Roger Thomas became athletic director in 1999 after 13 seasons as UND’s head football coach. Dimensions asked him to comment about recent developments in Fighting Sioux athletics.

How are things going, Roger?
What an amazing time this has been in the Fighting Sioux Athletic Department! It has been a period of growth and success on many fronts. A constant has been the success of our student-athletes in the classroom, achieving a 3.0 or higher grade point average for 11 of the last 12 semesters. I will forever be amazed and impressed as to how they achieve these excellent grades while balancing the demands of practice, meetings, strength training, travel, and games. Once again, several of our student-athletes have recently been named to All-Conference and All-American Academic teams. UND athletes have received 24 NCAA postgraduate scholarships since 1979. Amazing! All of this activity happens while our teams continue to compete, and win, at the national level.

Tell us about your new facilities.
With the addition of the Alerus Center and the Ralph Engelstad Arena, several of our teams, as well as our fans, enjoy some of the finest facilities in the nation. Our attendance numbers for men’s hockey, football, and men’s and women’s basketball are at or near the top in the nation. A new addition to the west side of Engelstad Arena will soon house our women’s volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball teams. It will be home for all our volleyball games, and we will play men’s and women’s basketball in both the new Betty Engelstad Sioux Center and the Ralph Engelstad Arena.

How is the new Betty Engelstad Sioux Center being funded?
The new sports center is being constructed through the generosity of the Engelstad family trust in cooperation with the UND Athletic Department. The costs are being covered by the receipts from revenue generated by the success of the “Ralph.” The “Betty” is named after Betty Engelstad and family, whose continued interest in UND athletics puts UND on the cutting edge of college sports.

Tell us about the new operating agreement.
A new agreement is in place that allows the Engelstad family and UND to jointly manage and utilize the arenas. It allows us to have the best of both worlds: the support of the University and State of North Dakota, and the advantage of the business world with the Engelstad team. The impact these world-class arenas have had in our city and region is enormous. Having been at UND since the mid-1980s, I never would have imagined our athletes, coaches, and fans having the opportunities these facilities provide, the economic impact they have created, and the quality of entertainment events that our community has enjoyed. If you haven’t been back to Grand Forks or on campus in some time, all I can say is you really have to see it to believe it!

And the REA is hosting the IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship later this year?
Yes. The tournament begins on Dec. 25 and ends Jan. 5, 2005. It’s only the fourth time this particular event has been held in the United States. The championship was held in Finland last year. You may have heard that the American team (which had three Fighting Sioux players on it) won the Gold Medal. The world’s hockey eyes will be on Grand Forks during that tournament, and literally people from across the globe will be on our campus. The exposure, financial impact, and excitement is difficult to imagine, but it will be great!

And we hear there is more coordination these days between the Ralph and the Alerus Center.
You bet. We’ve just created a committee to find ways for these great arenas to work together for the enjoyment and profit of all. The arena managers and leaders of the Engelstad and the Alerus are meeting on a regular basis to find avenues where a cooperative effort will bring more exposure and success to the buildings and their customers.

What’s new with the North Central Conference?
A challenge presented to UND has been the decision of North Dakota State, South Dakota State, and the University of Northern Colorado to leave the North Central Conference and pursue Division I athletics. This most certainly changes the face of the NCC with which many of us have been associated for years. The NCC will add the University of Minnesota-Duluth and is looking for other teams who want to join and compete in a conference that is still considered one of the best in the nation. UND will remain Division II with Division I men’s and women’s hockey, and continue to pursue the goals of winning conference, regional and national championships. With the development of facilities, staff, and finances, we feel the University will be well-positioned to change levels of competition, if such a move would be in the best interests of Fighting Sioux athletics.

What about the rivalry with NDSU in football and basketball?
One result of the conference changes is that several nationally rated teams have been added to our schedule as we strive to bring the best competition here for our fans. It is unfortunate NDSU made the decision to leave Division II and our conference in order to play other competition. I don’t know of one person in our department who doesn’t want to play or coach in a game against NDSU. But if games with them do not enhance our chances to achieve our goals — competing for national championships — they do not make sense for our program.

And the future?
We are so very excited. We have a chance to take our programs to an even higher level and provide our fans and alumni with some of the best Sioux athletic events ever. I am thrilled and honored to be part of this great place. I invite Dimensions readers or other UND friends to attend our games at home and away, or to watch or listen to us on radio, television, or the Web. Sioux Illustrated, a new magazine about UND sports, is also a great way to learn more about our teams and players. Or go to our Web site.

Web site:
http://www.fightingsioux.com/