Eric Hyman
Bruce Van De Velde
Texas A&M Football
* He had four or five conversations with Louisiana Tech’s athletic director on Monday and the days following. He also had conversations with SEC Commissioner Mike Slive because he wanted some guidance on how to deal with a hurricane and the rescheduling of games. It was his understanding that in the SEC, they follow the protocol that it becomes the decision of the home team’s commissioner to make the call. He also wanted to know who would make the determination at game time, had A&M made the trip to Shreveport.
* His understanding is that that call would fall on the referee with consultation from the home athletic director. During all of this, he was working with Justin Moore from the football office to look at all different possibilities of relocating or rescheduling. According to the Louisiana Tech Athletic Director, the least desirable option for their coaches and players was to postpone the game until October 13th. After the reports came out that the Hurricane Isaac was going to directly hit Shreveport, it was decided that a game was not going to be played in the area, and at that point the game was postponed.
* It’s hard for him to disregard what the experts say because he is not a meteorologist. They found that there really wasn’t an alternate option besides postponement because of various other factors. A&M went to the extent of allowing Louisiana Tech to use their charter plane and busses to get the game moved to College Station, but the plan was hung up by the state laws of Louisiana and Texas. Playing the game in College Station might have happened, had the two teams not had an off date that coincided with one another.
* The last thing he would want was for any fans, student athletes or coaches to be harmed by the storm. The potential damage and destruction from a hurricane is much more important than a football game. A&M did everything it possibly could to play the game, but unfortunately it didn’t work out.
* The SEC is a very tough league, but it is now A&M’s task to make the very best of their inaugural season. A&M has to play with the cards they were dealt with, even if it wasn’t the hand everyone wanted. This rescheduling is just another hurdle that A&M must try to overcome along the way.
* The postponement was both good news and bad news when looking ahead to the Florida game. The good news is that they won’t have any tape on the current A&M team which is very different from even the 2011 team. The bad news is that most teams make their most improvements between their first and second games of the season. It’s also an advantage that A&M gets to watch Florida open the season against Bowling Green and see some of the nuances that the Gators have. He has been in the sports profession for many years, and he’s not sure that he has ever seen a situation as exciting and energetic as the game against Florida will be.
* They definitely didn’t want to take the decision on whether to postpone the game up to the last minute because they were starting to feel the effects of some of the evacuees from south Louisiana. Many of their players are from south Louisiana, so they were definitely worried about their families. The last thing they wanted to do was to get people on the road coming towards Shreveport when there was a massive storm going on. They consulted with the weather authorities and experts in the area during the whole process in order to make the most educated decision possible. Right now, it’s looking like Isaac will be a direct hit on Ruston, and not on Shreveport. They didn’t want to make the decision at the last minute and wanted to give everyone enough time to make their plans accordingly.
* They were in close contact with Texas A&M during the process, but the call was ultimately theirs. Eric Hyman handled the issue very professionally and he thinks that Hyman’s priorities were aligned with theirs in terms of looking out for the greater public. After looking at all the possible options, they were not able to find a way to get the game played this weekend due to other circumstances. They presented the option of playing on October 13th to Hyman and the A&M officials, and even though it was the least desirable option for both schools, the decision was made to play the game then.
* Louisiana Tech would not have incurred major penalties for moving the game away from Shreveport, but it would have been a hard move because of the amount of tickets sold. When the game was first contracted with Texas A&M, Louisiana Tech already had a full schedule and agreed to move one of their other games. The contract was for a home and away series, and if the game this year had been played at Kyle Field, they would have ended up coming to College Station multiple times.
* Ticket sales and having game tape on A&M was not even a factor in the discussions to postpone the game.
* It was a tough decision to reschedule the game because Louisiana Tech was going to have a game broadcast nationally on the first day of the season which doesn’t happen often for them. Their fans have been excited for the game for quite some time which made rescheduling the game that much more difficult. Louisiana Tech played in a tropical storm last year against Southern Mississippi and it killed the attendance of the game. He didn’t want to put the Louisiana Tech fans in harm’s way by having to travel to and from the game, and that was a big factor in the decision.
* Much like A&M, Louisiana Tech now has to play 12 games in 12 weeks. Because of that factor, he doesn’t understand why people think they did this for a competitive advantage. Looking back on things, it’s possible that they could have got the game in, but it’s also possible that there could have been a disaster.
A&M AD Hyman, La Tech AD share perspective on postponed opener
TexAgs A&M AD Eric Hyman
* He was really looking forward to his first game night as A&M Athletic Director. He’s in a stage of withdrawal after getting hyped up for the game the past few weeks. It’s definitely a letdown that the Aggies aren’t playing tonight.* He had four or five conversations with Louisiana Tech’s athletic director on Monday and the days following. He also had conversations with SEC Commissioner Mike Slive because he wanted some guidance on how to deal with a hurricane and the rescheduling of games. It was his understanding that in the SEC, they follow the protocol that it becomes the decision of the home team’s commissioner to make the call. He also wanted to know who would make the determination at game time, had A&M made the trip to Shreveport.
* His understanding is that that call would fall on the referee with consultation from the home athletic director. During all of this, he was working with Justin Moore from the football office to look at all different possibilities of relocating or rescheduling. According to the Louisiana Tech Athletic Director, the least desirable option for their coaches and players was to postpone the game until October 13th. After the reports came out that the Hurricane Isaac was going to directly hit Shreveport, it was decided that a game was not going to be played in the area, and at that point the game was postponed.
* It’s hard for him to disregard what the experts say because he is not a meteorologist. They found that there really wasn’t an alternate option besides postponement because of various other factors. A&M went to the extent of allowing Louisiana Tech to use their charter plane and busses to get the game moved to College Station, but the plan was hung up by the state laws of Louisiana and Texas. Playing the game in College Station might have happened, had the two teams not had an off date that coincided with one another.
* The last thing he would want was for any fans, student athletes or coaches to be harmed by the storm. The potential damage and destruction from a hurricane is much more important than a football game. A&M did everything it possibly could to play the game, but unfortunately it didn’t work out.
* The SEC is a very tough league, but it is now A&M’s task to make the very best of their inaugural season. A&M has to play with the cards they were dealt with, even if it wasn’t the hand everyone wanted. This rescheduling is just another hurdle that A&M must try to overcome along the way.
* The postponement was both good news and bad news when looking ahead to the Florida game. The good news is that they won’t have any tape on the current A&M team which is very different from even the 2011 team. The bad news is that most teams make their most improvements between their first and second games of the season. It’s also an advantage that A&M gets to watch Florida open the season against Bowling Green and see some of the nuances that the Gators have. He has been in the sports profession for many years, and he’s not sure that he has ever seen a situation as exciting and energetic as the game against Florida will be.
La Tech AD Bruce Van De Velde
* He appreciates that the administration at Texas A&M was more than happy to work with them on this situation. No one on either side wanted to cancel the football game, but at the same time, the safety of everyone involved was the top priority. The weather in Ruston is getting worse by the hour, and at times it seems as if it is raining horizontally. The storm is really hitting hard right now, and will continue to be intense through the rest of the day.* They definitely didn’t want to take the decision on whether to postpone the game up to the last minute because they were starting to feel the effects of some of the evacuees from south Louisiana. Many of their players are from south Louisiana, so they were definitely worried about their families. The last thing they wanted to do was to get people on the road coming towards Shreveport when there was a massive storm going on. They consulted with the weather authorities and experts in the area during the whole process in order to make the most educated decision possible. Right now, it’s looking like Isaac will be a direct hit on Ruston, and not on Shreveport. They didn’t want to make the decision at the last minute and wanted to give everyone enough time to make their plans accordingly.
* They were in close contact with Texas A&M during the process, but the call was ultimately theirs. Eric Hyman handled the issue very professionally and he thinks that Hyman’s priorities were aligned with theirs in terms of looking out for the greater public. After looking at all the possible options, they were not able to find a way to get the game played this weekend due to other circumstances. They presented the option of playing on October 13th to Hyman and the A&M officials, and even though it was the least desirable option for both schools, the decision was made to play the game then.
* Louisiana Tech would not have incurred major penalties for moving the game away from Shreveport, but it would have been a hard move because of the amount of tickets sold. When the game was first contracted with Texas A&M, Louisiana Tech already had a full schedule and agreed to move one of their other games. The contract was for a home and away series, and if the game this year had been played at Kyle Field, they would have ended up coming to College Station multiple times.
* Ticket sales and having game tape on A&M was not even a factor in the discussions to postpone the game.
* It was a tough decision to reschedule the game because Louisiana Tech was going to have a game broadcast nationally on the first day of the season which doesn’t happen often for them. Their fans have been excited for the game for quite some time which made rescheduling the game that much more difficult. Louisiana Tech played in a tropical storm last year against Southern Mississippi and it killed the attendance of the game. He didn’t want to put the Louisiana Tech fans in harm’s way by having to travel to and from the game, and that was a big factor in the decision.
* Much like A&M, Louisiana Tech now has to play 12 games in 12 weeks. Because of that factor, he doesn’t understand why people think they did this for a competitive advantage. Looking back on things, it’s possible that they could have got the game in, but it’s also possible that there could have been a disaster.
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