Columnist Ron Kantowski: Rebels’ Thomas gets high grade from guru
Tuesday, July 24, 2001 | 10:55 a.m.
Ron Kantowski's notes column appears Tuesday. Reach him at ron@lasvegassun.com or 259-4088.
In that I've never studied yoga, practiced transcendental meditation or pored over the NFL draft selections, I've never had much use for gurus. But in that Mel Kiper has a steady gig on ESPN and he has been talking up one of Las Vegas' own, I'm willing to make an exception.
In his rankings that were released last week, Kiper lists UNLV junior quarterback Jason Thomas as the fourth-best player in college football. That's college football. The whole enchilada. As in Nebraska, Michigan, Notre Dame, Free Shoes U, etc.
Texas wide receiver Roy Williams, Tennessee defensive tackle John Henderson and Virgina Tech runningback Lee Suggs are the only players rated higher than Thomas on Kiper's list.
Says the draft analyst of UNLV's junior triggerman: "A left-handed version of (Minnesota Vikings QB) Daunte Culpepper -- size, arm strength and mobility. The best QB in college football."
Well, Kiper's no Beano Cook. But then, who is?
In a column last Thursday, I suggested there would be a Zamboni in the devil's driveway before a billboard went up to promote the Lady Rebels. Well, get ready to drop the puck. According to a UNLV spokesman, a billboard touting Lady Rebel basketball and UNLV women's volleyball tickets will go up later this week.
A member of the UNLV sports marketing staff said it is doing its job, in that it has sold 47 of these combination season tickets for women's basketball and volleyball.
Maybe that's because last year it sold a grand total of 32 season tickets for the Lady Rebels and the empty set -- zero -- for volleyball.
Lisa Kelleher also called to say that although her title is Associate Athletic Director/Senior Woman Administrator, she is not (or never was) responsible for directly overseeing the Lady Rebels. She does, however, work closely with the UNLV women's sports foundation, a booster group for all UNLV women's sports.
Kelleher is responsible for 13 of the school's 16 varsity sports. Her fellow associate A.D., Jerry Koloskie, oversees football and men's and women's basketball.
No wonder the Rebels are facing a $750,000 athletic department deficit. If Cavagnaro knew how to balance a checkbook, he would be the first sportswriter since Bat Masterson to accomplish the feat.
The NASCAR race on a flat track in New Hampshire featured only one on-track pass for the lead. The CART race for Indy-style cars on a high-banked track in Michigan produced an incredible 167 on-track passes for the lead (61 official "at the line" ones).
Moreover, the CART guys were running at speeds approaching 220 mph. The NASCAR guys would have had trouble keeping up with David Letterman on his way home from work.
Yet 100,000 spectators were on hand at New Hampshire and only 40,000 at Michigan.
Conclusion: NASCAR knows how to market its product. CART (which, if you can believe this, won't be returning to race at Michigan) does not.
archive
- Most Read
- Discussed
- Most E-mailed
- Freddie Roach talks tough; Manny Pacquiao backs it up
- Live Main Event blog: Cada and Moon set to square off heads-up
- Commercial development in Las Vegas grinding to a halt, analyst says
- Ensign moves out of home on C Street
- County considers suing over travel Web site room taxes
- Cada and Moon emerge as Main Event’s final two
- Life in the Limelight: Wayne Newton
- Cities, county find buying valley homes isn’t easy
- Temperature to hit 80 today in Las Vegas
- UNLV wins hoops scrimmage at Long Beach State
Blogs
The Kats Report
Buchanan was one of the city's truly flamboyant characters
Sports: Upon Further Review
Fight snapshot: Reviewing "24/7 Pacquiao/Cotto," episode 3
The Kats Report
Life in the Limelight: Wayne Newton (4 Comments)
Politics: Ralston's Flash
An entire campaign in one mail piece for Harry Reid (5 Comments)
Miech Again
On the road to Long Beach, UNLV hoops style (13 Comments)
The Kats Report
Vocal strain prompts Wayne Brady to call off 'Making It Up' until 2010 (1 Comment)
The Greene Room
New Mexico soccer player goes MMA on BYU (16 Comments)
Calendar »
- 8 Sun
- 9 Mon
- 10 Tue
- 11 Wed
- 12 Thu
-
76 Trombones + 4 concert at Artemus Ham Hall
Artemus Ham Hall at UNLV | 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
-
The Smothers Brothers at The Orleans Showroom
The Orleans Showroom
-
Abbacadabra at The Las Vegas Hilton
Las Vegas Hilton
-
Roy Clark at The South Point Showroom
South Point Showroom
-
Zowie Bowie's Vintage Vegas Show at Monte Carlo
Lance Burton Theater
The Sun
Locally owned and independent for more than 50 years.
Technorati








