The Vista Sept. 18, 2012

INSIDE • Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 2 • Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 3 • Russell Simmons . . . . . PAGE 5 • Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 6 • Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGES 7 & 8

THEVISTA University of Central Oklahoma

Women’s Volleyball was part of a busy weekend in sports.

• Page 7

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TUESDAY • September 18, 2012

In wake of heart attack, Leadership Central Advisor Jarrett Jobe, 34, changes eating habits and begins journey to “healthy and productive life.”

• BRYAN TRUDE, Senior Staff Writer • When Jarrett Jobe, director of the President’s Leadership Council woke up on the morning of Sept. 7, he felt a pain in his back and chest unlike “any I had ever felt before.”

“I had been to the doctor about two weeks beforehand because I had experienced some level of chest pain while working out,” Jobe said.

“The actual results came back and they said everything was fine, my blood pressure was fine, my cholesterol was elevated but not too crazy.

However, that morning when it Leadership Central Advisor Jarrett Jobe sits in his office. Jobe sufhappened, I thought this was a pain ered a heart attack Sept. 7 and returned to work last week.

I had never felt before. I thought, Photo by Bryan Trude, The Vista maybe I could blow it off, but I said man, don’t be stubborn, go to the doctor.”

What Jobe was experiencing that September morning was called a myocardial infarction, more commonly known as a heart attack.

“We have a family history of heart problems. My grandfather had his first heart attack at 43, and my mother has had several stints put into her heart, with the first around 42, 43 as well,” Jobe said. “There is some heart history in my family, but knowing that as soon as I felt that, I felt ‘hey, this doesn’t feel right.’”

1. Salmon 1. Donuts After driving himself to the doctor, Jobe’s physician initially did 2. Ground Flaxseed 2. French Fries not find anything wrong. However, when Jobe’s vitals spiked in the doc3. Oatmeal 3. Soda/Pop tor’s office, he was sent to Integris 4. Black or Kidney Beans 4. Margarine Baptist Hospital, where he was put under, so physicians could use a 5. Almonds 5. Shortening laparoscopic camera to inspect his 6. Walnuts 6. Ice Cream circulatory system for blockages.

When Jobe woke up, he found 7. Red Wine 7. Processed Cheese that a stint had been placed in his 8. Tuna 8. Tempura left anterior descending artery – called “The Widowmaker” in medi9. Tofu 9.Well-cooked meats cal circles - to treat what turned out 10. Brown Rice 10. Store-bought cookies to be a 100 percent blockage.

“It’s one of the primary arteries for delivering blood to the heart,” *according to WebMD.com *according to drbenkim.com Jobe said. “They [the doctors] said that it’s responsible for delivering

HEART QUICK Top 10 Heart Healthy Foods*

HEALTH FACTS

Top 10 Worst Foods for the Heart*

about 40 percent of the blood to the heart.”

According to the WebMD MedScape reference, heart attacks carry a 30 percent mortality rate, with an additional 5-10 percent of survivors dying within a year of their event. Heart attacks are commonly caused when a blockage occurs in an artery that delivers blood to the heart muscle – the myocardium.

This restriction of blood flow – ischemia – results in oxygen loss to the myocardium, resulting in death of the heart tissue – infarction – which lends the condition its name.

“I discovered I had a blockage and a stint at the same time, so it’s not like they said ‘hey, we discovered this, and we’re going to go in and do this,’” Jobe said. “When I thought about it, I thought I was 34 years old. I’m not the healthiest guy in the world but I’m not the most unhealthy either. I had been going to the gym, I’ve been running, had lost nine or 10 pounds, and I was thinking ‘Wow, how does this happen to someone like me?’”

Signs of a heart attack include a chest pain that radiates towards the left arm and neck. Other symptoms include a shortness of breath, sweating, physical weakness and light-headedness, as well as what is described as “an impending sense of doom.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2008 over 616,000 Americans died from heart disease, of which heart attacks are a major sign. Almost one in every four deaths could be traced back to the condition. Heart disease is the current leading cause for death in both men and women.

Common risk factors for myocardial infarction include age, obesity, lack of exercise, excessive consumption of alcohol, genetic predisposition, high blood pressure and dia-

betes.

“I think my initial thought was, man, I dodged a bullet,” Jobe said.

“I made it through this, and now that I know that this exists, maybe we can manage it. I hope we can manage it, work through it, and still lead a healthy and productive life.”

“I know there are people who don’t live through that situation, who don’t get to make the choices I now need to make to manage it and move forward.”

Immediate treatment of heart attacks may include the administration of aspirin, oxygen and nitroglycerin. Survivors may be placed on a variety of medications including antiplatelet drugs, beta-blockers and ACE inhibitors.

In the wake of his heart attack, Jobe is now on five daily medications, in addition to other lifestyle changes he must now make.

“The first one is diet. I’m a single guy, and sometimes it’s easier to decide that I need to grab three tacos from Bueno on the way home than it is to cook food and eat fruits and vegetables,” Jobe said. “I know exercise is going to be important, but diet is going to be the big thing for me.”

For Jobe, his treatment will also include a closer relationship with his doctor.

“Before this, I hadn’t been to the doctor in eight years,” Jobe said.

“Never had a check up, never really had anything. Now, I know I need to be visiting if not once, but twice a year to make sure I’m healthy and am taking the medicine I need to take.”

Anyone, regardless of risk factors, who experiences the symptoms of a heart attack should seek immediate medical attention. People seeking more information on heart attacks or heart health should consult their physician.

University’s new web-based educational system, Desire 2 Learn, evokes mixed response from student body and faculty • ADAM HOLT, Staff Writer • Students give mixed reviews to UCO’s new virtual learning environment system.

Desire 2 Learn (D2L), the newly implemented program to replace WebCT, has officially gone live this semester. So far, the road to total acceptance has been bumpy.

UCO has seen many students complain of slowness and screen freezing, among other maladies.

Brought about by the surveying of students, D2L brings improvements to UCO’s learning system, like mobile access and receiving texts when new assignments are posted.

At the moment, a negative rumble is drowning out those positive points.

Sonya Watkins, Assistant to the Vice President and Director of Technology Resources, says your criticism is being heard.

“Last week we had several complaints about slowness,” she said.

Many reports of computers timing out were also received.

For functional problems like slowness and timeouts, UCO sends this

information straight to D2L. “As far as the nuts and bolts and things, servers, they (D2L) have a support team that takes care of that,” Watkins said.

Watkins said D2L is adding infrastructure for speed, and as of Tuesday, performance was improved.

Student opinions land on both sides of the fence when it comes to the new system.

MaKayla Adams, freshman Marketing and Advertising major, feels fine with how D2L has treated her, but has heard the complaints.

“I haven’t had many problems, but I know many people have,” she said.

“For me it’s doing what it’s supposed to do.”

Other students however, give much less than a glowing review.

Olanrewaju Suleiman, a senior Journalism major, fits that bill.

“I had to do a Dropbox at 8 (p.m.) and I couldn’t access it on my computer. I went to the library, couldn’t access D2L. I went to my mom’s house and I couldn’t access D2L,” she

said. “I was frustrated.”

Suleiman sums up her feelings with a comparison to D2L’s predecessor.

“I do think it’s better than WebCT, but not that much better,” she said.

Watkins wants to hear from students, so D2L continues to improve.

“We encourage students, if they do experience problems to contact the UCO service desk because that’s how we find out about problems,” she said.

Though the program has hit a few potholes, Watkins is positive and excited about D2L. “We hope they [students] are enjoying the new system. We obviously took their input and feedback to help us select their system and so we hope it meets their expectations,” she said.

If need to report a problem concerning D2L, email support@uco. edu, or call 974-2255.

You can also visit the Technology Support Service Desk at the northeast corner of the first floor of the library.

Graphic by Michael McMillian

Opinion

THEVISTA

Page 2

September 18, 2012 Editorial

Striking out in the game of education

THE VISTA 100 North University Drive Edmond, OK 73034 (405)974-5549 vistauco@gmail.com

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EDITORIALS Opinion columns, editorial cartoons, reviews and commentaries represent the views of the writer or artist and not necessarily the views of The Vista Editorial Board, the Department of Mass Communication, UCO or the Board of Regents of Oklahoma Colleges. The Vista is not an official medium of expression for the Regents or UCO. LETTERS The Vista encourages letters to the editor. Letters should address issues and ideas, not personalities. Letters must be typed, double-spaced, with a maximum of 250 words, and must include the author’s printed name, title, major, classification and phone number. Letters are subject to editing for libel, clarity and space, or to eliminate statements of questionable taste. The Vista reserves the right not to publish submitted letters.

Address letters to: Editor, The Vista, 100 N. University Dr., Edmond, OK 730345209, or deliver in person to the editor in the Communications Building, Room 131. Letters can be emailed to vistauco@gmail.com.

As a college student, who was once a member of a public school system, it is hard to imagine being out of school unexpectedly, and on account of the teachers, no less.

Yet, that is precisely what over 350,000 students are experiencing in Chicago this week.

Heading into its second week, the Chicago Public Schools’ teachers’ strike has caused the third-largest school district in the country to be temporarily out of business.

The Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) declared a strike early last week after negotiations between Chicago Public Schools and CTU failed.

Negotiations were based on three major issues and these three issues serve as the foundation for the continuing strike.

The first major issue focuses on an extension of the school day. Chicago Public Schools suggested that the school day be extended for elementary school students by 75 minutes, making the school day seven hours long. For high school students, the proposition added 30 minutes to the day, making the school day seven-and-a-half hours long.

Teachers and the CTU raised concerns about lengthening the school day without also raising teachers’ wages.

Another major issue focuses on student performance-tied teacher evaluations. Teachers face the possibility of losing their jobs due to poor student performance in their classrooms. Teach-

ers argue that low economic conditions and poor living standards could affect student performances, which they argue unfairly reflects their teaching performance and could cause an unfair job loss.

The final, and perhaps most important, issue the CTU and teachers are addressing is the issue of widespread job loss, caused by the potential for school closings. There is no definite answer as to the possible number of schools being closed. Estimates range from 100 to 200 school closings, which would put hundreds of teachers out of work.

Chicago Public Schools and CTU leaders negotiated a temporary contract that went to vote among CTU members.

CTU members rejected the proposal and decided to continue the strike into this week.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel commented on the teachers’ strike, saying that it was “illegal” and “endangers the health and safety of our [Chicago’s] children.”

Mayor Emanuel filed a claim with a Chicago judge, asking the judge to mandate Chicago teachers to end the strike and return to work.

The judge has yet to deliberate on the status of the strike.

There doesn’t seem to be an end in sight to the battle between Chicago Public Schools and the CTU. While the teachers are free to their complaints and concerns, they seem to

have forgotten their primary purpose as teachers – to teach. As they march around holding signs, advocating their cause, 350,000 children sit, who knows where, out of school and temporarily out of an education.

Though the students of Chicago Public Schools are most likely not fretting over the loss of school days, their parents are.

With no school, parents find themselves forced to make arrangements to accommodate their children’s newly found daytime freedom.

The teachers of the Chicago Public School system may feel that there is no other way to solve their problems than to inconvenience the whole of Chicago, however, not the teachers, but the parents and students of the Chicago community are feeling the consequences of their actions.

Is standing for your role as a teacher worth it, if, in the process, you are failing to do precisely what you are standing for?

Perhaps, one day, you will find yourselves in a similar situation, when your former students, who are then your public leaders, officials and caretakers, decide to take a strike that so directly affects you.

Sarah Neese Copy Editor sneese@uo.edu

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Contact Brittany at 405-974-5913 or email your questions to vistamedia@yahoo.com for rates.

STAFF

Management

Editorial

Joshua Hutton, Editor-In-Chief Ben Luschen, Managing Editor Sarah Neese, Copy Editor Chris Brannick, Sports Editor

Michael McMillian

Bryan Trude, Senior Staff Writer Mervyn Chua, Staff Writer Trevor Hultner, Staff Writer Adam Holt, Staff Writer Josh Wallace, Staff Writer Whitt Carter, Staff Sports Writer Alex Cifuentes, Contributing Writer

Advertising

Photography

Brittany Eddins

Aliki Dyer, Photo Editor Cyn Sheng Ling, Photographer

Graphic Design

Circulation Joseph Choi

Adviser

Editorial Comic Evan Oldham

Mr. Teddy Burch

Cartoon by Evan Oldham

It’s state fair time. If you could deep-fry anything, what would it be?

DESIREE ALEXANDER

Psychology & Forensic Science-Senior

“Banana. Imagina a banana on a stick.

It’s cool.”

MANI INAYAT

CORINN HUGHES

JOSH HOLMAN

Accounting-Senior

Forensic Science & Molecular Biology-Freshman

Industrial Safety-Senior

“Goat brain. I’ve tried goat brain before. It’s tasty.”

“I would try to deep-fry cotton candy because it’s gonna be awesome.”

“Pop tart. It’s the first thing that came to my mind.”

Life

THEVISTA

Page 3

September 18, 2012

Album Review

G .O.O. D.

outsider

‘Cruel Summer’ MUSIC

For the past several years, rapper-producer extraordinaire Kanye West has been hand-selecting members of his very own hip hop super team. G.O.O.D. Music (Getting Out Our Dreams) includes not only well-known rappers Kid Cudi, Common, 2 Chainz, Big Sean and Pusha T, but also producers like Hit-Boy and Q-Tip (of A Tribe Called Quest) and crooners John Legend and Teyana Taylor.

With the long-anticipated release of Cruel Summer Tuesday, September 18, West’s dream is finally coming to fruition.

The album’s opening track, ‘To the World,’ features well-crafted production, a common bond most of the album’s songs carry.

West addresses his persistent critics, asking why they dwell on the trivial incidents of his personal life while in his professional life he’s selling loads of albums and winning awards.

The album then segues to a long string of boastful chestthumpers, club bangers and lyrical onslaughts featuring strong guest appearances by Jay-Z and Wu-Tang affiliates Ghostface Killah and Raekwon. Perhaps none of these songs is more notable than ‘Mercy,’ which has an aggressive tone reminiscent of West’s last major hit, ‘N***** in

Remodeling

Paris.’

The album’s deepest song is ‘Sin City,’ an exploration into the lure of temptation and the struggle it takes to rise from a life of wrong-doing. Malik Yusef’s spoken word delivery is poignant yet powerful, and when coupled with the vocals of Taylor and Legend, goose-bump worthy.

For West, the most personal song on the album must have been ‘The One.’ Here, West delivers one of the most thoughtprovoking lines on the album when he says, “It’s hard preachin’ the gospel to the slums lately, so I had to put the church on the drums baby.” This is West’s way of saying he’s had a message to get out for a long time, but the only way he can get an audience is by putting it to a catchy beat.

The album is not without its fair share of shortcomings, however. Cruel Summer lacks a level of depth and meaning that made My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (2010) and Watch the Throne (2012) so great. While club hits are nice, they don’t usually make for long-lasting, memorable albums.

Also, the use of some of the featured artists outside of the G.O.O.D. Music roster is puzzling. Mase’s guest appearance came across as a lame, half-

DISPATCHES

By

by Ben Luschen, Managing Editor hearted comeback attempt. DJ Khaled’s appearance on ‘Cold’ was at best distracting, and why did Jadakiss get the last verse on an album for a record label he isn’t even a member of?

Overall though, the album is strong. It likely wasn’t easy to make a cohesive project which utilized all of the varied skillsets within G.O.O.D. Music, however, it was made possible through ace production, which will likely go down as some of the best heard in 2012.

Release Date Sept. 18, 2012

Label G.O.O.D. Music / Def Jam

Score

8.0

Wellness Center will offer free Tai Chi classes to students Lindsey Rickards

Contributing Writer Free T’ai Chi classes began Monday, Sept. 10, 2012 at the UCO Wellness Center.

These classes will take place every Monday for 10 weeks at 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

All UCO students and employees are invited to participate.

Sara Cole, Ph. D. and Ed Cunliff, Ph. D. will teach the classes.

Cole is an Associate Professor of Kinesiology and Health Studies at UCO, and Cunliff is a Professor in Adult and Higher Education at UCO. “The benefit of having two instructors is that one can lead the class while the other works with individuals as needed,” Cole said.

Twelve participants were involved in the first class that was held.

Cole said that for some “the benefits may be increased relaxation”.

T’ai Chi is a martial art that aims to improve one’s mental and physical well-being.

Concentration is involved in this low-impact exercise that combines breathing with slow gentle movements.

T’ai Chi originated in China as a martial art that practices moving-meditation.

Many people practice T’ai Chi as an alternative-medicine to improve their health.

“This particular class and its’ forms are taught as part of a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant, and is geared towards older adults to prevent balance issues that increase injury due to falling,” Cole said.

“At UCO we have a variety of ages involved,” Cunliff said.

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine funded research studies on the effects of T’ai Chi. A 2007 NCCAM-funded study suggested that T’ai Chi may enhance the immune system and improve over all well-being in older adults.

Campus Cook

T’ai Chi is believed to reduce pain, as well as improve mental and physical health.

“I think the most remarkable and quickly visible changes were in some of the seniors that Sara and I have worked with,” Cunliff said.

Cole shared a story of improvement in a participant who could only sit to practice T’ai Chi when they started but can now do the class standing.

“I have seen amazing transformation within our T’ai Chi participants,” Cole said.

Kenan Horn, UCO Humanities Major, said that if he didn’t work on Mondays he would be interested in checking out the class.

“The classroom setting allows someone who is not comfortable with the concepts of T’ai Chi to learn them in a group,” Horn said.

To reserve a spot in upcoming classes register at the front desk of the Wellness Center or contact Blake Hamill at bhamill1@uco. edu.

Trevor Hu lt ne r

The Media’s Vital Signs are Strong Back in May, the news came down the pike from New Orleans that their daily newspaper, the Times-Picayune, would be reducing its print run and eliminating a large chunk of staff in order to focus on digital news. This decision makes New Orleans the largest city without a daily newspaper, according to the Poynter Institute.

One of the major questions that came up during all of that was whether or not the Times-Picayune should move its content behind a paywall.

Josh Stearns, the Journalism and PR Campaign Director at Free Press, wrote an excellent article, at the time, which inquired what it would take to move away from the over-simplified question of paywall vs. no paywall, and more towards: how can we move journalism forward?

This Land Press is a promising potential answer to that question. An article in the latest issue of Columbia Journalism Review about the Tulsa media outfit said that in less than two years, This Land is becoming cashflow-positive – they’re making more money than they lose – and are right on track to starting to return on venture capitalist Vincent LoVoi’s investment. It’s one of the first media startups of its kind to achieve that.

“I am fully convinced that this is a golden age for journalism,” Michael Mason, editor-in-chief of This Land Press, told me last week, “One of the best times in the history of mankind to take up journalism, because you can be more effective as an individual now than you ever could before.”

More disinterested voices than I would probably write off Mason’s words as foolish idealism, but I think he’s right – this is a really good time to want to become a journalist.

Moreover, I think foolish idealism – at least in how we view our jobs – is necessary to pick reporting up.

If journalism can be said to have an underlying fault, it is this: it remains devoted to institutions. Its main source of new reporting comes almost exclusively from expensive journalism schools and its main source of output are the mainstream television, radio and print media outlets – the New York Times, NPR, CBS, etc. Slowly but surely that paradigm is shifting.

Non-profit reporting organizations like ProPublica are proving to be immensely effective at producing quality reportage. Podcasters are taking to the streets, phones in hand, to record pieces from protests; one duo, Radio Dispatch, traveled from New York City to Charlotte, SC during the Democratic National Convention to cover what was happening outside the convention halls. Bloggers are starting to find that their voices are being taken seriously, even if only to a smaller audience.

At the same time, yes – newspaper readership and revenue is declining. Mass layoffs at major papers across the United States and around the world have been happening for years. But, do not mistake the groans of growing pains for journalism’s death rattle. So much is changing and ready for dedicated individuals to take control of their own path.

The only question is: who is willing to step forward and own it?

End notes: 1. Music fanatic department: there is now a Broncho-run music blog that you should check out over at thebronchomixtape.tumblr.com.

2. PSY department: I am still amazed that Gangnam Style has been viewed nearly 200 million times on YouTube.

3. As always, you can send a comment about this column to thultner10@gmail.com.

Free Tai Chi classes will be offered by the Wellness Center on Mondays this semester. Stock photo

American Democracy Project pushes for voter registration

- I Want S’More Quesadilla

Ingredients: •

1 whole weat tortilla

•

1 tbsp of canola oil

•

3 tbsp chunky peanut butter

•

Palm full of desired chocolate chips (I

•

1/4 cup mini-marshmallows

like dark)

Directions: In a hot skillet, put oil in and crisp up tortilla. Once tortilla is warm and crispy on one side, spread peanut butter, then sprinkle marshmallows and chocolate.

Fold tortilla in half and melt everything in it in the microwave for 10 seconds. Enjoy!

by Emily Leahey

Students register to vote at a table set up outside the NUC. UCO will celebrate Constitution Week by holding a weeklong voter registration drive Sept. 17-21. A naturalization ceremony in Constitution Hall will follow on Friday, Sept. 28 at noon. Those seeking further registration assistance can visit the American Democracy Project office in Thatcher Hall, Room 121C from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Photo by Aliki Dyer, The Vista

News

THEVISTA

Page 4

September 18, 2012

Buy the ticket Take the Ride New Journalism

Photos by Aliki Dyer

• by Yahoshua Vallac, Contributing Writer • On a cool, gray afternoon, I stopped to stare at several hand-painted signs, brightly colored images of the world’s fattest man, the armadillo boy, and various two-headed animals. Slowly, my eyes glanced downward at another sign, “Adults $1.00 Children $.50,” and all I could think was that I’d already paid $9 admission for the freak show. I was already in the middle of the Oklahoma State Fair.

Initially though, getting there proved to be a greater challenge of patience than I had expected. Apparently, I went at the same time everyone else had decided to venture out, and paid for it in a 35-minute crawl from the end of the highway to the parking lots. Once inside the fairgrounds proper, there’s no chance for a last-second lane change; you just become part of the giant gas-burning snake slithering around the asphalt, and hope you made the right choice by following the fools in front of you.

Finally, I ended up near a parking lot where an attendant was eager to take my $5. As I handed it over, I asked, “are you sure there are spots left?” She replied, “I think so,” so I told her, if there weren’t, I was coming back.

She laughed, and I mumbled something to myself to the effect of, “yeah you’re laughing now, but if there’s no spots...” So now I’m about three quarters of a mile from the entrance to the fair, in the “Premium Parking Lot,” driving around aimlessly, until another attendant tells me to park in a no-parking zone. I thought to myself, hell, he’s got a neon yellow vest and a red flag, looks official enough to me, better do what the man says.

The long walk through the “Premium Parking Lot” gave me an idea of what I’d find on the other side of the gates, a variety of every kind of automobile, representative of those of the rich to the poorest of the poor, and almost every other vehicle was a large pickup truck, most of which looked pristine, like they had never hauled anything but the Okies inside the cab.

At this point, my excitement level for going to the fair was quickly fading, and the thought of escaping was becoming a serious consideration, except that they had already got me for $5, and the line of cars leaving looked as long as the one coming in; there was no escape, except into the masses. I finally had reached the gates, where I stood in line, with a couple hundred other people, to fork over $9 for the show.

Once inside, there’s an immediate weirdness factor; it’s hard to describe, but imagine a zoo full of humans wandering around in all different directions, with no describable goal, intention, or logical thought process.

Just walking into the place, I felt as if time had slowed down or even stopped, there’s so much stimuli that the brain struggles in vain just to adapt and accept the flow of information of what is going on, and what is my next move?

Then, you notice you’re walking. You’ve been walking this whole time while your brain is slowly adjusting to the thousands of conversations, in hundreds of different pitches and Okie accents, and you’re wondering where the hell you’re going; it’s like being on autopilot, but the only risk of crashing might be into the 6’4’’ 400-pound man wielding a greasy, steaming turkey leg.

Like coming out of a deep sleep, things were starting to normalize for me, but the more awake I became, the stranger the things, places, and people became. Then, suddenly, I saw something that triggered some sort of flashback to the olden days of my childhood.

I remember coming to the fair at around the age of 8 or 9 years old, and witnessing an overweight couple groping each other, passionately sucking each others’ faces, while people just flowed by, as if they didn’t even notice. What stuck out to me the most was that while this was going on, the man had

his hand in her back jean pocket, while she had hers filling out his back pocket, forming some kind of human pretzel. At the time, I really had no understanding of what I was seeing, or what this activity was most likely going to lead to, but it always stuck out to me as strange. So imagine, nearly 20 years later, walking into the fair, and seeing what I swore were the same couple, who had become plumper and more wrinkly in old age, re-enacting the scene almost exactly, hand to butt, face to face, going at it in the middle of the state fair.

After witnessing that spectacle, I quickly moved on, shaking the notions that somehow I was meant to witness the sloppy mess that was their love, and tried to just flow with traffic for a bit. That proved to be a challenge in itself though, as there was no clear path;

meet the world’s smallest woman.” I had no real interest in how small she was, or the exploitative freak show aspect involved in her being there, but I thought for whatever reason, maybe she had some answers. So, I quickly produced a dollar and stepped up to the tent, and was pointed towards the back.

As I turned the corner, she was sitting in what I can best describe as a platformed cubicle, with two overweight little girls staring at her and asking questions, trying to comprehend what they were seeing. After patiently waiting for the children to finish gawking at her, I approached her, to get her insight on things. I was greeted with the same line I had heard her say to everyone walking in, “Hello, my name is Gloria, I’m 68, these are my children and these are my grandchildren,” she said, with a thick Jamaican accent, while

Photo by Aliki Dyer

people were walking at every angle imaginable, with varying speeds from zero mph to roughly 15 mph, and baby strollers everywhere. Having a stroller at the fair is akin to having a lifted four-wheel truck on an Oklahoma highway. Basically, the mentality is “you better get out of my way before I lose it and run you over, ‘cause I got big wheels.”

As I was ducking and weaving, and going against the flow of traffic, I took note of the expressions I saw on the faces streaming past me. What struck me is that I assumed everyone was here for entertainment, but the more I looked around, I saw far more expressions resembling anger, depression, fear, and utter despair than I saw of those smiling and happy.

For a brief moment, I took in this strange concept. These people looked like they weren’t having any fun yet were all gathered in the same place, wandering around and willingly letting go of their money for cheap thrills and trinkets. Then it dawned on me, this reminded me of the practice of various aquatic creatures returning to the place they were hatched, seemingly guided by some unknown force to gather together throughout their lives. Is there some strange unknown force that brings these unhappy people together, every year at the same time, and for what twisted reason?

As I was mulling these thoughts over in my mind, the notion of asking some of these sad looking fair goers why they were here briefly came over me. Just as quickly as the notion entered my thoughts, I talked myself out of it, as the thought of a beat down might quickly ensue from my line of questioning seemed a real possibility.

At this point I was near a sideshow attraction, with signs inviting people to “come

pointing at a collage of photos with a stick.

I tried to ask her what she thought of the people who come in to see her and what she thought of the fair, but I received only vague, brief answers, for she held no truths to the questions I sought. She seemed like a very nice, deeply religious woman, as she had a small LCD TV with a taped church service playing, and proceeding to bless me several times, but I realized, this is just her gig, this is her job and she’s just going through the motions, like we all do.

I don’t know what led me to think I would find any of the answers I sought, but I thought it was worth the effort. Instead, I was

It’s like being in a casino, if you’re not paying attention, they’ll suck you dry. just one dollar poorer than I was five minutes before. I decided to take a break from the over-analyzing of the events around me and check out the food scene.

In the days leading up to and the day of the fair, I’d seen news coverage of the various excesses that were going to be available for consumption to the general public, but I had no idea how far things had gone.

Just looking around at the different signage, I got that feeling when you put certain words together, it’s just wrong. Like the words truck and nuts, roast beef and ice cream sundae should not go together, but for $8 you can buy this abomination. I was curious as to the appearance of something so unholy, so I waited around until someone actually bought one.

Picture a Styrofoam bowl with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream, surrounded by brown, murky, mystery liquid, with various chunks of beef, and what I assumed were vegetables, all floating around the bright white. Sadly though, I didn’t stick around to watch it be consumed, as the sight alone was enough to get me moving away.

I can only assume that thousands of pigs were slaughtered for this particular occasion, as I saw multiple bacon-themed food stands throughout. Most notably were the bacon cinnamon rolls, which contained bacon mixed within the dough and sprinkled on top for good measure, bacon covered fried chicken on a stick, which sounded like a good name for a southern rock band, and the bacon parfait.

Luckily, the fair’s only around for a couple of weeks, as I could see the items they offer, that probably border on legality in some places in the world, being responsible for a larger obesity epidemic than our state already has.

As far as I can tell, there’s no nutritional information available for these deep-fried oddities, and if there were, most would probably ignore the calories listed anyway, as over indulgence in high fat monstrosities is a right of passage when attending the fair. Hell, I even indulged to a certain degree, and purchased a more traditional food staple, a brisket sandwich, to compliment the beverage I was consuming.

After getting my fill of food and drink, I really had no momentum left. This place had literally sucked most of the energy from my body, and took a big chunk out of my wallet.

To break it down for one person, I spent $5 on parking, $9 to enter the place, $9 on two drinks, $7.50 for a sandwich, and $1 to seek out the wisdom of the “world’s smallest woman.” So that comes out to nearly $32, and doesn’t include the $5 I donated to watch a friend eat deep-fried mashed potato balls.

I felt a bit taken, but have to admit, nobody was holding a gun to my head to make me spend what I did beyond the initial parking and entrance fee, it’s like being in a casino, if you’re not paying attention, they’ll suck you dry.

I’d had enough, and decided to make a quick break for it. As I was wandering around through the maze of people, one last thing caught my eye. I saw a grown man, pushing a brand new baby stroller with the biggest, pinkest, stuffed animal I’d ever seen. A few thoughts crossed my mind, did he really win that here or did he bring it through the gate in the stroller hoping to fool a few people into believing he got the best of the carneys? Or, if he actually did win it, what happened to the baby who once was occupying the stroller, and was nowhere to be seen now?

Within a few minutes I had broken free of the freak show and was taking the long walk to my car to rejoin the snake of cars, trying to flee as fast as possible, I’d had enough. After being honked at by an obnoxious driver, because the line wasn’t moving fast enough for his liking, and a minor case of road rage that soon took me over from his actions, I was free, and didn’t dare look back. The state fair is like a high school reunion, you go back and check it out every ten years or so to see how badly it’s holding up or to remind you of the reasons you didn’t care for it in the first place.

News

THEVISTA

Page 5

September 18, 2012

Words of Wisdom:

From Russell Simmons

Russell Simmons, CEO of Rush Communications, speaks in front of students and faculty at UCO. Wednesday, September 12, 2012. Photo by Aliki Dyer, The Vista

On Wednesday, September 12, the UCO College of Business played host to hip hop mogul and renowned business man Russell Simmons. Simmons gained fame as co-founder of Def Jam Recordings, a pioneering record label which helped popularize rap artists the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy. Simmons sold his share of Def Jam in 1999 for $120 million. Last Wednesday, Simmons spoke to students and faculty regarding a variety of topics including business, poltics, social issues and music. Compiled

by Ben Luschen, Managing Editor On giving as a business man “An honest intention is usually at the core of well-run business success... It’s not about the expectation of receiving so much; it’s faith in this idea if you put your energy into something people will give it to you in return. It’s something greater, about loving something enough to just want to share it, and I think that’s a major motivation we all should have.”

“Give until people can’t live without you, and music artists are doing that more and more now – they’ve always done that. This gift they have, they share and eventually someone buys it. The idea of giving is a basic foundation and philosophy that you have to get into if you want to be a success.”

On deciding the right business venture to pursue “The Rush Card was a funny thing because it was about giving people access. I can barely count and I’m the leader of a huge financial service industry, but it’s about finding the right thing to do. People did not have access, and if you’ve ever not had a bank account, you know how hard it is to operate in America without plastic, so that’s why we got into that business.

Other businesses are passions as well. I have

five charities. We work for financial, social and political causes. Having said that, a lot of my motivation goes to finding ways to help serve underserved communities.”

can’t speak. You treat your dogs all nice but you also chop up [other animals] and wear them as coats. It’s unconscious behavior.”

On the advantages of being vegOn Jay-Z and defining the Oc- an cupy movement “I’m much older than you, I don’t eat ani“Day before yesterday, Jay-Z said something about Occupy. I’ve been out in the street with Occupy every day, pretty much. It’s the opportunity to spread an idea that Occupy is about a real democracy, about building your democracy where the government is controlled by the people. That politicians work for the people who elect them and not for the people who pay them – the corporations. That’s Occupy. “

On animal rights “40 billion animals birthed – made to be born – into suffering every year just to make you sick. They use all the water, all the grain, and are the number one cause of global warming – the cows’ farting. More than two times all the trains, planes and automobiles put together is the cows’ farting. And all they do is make you sick.”

“Animals need a voice, but they obviously

mals, I’m ok. I can out run you. I can put my feet behind my head, can you do that? “

On what he would like his legacy to be “If we could write a Constitutional amendment on public financing. Imagine if we could do that, change our democracy back to a true democracy. If my kids knew I did that, I’d be proud. There’s a lot of [expletive] that I’d like to do, but celebrity allows me a chance to do some things that really matter, and I can hopefully do some of them.

On dealing with college debt “You already know what to do. You’ve accumulated your debt, you have your education.

Some people say it’s not worth it, I disagree...

Don’t stress. Don’t stress, just go to sleep, get up, do the best you can in life.”

On his early days in the music business “I liked music so much that I wanted to give parties for the artists who performed that day.

I wanted to give the rappers whose face was in the underground an audience. Then I wanted to get them record deals. And then I decided record companies couldn’t do a good job of it, so I wanted to make record companies that believe in their talent and not even in a record, but in their future.”

On happiness “Happiness is from the inside out. Happiness is about your own consciousness; it’s your own choice. It’s nothing they can give you. And motivation? It comes from that happiness. Money can’t make you happy but happy can make you money. It’s very attractive to be happy.”

On his favorite music artist that he’s worked with “Old school hip hop, that’s my favorite. I listen to Amerikkka’s Most Wanted, F*** tha Police... But, there’s not an artist or group that makes me feel that way more often than Public Enemy.“

Edmond Community Band open to interested musicians in city area • MERVYN CHUA, Staff Writer • The UCO School of Music has been partnering with the Office of Continuing Education to form a UCO Edmond Community Band. This band is open to all UCO faculty and staff and to anyone in the surrounding community.

The band now has 35 band members, and individuals still interested in joining are welcome. Percussionists interested can use school instruments. Other instruments must be brought. The majority of the band members are from the Edmond community, ranging from young high school students to retirees. Practices are every Sunday from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in room 104 of the music building at UCO. The band had their first practice this last week for their first performance on Nov. 18 at Mitchell Hall. This free concert will have approximately 45 minutes of music and will be open to the public. Pieces played will include music by Aaron Copland and Gustav Holst and a variety of music themes and musicals.

Brian Lamb, the Director of Bands at UCO sees this band as part of the Central Six, UCO’s mission for transformative learning – to be engaging and to engage the local community.

“The purpose is to give all of the players an opportunity to have fun making music, playing in a large ensemble. This band provides for students, faculty and staff to interact with local community members. In turn, the community can also learn more about UCO and its campus”.

This band started because of the interest of the community to perform throughout the spring and fall semester. UCO and Edmond have had a community band for 63 years that has been a part of Liberty Fest for the last 40 years. This past summer, about 90 band members participated. Half of them requested to perform all year round.

Emails were sent to band members and the advertisement of this band was done through word of mouth.

“I hope it will grow, and if it grows there will be a continuation of this program. It’s a great outlet for the community members and students to interact and play great music and have fun playing great music together,” Lamb said.

Individuals interested in joining the band can contact Brian Lamb at blamb@uco.edu.

Stock Photo

Classifieds

THEVISTA

Page 6

September 18, 2012

CROSSWORDS

EMPLOYMENT

Camelot Child Development Center 3 Locations now hiring bus drivers and FT/PT teachers We promote a very positive and fun atmosphere!

Please call for specific openings: Edmond-749-2262 Quail-254-5222 Deer Creek- 562-1315

Help Wanted Handy Student. P/T Property and lawn maintenance, painting.

Near UCO. Must be self-motivated, trustworthy, able to work unsupervised.

Call 641-0712

a parent with or with

Now Hiring Part-time jobs. Senior Services of Oklahoma is looking for students to fill part-time positions Monday-Friday. We pay $10/hour for energetic phone work. No experience is needed, we will train. Business is located at 1417 N.W. 150th St. in Edmond.

Call 879-1888 to set up interview.

Ask for Megan Parris.

Research Voluteers Needed Researchers at OU Health Sciences Center need healthy volunteers ages 18 to 30 who have

out a history of an alcohol or drug problem.

Qualified participants will be compensated for their time. Call (405) 456-4303 to learn more about the study and to see if you qualify. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.

Advertise with us!

Contact Brittany Eddins for details.

1-405-974-8017 Across

SUDOKU Puzzle 1 (Easy, difficulty rating 0.33)

9

7

2

6 4

3 5 1

9 8 7

8 9

5 3 4 6

6

2 9

8 1

9

56. French cooking

short

1. Vaulted

with light sauces (2 wd)

22. Bother

7. Acropolis figure

59. Protozoa with hair-

24. Check for accuracy

13. Experienced again

like appendages

26. Central point

15. Greek letter E

60. “Achoo” person

27. Fundamental

16. Relative density

61. Dimethyl sulfate

29. Boy

18. Victorian, for one

and others

19. Wackier

62. Poles of the miotic

20. Code word for dash

spindle

23. Ground cover

5

Down

24. Kill, in a way

8 3

Generated by http://www.opensky.ca/~jdhildeb/software/sudokugen/ on Mon Sep 17 18:28:02 2012 GMT. Enjoy!

RANDOM FACTS

Until a study published in 1905 by Carnegie scientist Nettie Stevens that identified the Y chromosome, gender was thought to be caused by environmental factors, such as passion of sex, nutrition, and temperature. These theories had their roots in Aristotle’s theories constructed over 2000 years ago.

The male cicada is the loudest insect in the world. Their sound can reach 120 decibels. By comparison, a jackhammer breaking concrete is 100-120 decibels.

Signs such as those that state “Not Responsible for Your Car or Its Contents” carry no weight in court; they are posted simply to discourage people from pursuing any legal action.

Perhaps one of the lowest moments in sports history was perpetrated by the members of the 2000 Spanish Paralympic basketball team. After the team snagged a gold medal, it was revealed that 10 of the 12 players had never been tested for disabilities and were, in fact, not handicapped.

Istanbul, Turkey, is the only city in the world that lies in two continents.

DAILY QUOTE Depend upon yourself.

Make your judgement trustworthy by trusting it. You can develop good judgement as you do the muscles of your body - by judicious, daily exercise. To be known as a man of sound judgement will be much in your favor.

- Grantland Rice

30. Big galoot 31. “___ to Billie Joe” 32. Discouraging words 33. Cool

fate

2 4

17. Bean counter, for

21. Norse goddess of

1 6

3

55. “___ a chance”

36. Arrange methodically 37. Chemical killer

25. Birdlike

1. Garden pesticide

27. Moisten

2. One who admonishes

28. Cowboy headgear

3. Glade

(3 wd)

4. Popular fruit drink

34. .0000001 joule

5. “... there is no ___

35. Waldenses (12th c.

angel but Love”: Shake-

42. Talk of the town?

sect)

speare

43. Supernatural

36. Harvest goddess

6. Clear, in a way

46. Pre-Roman Briton

39. Small brown Euro-

7. ___-ski

47. ___ Bowl

pean songbird (2 wd)

8. Boris Godunov, for

48. Absorbed, as a cost

41. Ribbon holder

one

49. Tolkien creatures

44. Collection of

9. Cause of AIDS

50. Hot spot

Christ’s sayings

10. Omitted a letter in

53. Warm, so to speak

45. Clip

speaking

54. “Hogwash!”

46. Pandemonium

11. Wtite music with

57. Compete

51. Strong fiber

symbols

58. Undertake, with

52. “Yadda, yadda,

12. Be that as it may

“out”

yadda”

14. Christian name

53. On the fence

15. Auspices

38. Fly ___ (pl.)

39. Clod chopper 40. Burgle 41. Larder

Sports

THEVISTA

Page 7

September 18, 2012

Volleyball

Bronchos drop two home matches

UCO Sophomore Carissa Ophus dives for a ball on Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012. Photo by Aliki Dyer, The Vista.

Chris Brannick

Sports Editor UCO head coach Edgar Miraku faced a tough weekend, with the Bronchos losing two matches, one on Friday and another on Saturday.

Fort Hays State came to town to face the Bronchos on Friday. The Tigers were 0-1 in conference play and the Bronchos 1-0.

This marked the first home game of the season for UCO and Miraku’s first chance to enter Hamilton Fieldhouse as the man in charge.

The Bronchos got off to the start they were looking for. After defeat-

ing Pittsburg State last Wednesday, UCO won the first set in their match with the Tigers 25-23. UCO led by as many as four points during the set.

The rest of the match belonged to Fort Hays State however, with the Tigers winning, 26-24, 25-17 and 25-22.

“We just try to do the best that we can and give the fans a good experience,” Miraku said. “Fort Hays was able to step up in the end.”

The Bronchos were led by Morgan Roy’s 19 kills and freshman Barbara Jackson added 12 towards the teams 53. Tate Hardaker got a hold of 30 digs, almost half of the teams

77.

Miraku said that even though his team is now 4-7, the competition in the conference is very tough and is helping the team.

“You never want to say that losing is good, but we’re learning too.”

The Mid-American Intercollegiate Athletic Association features some of the best clubs in the country. Division II rankings sees quite a bit of the teams from this conference.

One of those being NebraskaKearney, who is currently ranked number one in the country. This was the match Saturday and marked the second time in six days that a team from UCO squared off against the

top team in the land.

“The good thing about it was we played better on Saturday than we did on Friday,” Miraku said. “When chances and opportunites present themselves we have to take advantage.”

Miraku was really impressed with the passing from his Bronchos on Saturday.

“There are benefits and pluses even though we didn’t get the W,” Miraku said.

Nebraska-Kearney took the match with a three set victory 2514, 25-12 and 25-11. Ariel Krolikowski led the way for UNK with 10 kills but three other players had

at least eight.

For the Bronchos, Roy again led the way with seven kills and Hardaker had 12 digs.

UCO played the University of Arkansas-Fort Smith last night. That match took place at 6:00 p.m. and was too late for press.

Miraku said, “As always UCO is trying to do the best they can to number one, improve the quality of our team.”

UAFS has a record of 7-1, 2-0 and is on a six match winning streak.

Hockey

Bronchos open season with two victories Chris Brannick

Sports Editor UCO Hockey began their season on Friday, when they welcomed the Razorbacks from the University of Arkansas to Edmond. The two played a second match on Saturday, both games ended with the same result, a dominant performance by the Bronchos.

UCO would win the first game on Friday 9-1. The Bronchos brought in a lot of new faces in the offseason and some of those got right to work in their first collegiate game.

After senior and Edmond native Luke Ward scored the first goal of the game just 30 seconds in, those freshman stepped up and awaited their opportunity. It would not take long for Jordan Bledsoe to score his first Broncho goal. The Cojta Mesa, Calif. Freshman knocked in a shot in the third minute of his UCO career.

After the first period came to an end, the Bronchos led Arkansas 2-1.

It would be all UCO in the second and all UCO freshmen. The Bronchos burst out into the lead with

five goals. Three different freshmen scored in the period alongside team captain Matt Prigge.

Bledsoe added his second goal of the game as well.

Finally in the third period, another freshman, Ryan Duley, scored two goals to cap off the incredible debut for the Bronchos. Duley scored in the first two minutes and again in the twelfth minute to push the score to 9-1.

Arkansas’ got their only goal of the night from Martin Sundstedt in the first period when the junior netted a goal in the fourth minute.

In goal for the Bronchos was sophomore Tory Caldwell. The British Colombia native saved 25 shots in the game.

The two were back at it again Saturday night but Arkansas once again couldn’t get the game going in their direction.

UCO launched out to a 5-0 lead after returning leading scorer Donald Geary, the junior from Colorado Springs, got the scoring festivities started five minutes into the game.

The Bronchos got more goals from Cory in the fourteenth minute, Tyler Knuth just a minute later, Bledsoe got his third goal of the weekend on

UCO sophomore Nolan Grauer against Arkansas Saturday, Sept. 15, 2012. Photo by Aliki Dyer, The Vista

a power play goal and Shane Khalaf did the same to finish of the period.

Arkansas was already out of the game. The Razorbacks would get a goal unassisted from Billy Dolan in the fifth minute of the second period and another from freshman Erik

Robinson in the final minute of the period.

The Razorbacks would gain one more with two minutes to go in the game and the final score ended at 10-3.

UCO will stay home this week

when Friday, Robert Morris comes to town for a two game series. The matches will again be a Friday/Saturday series with the puck dropping at 7:30 p.m.

BronchoSports.com

Neidy leads Golfers at National Showcase DAYTONA, Fla. (Sept. 16) -- Taylor Neidy’s hole-in-one helped her gain a share of the individual lead and Central Oklahoma is tied for third after the first round of the NCAA Division II Fall Preview here Sunday.

Neidy’s first-ever ace sparked an even-par 72 round that gained her a share of the lead with two other players, while the Bronchos finished with a 307 total in the first day of the three-day, 54-hole tournament.

Barry and Lynn are tied atop the team standings at 305, with UCO and Saint Leo two shots back in a tie for third in the 12team tournament.

Neidy led the way with her 72, while Aly Seng shot 76, Katie Bensch 78, Erica Bensch 81 and Lindsey Bensch 86.

“We played pretty well and put ourselves in a good position, but there’s a long ways to go,” UCO coach Michael Bond said. “Taylor had a great round and Aly and Katie played solid as well. We need to come our tomorrow and follow it up with another good day.”

Neidy aced the 160-yard 12th hole with a 6-iron en route to her opening 72, while Seng is tied for 12th.

UCO Women’s Golfer Taylor Neidy, a junior, looks on after a shot. Photo provided

Sports

THEVISTA

Page 8

September 18, 2012

Soccer

Regular season win streak ends at 21

UCO freshman Paige Matacchiera (25) works for posession versus Missouri Southern State on Friday, Sept. 14, 2012. Photo by Aliki Dyer, The Vista

The 10th-ranked Bronchos continued their busy schedule this weekend, winning on Friday and losing on Sunday, seeing their undefeated campaign come to an end.

Whitt Carter

Staff Writer

UCO beat fellow MIAA foe Missouri Southern on Friday, 1-0, and fell for the first time in 2012 to instate rival Southwestern Oklahoma, 2-1, two days later.

The loss to Southwestern Oklahoma was the first ever loss suffered to the Bulldogs by the Bronchos in the history of the program. UCO had won all of the previous 15 meetings between the two schools, but SWOSU (6-0) handed the Bronchos their first ever loss in the series.

“It was a tough loss,” UCO head coach Mike Cook said. “I guess the only good thing was that it wasn’t a conference game.”

The first half was fairly quiet, seeing no goals. However, the Bronchos had several scoring opportunities that they squandered very early on in the contest.

SWOSU struck first, as Eva Rule scored on a short goal in the right side of the net. But UCO would respond very quickly. Alyssa Anderson on a pass from Miranda Thorne by way of a high pass tap-in, for her first goal of the year.

The game remained 1-1 until the 70th minute, when Josie Price knocked in a shot over UCO goalkeeper Meagan Burke’s head from nearly 20 feet out.

UCO outshot SWOSU 13-12, including having three good scoring opportunities in the last 15 minutes, but the Bulldogs had three more shots on goal than the Bronchos and stayed in control for the majority of the game.

“We didn’t play very well today, but you have to give Southwestern a lot of credit,” Cook said.

On Friday, the Bronchos won their first ever MIAA game by beating Missouri Southern, 1-0, in a defensive struggle.

In a game where the weather was almost as cold as the offenses, Burke was the cog in a dominant Broncho defensive performance.

Burke had seven saves, five in the second half, and kept the Lions at bay throughout the entirety of the game.

Sophomore Kate Foran scored the only goal of the contest in the 29th minute, when she took a pass from Stephanie Fleig and scored from close. The goal was Foran’s second on the season.

“We can’t just show up and not be ready to play,” Cook said. “Missouri Southern took it to us and we were lucky to come away with a win.”

MSSU outshot the Bronchos 115, including a 7-2 advantage in the second frame as the Bronchos were in front 1-0.

Moving forward, the Bronchos will host another two-game, weekend home stand this Friday and Sunday.

UCO will face off against fellow MIAA opponents Truman State and Lindenwood. Friday’s contest against Truman State will start at 4:00 p.m. and Sunday’s battle with LU will kickoff at 1:00 p.m.

The Bronchos now stand at 6-1 (1-0) on the year.

Football

Bronchos fall short in Emporia, still winless Chris Brannick

Sports Editor UCO made the short trip to Emporia, KS. saturday for a matchup with the Hornets; the Bronchos were looking for their first win as well as trying to hand Emporia State University their first loss.

The Bronchos deferred to the second half upon winning the coin toss and ESU never looked back. Senior standout Tyler Eckenrode came out firing. Eight plays, 54 yards in just 2:30 minutes and Eckenrode threw a 15yard touchdown, the Hornets were up 7-0.

Eckenrode would continue this theme throughout the first half as well as adding even more statistics from his running ability. Touchdown passes of 15 and 43 came in the first stanza and Eckenrode ran in from 12 yards out early in the second quarter. UCO was down 21-0 at this point and already had to begin playing with a sense of desperation.

Junior runningback Josh Birmingham had a couple of solid runs at the beginning of the game, and as he fielded the kickoff, following Eckenrodes touchdown run,

Birmingham hit a hole and turned on the jets. A 64-yard return set up the Bronchos for a golden opportunity to get on the board and they did just that. Adrian Nelson found Daniel Morrell in the endzone for an eight-yard touchdown pass with over 10 minutes to go in the first half.

The score would remain at 21-7 for a good portion of the quarter until Jordan Tice punched in a one-yard touchdown run. The halftime score from Emporia, KS. 28-7.

The theme in the first half for the Bronchos was missed opportunities. UCO had six drives inside the Emporia 40yard line and turned the ball over on four of those drives, two interceptions, a fumble and a turnover on downs.

That theme would continue in the second half, something UCO had not had a problem with so far this season. The Bronchos have outscored opponents in the third and fourth quarters in the first two games this year and were going to have to do that once again today.

The glaring stat from halftime lingers over the Bronchos now,as they fall to 0-3 on the season. UCO made it inside the ESU 42-yd line ten times Saturday. The results: 2 TO’s on downs, 2 INT’s,

2 fumbles, 1 blocked FG, 1 punt & 2 TD’s. Something head coach Nick Bobeck doesn’t take very well and will sure focus on correcting this week.

Adrian Nelson finished the game 22-44 passing with 231 yards and a touchdown but through a season high three interceptions. Birmingham came into the game averaging 102 yards rushing per game but finished with just 71 yards on 19 carries. Birmingham did score on touchdown and has in each of the Bronchos first three games.

Receiving for UCO saw a bright light this afternoon as Morrell became this season’s first 100-yard receiver. Morrell had six for 103 including a touchdown and a long of 38 yards.

Eckenrode finished the game 22-39 with 310 yards, threw one interception but nullified that by throwing four touchdowns. Eckenrode also rushed for 57 yards on 13 carries with one touchdown. This marks his second, five touchdown game in three contests this season.

Up next for the Bronchos is a home contest with number nine-ranked Washburn University next Saturday at 2:35 p.m.

Broncho Football 2012 August 30

Missouri Southern

L 25-20

September 8

at Pittsburgh State

L 34-19

September 15

at Emporia State

L 42-14

September 22

Washburn

2:35 p.m.

September 29

at Missouri Western State

6 p.m.

October 6

Northwest Missouri State

1 p.m.

October 13

at Central Missouri

1:30 p.m.

October 27

at Lincoln

2 p.m.

November 3

Southwest Baptist

2 p.m.

November 10

Northeastern State

1 p.m.

Opinion Chris Brannick

Sports Editor Timeout. Rome wasn’t built in a day. I want to apologize to those of you who think “The Bobeck Era” would have been built by now.

When Nick Bobeck was hired, on Jan. 4, you could tell there was a buzz around turning our football program around. Historically, one of the best football programs in the country was about to return to all of its glory.

Rebuilding a program from the ground up however, takes some time and takes more patience than a dad tying to teach his son the infield fly rule, or a guy trying to teach his girlfriend the idea behind four downs is all you get. A turn in the right direction is hiring a new coach. What gets tricky is all of the players that have been here for a few years with a different guy and a

completely different system.

The seniors this season have only won eight games in three years, the juniors, four. There will have to be a period of time where you have to just relax and know that each and every practice can be a learning tool and each and every game, a toolbox.

If you are a football fan and understand that running the ball right up the middle of a pile consisting of an overpowering All-American nose guard and a vicious over-aggressive linebacker actually plays into your strategy of wearing down the opponent, then you have to understand that there is a methodical way Bobeck is rebuilding this program.

You also have to understand that rebuilding a program is exactly that, rebuilding “A program,” not bringing in a new offense or changing the scheme on defense. Not, implementing a new trick play or an offbeat formation to throw off the defense.

Rebuilding a program is taking every part, every piece of anything associated with UCO Football and either sending it down the road or changing it to what we know today as UCO Football.

One of the hardest obstacles to overcome for a new coach, who wants to change a football program, is the typical and average American’s view of, “What have you done for me lately.” Bobeck had approximately 30-45 minutes, two quarters, to prove to the students at UCO that he was going to win and going to win now.

So if on that day, we get it all together in the second half and make a game out of it, there weren’t any students left at Wantland to see it happen.

I understand the desire as a sports fan for results and the need for them each and every Saturday. I am a fan too. I can use a great baseball reference here for two points. I expect

the Yankees to win the World Series every season and you are an idiot if you think Bobby Valentine deserves to be fired from Boston after one season. Turner Gil was fired from Kansas after a mere two seasons, he just got all of his pictures hung up in the office!

Understand this Bronchos, fans or not, Bobeck is a winner and wheth-

er our three losses now are the only three losses all season or whether we actually don’t top last seasons mark of 2-9, Bobeck will not fail at doing what he has set out to do. So I leave you with the words of the man with the whistle. This from a practice right before the season started, “…Get on my boat.”