Dakota Diary Number 3 - Bulldogs Visit Elementary School

Dakota Diary – Day 3
By Jason Sullivan, Asst. A.D. / Communications

While the guys continue to enjoy themselves in their first trip North Dakota, including Mike Niedzwiecki who is busy working on his much-awaited journal entry for today, here are few things the team has been up to in the past 24 hours.

The Bulldogs awoke for their second full day of preparation for the big game on Wednesday with warm temperatures throughout the Grand Forks region.  For those trivia buffs, the center point of North America is located just West of Grand Forks. In addition, the Red River that runs through town, is the only river in North America that flows North.  In 1997, the river flooded the entire region, causing severe devastation and destruction to a beautiful downtown.

The team arrived at “The Ralph” for practice. Each day you enter that place, it looks better and better. Ranked among the top-10 arenas in the world (No. 4 in North America behind Staples Center, Yankee Stadium, Madison Square Garden).  It is truly stunning.  Be sure to check out the web sites on the game information link to see the facts about the place. Coach Good, who has seen several professional and top collegiate arenas, including Maryland’s Comcast Center, said is was the best he has ever seen.

While built primarily for the national powerhouse North Dakota Fighting Sioux hockey team, it has shown that it can serve as a very nice site for an NCAA basketball championship.  Just for the record, the overhead photo of the Bryant practice was taken by Associate A.D. John Ruppert who obviously has no fear of heights.

The Bulldogs hit the floor for a practice at 9 a.m. sharp (10 a.m. eastern) and got a good feel for the rims and the overall look of the stadium.  The Hartford Civic Center, where the Bulldogs played UConn earlier his year, holds about 4,000 more and seems more spacious. The Ralph holds about 12,000 and is very intimate and comfortable.

After the practice, the team returned to the hotel for a little relaxation, not to mention a few games of ping pong, before heading out to visit Century Elementary School. The Bulldogs had a great time with various classes ranging from kindergarten, first grade through fourth grade.

A big hit were the Bulldog Super Fan t-shirts handed out, plus the various posters and programs that the team couldn’t hand out fast enough.

Mike Williams was asked the most questions from the students, due to the fact that he stands out among the crowd at 6 feet 11 inches. Most of the questions ranged from: “How did you get here?; Who inspires you?: What did you want to be when you grew up?; What grade Josh Longstaff is in? (one guess was eighth grade); and the most common of how do you like school?

Mike Williams reiterated the importance of school and teachers. “Your teaches do a great job of molding you and teaching you. They are very important and it’s important to focus on school.  At Bryant, school is the most important thing before basketball.  If we do not go to class and do well, we do not play.”

After the talking was over, the players signed autographs and it was back to the hotel to relax before the big tournament banquet later this evening.