Students compete in Lipscomb version of NFL Combine

The Student Activity Center challenged the students to see if they have what it takes to compete in the NFL Combine. Competitors ranged from freshmen to graduate students, all students were welcomed to join in on the fun. “I think it went really well. I was very happy with the turnout,” Steffani Davis, a Facilities and Marketing graduate assistant for the SAC, said. “I think we really had some awesome athletes. Some students didn’t play football in high school, then others were standout athletes on their high school football team. We loved having everyone that participated.” The NFL Combine gives hopeful NFL players a chance to show off their God-given talents such as strength and speed. Joe Flacco of the Baltimore Ravens threw 74 yards in a quarterback challenge during the combine. Jay Cutler threw a football 60 yards from his knees. The top Lipscomb participate threw 48 yards. “We tested the contestants in your basic kick, pass, punt, and your basic speed and agility drills the NFL players have to go through in the combine,” Davis said. “Everything we did is pretty much the exact events they do in the NFL Combine besides, we just tried to monitor it more to fit the college students.” After tallying all the points from the different events, freshman Daniel Vaughn won the competition. Vaughn went home with two tickets to a Titans game for his efforts. There was not a single person who got first place in every event. “Everyone was actually pretty even. Some people really excelled in the speed and agility, and then evened out with the throwing,” Davis said....

Auntie Anne’s Pretzels closes to make way for Au Bon Pain; Starbucks set for renovations

Lipscomb’s Auntie Anne’s Pretzels is no more, paving the way for a new campus dining option. The famous pretzel chain’s campus location has closed, allowing new dining spot Au Bon Pain to open in the lobby of the Student Activity Center, according to Wolcott Fary, General Manager of Lipscomb Dining Services. Fary says that in order for Au Bon Pain to open up shop, another on-campus dining location had to close. Auntie Anne’s was chosen because it had not appealed to Lipscomb students as much as the dining office had expected. Overshadowed by more popular student center offerings such as Chick-fil-A and Starbucks, Auntie Anne’s was not making much of a profit on the few pretzels it sold. The pretzel stop opened in 2012 and was located in the Bennett Campus Center. With a menu featuring hot and cold sandwiches, salads, coffee, fresh-baked bread and pastries, smoothies, different kinds of soup and entrees ranging from pasta to Indian dishes, Au Bon Pain’s large selection will make this new addition second only to the dining room for the number of food options. A health-conscious chain, Au Bon Pain focuses on creating healthy foods from quality ingredients. It posts the ingredients in all of its foods on its website. The franchise’s second location in Nashville, Au Bon Pain will feature extra seating to accommodate students in a larger SAC lobby. Au Bon Pain will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. Starbucks renovation to begin later in the month In the meantime, Starbucks is getting a new look with a renovation later this month. The back wall and counter will...

Intramural basketball continues to find success with Lipscomb students

When stepping foot on any college campus across the country, you are bound to run into someone who participates in intramurals. They are a genuinely fun way to stay active and in shape without having to hit the gym or exercise by yourself at home. They can also be a way for former high school athletes to satisfy their competitive drive, despite not playing any sports for their university. Lipscomb offers a multitude of intramural sports for any students interested in playing. However, one sport always brings in more participants, and brings out more of those participants’ competitive spirit. That sport is basketball. “Basketball is the most popular of all the sports we’ve done this year,” said Evan McGee, a graduate assistant for campus recreation. McGee is in charge of the intramurals on campus, and he says more students signed up for basketball this semester than any of the other sports that they offer. There are three leagues for intramural basketball: the men’s independent league, which features a competitive and a recreational division, the women’s independent league, which has just one division and the social club league, where the school’s social clubs can form a team and compete against each other. In all, there are an astounding 39 teams competing in intramural basketball at Lipscomb this year, including 22 teams in the men’s recreational league alone. The rise of participants in the recreational league over the past few years can be attributed to the sheer difficulty of the competitive league, where it is not uncommon to see athletes from Lipscomb’s other sports teams playing on each team. There are...

Summer construction projects continue as fall semester quickly approaches

The fall semester is right around the corner, and cranes, construction trucks and hard hats are still a common site on the Lipscomb campus as summer projects continue. Piles of dirt and rock clutter the closed street behind the McFarland Science Center and the Crisman Administration Building as construction crews continue to work on the 15,000-square-foot pharmacy and health and sciences research facility. Much progress has been made since the project began and is scheduled for completion this fall. Swang 108, the large lecture auditorium in the Swang Business Center, has been completely gutted as hard hats are still hard at work constructing a major facelift that will include new seating, carpet, wall treatment, a new audio-visual system and an upgraded heating and cooling system. New additions to the Student Activities Center (SAC) include new locker rooms, restrooms, showers, and expended weight room and performance studio That construction is expected to be completed before classes are back in session. There is one summer project that is completed.  The Osman Fountain, located in Bison Square, is complete with flowing water fountains and a baptistery. With construction equipment cluttering parts of campus, parking will be one of the main concerns students will be faced with when they return to school. Patrick Cameron, Assistant Director of Safety and Security, says that the construction will an affect on parking. “The biggest change the students will see is there are a few less spots behind Fanning next to the Village, but we will have more spots over at Stokes,” Cameron said. Cameron urges students to give themselves time to find a place to park...

Campus Notes – June 6

Here are some newsworthy links making their way around campus this week. ATHLETICS Billy Ebel has been hired as the new assistant coach with the volleyball team. Graduate assistant Marcus Evans has been hired as the new sprints and hurdles coach. Women’s basketball coach Greg Brown was invited to attended the WBCA’s Center for Coaching Excellence. ACADEMICS Lipscomb has announced the installation of 14 new graduate programs, including the noted Master of Film and Creative Media. The university has released a list of noteworthy accomplishments of faculty and students over the 2013 spring semester. RECREATION The Student Activity Center is offering free group fitness classes throughout the months of June and July. A personal fitness crash course is also available on select dates this summer. Anyone willing to try out some of the facility’s new equipment for 30 minutes and write a brief report will receive a free water bottle. Have a bit of information that you would like to share with the Lipscomb community? Email us at luminationnetwork@gmail.com. Photo courtesy of...