Runninwiththedogs

Note to State of Hockey: dude, is he calling you fat?

No offense, but I'm surprised to see CC ranked below you guys. I guess they figure since Stuart is gone and you've got an impressive recruiting class, that's enough. Of course, I'm surprised to see you ranked BELOW Cornell and The Ohio State (can't forget the "The!") But preseason rankings are meaningless, AS THE BULLDOGS SAW LAST YEAR. God, at least they were on there at all.

I got my tickets!!! at about 9:30 this morning. I'll be there Saturday only, unfortunately. Like I said before, I enjoy drinking, so any like minded individuals can join me for some rounds.

Goalie, duh

They might refuse you entry, but it won't be because of the jersey... Dude, that mask costs more than your life. Maybe they should come out wearing Flickertails jerseys?

Hey, my grandmother knows a lot about hockey!

Dude you guys could totally choke a rabbit before each game. I bet Graham Kracker himself would do it.

You must have been staying in one of the frat houses. I think you're right that UND only using a nickname is a key for their case. I really hope that you're right, I hope that the University prevails. The WCHA just wouldn't be the same without the SIOUX. But I also hope maybe something good can come out of this whole debacle, like more dialogue between the tribes and UND, more understanding on both sides... I'm pretty sure you guys all agree with me on that one.

Hey, good thinking That is the problem facing the Illinois admin: the Chief is a real controversy at the school and the administration, the trustees, the student body, the community, and Native American activist groups are all trying to find a solution. However, the nickname has not caused a problem. The school doesn't want to get rid of the Illini name. It would be ridiculous, there are a zillion buildings and businesses in the surrounding area (not to mention the STATE) that use Illini or derivations of the word in their names. I lived in Illini Tower (a private dorm, not a university-run dorm) freshman year, for crying out loud. So the issue in Illinois is unique. FSU supported its mascot and its nickname, and had tribal support. UND has no mascot, the university supports the nickname, and they don't (?) have tribal support. UIUC has a mascot and a nickname, the school supports the nickname and is uncertain what to do about the mascot, and there's no tribe to support/oppose either. I doubt they are waiting for other schools' appeals to be approved as precedent. They have all the precedent they need, with the Aztecs nickname being allowed. I think it's an internal matter. And I wouldn't count on an Illinois appeal approval helping the UND case. The situations are too dissimilar.

Here's my reaction: Mario Lamoureux - I'm writing a paper right now, which means everything's a real blur to me, so I totally thought that said Mario Lemieux. Darcy Zajac - "started off the preseason hot with a hat trick but in 2 regular season games has no goals and 1 assist." In women's hockey? Chay Genoway - Dear god, Chay? And I thought Colby was a bad enough name. Michael Forney - Chorney and Forney?

That is just so awesome! I love it! I am all for being a sore winner. It is so great that they are telling the NCAA they can't make decisions for them. WOO HOO!

It warms my heart to see some Bulldog recruits on the lists. I can't freaking wait for hockey!!!!!!!!! P.S. Anyone interested in going to the UMD/UND game in Duluth? I'm planning on going as of now and if anyone wants to get a beer or 10 afterwards, I'm game for it. Holy crap, that game's still 2 months away and I'm excited already...

You are very right about the drinking age, it is 21 in Champaign, but to gain admission to the bars, you have to be 19. Of course, what you do once you're in there is your own problem.

Drunk people pounded on my door and tore down stuff just because they were drunk. Plus, when I was at school, I had "Freedom is not free" written on my whiteboard (under a picture of me looking terrific in my Navy blues) and some crazy annoying girl wrote some anti-war bullsh!t over it... that was pretty hostile and abusive, I would suppose. The question remains: if someone finds a mascot so offensive, why would they want to go to school there? In Champaign, you only have to be 19 to get into the bars. GOD I LOVED COLLEGE.

Interesting article out of the Daily Illini, the student newspaper. I thought this excerpt was especially relevant to the "Fighting Sioux" nickname, as well: "[...]Illinois' teams are not the only ones to attach "fighting" to their nickname. Programs from South Carolina's Fighting Gamecocks to the Carroll College Fighting Saints have employed the same word, which dictionary.com says means 'to contend with physically or in battle,' or 'to wage or carry on (a battle).'" So is the "Fighting" in the nickname meant to describe the Sioux, or to describe the athletes on the playing field battling against their opponents? In the cases listed here, it seemed that, if "fighting" was used as an adjective for the Gamecocks, it would be redundant (because all gamecocks are, inherently, going to fight, or else they would just be regular roosters), and in the case of the Saints, inaccurate (aren't many saints known for being peaceful and kind while doing God's work?). But, if "fighting" was used to describe the athletes, it would be accurate (esp. for a few of your more well-known goons... ). Anyone ever thought of it this way? Also, GK, do you think any college athlete today actually thinks they are what their nickname is? I mean, if Sven Svenssen from Stockholm or Ole Oleson from Oslo came to UND, do you think either suddenly think he was AI rather than Scandinavian? I don't think Evan Schwabe thinks of himself as a bulldog, I think he's aware that he is a (damn fine looking) human being. When UND and UMD meet, I'm not thinking "I hope these mean-looking canines with spiked collars and droopy jowls can bite the crap out of this tribe of Sioux." Reasonable, intelligent humans (and even unreasonable, intelligent sub-humans like Wisconsin fans) are fully cognizant the people in the uniforms are not necessarily what the nickname says. Reasonable, intelligent student-athletes (and knuckle-dragging buffoons like Robbie Earl!) know who they are, and they can differentiate between a mascot or nickname and their actual ancestry (and species). So, I don't remember where you implied this, but UND skaters are not going out onto the ice thinking they're members of your tribe. Don't try to turn this argument your own way though, because then you could also say that the Bulldogs do not have the right to the nickname (and mascot) of a bulldog because they are not bulldogs. And that's just ridiculous. Although, you know all about ridiculous...

I don't know about the players, but apparently PCM did...

Dude, you spelled "spelled" wrong. So why bother wondering if you spelled anything else right?

For those of you wondering where Illinois is, I have a guess. Unlike the UND administration, the UIUC administration has been against Chief Illiniwek (but not the nickname, so the problem would remain) and they may be using this to justify retiring the chief. They may not file an appeal until they decide once and for all what to do with the chief. This is just a guess though.

What about those Cajuns? I heard they were Ragin'...

I doubt it would have been his only chance. I mean, he could get some sort of career-ending injury, yes, but he was drafted coming in to the 'Dogs (yes, that sort of thing doesn't just happen to players from the U of M and UND), so it wasn't like he was a senior desperate for his one chance at the NHL. I can't say for sure if a year of playing has improved him much as a hockey player, which would have been shown in another year of play in the WCHA. He could have proved himself as a leader with a broader sense of the game. You know, a game that's more than just 10 minute majors. More power to him, I guess, if Tampa Bay is dumb enough to gamble that he's grown enough from 1 year of college hockey, but he should have taken another year.

Right, but how much will he be playing?