Wednesday, June 15, 2016 www.usustatesman.com (435)-797-1742 Free single copy
NEWS | Going FM
Aggie Radio installs equipment in preparation for transition to FM broadcasting.
STUDENT LIFE | Dream Big
SPORTS | That Makes Seven
“To quote the great Amy Poehler, ‘There’s power in looking silly and not caring that you do.’”
Aggies bolster 2016 recruiting class with another signee.
see PAGE 2
see PAGE 3
Bicycle Brent:
see PAGE 4
Community rallies around local hero for annual charity event
Picking up steam JuCo speedster Bernard Brown aims to make USU Football Roster
By Logan Jones SPORTS MANAGER
In 2008, a senior from East Carolina Univer-
sity blazed a record-setting 4.24-second finish in the 40-yard dash at the NFL combine. It was
one of those perplexing things in sports that,
while certainly notable, seemed nothing more than some nice numbers on a sheet of paper at
the time. The kid’s speed turned enough heads to get him drafted 24th overall, but then the
young running back did something every front office dreams of - he delivered.
Chris Johnson justified his first-round draft
PHOTO COURTESY OF Samuel Brown Brent Carpnter rides his bicycle during the annual “Bike for Brent” event.
1980s, said his sister Tami Wilson. It was at
By Melanie Fenstermaker NEWS MANAGER
everyone at Utah State University immediately recognizes Brent Carpenter.
Brent has gained a reputation for riding his
stuffed animal-decorated bike around campus, honking his horn, waving to everyone and
handing out copies of the paper. Brent is so
well known in Logan that he’s been nicknamed “Bicycle Brent.”
But his impact on the community reaches
far beyond waves and smiles. Brent, who is 67 years old and has cerebral palsy, has been
highly involved in the community for years. Brent first moved to Logan in the early
son, then became one of six players to ever
break the 2,000-yard rushing barrier and earned the NFL’s offensive player of the year
that point that he found the Cache Employ-
Junction for just over 30 years, but he’s never
strives to help people with disabilities become
one day per week on campus, handing out
diate success sparked draft board alterations
passes.
other attributes. Football is about more than
ment and Training center, an organization that
Even if they don’t know his name, most
Brent retired in 2009, after working at the
status by earning a pro-bowl bid his rookie sea-
more independent through life and professional skills trainings.
The center helped him get a job at the
stopped visiting campus. He spends at least
newspapers and saying hello to everyone he Since he’s retired, Brent has been the face
Junction at Utah State University, where he
of “Bike with Brent,” an event that brings
positive attitude and desire to love and serve
together for a ride. The event is a fundraiser
quickly gained friends and admirers for his everyone.
During the 2002 Olympics, the community
nominated Brent to carry the Olympic torch. He ran through the stadium in front of
thousands of spectators who were all chanting his name and honking bicycle horns.
“His parents were crying, they were so
hundreds of Utahns of all ages and abilities for the Cache Employment and Training
Center, the organization that helped Brent find his job at the university.
The most recent Bike with Brent event was
on June 10 at Willow Park, and more than
750 people showed up to support him and
see “Brent” PAGE 3
proud of him,” Wilson said.
award in just his second year in the league.
The ripple effect caused by Johnson’s imme-
by scouts who suddenly valued speed above all just an impressive 40-yard dash, but how fast
does an athlete have to be before they just can’t be ignored?
Bernard Brown aims to find out.
Brown, a sophomore wideout at Shasta Col-
lege in Redding, California, has spent his summer trying to get noticed — and he’s making a
strong case. Brown runs a 4.38-second 40-yard
dash and jumps a 35-inch vertical, but the knock on him from coaches seems to be his size. While shorter wide receivers tend to be
the exception rather than the rule, Brown sim-
ply won’t let his 5-foot-9-inch, 160-pound frame stop him.
Taking root
is facing another problem as many weeds also begin to grow.
“The reason we have weeds now is because
the grass is so thin … the Kentucky Bluegrass will actually kill most weeds by taking all the
nutrients and water that is in the soil anything that is left we can kill,” Richards said.
Once the weeds are taken care of, facilities
plans to continue its usual turf care routine, but is looking into possibly adding a new twist.
Richards said facilities has been working PHOTO BY Johnny Morris The grass on Old Main Hill is recovering after a mistake killed the grass over the winter.
By Shanie Howard SENIOR WRITER
Despite mistakenly killing the grass on Old
Main Hill in October, Utah State University’s
facilities department has managed to make the
hill green once more.
Shane Richards, Landscape Operations and
Maintenance manager, said the grass is 60
percent grown in and by the end of the month
should be 100 percent grown. He said the
speedy recovery of the foliage on Old Main
Hill is possible due to a combination of aera-
tion and germination.
“Germination is getting the seeds to crack
open and the roots to come up … for Kentucky
Bluegrass (it takes) about 21 days for that
germination to begin,” Richards said.
According to the National Gardening Asso-
ciation, aeration is the process of punching
holes in the lawn to enable roots to breathe and receive more water and nutrients.
Though Richards says the process of aera-
dining services for almost a year to create a compost for many of the campus trees and
flowerbeds, but Richards would like to expand that to include fertilization for the lawns as
would do, getting the grass to grow back as have been possible without the help of the
and introduce new plants to the campus.
“The professors at USU are very skilled, so
we love to collaborate with them,” Richards said.
go get it yourself.”
With a handful of schools already on his ra-
dar, Brown has his sights set on Utah State and the Mountain West.
Denied by numerous coaches on account of
his height and led on by others who often tell recruits “just what they want to hear,” Brown’s genuine determination is unyielding. His child-
hood reads like something from a movie script,
an inspiring story about a scrappy underdog who follows his passion against all odds. But
see “Brown” PAGE 4
break down the compost into a finer soil, so
ities’ plan to become more eco-friendly as it
professors at USU.
can’t put your dreams in another man’s hands,
“I would like to get a machine that could
we can use it for the lawns,” Richards said.
quickly as it did while saving money wouldn’t
self-recruit, because I was always told that you
well.
tion and germination to regrow the grass is
one any knowledgeable agricultural company
“Basically, I’ve been self-recruiting since I
was in high school,” Brown said. “I always
Fertilizer is just the beginning of USU Facil-
continues to develop more ways to save water “We love the outdoors and want to protect
it,” Richard says. “That’s why we do the job we do.”
—shaniehoward214@gmail.com
With a combined effort of USU Facilities and
professors, the cost of repairing the damage was $1200.
While the grass continues to grow, facilities
PHOTO COURTESY OF Bernard Brown Brendard Borwn leaps for a catch while playing for Shasta
College in Redding, California.