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KENYA CARING FOR WEBER STATE ATHLETICS HOSTS CHARITY DRIVE
By ALMA BELL Reporter
Weber State Athletics teamed up with Global Agents of Change to create a drop-off drive on Jan. 21. Spectators could drop off deflated balls, hygiene products and school supplies at the men’s basketball game.
Weber State Athletics also incentivized their tickets: Those who donated got 50% off lower-bowl tickets. Though this would not be a draw to season ticket holders, it gave an incentive to those who were buying tickets to donate.
“When you think about trying to make an impact, I think everyone can get on board about humanitarian trips or helping people, especially those in third-world countries,”
Nick Downs, director of external relations and annual giving for the athletics department, said.
Global Agents of Change, a nonprofit group at Weber State University, and Kenya Keys have partnered up to collect donations in preparation for their trip to help build a learning center in Taru, Kenya.
Kenya Keys works to help students in Kenya get an education. They get sponsors for the students and build public learning spaces like libraries, dorms and school-houses.
“Kenya Keys is a nonprofit we have partnered with that allows people to unlock their full potential,” Jeremy Farner, associate professor of building and construction, said.
This is the 10th trip taken by Global
Agents of Change. The group works with the local community and those outside the country. They started doing these international trips in 2014 to help improve the infrastructure of areas in need. Global Agents of Change has been to places like Peru, Mozambique and Thailand.
In 2019, the Global Agents of Change group worked to build a net-zero home for the Ogden Parade of Homes. A home like this when built offsets the amount of electricity needed to keep it running by producing its own electricity.
Global Agents of Change partnered with Weber State Athletics to use the men’s basketball game as one of their donation sites for their upcoming trip. There is also a donation drop box at Larry H. Miller of
Riverdale.
Downs said the athletics department chose to get involved with Global Agents of Change to help support Weber State University events. As a part of the university, athletics wanted to encourage participation for the fundraiser.
“I have never been on a humanitarian trip before, but Ron and others have spoken on the impact of what a humanitarian trip can do for somebody, for your life, your perspective and the way you kind of go about your life afterward,” Downs said.
By BRISA ODENTHAL Reporter
After a heated game, Weber State University’s hockey team fell 4–1 to the University of Denver on Jan. 28 at the Ice Sheet.
After beating Colorado State University 6–3 on Jan. 26 and the University of Colorado 5–2 on Jan. 27, the Wildcats’ loss to the Pioneers was their only one of the weekend.
Denver dominated early with defensemen John Reller, JP Thul and Gage Dwan all scoring to give the Pioneers a 3–0 lead.
“I feel like this weekend, even though we went 2–1, we kind of came out a little slow on all three games,” Weber State’s head coach Yosh Ryujin said. “Fortunately for the first two games, we were able to recover but today they came out, they were a desperate team today, and they showed it in the first period.”
The second period didn’t see any goals scored and instead saw two penalties for Weber State and five for Denver.
In the final period of the game, Pioneer forward Junyan Mak scored Denver’s last goal of the night. Weber State forward Andrew Demorat scored the Wildcats’ only goal of the match halfway through the period.
“We had a lot of opportunities there in the third period that we could have really closed the gap and didn’t take advantage of those,” Ryujin said. “[The goalie] saw a lot of the shots tonight and when you’ve got a good goalie that’s hot like that, if he can see the puck, he’s going to stop it.”
The team is preparing to take on Utah Valley University at the Wasatch Cup on Feb. 3 and has a full week of preparation ahead. The team, who won the cup last year, is hoping to continue that legacy.
“The problem right now is we have spurts where we’re just really, really good, and we have spurts where we’re just not engaged in the game, and I feel like if we can put together a full 60 minutes, we’re going to have a lot of success,” Ryujin said. “We’re not ranked where we are by mistake … but at the same time, the reason we’re not high- er is because we’re having missteps throughout the season against teams and having periods like we did in the first, where you can’t afford to do that against good hockey teams.”
After the team competes at the Wasatch Cup at Utah State University, the team will play in the Mountain
West Cup at Montana State University Feb. 9-11. The team hopes to make the American Collegiate Hockey Association national tournament in Massachusetts on March 16-21.
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By BRISA ODENTHAL Reporter
Después de un juego intenso, el equipo de hockey de la Universidad de Weber State perdió ante la Universidad de Denver el 28 de enero en el Ice Sheet.
Después de vencer a la Universidad de Colorado State 6-3 el 26 de enero y a la Universidad de Colorado 5-2 el 27 de enero, la derrota de los Wildcats ante los Pioneers fue la única del fin de semana.
Denver dominó temprano con los defensas John Reller, JP Thul y Gage Dwan, todos ellos marcando puntos para darle a los Pioneers una ventaja de 3-0.
“Siento que este fin de semana, a pesar de que terminamos 2-1, salimos un poco lentos en los tres juegos”, dijo el entrenador de Weber State, Yosh Ryujin. “Afortunadamente para los primeros dos juegos pudimos recuperarnos, pero hoy salieron, hoy fueron un equipo desesperado y lo demostraron en el primer tiempo”.
En el segundo periodo no se vio ningún gol anotado, por el contrario, se vieron dos penales para Weber State y cinco para Denver.
En el último periodo del juego, el delantero de Pioneer Junyan Mak anotó el último gol de la noche de Denver. El delantero de Weber State, Andrew Demorat, anotó el único gol del partido de los Wildcats a mitad del periodo.
“Tuvimos muchas oportunidades allí en el tercer período donde realmente pudimos haber cerrado la brecha y no las aprovechamos”, dijo Ryujin. “[El portero] vio muchos de los tiros esta noche y cuando tienes un buen portero que es tan bueno como ese, si puede ver el disco, lo detendrá”.
El equipo se está preparando para enfrentarse a la Universidad de Utah Valley en la Copa Wasatch el 3 de febrero y tiene una semana completa de preparación por delante. El equipo, que ganó la copa el año pasado, espera continuar con ese legado.
“El problema en este momento es que tenemos rachas en las que somos muy, muy buenos, y tenemos rachas en las que simplemente no estamos involucrados en el juego, y siento que si podemos armar 60 minutos completos, vamos a tener mucho éxito”, dijo Ryujin. “No estamos clasificados donde estamos por error... pero al mismo tiempo, la razón por la que no estamos más arriba es porque estamos dando pasos en falso a lo largo de la temporada contra los equipos y teniendo períodos como los que tuvimos en el primero, donde no puedes darte el lujo de hacer eso contra buenos equipos de hockey”.
Después de que el equipo compita en la Copa Wasatch en la Universidad de Utah State, el equipo jugará en la Copa Mountain West en la Universidad de Montana State del 9 al 11 de febrero. El equipo espera llegar al torneo nacional de la Asociación de Hockey de Colegiado Americano o American Collegiate Hockey Association, en Massachusetts del 16 al 21 de marzo.
By SIMON MORTENSEN Section Editor
With the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles competing for this year’s Vince Lombardi trophy, Super Bowl LVII will be the 26th NFL championship game in a row to not feature the Dallas Cowboys.
Nicknamed “America’s Team,” the Cowboys’ season ended on Jan. 22 in a divisional-round playoff game against the recently-eliminated San Francisco 49ers. Losing 19–12, Dallas’ final play still leaves the football world confused.
With more than half a field ahead of them, the Cowboys lined up with no offensive lineman. Instead, they brought running back Ezekiel Elliott in to play center and pushed the linemen out to receiver slots.
The play failed almost instantly, only gaining a few yards. Coming from the franchise that practically invented the Hail Mary in the 1970s, this play has been called many things, but brilliant is not one of them.
Dallas has had a few good seasons since their title run in 1996, but never one worthy of earning another title. In fact, they haven’t even sniffed an NFC Championship game slot since Super Bowl XXX, 27 years ago. Iconic franchises have had their hardships since the start of the 21st century, but none quite like the Cowboys.
With a Super Bowl absence that’s lasted over a quarter of a century, it’s time to ask: Who killed the Dallas Cowboys?
To answer, our sports editors Simon Mortensen and Rayshaun Baker-Lynch will debate, with Simon arguing the problem lies with Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones and Rayshaun responding on Feb. 9 saying the problems lie outside the organization.
Jerry Jones killed the Cowboys
It’s hard to believe Jerry Jones played a major role in starting a dynasty. Buying the Dallas Cowboys in 1989, Jones fired Hall of Fame head coach Tom Landry, replacing him with Jimmy Johnson.
Although his tenure started with a 1–15 season, Johnson soon built one of the best teams to ever take a football field, featuring Hall of Famers like quarterback Troy Aikman, running back Emmitt Smith, wide receiver Michael Irvin and defensive end Charles Haley.
Under Jonnson’s coaching, the Cowboys won two Super Bowls. It was right after winning Super Bowl XXVIII in 1994, however, that Jones and Johnson split. Jones then brought in former University of Oklahoma head coach Barry Switzer.
The move to not keep Johnson was controversial and marked a turning point for the franchise. Though Switzer was able to win a Super Bowl during his tenure, it’s impossible to ignore the role Johnson played in building that team.
Dallas has never truly recovered from the departure of Johnson, and Jones is to blame for that. In fact, his brash tactics and ego have dug the franchise into an inescapable hole.
Jones is an owner who tries to run the team too often, and his lack of football savvy shows. He constantly tries to find diamonds in the rough to recreate the glory days of the 90s yet fails to recognize what made his programs successful.
Jones has focused solely on finding strong specialty players, which has brought in some phenomenal talents. Wide receivers Dez Bryant, Terrell Owens and CeeDee Lamb have been paired with pro-bowl talent quarterbacks in Tony Romo and Dak Prescott. The team has also had its fair share of good running backs like DeMarco Murray, Ezekiel
Elliott and Tony Pollard. Defensively, the Cowboys have had greats since the turn of the century, like safety Roy Williams and linebackers Micah Parsons and Demarcus Ware.
The Cowboys have been given their rebooted versions of the Aikman, Smith and Irvin lineup multiple times but have wasted talent by hiring inept coaches like Wade Phillips, Jason Garrett and Mike McCarthy to develop the team.
Jones never recognized the role Johnson’s coaching and development played in the Cowboys’ success. Instead, he believes that the Cowboys’ next dynasty lies within a team that requires minimal coaching, a task that he has proven to be impossible.
Perhaps this belief is the reason that he kept Garrett for nine years, who only had four seasons with a record over .501 during his tenure. He tried his hand with four different coaches between Switzer and Garrett only to find he didn’t want a brilliant play caller or strategist — he just wanted someone who would agree with him.
Jones has been given the opportunity to take on the brilliant strategist role and has failed. The reason the Dallas Cowboys are dead is because he’s too prideful and powerful to face that reality.
The Signpost Team
Editor-in-Chief Breanna Hart breannahart@mail.weber.edu
Managing Editor Alexandrea Bonilla alexandreabonilla@mail.weber.edu
Design & Graphics Editor Star Neil starneil@mail.weber.edu
Asst. Design & Graphics Editor
Emilie Hart emiliehart@mail.weber.edu
Photo Editor Kennedy Camarena kennedycamarena@mail.weber.edu
Asst. Photo Editor Anna Kuglar briannakuglar@mail.weber.edu
Chief Copy Editor Justin Steed justinsteed@mail.weber.edu
News Editor Lucas Moore lucasmoore@mail.weber.edu
News Editor Tim Costello timcostello@mail.weber.edu
Sports Editor Simon Mortensen simonmortensen@mail.weber.edu
Asst. Sports Editor Rayshaun Baker-Lynch rbakerlynch@mail.weber.edu
Culture Editor Adam Montgomery adammontgomery1@mail.weber.edu
Culture Editor Lexie Andrew lexieandrew@mail.weber.edu
Translation Editor Marianna Lopez-Luritta mlopezluritta@mail.weber.edu
The Signpost is a student publication, written, edited and drafted by Weber State University students. Student fees fund the printing of this publication. Opinions or positions voiced are not necessarily endorsed by the university. The Signpost reserves the right to edit for reasons of space and libel and to refuse to print any letters. Letters should be submitted online to thesignpost@weber. edu and read letter to the Editor in the subject box. Letters should not exceed 350 words.
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Business Manager Rob Steedley robertsteedley@weber.edu
