to Bill Byrne through the AggieAthletics website on here. Since coming on here and reading some of the commments I think a lot of my questions have been answered, but it still felt good to get some of it off my chest.
Mr. Byrne and Company,
I was reading your weekly Wednesday which was published yesterday, 10/22, and was greatly disturbed to see that you mentioned our Volleyball team is being moved to Reed Arena. My first question is will this be considered a temporary move until the three year renovation of the MSC is complete or will it be a permanent move? I greatly hope that you are being told it is a temporary move for staging purposes until the new MSC is complete, because having a separate volleyball-specific facility gives us a huge advantage in terms of re-building a great volleyball program.
I am an avid supporter of volleyball and have been since I stepped foot on campus. I am currently in my fifth year at A&M (although currently interning in Houston) and have seriously considered pursuing a career as a volleyball coach after graduation. I spend a significant amount of time studying the game and keeping up with other university’s volleyball programs. If you look around the country at the top collegiate women’s volleyball programs, you will quickly see that all of the top programs have volleyball-specific facilities, and as I am sure you understand, having top facilities is one of the best ways to attract top national recruits. I know the team has not been performing at a high level in recent years, but I am quite sure that it is your intention to correct this matter through whatever means necessary. I can’t say enough about the turnarounds you have helped bring about in many of our other sporting programs, most notably men’s and women’s basketball.
I have actually had the opportunity to travel to several of the other volleyball facilities in the Big XII conference and I can tell you that G. Rollie White Coliseum is hands down the best facility to watch Volleyball in the Big XII. I am not simply saying this because I am a fan of A&M, but many other people who love volleyball will quickly agree with me. I know it was built primarily to house basketball, but the seating arrangements and sight lines, as well as the intimacy of the arena, make it perfect for watching volleyball. Although Nebraska’s volleyball facility, which I am sure you are familiar with, consistently sells out every year, it is not nearly as exciting of a place to play and the fans cannot get as close to the team. Texas’s Gregory Gym is also a volleyball specific arena, but because most of the seats are so high above the court it is not nearly as fun to watch matches there. Baylor is one of the schools you mentioned that has moved their volleyball matches into the same arena as their basketball teams use. This is by far the worst place I have ever been to watch a volleyball match because the sheer size of the arena dwarfs the volleyball crowd and there are no seats where a fan can sit close to the court to really experience the joy of watching a match in person. Also, the low hanging scoreboard over the net constantly interferes with the ball going back and forth over the net, which is quite a nuisance.
I thank you for taking the time to read this long message and hope you can understand my qualms about taking the volleyball team out of one of my personal favorite places to watch volleyball. I’d especially love to hear from you whether or not this will be a permanent move and want you to know that I will continue to support the Aggie Volleyball team regardless of where I have to go to watch their matches.
Mr. Byrne and Company,
I was reading your weekly Wednesday which was published yesterday, 10/22, and was greatly disturbed to see that you mentioned our Volleyball team is being moved to Reed Arena. My first question is will this be considered a temporary move until the three year renovation of the MSC is complete or will it be a permanent move? I greatly hope that you are being told it is a temporary move for staging purposes until the new MSC is complete, because having a separate volleyball-specific facility gives us a huge advantage in terms of re-building a great volleyball program.
I am an avid supporter of volleyball and have been since I stepped foot on campus. I am currently in my fifth year at A&M (although currently interning in Houston) and have seriously considered pursuing a career as a volleyball coach after graduation. I spend a significant amount of time studying the game and keeping up with other university’s volleyball programs. If you look around the country at the top collegiate women’s volleyball programs, you will quickly see that all of the top programs have volleyball-specific facilities, and as I am sure you understand, having top facilities is one of the best ways to attract top national recruits. I know the team has not been performing at a high level in recent years, but I am quite sure that it is your intention to correct this matter through whatever means necessary. I can’t say enough about the turnarounds you have helped bring about in many of our other sporting programs, most notably men’s and women’s basketball.
I have actually had the opportunity to travel to several of the other volleyball facilities in the Big XII conference and I can tell you that G. Rollie White Coliseum is hands down the best facility to watch Volleyball in the Big XII. I am not simply saying this because I am a fan of A&M, but many other people who love volleyball will quickly agree with me. I know it was built primarily to house basketball, but the seating arrangements and sight lines, as well as the intimacy of the arena, make it perfect for watching volleyball. Although Nebraska’s volleyball facility, which I am sure you are familiar with, consistently sells out every year, it is not nearly as exciting of a place to play and the fans cannot get as close to the team. Texas’s Gregory Gym is also a volleyball specific arena, but because most of the seats are so high above the court it is not nearly as fun to watch matches there. Baylor is one of the schools you mentioned that has moved their volleyball matches into the same arena as their basketball teams use. This is by far the worst place I have ever been to watch a volleyball match because the sheer size of the arena dwarfs the volleyball crowd and there are no seats where a fan can sit close to the court to really experience the joy of watching a match in person. Also, the low hanging scoreboard over the net constantly interferes with the ball going back and forth over the net, which is quite a nuisance.
I thank you for taking the time to read this long message and hope you can understand my qualms about taking the volleyball team out of one of my personal favorite places to watch volleyball. I’d especially love to hear from you whether or not this will be a permanent move and want you to know that I will continue to support the Aggie Volleyball team regardless of where I have to go to watch their matches.