The unofficial online home for fans of the UAB Blazers. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

Think long term. Winning this battle isn't passing a constitutional amendment but in raising so much hell to cause the BOT to take a step back and give us some de facto autonomy without having to pass the constitutional amendment and obtaining de jure autonomy. We have got to play all of our cards and fight like hell. This isn't losing the OCS in a backroom meeting, this fight is one for what will UAB be: a glorified extension center with the med school or THE University in the most populous city and center of our state? Are we a beacon of higher education or just a branch of Tuscaloosa stymied by Alabama politics. This battle is far bigger than college football.

Equal Representation or Separation should be our battle cry. It certainly is not "too much" to ask.

You folks need to read the information 'inside' today's fishwrapper that details the makeup of the current BOT. The newly elected President of the BOT is on the board of directors of,,,, you guessed it,,, Bryant Bank. Not mentioned, but published elsewhere, is the fact that the newest UAB token appointee to the BOT, Mrs Humphrey, the mother of a UAB football player and mother of another football playing son who is a sure bet to become a Roll Tider, has a husband who has a high position at,,, you guessed it,,,, Bryant Bank. Does anyone with half a brain see that Paul Bryant Jr will continue to have significant leverage over the activities of the UABOT even after his 'retirement'??? This sort of jury-rigging is outrageous and should have no place in the governance of the 3 sister Universities: U of A, UAB, and UAH.

(11-16-2014 11:57 AM)BAMANBLAZERFAN Wrote:  In the 1960s the American Man in Space Program was in full swing with Apollo and the Space Shuttle coming along. Von Braun threatened to move the U.S. program to Texas if the state did not build a major engineering school in or near Huntsville to support it. Since there was no way the political climate of the state would support building up Alabama A&M to that stature at the time, a new school had to be built and it became UAH.

UAB was thrown into the mix as an afterthought at the same time, based upon the UA Extension Center (in Tidwell Hall) and the UA medical school (moved to B'ham in the 1940s). No one even imagined that a D1 sports program might take root at either site.

Today we have no major Man in Space program (Russia launches most of the support missions to the ISS) and NASA funding at Redstone has shrunk accordingly. Huntsville remains one of the "darling cities" of the state government which is why Senator Shelby got federal funding for that biomedical research building for UAH (not UAB) and the state has continued to recruit businesses for it (like Remington).

In order for UAB to get any relief from the system BOT, it would have to sell the idea that the Crimson Mafia (BOT) was not operating for the good of someplace and something that mattered to them. Given the heavy influence of UA among the state's present leadership, I am not optimistic this can happen.

it is saturated with "crimson blight," that is for certain. You would think their timeline of systematic obstruction such as the consistent refusal of adequate facilities, the Jimbo Fisher fiasco, the OCS proposal sabotage and this latest caper with the "study" to close our team down would be sufficient evidence to show that probable cause, but I wouldn't bet the farm on getting any justice in this state because of the blind loyalty to crimson tide football & UAT as a whole. It's as plain as the noses on our faces, but in Alabama, none so blind as those who will not see.

(11-16-2014 12:04 PM)BlazrDawg Wrote:  You folks need to read the information 'inside' today's fishwrapper that details the makeup of the current BOT. The newly elected President of the BOT is on the board of directors of,,,, you guessed it,,, Bryant Bank. Not mentioned, but published elsewhere, is the fact that the newest UAB token appointee to the BOT, Mrs Humphrey, the mother of a UAB football player and mother of another football playing son who is a sure bet to become a Roll Tider, has a husband who has a high position at,,, you guessed it,,,, Bryant Bank. Does anyone with half a brain see that Paul Bryant Jr will continue to have significant leverage over the activities of the UABOT even after his 'retirement'??? This sort of jury-rigging is outrageous and should have no place in the governance of the 3 sister Universities: U of A, UAB, and UAH.

I never stopped suspecting that he would still have his claws into this operation somehow, even after his "retirement", the (bleeping) control freak, he's every bit the "demi-god" that his daddy thought he was back in the day. They locked up Capone, too and he was still running things from Atlanta, until they shipped his *** to Alcatraz. Bryant will always be the "fungus among us"...

(11-16-2014 11:45 AM)AnimeBlazer Wrote:  I just emailed a letter to my State Senator (not Rogers). Contact your representatives people. This is the only way we will ever break free.

I spoke to both mine this week, and dropped them both a card in the mail thanking them for their time and reminding them of our conversation.

(11-16-2014 11:57 AM)BAMANBLAZERFAN Wrote:  In the 1960s the American Man in Space Program was in full swing with Apollo and the Space Shuttle coming along. Von Braun threatened to move the U.S. program to Texas if the state did not build a major engineering school in or near Huntsville to support it. Since there was no way the political climate of the state would support building up Alabama A&M to that stature at the time, a new school had to be built and it became UAH.

UAB was thrown into the mix as an afterthought at the same time, based upon the UA Extension Center (in Tidwell Hall) and the UA medical school (moved to B'ham in the 1940s). No one even imagined that a D1 sports program might take root at either site.

Today we have no major Man in Space program (Russia launches most of the support missions to the ISS) and NASA funding at Redstone has shrunk accordingly. Huntsville remains one of the "darling cities" of the state government which is why Senator Shelby got federal funding for that biomedical research building for UAH (not UAB) and the state has continued to recruit businesses for it (like Remington).

In order for UAB to get any relief from the system BOT, it would have to sell the idea that the Crimson Mafia (BOT) was not operating for the good of someplace and something that mattered to them. Given the heavy influence of UA among the state's present leadership, I am not optimistic this can happen.

There's a bigass biomedical building on University and 19th with Shelby's name on it.

He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system. Installing some damn accountability would be a good place to start.

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system. Installing some damn accountability would be a good place to start.

I ask Your Allegiance.

(11-16-2014 12:49 PM)MbouchUABSiena Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system. Installing some damn accountability would be a good place to start.

I ask Your Allegiance.

I ask Your Allegiance. Who are your for. I ask your Allegiance. before I say good bye.

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system. Installing some damn accountability would be a good place to start.

Great idea. Not gonna happen overnight here, that's for sure, but it's the most practical concept.

Seems a formal political action group along the lines of Free the Hops would be a good next step. FreeUAB is a great movement, but something formalized that is just pushing equal representation on the BoT for UAB and UAH might be able to garner more broad base support.

I like the idea of requiring the composition of the Board to be in equal increments of 5. Then from there letting each school's 5 alumni trustees govern their respective campus and then the full 15 person board meets a couple times a year to discuss system-only issues. This way each school gets autonomy to have its own trustees govern, but still gets the advantage of lobbying for state and federal funding as a system.

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system.

You can sit at the big table, in the mansion you don't own, and eat the cold leftovers after the plate has passed, or

You can sit at the head of your own table, albeit smaller, in your own house, and cut the turkey and say the blessing.

I know which one I'd rather do.

And when it's summer time you can get out and add on to your house as you like. Even put in a pool eventually. And guess whose permission you have to get first to add on to your own damn house?

No ones!

(11-16-2014 12:04 PM)BlazrDawg Wrote:  You folks need to read the information 'inside' today's fishwrapper that details the makeup of the current BOT. The newly elected President of the BOT is on the board of directors of,,,, you guessed it,,, Bryant Bank. Not mentioned, but published elsewhere, is the fact that the newest UAB token appointee to the BOT, Mrs Humphrey, the mother of a UAB football player and mother of another football playing son who is a sure bet to become a Roll Tider, has a husband who has a high position at,,, you guessed it,,,, Bryant Bank. Does anyone with half a brain see that Paul Bryant Jr will continue to have significant leverage over the activities of the UABOT even after his 'retirement'??? This sort of jury-rigging is outrageous and should have no place in the governance of the 3 sister Universities: U of A, UAB, and UAH.

It's like a horror movie. It's certainly not part of a democratic society. The Board of Trustees is really PBJ's Board for all good Things for UAT at UAB and UAH's expense. Just unbelievable that this is allowed to occur in this day and age.

(11-16-2014 11:19 AM)Matrix Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 10:59 AM)the_blazerman Wrote:  Huntsville has been appeased a little by the BOT just to shut them up some.

They raised more hell about their hockey team than UAB did about the OCS.

And the attendance for UaH Hockey, butts in the seats, makes our ladies bowling team attendance look good.

(11-16-2014 01:40 PM)AnimeBlazer Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system.

You can sit at the big table, in the mansion you don't own, and eat the cold leftovers after the plate has passed, or

You can sit at the head of your own table, albeit smaller, in your own house, and cut the turkey and say the blessing.

I know which one I'd rather do.

And when it's summer time you can get out and add on to your house as you like. Even put in a pool eventually. And guess whose permission you have to get first to add on to your own damn house?

No ones!

Or we can demand public servants do their damn job.

(11-16-2014 01:45 PM)BlazerPhil Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 11:19 AM)Matrix Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 10:59 AM)the_blazerman Wrote:  Huntsville has been appeased a little by the BOT just to shut them up some.

They raised more hell about their hockey team than UAB did about the OCS.

And the attendance for UaH Hockey, butts in the seats, makes our ladies bowling team attendance look good.

That reminds me, I saw our Lady Blazers the other day at Vestavia Bowl!

(11-16-2014 01:47 PM)Smaug Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 01:40 PM)AnimeBlazer Wrote:  

(11-16-2014 12:40 PM)Smaug Wrote:  He brings up a good point.

Breaking away from the UA system is a surefire way to see resources dry up damn quick.

What we need is reform of the UA system.

You can sit at the big table, in the mansion you don't own, and eat the cold leftovers after the plate has passed, or

You can sit at the head of your own table, albeit smaller, in your own house, and cut the turkey and say the blessing.

I know which one I'd rather do.

And when it's summer time you can get out and add on to your house as you like. Even put in a pool eventually. And guess whose permission you have to get first to add on to your own damn house?

No ones!

Or we can demand public servants do their damn job.

Oh, did you just say that with a straight face?

A break would have consequences. I, for one, would be more than willing to accept them for self-determination. The hate would dry up too. Eventually we'd be just another big school in the state. As alien to UA as Ga Tech is to Ga.

...I saw that cute WKU stadium again on TV yesterday...