KBOI loses contract, angers Bronco Nation

Reaction from Boise State fans over the loss of Bronco sports broadcasting by KBOI has been remarkable. Many are not ready to see Paul J. Schneider go; he has been the voice of the Broncos for 35 years.

"It's obviously been a great part of my life," Schneider said. "Obviously I'm closely identified with Boise State. I feel bizarre right now. I kind of thought it was coming, but it's kind of like when you have someone who's not doing good and not expected to live long and when they die, you go, 'Whoa!' And that's kind of where I am.

"I thought I'd do it until I turned into Harry Caray and I couldn't see anymore."

The games will switch from 670 KBOI to 580 KIDO beginning in the fall. Peak Broadcasting, which won the rights over Citadel, does not have as strong of a signal as KBOI did, but Peak won the contract in part due to its reach into markets statewide.

“We have a network that we’ve put in place that we’re going to be working on now that we’re Boise State’s choice for the broadcasts,” Peak General Manager Kevin Godwin said. “We have some great relationships inside and outside the state of Idaho that have shown a lot of interest in airing the football product.”

Many fans want Paul J. to remain the voice of the Broncos, and while Godwin did not rule out the possibility, the odds of Paul J. returning seem slim. Who might replace the BSU legend? Statue Left has posted a poll of possibilities, and we'll weigh in with our choices later today. As for now, we're going to go listen to the radio call of the Fiesta Bowl and take ourselves back to a simpler time.

Peak gets BSU radio rights [Idaho Radio News]
The voice of the Broncos is saddened... [Idaho Statesman]
Paul J. Schneider interview [KTVB.com]

Paul J. out as Bronco radio voice

KBOI will no longer be airing Boise State football, meaning Paul J. Schneider's reign as the voice of Boise State football is over.

Peak Broadcasting has been awarded the radio rights to broadcast Boise State football and men's basketball games for the next two academic years, the school announced Thursday.

Games will air on KIDO (580 AM).

The decision marks the end of an era. KBOI had held the contract for 35 years, with Paul J. Schneider serving as the Voice of the Broncos.

Kudos to Statue Left for bringing this to our attention. We'll have much more on this story tomorrow.

KBOI loses Boise State radio contract [Idaho Statesman]
Paul J. and ... Jeff Caves are out [Statue Left]

An open letter to the Blue Turf Towel guy

Dear Blue Turf guy,

We are sorry to hear about your recent legal troubles involving copyright infringement, idea mongering, and trademark pillaging. The lawsuit from Boise State in regards to your assault on their intellectual, turf-y property is bad news for you, but it is also hard on all of us trying to ride the coattails of Boise State's success. You have made the knock-off, Boise State curio market that much harder for the rest of us.

When Boise State University cracked down on your operation, they did so in such a swift, decisive way that we are scared to even speak the name Lyle Smith Field without first receiving written authorization from a BSU employee. Take a look at the language used in their lawsuit:

The lawsuit said the school "enjoys substantial trademark and trade dress rights arising from its long and continuous usage of words, color and imagery of blue turf to identify and promote the goods and services at and through Boise State University." (Blue Turf's) unlicensed usage "constitutes unfair and unlawful exploitation of Boise State University's reputation and goodwill," the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit said Blue Turf Towels owner David James Armstrong, after "notice and objections" from the university, continued to sell the towels that had "same or confusingly similar blue color and imagery as Boise State university's blue turf."

Our bedroom has "same or confusingly similar blue color and imagery as Boise State University's blue turf." Uh-oh.

We mourn the loss of your self-proclaimed "World Famous" souvenir, and although we never purchased one, we feel that the $6.95 price tag speaks more to the satiated demand market rather than making any statement about quality or durability. That said, we still don't like you.

Your gross mishandling of your product has wasted the faith and goodwill of Boise State. Not only is your future in Blue Turf washcloths, Blue Turf dishrags, and Blue Turf kerchiefs gone forever, you have seriously hurt the chances for the rest of us to ply our trade in parasitical business practices. We had some good products in mind, too.

• New Testament Marty Tadman Translation (excerpt: "Thou shalt not misread double coverage lest thou shallt be intercepted thusly")
• Blue and orange shampoo and conditioner
• Edible Fiesta Bowl trophies
• Ryan Clady Superman pjs (with footies and without)
• Stained-glass Buster Bronco ikons
• Paul J. Schneider pronunciation guide

Now you have essentially ruined any chance of these products coming to fruition. You and your blue towels have seriously hampered business for BSU third-party merch, and to what end? Graphic-intensive, non-washable fabric swatches? Market share on blue towels? Entrepreneurism? All you had to do was ask permission from BSU, and this whole thing might have never happened.

Now Coach Pete's Bathroom Reader Vol. 2 will never see the light of day, and that will be on your conscience.

Sincerely,
OBNUG

OBNUG Roster Update: Cornerbacks

Spring football gets OBNUG in the mood to speculate, so over the next few weeks, we will be making blind guesses as to who will be starting for the Broncos in the fall. We’ll do it position-by-position. Today: Cornerbacks.

Cornerbacks

Ideal candidate: a young Deion Sanders


Worst candidate: Jabba the Hutt


Actual candidates: Kyle Wilson, Garcia Day, Brandyn Thompson, Keith McGowen, Antwon Murray

OBNUG's pick: Wilson, Thompson. Obviously, Kyle Wilson is a shoe-in for one corner position, and we feel that Thompson will make good on the promise he showed last year and earn the other spot. We were expecting big things from Garcia Day this season, and we could still see him make an impact as a nickel back.

Konichiwa, Bronco Nation

Members from the football team at Hosei University in Japan are spending time at Boise State practices over the next two weeks. Might a future in the WAC be far off?

Hosei, which began an international academic partnership with Boise State in 2006, has appeared in 13 of the past 16 college football championship games in Japan. Hosei won back-to-back college titles in 2005 and 2006.

That is a better resumé than Utah State, New Mexico State, and Idaho put together.

The Hosei coaches have already been impressed by the way the Broncos practice, and they hope to take back some tips to keep their team at the top of Japanese football.

"The Broncos are very, very popular in Japan," Yaekura said. "A lot of people watched that Fiesta Bowl victory."

This just in: Bob Stoops hates Japan.

What's the Japanese translation for 'Statue Left'? [Idaho Statesman]

OBNUG and friends on Bronco Nation podcast

We had the privilege of taking part in another podcast at BroncoNation.net, discussing the current state of the Boise State football program. Our conclusion? The Broncos rule, the WAC drools, and if Kyle Wilson goes pro after his junior year, we cannot be held responsible for our actions.

Drew from Fight, Fight, BSU and Matt from Statue Left were also part of the epic four-way conversation. To listen, click here.

The State of Boise State podcast [Bronco Nation]

WAC spring football...catch the fever (or don't)

With nearly every WAC team in action, we thought it would be fun to take a look around to see what our conference rivals are up to. Enjoy.


Hawaii
The Warriors begin their WAC championship defense the only way they know how: getting up at the crack of dawn.

Most practices run from 7-9 a.m. and are open to the public.

Getting up early? Hah! Nothing a 64 oz. Coke can't fix!

Warriors Open Spring Practice [Hawaii athletics]


Utah State
The Aggies are halfway through their spring practices, and head coach Brent Guy is predictably optimistic.

"The main thing was that it was much more physical than in years past because of our numbers; we have a lot more guys to get in there and we were able to get quite a few live snaps in," said Guy.

Utah State Football 2008: Quantity Over Quality.

Guy pleased with...practice [Utah State athletics]


New Mexico State
NMSU will become the final WAC team to open spring practice, when they kick things off later today. The last shall be first? We doubt it.

Aggie football gears up for first spring practice [NMSU athletics]


Idaho
In addition to oily team-building, the Vandals have lots of work to on the football field during spring practice.

"That’s the one thing we really need to work on," Enderle said, "finishing our drives and getting in the end zone.”

"Also, pretty much every other aspect of football," he continued.

Akey likes what he sees [Idaho athletics]


Fresno State
When Kansas State pulled out of the Bulldogs' 2008 schedule, Fresno replaced the Wildcats with Big East power Rutgers. The Fresno-Rutgers season opener will take place on Labor Day, and the Scarlet Knights will return in 2012 to take on the Bulldogs in Fresno.

Gene Bleymaier is hard at work replacing Idaho State with ITT Tech.

Football schedule gets a facelift [Fresno State athletics]


LaTech
Something is going on at Louisiana Tech's spring practice, but we're not sure what exactly that is.

Following Saturday's first scrimmage of spring workouts, the Bulldogs focus was on improving and building a brand of Louisiana Tech football Monday. Head coach Derek Dooley told his players when each of them earns respect from the opponent the team will have an identity as a strong football program.

What?

Bulldogs build brand of football [LaTech athletics]