After almost three years of planning and months of whispers and rumors, McNeese has renamed its football stadium. 

Let the moaning and groaning begin.

Welcome to the business of college athletics, folks.

Following years of financial improvement and continued investment, McNeese finally took the plunge. The university dove headfirst into the deep end of the money pool on Wednesday. The Cowboys, in an effort to stay competitive in the future, had to gather enough resources to compete in the present.

Ryan Navarre provided the bait.

The name change was announced during a ceremony held on Wednesday afternoon. 

“This is a monumental moment,” said McNeese Athletic Director Heath Schroyer. “A moment that signifies not only a new era in Cowboy football but in Cowboy athletics as a whole. When Ryan and I started talking about this years ago, it was never about having his name on the stadium; it was more than that. We had a shared vision to elevate the university and all of Southwest Louisiana.”

You could almost hear the old-time Cowboy faithful screaming in protest. But, they’re wrong. Dead wrong, in fact.

This is a grown-up move by an athletic department looking to the future and not stuck in its past. The folks complaining are likely the same folks who think three fresh stripes on the shoulders of McNeese uniforms are a sign of an impending apocalypse.

For such folks, we say….relax. Take a deep breath and chill out, please. We promise you’ll get through this.

Schroyer didn’t sell out the McNeese brand or sell its soul to the devil; in fact, he did the exact opposite.

The head basketball coach-turned-A.D. showed why he’s the perfect pitchman for McNeese. He’s given the brand a fresh new look while putting a much-needed $500,000 into his department’s pockets. 

Navarre didn’t buy into McNeese’s ownership. The two have simply strengthened and expanded their partnership, which has been evolving over the past few years.

Simply put, this is what the business of college athletics looks like today. It’s not just a game; it’s a cash world, and McNeese wants to become a bigger player in that world.

Those who choose to whine about it need to look in the mirror and ask themselves a hard question. “What have I done for the Cowboys lately?” 

If you want McNeese to win, this is what winning looks like.

Those complaining are likely the same ones who have been upset with the recent losing on the field at Cowboy Stadium.

With the way Schroyer is going, this is just the next logical step in the program’s evolution. The Cowboys want to make a big splash now that they are in the pool.

The new name means a new direction. It’s what we all were asking for, isn’t it? 

With the return of Matt Viator, the winningest coach in program history, set for August 30 in Navarre Stadium, and a new press box that will open that night, I think it’s safe to say the Cowboys are on their way.

For those still upset, try to remember that McNeese’s tradition isn’t tied to the name of the stadium, the number of stripes on a uniform, or even the color of the Mystery Rider’s horse.

McNeese football tradition is rooted in winning. It’s about the men who coached in “The Hole” and about the fans who’ve passed down their love for the Cowboys from one generation to the next. 

It’s about the players who are coming back on a Saturday night and standing on the sidelines watching the newest version of the team play the same hard-nosed, tough, passionate football that led to all those championships listed on the north end zone’s Doland Field House.

Heath Schroyer and Ryan Navarre didn’t team up to kill that tradition. They want to help it. Save it. Elevate it.

Try to remember this is the price of doing business in college sports today.

And on Wednesday afternoon, the business of McNeese Athletics just got a little sweeter.

Jim Gazzolo is a freelance writer who covers McNeese State athletics for the American Press. Email him at jimgazzolo@yahoo.com