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Features is the place to find stories from select neighborhood sources.
For the second time during the 2011-2012 school year, SMU has scored a victory against cross-town rival TCU in a major collegiate sport. The football team upset the Horned Frogs back in October and now the men's basketball team followed suit by beating TCU, 68-62, on Wednesday, February 8 at Moody Coliseum. This marks the first time SMU has beaten TCU in both football and basketball since the 2005-2006 school year.
It was an evenly matched game between the two rivals - the score was tied at the half at 37 and there were eight lead changes. Both teams had four players with double-digit point totals and neither team had a player with more than 10 rebounds. The Mustangs were able to edge the Horned Frogs in three-pointers and rebounds and that narrow margin proved to be the difference in victory and defeat.
Senior Robert Nyakundi led all scorers with 17 points, but he had plenty of scoring help from London Giles (14), Jeremia Samarrippas (10) and Aliaksei Patsevich (10). As a team, the Mustangs shot a blistering 52.1-percent from the field and 45.8-percent from beyond the arc.
TCU was led by J.R. Cadot, who scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds, while Amric Fields (12), Garlon Green (12) and Hank Thorns (11) also played significant roles. TCU was able to keep pace with SMU in the first half but their shot percentages decreased in the second half; the Horned Frogs shot 56.5-percent from the field in the first half but only 37.5-percent in the second. Even worse, they shot 53.8-percent from the three-point line in the first but fell to 14.3-percent in the second.
The Mustangs will next travel south to play the Rice Owls on Saturday, February 11 at 7:00 p.m.
Photos courtesy of Rob Graham
SMU quarterback Kyle Padron reached the zenith of his career with the Mustangs when he led SMU to the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl - its first bowl game in 25 years - back during the 2009-2010 season. He was named the MVP of that bowl after leading the Mustangs to a 45-10 rout of Nevada. And now, Padron will likely be leaving the Hilltop after SMU released him from his scholarship.
Padron started 21 straight games for SMU after Bo Levi Mitchell went down with a shoulder injury in 2009. At the time, Padron was a true freshman but flourished under head coach June Jones and the Run 'N' Shoot offense. However, after his success in the Hawaii Bowl, Padron has never quite played up to those standards that he himself set so high.
In the first game of the 2011-2012 season, Padron faltered early against Texas A&M with consecutive interceptions on his first two drives and was benched in favor of senior J.J. McDermott. McDermott had great initial success that kept Padron on the bench. Unfortunately for Padron, he injured his back right around the time that McDermott began struggling in the second half of the season.
A big reason for Padron's desire to leave may be the arrival of former Texas quarterback Garrett Gilbert. Although Gilbert didn't find much success at Texas, he was still a five-star recruit that possesses many of the physical tools than elite, NFL quarterbacks have.
With a release from his scholarship, Padron can transfer to another school where he'll have the opportunity to be the starter. If he goes to another FBS school, he'll have to sit out a year. If he follows in the footsteps of Bo Levi Mitchell and goes to an FBC school, he can start immediately.
As the SMU football team continues its rise in the world of college football, they'll garner more respect and prominence. The Mustangs' success has even caught the eye of apparel giant Nike and the two have agreed to a five-year agreement that will make Nike the official provider of apparel, footwear and equipment for SMU.
"We are excited to announce this partnership between SMU Athletics and Nike," said Director of Athletics Steve Orsini in a press conference. "Nike is a world leader in athletic apparel and equipment, and this agreement links SMU Athletics with that prestigious brand. We have raised the profile of SMU Athletics to a high level over the past few year and this commitment by Nike only reinforces that fact."
The agreement will be effective beginning with the 2012-2013 school year.
"Partnering with elite organizations such as SMU allows Nike to continue to help build better athletes by pushing innovation forward," said Morgan Shaw, Nike Communications. "Our goal is to deliver unparalleled performance benefits through footwear, apparel and equipment by listening to the voice of the athlete. To that end, it is a privilege to work with such a strong, successful athletic organization."
SMU sponsors 17 intercollegiate teams and has been ranked as the top school in its conference for 11 of the last 14 years in the Director's Cup overall athletic rankings.
When it comes to sports, Southern Methodist University has a lot to be excited about right now.
On Thursday afternoon, SMU had an event at the Hughes-Trigg Student Center to celebrate its BBVA Compass Bowl victory and joining the Big East Conference.
SMU President R. Gerald Turner was in attendance at the celebration, as was Big East Commissioner John Marinatto, SMU Athletic Director Steve Orsini and members of the SMU coaching staff.
(Photos courtesy of Rob Graham.)
The SMU football team scored fast and often in the first quarter of the BBVA Compass Bowl, racking up 21 points for a new bowl record. After that, the defense took care of the rest by shutting down the University of Pittsburgh's lifeless offense the entire game. The outcome of the game was never in question and SMU routed Pitt, 28-6, to win their second bowl game in three years.
Senior quarterback J.J. McDermott hit wide receiver Darius Johnson for a 50-yard touchdown to get things started in the first quarter. On their next scoring drive, McDermott kept the ball himself and snuck into the end zone from the 1-yard line to put the Mustangs up by two touchdowns. And then, just before the end of the first quarter, running back Rishaad Wimbley - running in place of All-Conference USA first team running back Zach Line - blew the game wide open by rushing for SMU's third touchdown of the quarter.
The 21 points scored by SMU in the first quarter set a new bowl record for the most points scored in a quarter. McDermott's 50-yard touchdown pass to Johnson also set a new record for the long completion in bowl history.
On the other side of the ball, the SMU defense could do no wrong against the Pitt offense. Quarterback Tino Sunseri was ineffective the entire game, completing 19 of 28 passes for 183 yards and an interception. He also had a crucial fumble that led to one of SMU's touchdowns in the first quarter. But the blame doesn't lie entirely with Sunseri; after all, he spent much of the game being chased by the SMU defense. In total, the Mustangs racked up seven sacks in the game.
In all, the Pitt offense was out of sync all game. The Panthers finished with just 12 first downs, 10 rushing yards and 205 total yards of offense - all three of which are new low marks for the BBVA Compass Bowl.
One of the interesting aspects of the match up was the coaching controversy shared by both schools. SMU head coach June Jones was close to accepting the head coaching position at Arizona State before the offer was retracted at the last moment. The coach that eventually took the Arizona State job was Todd Graham - Pitt's head coach for less than a year.
The SMU football program's turnaround has been miraculous under the guiding hand of Jones, who won his 100th win as a college coach. It will remain to be seen if Pitt's new head coach, Paul Chryst, can do the same with the Panthers.
Photo courtesy of Rob Graham
It's been a long time since they played the last game of the regular season, but the SMU football team will take to the field again for the first time in 2012 when they play the University of Pittsburgh - better known as Pitt - on Saturday, January 7 in the BBVA Compass Bowl in Birmingham, Alabama.
The match-up between the two teams has a second layer of intrigue that will undoubtedly be talked about by the commentators all game long. SMU head coach June Jones was all set to leave the Mustangs to take the head coaching position at Arizona State but a last minute change-of-heart retracted the offer and Jones was left to awkwardly explain to his players and the school what had happened. And instead of hiring Jones, Arizona State hired Pitt head coach Todd Graham, who decided to inform his players of his decision via text message.
Critics and experts aren't too high on this match-up, as both SMU (7-5) and Pitt (6-6) underachieved this season and are without the services of their star running backs. SMU running back Zach Line tore a tendon in his foot near the end of the season and had to undergo season-ending surgery. Pitt running back Ray Graham injured his knee back in late October and has been out ever since. Both running back were ranked in the top-10 in the nation at the time of their injury.
The offenses now fall on the shoulders of the quarterbacks and the passing game. Most experts would give SMU the edge in the passing game, especially with offensive mastermind June Jones on the sidelines. His Run 'n' Shoot offense is designed to put up prolific passing statistics and for the first half of the season, the Mustangs' passing offense was a juggernaut. Quarterback J.J. McDermott replaced last year's starter Kyle Padron and led SMU to a 5-1 record, including a big win over rival TCU. However, McDermott and the offense faded down the stretch, especially after the loss of Line, and managed to win only two of their remaining six games. The offense finished the season ranked No. 22 in the nation.
The Pitt offense is quarterbacked by junior Tino Sunseri, who finished the regular season ranked No. 40 in the nation. The quarterback passed for 2,433 yards, 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. However, the Pitt passing offense ranked in the lower half of the FBS at No. 75 with an average of 211 yards per game.
Defensively, SMU and Pitt are nearly evenly matched - SMU is ranked No. 62 while Pitt is No. 72 in passing defense while Pitt is No. 23 in rushing defense compared to SMU at No. 28. However, the one place that Pitt excels in comparison to the Mustangs is in turnover margins. Pitt is in the middle of the pack in turnover margins at No. 59. The Panthers are even in turnover margins. However, SMU is ranked dead last in the nation with only 14 takeaways and 31 giveaways.
Pitt is favored over SMU by 5.5 points but in all honesty, this is anyone's game. The Mustangs and the Panthers will begin play at noon.
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Residents use 9-1-1 to report emergencies to the police, but the police can now also report emergencies to the general populace using Reverse 911. The City of Dallas Reverse 911 Emergency Notification System is used to rapidly send telephone notification to residents and businesses in an affected area in the event of an emergency. It would be in everyone's best interest to sign up to be in the system database.
The system will automatically call listed and unlisted telephone numbers within the affected area and attempt to deliver a recorded message. If phone lines are busy, the system will redial those number to make contact. The system will leave the message on an answering machine if available. Cell phone numbers are not automatically included in the system database but can be entered in.
Interested parties can sign up for Reverse 911 by checking out the City of Dallas website. Any information provided will only be used in the event of an emergency and not released to any third party. Reverse 911 is used in conjunction with other notification and alerting tools. It is only one component of the overall comprehensive emergency warning system and should not be seen as the only means of emergency notification.
For more information, visit the Office of Emergency Management's website.
By MATT COBB / BubbleLife Media
Southern Methodist University got the green light this week to build a new residential student housing complex, dining facility and parking garage on campus.
The University Park City Council voted during its regular meeting on Tuesday to approve an "ordinance granting change of zoning" and a "detailed site plan" to allow SMU to build the new structures on the northwest side of the intersection of Airline Road and Dublin Street.
The new SMU structures will be located on a 7.59 acre tract of land on campus. The new student housing complex will have about 1,250 beds, and the new parking garage will have about 750 spaces.
All freshmen students at SMU are required to live on campus, but this new student housing complex is meant to attract more sophomores to live on campus too, according to the minutes from a UP Planning and Zoning Commission meeting.
The university has a goal of raising its sophomore retention rate from 89.2 percent to 94 percent, and the new housing complex is expected to help achieve that goal by creating a "closer connection between students and faculty which will impact discipline and performance in a positive way," according to the minutes from the UP Planning and Zoning Commission's meeting.
In addition to the new buildings, SMU will also upgrade the landscaping in the area by planting oak trees and adding ornamental light poles.
Click here to watch the city council meeting. (The discussion about the new SMU structures begins at about the 10:30 mark.)
BubbleLife has already written about holiday safety for the family, but now it’s time to move onto pets. With so many people coming and going, it’s easy for pets to get lost in the mix. Here is some safety advice for our four-legged friends.
DOGS
CATS
SIGNS OF HYPOTHERMIA
HYPOTHERMIA TREATMENT
SIGNS OF FROSTBITE
FROSTBITE TREATMENT
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