"Courtside" with Effran Bryant

Who can believe it? The time has come for the 2009-10 basketball season to get started. After seeing all the support from the student body and the Stephenville community the other night at Midnight Madness, I know this is going to be a very exciting year for this basketball team.

The crowd brought so much excitement to Wisdom Gym on Wednesday night. The Sound and the Fury marching band was in attendance keeping the noise to extreme levels. With every dunk and shot made the crowd went crazy. I just know with support like that, the wins will come so much easier in our schedule.

The way they changed up the structure of Midnight Madness this year was both fun and humorous. It was the first time we have ever had a little competition between the Texans and TexAnns. Sonya Sundberg and I competed in an old-fashioned, three-point contest. The audience got behind both of us, but what can I say, she got the best of me on that one.

I am happy the fans finally got to see firsthand the new transfers and freshmen the coaching staff brought in for this season. I am very excited to know the intelligence and enthusiasm these newcomers have brought meet the standards and pride of the returning nucleus from the 2008-09 basketball team. And with the experience of our coaching staff, this could be one of those special years at Tarleton State.

Coach Chris Reisman and Coach Jabarr Adams have worked very hard with us this preseason. The coaching staff changed a lot of things this year because of school starting later in August. We have showed in the first couple of practices that we were more than ready to start Coach Reisman’s two weeks of basketball boot camp. All the credit - and I must not lie here – goes to working with Coach Rod Cole in the weight room. That has helped all the players change their body structure and become better athletes in the strength department.

October is almost gone and November 17th isn’t that far away, but we still have a lot of work to do before we start worrying about the season and home opener against Dallas Baptist.

More next time…