Mark Wilson - Pool in College - This What The Sport Needs

watchez

watchez

What time is it?
Silver Member
I got this message from Mark and permission to post it here. I felt it needed its own thread. What Mark has accomplished and what he will accomplish is simply tremendous. (LU = Lindenwood University; the college that Mark is coaching and a great school here in St Charles, Missouri). The pool world needs more Mark Wilson's. Yes he has champions coming to his pool team but he simply wants good kids that want to learn how to play pool.

This is Mark's reply to me when I couldn't remember the player's name from California:

Brendan Crockett from L.A. and yes he is coming this fall along with Landon Shuffett and Briana Miller. They are all Junior National Champions multiple times and have represented the U.S. in the World's.

We have just completed our historic first year and really had some progress for the program. Also of interest to you and I we are set to do something good for the sport. L.U. is constructing us an on campus billiards arena which began April 1st. I walked through last Fri. and things are moving along well, drywall is up, heating/cooling units finished, plumbing, electric all in place. The room is 24' x 60' which is nice amount for four new 9' tables (Diamonds) and a small seating/video/lunch area.

We have five players along with myself being sent by the school to the Collegiate Billiards Nationals in Phoenix, Az. June 28-30. Air fare, entry fee, hotel, attire, and food. This is for certain great support to aid the program and recruiting. We are sponsored by Adidas and will wear their apparel in competition. Things are heading the right way and we are getting some momentum for the sport.

The University is well pleased with the quality of the kids in terms of character and academics, which was of much concern to begin last August. They indicated that they would like a first rate program and will support it as such, but must see growth in terms of the numbers of athletes in the program. Due to the expenses of a first rate program we will be greatly assisted by obtaining another ten team members.

Steve, if you find a kid with college qualifications and interest in billiards, irrespective of their pool skills offer them a scholarship. I will train them to be proficient at pool playing but they must already possess character. Integrity, work ethic, accountability, respect, are all basic components and they are not "given" a scholarship but rather earn it by contributing to the team with the above listed values. Just get me a good kid that wants a great education, a much better pool game, and a willingness to work hard.

We do have a lot of fun and I also insist on that as well. mw
 
Last edited:
This is a great thing for our sport! I had the pleasure and honor of working with Mark and Jerry Briesath at the BCA Summer Youth Cue Camps 20 years ago ('93-'95), that were held at UW/Eau Claire. Sarah Rousey came out of these camps. To see this carried over in collegiate athletics is a dream come true! Great job Mark! I would love to get involved with a college program that would make a commitment like Lindenwood! I started and ran a successful collegiate billiards program at Montana State for 10 years, from '87-'97. It produced a national champion, and 2nd & 3rd place finishers in the last 3 years of the program. Unfortunately the Student Union management people let the program go to pot after I left. :mad:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
 
Mark Wilson is one of pool's greatest treasures, a towering presence in the sport. I have known about this program for quite some time. Mark's enthusiasm for the game is infectious, and I envy anyomne who will have the privilege of working with this great scholar of the game.
 
Have known about this for awhile and wondered why it had not been brought to light by the "pool media." Finally, something we can all nod our heads an agree upon as something "good for pool."

Mark is one hell of an ambassador to the game and has been around a long time. He has everything it takes to get this program in full force and make a lasting impression. Lindenwood is located in a great area outside of St. Louis and should attract plenty of interest from young pool enthusiasts! I actually know an Asian kid from Indianapolis that is transferring to this place.

I recently got to see these guys practicing and I can tell you Mark really has them working on their games. It will be nice when the building is completed and can accommodate them a bit better than their current facility, which is a nice sports bar/ poolroom on the west side of the city.

I wish this program was around a few years back when I went to college because I would of went for in a heartbeat! Scholarship money, hands on instruction by one of the best, a great city, and of course I would be close to my good pal Watchez! :thumbup:

Also, they have a pretty cool assistant coach that goes by the name of Williebetmore! Although last I checked he had a medical license and not a teaching license! But what the heck he deserves it after all the hardwork he's put in with Mark the last few years. Btw, I'm the one with a teaching degree/license...hmmm...wonder if they are hiring at Lindenwood!?
 
sjm said:
Mark Wilson is one of pool's greatest treasures, a towering presence in the sport. I have known about this program for quite some time. Mark's enthusiasm for the game is infectious, and I envy anyomne who will have the privilege of working with this great scholar of the game.
Click to expand...

Nicely said. It is remarkable to me that none of the "Superpowers" have never approached Mr. Wilson. Well I guess the WPBA did but ...errr...umm...well that's a topic for another thread. Mark will do great things with these kids!
 
Stan, Landon, and I visited Lindenwood over a year ago after we learned Mark had been hired to head the billiard team. The first thing Stan said to me was, "I hope the people at Lindenwood realize what they have with Mark as the billiard team coach. They couldn't have chosen better." We toured the beautiful campus, saw the state-of-the-art facilities, and met with enthusiastic university reps....we were and still are thoroughly impressed.

We have no doubts that Mark is and will conduct the team expecting nothing short of respectful behavior, hard work, maintaining good studies, and having some fun along the way.

Landon graduates this Friday and he and our family will be very proud to see him recognized for his accomplishments and for his scholarship to Lindenwood University.
 
+1 ....

All the best to Lindenwood University, Mark Wilson and the kids ...
 
Steve, if you find a kid with college qualifications and interest in billiards, irrespective of their pool skills offer them a scholarship. I will train them to be proficient at pool playing but they must already possess character. Integrity, work ethic, accountability, respect, are all basic components and they are not "given" a scholarship but rather earn it by contributing to the team with the above listed values. Just get me a good kid that wants a great education, a much better pool game, and a willingness to work hard
Click to expand...

I think he's getting all this and much more already packaged in Landon Shuffett. What a great thing for that University and lots of young men fortunate enough to go there and experience Mark Wilson.
 
The right idea needs the right approach

I just came out of college (at the ripe age of 50 ! :eek: )

I played a few games at the university "Rec hall," and it was interesting to say the least.
The table was never cleaned, my balls came to me in a 5 gallon plastic bucket with a handle. There was one 8 ft oak table there, which was almost always in use. Once I got a few games on the table, I got a lot of challenges. :) Thing was: The table felt, balls and cues were sooooo ratty, they reminded me of the worst BB's I ever been on to play. :frown:
The kids were GREAT to play though, and eager to learn once they seen I was a bit more than the average player. :smile: I loved showing them the "Intellectual" side of pool,although it would have been much better if I could have done a few favorite shots. (This was almost impossible on the minefield felt I would have had to deal with).

My thoughts were this:

For pool to become "active" in university, it would need professionals to approach college admin. with a turn-key plan to establish a "league" The interest is there concerning student population. I would start with large Colleges perhaps "State Universities," and move from there.
 
Brandon Crockett can play thats for sure,

Thats great stuff, now if more people would do this in colleges it sure would help pool, building a couple champions isnt enough,

It was cool the 2 colleges I went to both had pool rooms, one had 4 9'tables and the other Sac State had a full blown pool room, 12-14 tables, ping-pong, no video games or pinball. I played in them both from time to time, the school with 4 tables had Jack White come thru once a year and do a show, he was cool, sadly only 15-20 people would show up for his show, I played him-broke and ran out. haha, he put on a great show.

At Sac State the pool room was big and had a reasonable amount of people playing there, i had good action there. I met one guy i played there a few times then Jointed cue, where I played his friend, i got the 7 from that guy and barly won.

point is the schools did nothing to promote pool and both had pool rooms, i was 18,19 years old and just was learning about pool, $50 action as Sac State was cool, I loved the idea of going to school and winning $$$. LOL if there would have been a coach there or instructor who knows how much better i's play today and more importantly how many more people would have picked up pool.

i'd bet 3-2 that both those rooms are gone now.

collegate pool is great, hell if they had a pool room at UCLA I'd go once a week perhaps twice a week and work with the people who want to play, obviously Brandon Crockett can drill me to the wall, so i'd recruit him to help me with the weaker players, thats just a example of what i'd do with someone who plays much better than I do, i wouldn't promote gambling like i do here either as thats bad ethics in college IMO.
 
Here is my $0.02 worth of input.

As far as the University Center having more than just a couple of tables, that can be a double edged sword. My college U.C. pool room was better than most in the city of New Orleans. It had TWO(2) 10' Billiard Tables & TWO(2) 10' Snooker Tables, Two(2) 10' pool tables, two(2) 9' poool table, as well as, probable 20 or more 8' tables, all commercial grade Brunwicks. Sounds great & it was, but I know that it was a contributing factor to a couple of my freinds flunking out of school. How many others were with them & how many in total over time.

Obviiously, Just like in 'The Husler', character is an issue. many of thise would probably have flunked out anyway.

That being said this room was just for recreational play which included unsanctioned gambling.

So...there can be a down side.

Now that being said, if pool could be handled like college golf it would obviously be a great thing.

Personally I think the average students recreational tabe time at the college facility should be control through the use of the school I.D. & directly related to thier grade point average of their core studies.

Anyway, that is my $0.02 on the bad & potential good side of the double edged sword.

Regards,
 
Thanks for posting that watchez. Mark is a class act all the way. I remember talking to him about taking lessons, I asked him how long was the fist class and he said "However long it takes for me to teach you what you need to know. If it takes 4 hours that's great, and if it takes me 10 hours then that's how long it will be." He really struck me as a guy that just wanted to improve peoples skill level.

He's an amazing guy and a truly genuine person.
 
Lindenwood, although none of you have probably heard of the school, is a very great university to attend. And it is not cheap.

Full-time Undergraduate Resident
Full-time Tuition (12-18 credit hours) 14,800
Room 3930
Board 3500
Health and Activity Fee 350
Communication Fee-Residence Halls 300
LU Email-Alternative Housing 60
Total Annual (Resident) 22,940

They have done well on the national level as a Division II school in other sports.

It is the second oldest university west of the Mississippi. In 1989, they had an enrollment of 800 students and were near bankrupt. Since that time they have had huge increase in overall attendance, now up to over 17,000 students. New buildings, new programs, etc. This has given them much more cash to do programs such as the one Mark is involved in.

Oh I believe Team Watchez will be facing the Lindenwood Lions in a challenge match this Thursday evening if all goes as planned to help them prepare for the upcoming championships. I think Mark wants his team to understand what winning is so he immediately thought of me as part of the competition.
 
Pool is already in College... just ask every hack... they all had a father, grandfather, or uncle who hustled their way through college.

In all seriousness though... having an official Pool/Billiards program in colleges and high schools even is a great idea. Glad to see it being succescful in once instance, hopefully it catches on.
 
watchez said:
Lindenwood, although none of you have probably heard of the school, is a very great university to attend. And it is not cheap.

.
Click to expand...

This is all pretty cool, thanks for sharing. Now, will this "team" be facing off against other universities or just competing in the College Billiard tourney ?
 
Mark Wilson is a Blessing

Scott Lee said:
This is a great thing for our sport! I had the pleasure and honor of working with Mark and Jerry Briesath at the BCA Summer Youth Cue Camps 20 years ago ('93-'95), that were held at UW/Eau Claire. Sarah Rousey came out of these camps. To see this carried over in collegiate athletics is a dream come true! Great job Mark! I would love to get involved with a college program that would make a commitment like Lindenwood! I started and ran a successful collegiate billiards program at Montana State for 10 years, from '87-'97. It produced a national champion, and 2nd & 3rd place finishers in the last 3 years of the program. Unfortunately the Student Union management people let the program go to pot after I left. :mad:

Scott Lee
http://poolknowledge.com
Click to expand...
You guys were great. I will forever hate the BCA Board of Directors for not extending support for this program and allowing it to develop, streamline, and reach other universities to showcase young talent. Mark, Jerry, Scott, and Fran have my lifelong respect.

Mark has always been one of the great treasures of pool. Character! If that is one word I may use to describe Mark Wilson.Congratulations to all your accomplishments!
 
cajunfats said:
You guys were great. I will forever hate the BCA Board of Directors for not extending support for this program and allowing it to develop, streamline, and reach other universities to showcase young talent. Mark, Jerry, Scott, and Fran have my lifelong respect.

Mark has always been one of the great treasures of pool. Character! If that is one word I may use to describe Mark Wilson.Congratulations to all your accomplishments!
Click to expand...

Sheesh! The BCA did not extend support for this program; they don't support professional pool. It begs the question: What does the BCA organization do? :confused:
 
JAM said:
Sheesh! The BCA did not extend support for this program; they don't support professional pool. It begs the question: What does the BCA organization do? :confused:
Click to expand...

They support the industry of pool so basically they are there for table,cloth, balls and other equipment manufacturers. Not so sure they promote the game in any way.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top