bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 0:10

the Track of the Cats episode this week is brought to you by Stanberry Insurance, as they always are. They cover all your insurance needs. They have offices in Silva, Waynesville, Clyde, and Highlands, and we really appreciate their sponsorship moving forward. as usual we're gonna start out talking a little bit about the spring sports and how things are going. And the best thing to talk about right now is baseball,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 0:37

That's right. Cats, they're in the, as they say, sitting in the Catamount bird seat right now after taking over first place last weekend by winning two out of three down at Wofford, beating the Wofford Terriers, who was the previous leader in the conference. We're now 12 and six in the conference, percentage points ahead of Wofford, Mercer, Samford, and East Tennessee State. into the last two weeks of the season, everybody right now has six losses, the top five teams with six losses. the-- what's good for us, we only have three games left with which has been the cellar dweller for most of the season, whereas Wofford, Mercer, Samford, and East Tennessee are going to be playing each other. There's gonna be a lot of series between those four teams. There's gonna be a couple of teams probably eliminated pretty quick here. But again, we got Wake Forest this weekend, then we'll end regular season play in Cullowhee March the 14th, 15th, and 16th with UNC Greensboro. And again, a team that was picked to win the Southern Conference back in, February. And Wofford which was been in, has been in first place for most of the season, was picked dead last. Now, does that tell you something about what people know about Southern Conference baseball in January and February? Not much.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 1:58

Yeah. These preseason polls, particularly in the spring sports don't carry much credence and probably shouldn't.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 2:07

Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 2:07

But yeah I'm excited. We play this afternoon. This is Tuesday, May 5th, and we're playing UNC Asheville this afternoon in Cullowhee at 5:30. Just I'm very excited about where these guys are. W- there's-- I think it's statistically not possible for us to not get a double bye in that first round of the tournament. Is that right, Steve?

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 2:31

very strange situation, but it would be something off the wall if we didn't. And it's very important. That, that first or second place team, if you're first or second, you get that first round bye. You don't have to play the first day. You let some of the other guys use some of their pitching up, and you don't have

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 2:46

Fantastic.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 2:47

You can face them in the second round with some pitching depth, which is very important to us right now because our, our starting pitching's been a little shaky at times. It's really coming along. Our bullpen has been super, but we hope we can get some starting performances now. We haven't won a SoCon title since 2014, regular season since'14, and the last time we won a conference tournament championship and went to the NCAA was back in 2016 when we went down to Regional and so forth. But Bob

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 3:20

Yep.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 3:21

the, our latest NCAA RPI has the Catamounts at 48th. That's our highest ranking in a very long time. Now, people say you got to remember, there's about 300 teams, and we're 48th." we're ranked eighth in the latest mid-major poll, and the Southern Conference is ranking sixth among all the Division I conferences now in the RPI. So we've beaten,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 3:45

So you-- that's saying we may have a shot, even if we come in, say, second in the tournament, we might get an at-large bid this year.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 3:55

If you gotta, I think you, I really think you gotta be in the top 40 RPI, but playing Wake Forest this weekend, if we could go down there and win a game, that would help because we've gotten we've beaten three top 50 teams, Georgia, East Carolina, and Mercer, is in that top 50 as far as

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 4:12

Absolutely.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 4:13

concerned. So we, we got a chance. Wake Forest is 21st in the RPI nationwide, so that would, that's not gonna hurt us even if we lose all three. It really is not gonna hurt our RPI. it's gonna be

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 4:26

Yep.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 4:26

time down at Greenville's Fluor Field May the 20th through the 23rd for the Southern Conference Tournament. I think the tournament field is the best, the most even most competitive it's been in many years. So I'm really looking

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 4:39

And I hope to be able to get up there to Greenville from Atlanta for at least one of those games. Let's switch gears and talk a little bit about softball because that tournament cranks up on Wednesday of this week, and we got a single bye, not the double bye, being a third seed there.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 4:55

slipped from second to third this past weekend down at Wofford, losing some games which upsets as far as Wofford is concerned. And Jim K- Cliff's team is right now number three seed, and we'll be playing the winner of the East Tennessee-Mercer first round game. That'll be Wednesday at 7:30, is the first time we'll step on the field over at Frost Field in Chattanooga. Really nice softball complex over in Chattanooga. Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 5:23

That, that's great, and I wish I could get up there for that, but not gonna happen this week.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 5:27

year, Bob.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 5:28

But...

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 5:28

and 22 overall.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 5:30

Know.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 5:31

in a long time. Finished third in the regular season, and Greensboro's the number one seed. They beat us here in Cullowhee, and Samford is number two, but we beat them two out of three at... Anything can

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 5:43

And to get swept by Wofford this weekend, but they were, two of the three were close games. One went into extra innings. The first one went into extra innings on Saturday on Friday rather. Track and field championships next also Monday and Tuesday in Cullowhee, right?

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 5:58

After graduation this weekend, Monday and Tuesday, we'll be hosting at the Catamount Sports Complex or Athletic Complex. Coach Jesse Norman's team is looking unseat favored Samford in both the

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 6:12

Stanford.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 6:13

Our women finished second to them in the indoor season. Our men were third to Samford in the indoor season up at VMI. I tell you he Jesse, he's pretty excited, pretty confident about this team, especially, running on your own home course.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 6:29

So we can plug our last podcast where we actually talked to Coach Norman, and if you wanna hear that, he was very high on our folks because we're strong in relays, in sprints. We even have a couple of distance runners on the guys' side that can br- rack up some points next week. So I think... And the field events are where both men and women are doing very well.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 6:51

Very strong.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 6:53

Last thing we had finished out the golf season last week with two strong players, both tied for fifth place in the conference overall. And tell us about Tyler Jones, Steve.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:05

Jace Butcher and Tyler Jones both made the All-Conference team there and like I say, tied for fifth in the championships. Jones, Tyler Jones won three tournaments this year. That hasn't been done at Western Carolina, three regular season tournaments, in a very long time, and I think I remember who that was, maybe a guy named JT Poston.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 7:25

JT posted.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:27

today, Tyler Jones was named the Southern Conference Player of the Year, the Golfer of the Year.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 7:33

Oh,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:34

been a

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 7:34

congrats to him. That's great.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:36

JT Poston, who we know is playing on the PGA Tour now. thing.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 7:41

oh, go ahead. Yes, sir.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:43

the first poll came out yesterday, the FCS

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 7:46

That's right.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 7:47

and that was like actually two days ago, and Coach Kerwin Bell's Catamounts are ranked 23 nationally in that preseason poll. Unfortunately, a little bit behind Tennessee Tech, which is picked 17th. So these are our two Southern Conference team preseason picks in the top 25 in that. And, something else we'll maybe get you a free Coke somewhere down the road in Sylva or something like that. It's fun to look, it's fun to think about, and it gets you excited.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 8:16

and didn't Tech-- Did they play Chattanooga last year? I'm trying to remember. They played...

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 8:22

with him. Yes. Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 8:24

Yeah. Yeah. And gave Chattanooga an unexpected loss. I think they were favored for that game.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 8:29

they...

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 8:30

But then they-- Tech went on to have a great season, so they're gonna be a great competitor. Good to have a new face in the Southern Conference, and geographically not too difficult either.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 8:40

right. That's we, now we played them, consistently during the late'60s into the'70s, up till about 1980,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 8:47

oh, yeah. You and I both remember that.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 8:49

Got in the conference. Yeah. Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 8:51

All right. Now let's talk to James Hogan. He is our Assistant Vice Chancellor for Development. He has a role where he's looking at fundraising. He's looking at building a campus building the culture in the campus. And that's one thing that James and I have had private conversations about is the culture in Cullowhee. So we're glad to bring you on, James. Thanks for being with us today.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:18

Oh, thanks to you two for having me. It's good to be back with you, and appreciate all you guys

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 9:22

James a Western alum, and

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:29

right.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 9:29

Yes. And y- you also host your own podcast, by the way, of Western Wednesdays with

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:34

stacy

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 9:35

Miller.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:35

Sam Wallace helps bring it to you, Western Wednesdays. Got an episode coming out tomorrow, as a matter of fact. Do you want me to, do you want me

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 9:44

Great.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:44

the beans on that one?

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 9:45

Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 9:46

Sure.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 9:46

say it's a student athlete alum as well, Miranda Stamper. Miranda is the-- She's class of 2006 at Western. Played women's basketball with WCU, ran track and field as well, and is the head basketball coach at Cherokee High School. And this spring, she won her third straight North Carolina High School women's basketball championship with Cherokee High School. So third state championship in a row. Outstanding program. You could say it was it is a dominant program. They-- I think the final score for that last game was, like,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 10:25

It

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 10:26

to 15. That's the

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 10:28

Oh, geez. On the championship.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 10:31

that's the state championship, and they won 76 to 15, and they were still diving for loose balls at the end of the game.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 10:38

Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 10:39

Wow.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 10:40

all the way from whistle to whistle, and, it was an just an incredible game. So we w- Stacy and I had Miranda here in the studio at, in Cullowhee And talk to her about her team's culture and her experiences as a student and and how she, she's put together this incredibly special program over over at Cherokee. So I... It'll be a lot of fun. She was so fun to talk to just because she is such a wonderfully earnest and just great person. You can really see the kind of coach that she is.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 11:13

Yeah, Bob, I don't

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 11:14

Looking forward to seeing the episode.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 11:15

not, Bob, but their margin of victory was something like 50 plus points a game this season.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 11:21

Yeah.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 11:21

some wins

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 11:22

That's great.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 11:23

points this year.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 11:25

Gee,

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 11:25

Yeah

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 11:25

that's amazing.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 11:26

did manage to lose one game this season, and I joked that it was because they played South Carolina that was why.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 11:33

Yeah. Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 11:33

But that was it. So they're just an incredible program and s- special team that she's put together.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 11:41

That's amazing. Great. We want you to talk to us a little bit about the One Day for Western.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 11:47

Oh, it was a great effort. So for folks who aren't aware, back in March we put on One Day for Western. It's WCU's campus-wide day of giving and a great opportunity for us to talk about a lot of different good opportunities to help WCU students and our athletics program. We raised over$1.1 million in commitments, and and Ben Pendry, our vice chancellor notes that sometimes he gets asked if I were to write a check, would it bounce? How much money did you really raise?" 1.1 million in ca- in cash and commitments, but over a million dollars in cash which

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 12:23

Wow.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 12:23

great because that's money that can go right into the budget, right into helping out where we need it most. We had a huge part of that supported WCU Athletics both from the Catamount Club general fund to sport-specific funds. One of the things that was so fun about One Day for Western we opened up... We went up to the University Center Grand Room, and we set up 40 telephones. Our IT department figured out how to do that, we had volunteers all day long come in, grab a call sheet and join us in what I refer to as smiling and dialing. But Coach Bell was up there. Coach Glover brought, I think the entire volleyball team came up and made phone calls. And it was so cool to have all of those student athletes and coaches come up. Kyle Peiffer was up there. Todd Sheeley was up there. We had so many people. And what was so funny was that for the first time I think that we've ever done One Day for Western, people were calling us back. The phone

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 13:22

Wow.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 13:23

ringing. People were calling us back. People were so- Kerwin Bell called me and left me a voicemail, and I'm just trying to call him back. And

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 13:30

did you have the ghost of Jerry Lewis there for the St. Jude Telethon?

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 13:35

All we needed-- We-- I was gonna say, all we needed was the band up on the stage and Jerry Lewis to come along and do a number for us. But it was absolutely great. We had a huge turnout in terms of over, when we counted everybody in and all the stuff came in over the transom, 2,000 donors, and that was absolutely huge for us. The biggest run that we have had with One Day for Western. So if you were part of it, I just wanna say thank you. It was such a wonderful way to show support. I know that our coaches, our athletics director, our student athletes, they all saw that support, and it was absolutely welcome and encouraging to them. It makes their day to know that there are so many people out there who care and who give to, to help support that. So thank you to everyone. And if you didn't give on One Day for Western, please know we'll still take your check. And the Catamount Club still needs your support. And that's what we're working on right now, is getting our Catamount Club membership renewed for the season ahead, making sure that everyone has bought back in and invested back in for our student athletes so that we can continue to be as competitive as possible, especially with a big season up ahead. There's a lot to look forward to.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 14:47

And you need to-- If you are a season ticket holder, you need to get your season tickets renewed before the end of the month to keep your seats.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 14:54

Get your parking done. Remember that Catamount Club members at a certain level get access to special parking that you can get real good and close to the stadium. And and so be sure to get that done. Take care of that before May 31 so that we can get to work on that. But it's great. We've got a great head of steam going into this, what we, think of as the last quarter of an academic or a fiscal year. We've had a lot of success with our donors. And there's a lot of excitement, obviously, around the new Western Skybox that'll be opening in in time for football season and a lot going on here to be excited about

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 15:31

Yeah. I think Steve's gonna ask about his pet project there. Go ahead, Steve.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 15:35

There's some progress James, on the skybox. I went down Sunday and took several pictures, which I sent to Bob and of the each angle, each side, and very, ve-

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 15:45

they're showing now, Steve. They'll be showing now.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 15:47

yeah, just very impressive. I'll tell you, those-- that new digital light system and everything, I said,"How are those little tiny things, look like about 12 by 6, gonna g-give us this kind of light?" But a-again, that's technology.'Cause I know the big bulbs didn't illuminate it very good But that is gonna be something that... But it wa- and it was so impressive. Walked out on the field, beautiful field, and it just felt like you were walking, on plush carpet somewhere in someone's living room out there. It's really neat. And you might just wanna say what are we still on schedule? We're still gonna be able to do this thing last weekend in August?

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 16:27

As, as far as I know Steve, we are on pace to open that skybox on August 29th when we play Eastern Kentucky at home for our home opener, and y- I think Kyle Peiffer is holding his breath,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 16:40

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 16:40

to make sure we make that because, Friday, August 28th, they might be still painting the walls. But we'll be in that box and it'll be so exciting. I was in there recently with our Catamount Club board of directors. I had been in the week before with our foundation board of directors, and the progress they made just in seven days was pretty wild. Th- those people are on site just about every day and they're working really hard. They know the deadline as well and they know what they have to get done to, to make this thing a reality for us for our home opener. I'm also really grateful for the fact that we've got so... We had so many opportunities not just to put a facility behind the western stands but as you were talking about, to improve the lighting situation, to improve the turf. We're adding a new scoreboard in the end zone. I know that Kyle Peiffer's talked to you about that. All of these things coming together here to really make the game day experience another level higher and really exciting for all of our fans. Hopefully they show up and get the time of their life at E.J. Whitmire Stadium. I was really... By the way, I was really impressed with how that new turf came out. I thought it was really fun to watch, first of all, how fast the old turf disappeared. Like it was there and then it was gone. And then watching them stitch together that new turf has been

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 18:01

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 18:02

exciting. It's really pretty to look at. Yeah.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 18:03

It's really gonna help the referees too,'cause it's alternating light green, dark green, and they won't have to figure out what is 10 yards, they can look and see. Just look one color to the other. But another thing, James, was I was, so impressed when I went up to the skybox. The space up there, it, and it's really, you just can't see it from the ground level, but there's so much room. The entertainment area on the top level, the chancellor's box up there, golly, I don't know how many people you can put up there. But the next level, the, where the press box, the media center's going to be, and the coaches' offices, really well-appointed. Coach Bell's office is gonna be something to see there with the glass. He can see the entire stadium out his windows and so forth. But it is functional too because it's just gonna be a football operation on Saturdays. During the week, it's gonna be used for so many other things, and that, that's the thing about it, the flexibility, the up there is just very impressive. Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 19:02

That's it.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 19:03

No.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 19:03

that we-- you can build a facility to use it for a handful of hours six times a year during your home season and or you can choose to build something and invest in a program that really benefits a lot of people. And I know this point has been made before, but not only does it help football, but it helps get football out of the Ramsey Center, which means that we can then put coaches who are distributed around campus into better accommodations that are currently being occupied by the football program. You-- we've got folks over at Camp Lab. That is a facility that is so badly outdated, it's tough to bring a recruit. If you're trying to bring a recruit onto campus, you don't wanna take them to Camp Lab. And so being able to bring those coaches into the Ramsey Center, being able to help them have a better space is also a downwind or a downstream effect or consequence of this project. But it is part of it, and it's gonna help those coaches and those teams be a little bit more connected and have something they can be a little more proud of.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 20:04

Good to hear about Camp Lab because it was old when I was teaching there in the mid'70s. So

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 20:09

Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 20:10

yeah, people talk about it as being a teardown. But you mentioned in passing the new scoreboard. Tell us a little bit about that because that's pretty exciting too.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 20:19

new video board that I believe is coming in middle or later part of this month. so our current video board is fifteen, eighteen years old. Steve, you probably know better than I do.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 20:32

At, at least 15, yeah. At least now.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 20:36

there, there's

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 20:37

That's

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 20:37

that recently when it broke, we had to get a part for it off eBay because they don't make the parts for it anymore there...

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 20:44

great.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 21:22

some of the other projects. I know we talk about Byte One, Byte Two, Byte Three, and so forth. And the next after the Sky Box you know what my what I have gathered would be the strength and conditioning center adjacent between the field house and the west stands and the Sky Box area. And is that can you tell us anything about that? Is there any schedule for that right now? What we're looking at before that could become a reality?

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 21:48

It's, so it's definitely prior- the next priority for us. And strength and conditioning center for all of our student athletes is something that we've known that we have needed for a long time. We've known that it's something that that our current field house setup doesn't support it's just too small of a space. Once we felt pretty confident in terms of the dollars that we had raised for the western skybox, we began to turn our attention toward Byte II or the strength and conditioning center. and, the good news is the skybox has so far... y'all find a piece of wood and knock on it with me. It's co- it's come in on schedule and on budget, and in today's day and age, that's a really big deal because it's gonna mean that we're going to be able to start moving forward funding for Byte II. We've had a handful of stabs at designing and sketching this thing out and pricing it. I don't wanna share numbers because I feel like they're prone to change, but w- I think s- I can safely budget this thing between$16 and$20 million. That's a big margin, and so I, I don't wanna get too specific lest something move up or down. But at the end of the day, the goal is to put together a great strength and conditioning facility that all of our student athletes can use because right now the facility we have, our student athletes have to wake up at, in, at dark 30 in the morning so that this team can get in at this time and be out by this time so the next team can come in. And, our student athletes are still students, and if they're getting up at 4:30 or 5:00 in the morning to get ready to come over to campus to be in the weight room so they can still make their classes or and really to make sure we're accommodating all of our programs and teams, it's not good for the student athletes. It's not good for their experience. It certainly isn't good because we know that other universities that we compete against have these kinds of facilities, and it's a quality of life thing. If you go to those universities, you have a strength and conditioning center and equipment that's available on demand whenever your team needs it. And if you come to Western, you're gonna be getting up at 4:30 in the morning. We don't want that anymore. So we

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 23:58

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 23:58

that this is a priority. We're in the early stages of fundraising for it, just like we were a couple of years ago with the skybox. You start big. You start with your donors who can take, big swings at this total and asking them to dream big with us in terms of making this center a reality. To your point, where it's gonna be located, right next adjacent to the current field house right there in the corner, where the hog pen is. It will go there. It

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 24:24

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 24:25

up what will become the new game day entrance to E.J. Whitmire between that western skybox and this new strength and conditioning center. It'll be a great entry plaza and that really does complete the stadium picture that we've been thinking about for so long. And and again, to the benefit of every student athlete. Doesn't matter if you're a women's tennis player or a men's golfer or baseball player or footballer this is a center that will benefit every single student athlete on campus. And so it's something we're really excited about and working hard on.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 24:58

Great. My last item for, of athletic business I would like to see is a baseball stadium. Is that kinda on the next project list too, or towards... How does that look? Upgrades to get locker rooms

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 25:12

that,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 25:13

particular.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 25:13

A great question. Baseball has a couple of projects that it's working on. I know that they've worked just specifically closely with a couple of their program supporters, people who have done great jobs supporting that program already. And so I when you said stadium, I started to get worried we're gonna go,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 25:30

Yeah, no. Not tear it down. Not tear down Hannan, no.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 25:34

The Bob Saban Dome is gonna be on the next, We're, we'll talk about that after the podcast.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 25:38

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 25:39

but

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 25:39

Okay, I'm writing the check as we speak.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 25:41

great. Just keep adding zeros, Bob. It's indoor facilities are getting more expensive, but, We're gonna have a retractable roof. No, but it's it is an opportunity for us to continue improving that experience out there. Smaller scale, smaller project than than some of the other things that we're working on. But yeah, bit by bit we're gonna get there.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 26:01

All right. One thing that we wanted to talk about is Catamount Club update. Oh, wait. Before that is you were gonna ask Steve about Moore Hall and...

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 26:09

about, Moore Hall is under construction, Van Oak Construction, the same people are doing the sky box or working up there, and I can see it out, actually out of my kitchen window the renovation going on and so forth. And that-- I love that building. That goes back to my days at Western in the early sixties when it was a female residence hall along with Madison Hall. Those were the two.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 26:31

There is

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 27:07

think

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 27:07

The radio station was there as I was wrapping things up in Cullowhee, the radio station was based there when it first went FM.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 27:14

Yes. Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 27:15

Yeah.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 27:16

Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 27:17

I, I remembered wondering at some point there probably was a morgue down there, and I'd... when you're in, when you're a d- I was a disc jockey when I was in school here too, Bob, and I kept-- I would be in there about midnight or 2:00 in the morning, you'd hear things, and you'd think"Oh my gosh, this building really is haunted." But no, it's so much history up there. Obviously, that is where campus originated.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 27:39

Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 27:40

The Cullowhee idea was planted at the top of that hill, and it began building down the hill. So you went from Moore and Joyner Building and Madison up there, and Robertson eventually, and then you kinda came down and you had Brown Hall or Cafeteria and Buchanan and McKee and Hunter Library and Stilwell, all that in between, and it just kept spreading out. And so just as a quick reminder to folks Moore had been offline for some time. We had stopped using it just because of It was it's a 1930s era building. Beautiful building. A lot of history there. We knew we wanted to save it, and we were successful in getting funding from the state of North Carolina to renovate it. And we've got about a$30 million renovation underway. And so Steve, if you can see it from your kitchen window, you can probably hear it too. And

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 28:32

Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 28:33

noisy. they're moving a lot of earth around there. They've gutted the entire building. And they're continuing on pace. We're not gonna be occupying it in the next academic year for sure. And I think the last I heard fall of'27 or maybe spring of'28 is when we will get that building back online. But what's gonna happen is we're gonna move the English department out of Coulter and up to Moore, and criminal justice will also go up there, as well as our office of and civic engagement and and those folks will be up there. As an English major, I, I loved being in Coulter because all the music kids were down there, and that was a,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 29:13

Wow.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 29:13

A- an odd couple pairing, if you would, but I thought it was fun. But I know that the School of Music needs the space and they'll continue to grow. Once we get criminal justice out of Belk is where they're currently stationed and I know that you had asked about engineering as well. That's the next building that's on the docket, and getting engineering out of Belk as well School of Music can just take over Belk at that point. That'll put them right next to the Bardo Arts Center, so all of that college's schools and students will be right together, and opens up the opportunity for us to think about what we're doing with Coulter. But having English up on, at the top of the hill also means everybody takes English classes when they come. A lot of people take criminal justice, so a lot of our students now are gonna have to go up the hill to go to class, and it's gonna kinda shift the center of gravity a little bit in Cullowhee, so everybody will have an experience up the hill. Everybody will have to ride the CAT tran or make the hike as... I lived in Reynolds, so I'm used to walking that thing. There were no CAT trans when I was

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 30:19

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 30:19

But,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 30:19

Exactly. Yeah, I

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 30:25

there. But,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 30:26

know

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 30:26

It's gonna be absolutely beautiful up there.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 30:29

what

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 30:29

and then I'll just really quickly throw in a quick engineering bit. State of North Carolina had given Western a generous appropriation to, to basically double the size of our engineering program. Engineering is a huge field for us. It needs to be an even bigger field for us. Western North Carolina, the State of North Carolina

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 30:49

you're

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 30:51

So we're starting different programs in engineering. We're hiring faculty in engineering. They're good jobs. Our engineering, our College of Engineering graduates are

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 31:01

talking

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 31:01

out of here with not just one job, but multiple job offers. And so we know we need more. We know we need a facility to match that program. The State of North Carolina handed over a great appropriation. Unfortunately, escalations being what they are between when they made that appropriation and now the cost for the facility have gone up. Engineering space is actually pretty expensive to build. So right now, the State of North Carolina, the legislative session is in session. The assembly, General Assembly's in session. They're working on a budget. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we get a budget sometime this summer. And we have in both budget proposals right now, from what I understand, from what Chancellor Brown has talked about, there's another allocation for engineering, so we should be able to get both of those. Regardless, what we've done is we've made a plan to build as much of a building as we can with that first appropriation. And if and when the second appropriation comes, we can just keep the construction project going and build the rest of the building right on. It's not gonna be disruptive. It's not gonna waste money we're just gonna keep building the building effectively. And if the wheels come off, we'll have,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 32:10

about.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 32:10

at least have as much building as we can get out of that

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 32:13

Yeah

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 32:14

And that'll be an improvement over Belk right now. Something to look forward to there. It'll be a huge addition to our campus. If you're not sure where it's going, it's right behind our track and field and soccer stadium, the Catamount Athletics Complex. Above the tennis courts there, there's a parking lot. Not gonna help the parking situation at all, but what else is new? That's always been the case in Cullowhee, North Carolina. You can't find a parking spot. So we're gonna build right on that flat space across the street from the bookstore, and Reed Gymnasium backs up to there. Look for that to get started in the next 12 months or so, breaking ground, clearing that land and getting the site moving forward on that construction project. And if you have a friend who's in the state legislature, go give that guy, a hug, buy him a beer or something and tell him how much you love Western and much they really need that engineering building keep up the good work.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 33:05

You keep encroaching on Steve's house. Sooner or later, he's gonna have to sell it and move out.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 33:11

than Moore Hall. Yes. But I would love to hear that construction. I... That's music to my ears'cause it means something good's going on, being built. Yes.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 33:22

Yep, and we gonna start wrapping it up here, but tell us real quickly a little bit about Catamount Club, how we're doing. We met our goals, and I think we're looking for a new director right now.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 33:33

we currently are. Wes Cogdill stepped away from the program earlier this spring. He did a great job for WCU and we're gonna miss him, and we wish him the very best in in his future endeavors. The search is underway. My colleague, Kathleen DeLaTorre is leading that search. We've got great talent meanwhile though that's already here doing the work. Our membership is in a good place. Our fundraising dollars In a good place for the year and we certainly have work to do before now, between now and June 30th. But I feel really confident about where that's going. I do definitely want to just plug some of the s- we've got a whole, series of golf tournaments coming up that I wanna make sure folks are aware of that are related to the Catamount Club. And on June 22nd, we've got a men's basketball benefit golf tournament. That's gonna be over at the Waynesville Inn and Golf Club. Great course if you've never played it. Beautiful course, in great shape. Coach Craft will be out there. Jackson Simmons, I think is one of the big organizers there. You can't miss him. He's about 11 and a half feet tall.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 34:36

Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 34:37

They do a great job. I've had the great joy of spending time with Coach Tim Craft and that guy really hustles for his program to, to do everything he can to give men's basketball at Western the best competitive edge possible. So you can support that June 22nd. A week later, I'm so excited about this, we're bringing back Mutt Golf

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 34:57

All right.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 34:57

Tournament. It's

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 34:58

Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 34:58

down in Cabarrus Country Club on June 29th. Another great course. We'll be downstate a little bit if you're in the Charlotte area. I know there are so many guys in Charlotte and Lake Norman who would play in that golf tournament, and so go sign up for the Mutt. August 21st is the Catamount Shootout. That's gonna be over at Marion Lake Club, another great course. It'll probably be good and hot by then in, in late August and,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 35:24

That's-- James, that's where I hit my first golf ball ever, was at the Marion Lake Club when I was nine years old. And I'm not gonna

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 35:32

Wow.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 35:32

what year that was, but I was nine years old, so you can may do a little subtraction there and find out how I...

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 35:38

i, yeah I'm just... I didn't know golf had come to America at that

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 35:42

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 35:42

really That's

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 35:44

I shanked it into Lake James. And several years ago, I was demonstrating my shot to my buddies. I said,"This used to be the number one tee." This is where I hurt-- My dad gave me a wooden shaft driver, and I missed it the first two times, and the third time I had it, shanked it into the water. Guess what I did when I was demonstrating? Same thing, but it hit-- this time it hit the roof of a house, hit the road, and bounced back into the fairway. So Marion Lake Club, I

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 36:13

I thought you were gonna say you found this

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:15

it.

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 36:15

brown W-Wilson on the side of the lake.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:18

right.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:20

with an SW

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:21

Yeah,

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 36:22

Yeah, exactly.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:23

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:23

Oh my gosh. Oh, yeah. We're gonna... You come on out to the Catamount Shootout, Steve. There's... Redemption is always a possibility,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:31

Oh I've played in about every one of them. Yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:33

And then and then don't forget October 2nd we've got the Bob

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:37

Yes. Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:38

great long time tournament benefiting WC

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:41

That's

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:41

and our athletics

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:42

right.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:43

And of course, the name for just an incredibly special human being in Western's athletics history.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:49

James,

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:50

to come out. All of those, by the way, if you're looking to

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:53

I

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:54

for one of those, you can go to

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 36:55

have

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 36:57

All of those golf tournaments are listed there, and there's an RSVP link that you can click on to, to register

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:06

signed

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:07

your spot. And even if you

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:09

up

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:09

it even if you're not very good at golf,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:11

for

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:12

dollars help out.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:13

all

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:13

So you can be there and you can be on my team, because I'm not very good at golf either, but I do love supporting the Cats

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:18

of them. I'm

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:19

just

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:20

not

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:20

the golf balls that are going into Lake James.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:22

a very good golfer at my age, but it's a wonderful way to meet with, Catamount alumni, Catamount Club members, and spread the word. It's a great-- Those are all great events. Yeah

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:36

I was...

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 37:37

"I'm not a very good golfer," says the region champion for over 80, but still.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:43

now. That's the word. That's the key word. Over 80 years of age, yes.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:47

I tell you what, maybe we just need to create a flight for advanced golfers

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 37:51

Yes. Advanced. I like that word, advanced.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 37:55

You've advanced over the age of 80 and and by golly, you're still playing golf, and that's

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 38:00

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 38:00

part about it.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 38:01

Yeah.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 38:01

And, as always, let me just also say even though we're currently in an open search for a director, I just wanna definitely say there are lots of folks here who can help you. If you have questions about Catamount Club stuff,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 38:12

That's right.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 38:52

the effort. And involving students not just... i'm sorry, not just students, but also our student athletes as well

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 38:58

And

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 38:59

Bailey Sterling is our newest

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 39:01

then that's what

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 39:02

Club member. She was a collegiate volleyball player.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 39:05

They, people

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 39:05

from Nebraska. She's not from the University of Nebraska that's a different order of magnitude when it comes to women's volleyball. But she's brought a lot of ideas with her as well because she's

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 39:15

me, Bob, is like, is

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 39:16

Getting buy-in. I think it makes an

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 39:18

I told them that

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 39:59

Yep.

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 39:59

Hogan was

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 40:00

Thanks for being with us. It's,

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 40:01

one?

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 40:02

A great program. We go with you every time we have you, we go longer than normal because you're so easy to talk to and got good stories, and we appreciate it. Steve, any

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 40:19

you can take

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 40:20

fl-

squadcaster-bja7_1_05-05-2026_140835 40:21

too much time with both of you on there.

squadcaster-c017_1_05-05-2026_140828 40:25

next

bob-sabin_1_05-05-2026_140834 40:26

we'll look forward to having you back soon, probably before football season starts for another update on what's going on. But as usual, we are brought to you by Stanberry Insurance, offices in Waynesville, Sylva, Highlands, and Clyde, and we are tracking the Cats. We'll be back to see y'all in two weeks