AKC Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 Between high-level cheating* and the boorish and criminal actions of overprivileged professional athletes in the news these days, the Fresno State story is a welcome distraction. The campus and surrounding area in Fresno make most Hellholes seem downright homey. This story of the underdog is worth a read by every sports fan- Fresno State NCAA Champs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 Between high-level cheating* and the boorish and criminal actions of overprivileged professional athletes in the news these days, the Fresno State story is a welcome distraction. The campus and surrounding area in Fresno make most Hellholes seem downright homey. This story of the underdog is worth a read by every sports fan- Fresno State NCAA Champs Agreed. I dont know if you saw any of it, but this year's CWS was definitely a thing to watch. There were a ton of great games, and Fresno's pitcher tossed an absolute gem last night. I hated that my 'noles bowed out in 2 games, but it was good seeing a true underdog win. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eball Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 Great CWS, and I'm happy for Fresno. Of course, that also means my Heels have now lost to the national champs in each of the last three CWS...perhaps comparisons to the 90s Bills are accurate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John from Riverside Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 Ahhhh my old stomping grounds when I was a youth.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stinky finger Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 Great CWS, and I'm happy for Fresno. Of course, that also means my Heels have now lost to the national champs in each of the last three CWS...perhaps comparisons to the 90s Bills are accurate. And you think the gentleman in your avatar is snakebit........... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astrobot Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 My son's Boise State is in Fresno State's conference. He was whoopin' and hollerin' for Fresno. The MAC is a conference with a growing rep.-- First the shocking Boise State win over Oklahoma and now Fresno over Georgia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKC Posted June 26, 2008 Author Share Posted June 26, 2008 Agreed. I dont know if you saw any of it, but this year's CWS was definitely a thing to watch. There were a ton of great games, and Fresno's pitcher tossed an absolute gem last night. I hated that my 'noles bowed out in 2 games, but it was good seeing a true underdog win. I missed it outside of the print media- but as a visitor to Fresno not long ago, I was stunned by how awful the downtown area was- most of California is healthy economically but Fresno looked like real bad news. I don't know how they could ever recruit a kid to play there from anywhere, even Gary Indiana, if the kid toured the campus and town. Seeing a school with those type of handicaps versus the competition win out is something very special, and something worth keeping others from overlooking. Ahhhh my old stomping grounds when I was a youth.......... I don't know how long it's been for you- it's so run down now I can't imagine it was a lot better a decade ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UB2SF Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 This awesome story has a great local angle for me, because the offensive star for Fresno State (OF Steve Detwiler, 4-4 with all 6 RBIs in the final game) went to high school in my neighborhood (San Rafael High School in San Rafael CA). People are pretty fired up around here. Just realized I shouldn't use that figure of speech given all the wildfires burning in Northern California right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zow2 Posted June 26, 2008 Share Posted June 26, 2008 My son's Boise State is in Fresno State's conference. He was whoopin' and hollerin' for Fresno. The MAC is a conference with a growing rep.-- First the shocking Boise State win over Oklahoma and now Fresno over Georgia. I think you meant the WAC. I also follow the MAC with UB in it though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catholic Guilt Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 My wife had a job interview in Fresno, right after we were married. I was amazed at the dirt and grime throughout the city. Ironically, one of the most amazing places on earth is only a 45-minute drive away. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 Between high-level cheating* and the boorish and criminal actions of overprivileged professional athletes in the news these days, the Fresno State story is a welcome distraction. The campus and surrounding area in Fresno make most Hellholes seem downright homey. This story of the underdog is worth a read by every sports fan- Fresno State NCAA Champs Spent several years in the Visalia area south of Fresno and worked in the city for a couple. It is not a pretty place by any stretch of the imagination. The amount of support their teams receive is really something, in a small way maybe akin to Green Bay in the NFL. Alums are huge supporters, but so are folks who never attended the school. I rooted hard for them and was very happy to see them win the title. I hope that this win is a sign of good things to come for the school. They have made several mistakes that set their programs back (hiring Tark, 3 multi-million dollar settlements against the school in the past 18 or so months), hopefully all of that is behind them. Regarding the football program--I have a ton of respect for Pat Hill and wouldn't be surprised to see him return to the NFL at some point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKC Posted June 27, 2008 Author Share Posted June 27, 2008 Spent several years in the Visalia area south of Fresno and worked in the city for a couple. It is not a pretty place by any stretch of the imagination. The amount of support their teams receive is really something, in a small way maybe akin to Green Bay in the NFL. Alums are huge supporters, but so are folks who never attended the school. I rooted hard for them and was very happy to see them win the title. I hope that this win is a sign of good things to come for the school. They have made several mistakes that set their programs back (hiring Tark, 3 multi-million dollar settlements against the school in the past 18 or so months), hopefully all of that is behind them. Regarding the football program--I have a ton of respect for Pat Hill and wouldn't be surprised to see him return to the NFL at some point. I love the Sierras near there- we've been going to a small State Park for the last 20 years called Mountain Home State Park- the campsite we like is called Hidden Falls. I've run into a lot of "Visalians" in there over the years- you ever spend time in that area between Three Rivers and Springville? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beerball Posted June 27, 2008 Share Posted June 27, 2008 I love the Sierras near there- we've been going to a small State Park for the last 20 years called Mountain Home State Park- the campsite we like is called Hidden Falls. I've run into a lot of "Visalians" in there over the years- you ever spend time in that area between Three Rivers and Springville? No, in my younger days I spent quite a bit of time camping, but usually further north. Lots of day trips to Three Rivers and further east though. It's been too many years, but I have a vague recollection of a restaurant we would always stop at in Three Rivers. Beautiful country once you escaped the valley. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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