Attended the one in Longview.

I think the one in 2019 had a better turnout but it was still decent as far as the number of people attending. There were a few parents there of current athletes. Carthel in his speech said it was the first time to meet them.

Spoke with a few coaches but nothing really groundbreaking. Did get to talk to JaMarkus McFarland and SFA got a good one in him. A lot of passion for the players and what Carthel is doing with the team/program as far as culture. I hope he sticks around for a long time but wouldn't be suprised if he moves on in a few years (He's a Lufkin guy so maybe he'll want to stay close to home). They are really wanting to recruit the East Texas area which I'm sure we already knew. Sounds like there are a lot of good receivers in the next few classes so hopefully SFA can land a few of them.

Carthel talked about the new turf being put in. Apparently the previous administration never fixed an issue with a crown in the field and drainage issues when they installed the previous turf which caused parts of the turf to runoff when it rained and other damage.

Overall it was a good event. Got to meet a few other Jacks that I didn't already know. Definitely made me excited for the upcoming year. Did my PLF donation for the year as well.

I went to the Purple Lights get together in Dickinson today. There were about 15 fans and 9 SFA people there, including Ryan Ivey. People were still coming in when I left at about 6:00 p.m.

Coach Carthel sat down with me and we talked one-on-one for a solid half hour. It was great that he cared enough to do that. He brought me up to speed on just about everything going on in the FB program.

A few things he mentioned: 1) The OL that we just got from Okie State is not yet eligible. They are working on getting him a waiver to make him eligible to play this Fall. The receiver we got from North Texas is fast! 2) SFA will finally have some speed at the outside receiver position. That is something we have lacked the last two years. We already have speed in the inside receiver corps. 3) There are about 120 guys on the team right now, including non-scholarship players. Of that number, 115 are on campus and working out this summer. He was very proud of that. The only ones that are not there are non-scholarship guys that needed to get summer jobs to earn some money. 4) Carthel said he has a huge spreadsheet that he uses to keep up with the 65 scholarships that have to be sliced and diced amongst the players. He said there's a lot that goes on behind the scenes to keep up with scholarships that most people are not aware of. 5) He said that Jacksonville State will be a tough game. The Jacks will have to be bused to that game, and he's not looking forward to that long trip. 6) He said that moving to the WAC will only increase travel expenses by about 10%. 7) He explained the use of "curtains" behind the team at home games during timeouts. He said it was to keep opposing coaches in the pressbox from reading SFA's signs and to see who the SFA coaches are talking to and sending into games after timeouts. 8) He said that Prison Tech had been the home team for 10 straight years at Reliant Stadium (larger and better locker rooms), and he told the game organizers that he would not continue to play the game in Houston unless that changed. It has been changed and we will be the home team this year. 9) He said that the new transfer portal rule would eventually cause FCS like SFA to lose players to FBS schools. He said the best way to defend against that is to treat the players as family and make them want to stay. 10) I asked if there is a chance that the FB team could get improvements to the fieldhouse if the Jacks have a good season this year. He was non-committal about that. He said that will require major donations from alumni. 11) He said that the support he has gotten from Ivey and President Gordon has been amazing.

One final note: Tall Texan, he mentioned you ("That guy Governor Peyton" on Twitter) at some point in the conversation. (The conversation was obviously going downhill at warp speed at that point.) Your reputation (good or bad?) precedes you.

After this talk with Coach Cartel, I AM PUMPED for the season ahead!

Good stuff.

Another thing that will be tough about that Jacksonville State game will be that it is the game after prison tech where the Jacks will lay it all out on the line and could be emotionally and physically drained.

Honestly could be a trap game too. The Jacks will be very confident after winning that game. Might get complacent.

Great crowd at the Astros game. SFA sections were packed. Much better than two years ago.

Visited with Dr. Gordon for a few minutes. Enrollment is a concern. Mostly returning students, with many not wanting to return to campus after being virtual. Really don't know the impact until the start of the fall semester. Freshman class is okay. Busy man on the road, with the Board meeting in between trips starting this afternoon. Noticed there are two naming opportunities on the agenda. Alton Frailey was at the game. I had missed that his Board term had ended. He played a meaningful role in getting Ivey and Gordon to SFA.