Around Campus

Ian Mooney, The Graduate

Briefly you’re standing there all alone with the whole crowd’s eyes looking at you. For Ian Mooney, he’s had that feeling on a couple occasions when at the foul line. He had that feeling once again in May of 2007. But he was all alone walking up to receive his bachelor’s degree in corporate communications and the crowd watching him was at the UT spring commencement ceremony.

“It was a culmination of a lot of hard work,” Mooney said. “I always had the goal of graduating in four years. I had to put in a little bit of extra time and basically squeeze two semesters into two summers to get it done, but I accomplished the goal.”

All the hard work and dedication in the classroom and study hall paid off on that day. “It was a grind the last couple of years,” Mooney said. “But when you are handed that diploma and get that handshake and you know they can’t take it from you, it’s a really good feeling.”

It was a proud day for both Mooney and his family and those who know him well at Texas. “Seeing any one of our student-athletes complete his or her undergraduate coursework and earn that degree from The University of Texas is a wonderful feeling,” said Dr. Randa Ryan, Senior Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Services. “Ian has been such a positive person from the first day he stepped onto campus here at Texas.”

Head coach Rick Barnes was also delighted with Mooney’s achievements, but considering the kind of person Ian is, it came as no surprise. “I don’t think people understand his importance to the program because they don’t see his name in the headlines,” Barnes said. “I’m not sure there is a more valuable guy to this team as far as what he does for us from day to day. He’s a great teaching tool for us from a coach’s standpoint, because he does the things we want done and does them the right way. We want our guys to graduate and he went and did that the right way.”

Mooney walked during the May commencement exercises, but he still had 12 hours at the time of graduation, which he did during the summer session. Despite the full workload in the classroom, he still remained active in summer workouts and continued to be an exemplary teammate on and off the court.

“In addition to doing his work both in the classroom and on the court, he has always been one to give encouragement and support to all the other young men in the basketball program,” Ryan said. “There’s no question he will be one of those individuals who is just successful in life, because of his positive attitude and work ethic.”

Mooney transferred to UT after spending two years as a walk-on at St. Louis University. He made the Longhorns’ squad as a walk-on in the fall of 2005, but had to sit out the 2005-06 season due to NCAA transfer rules. An outstanding student, Mooney made the Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll in Spring 2006 and Spring 2007 with a GPA of higher than 3.0.

As it turns out, receiving his degree last summer was not an ending, but also a beginning. Mooney returned to pursue his master’s degree at the UT Graduate School of Advertising.

“Well it turns out that the NBA didn’t want me after all,” Mooney joked. “But on a more serious note, I had one more year of eligibility left and it was a great opportunity to play another year here at Texas,” stated Mooney. “The fact that I could continue my education and further that process is great.”

As important as Coach Barnes thought Mooney was this past season, one of his roles as an example of what to do on a day-to-day basis has expanded. “In the past, we have been able to point to him as an example of how hard to work on the practice court and how to conduct yourself as a teammate,” Barnes said. “Now, we can use him as an example of how hard to work in the classroom and how to conduct yourself as a student.”

2007-08 University of Texas Basketball Schedule
(all dates and times subject to change; as of September 25, 2007)

Home regular season games listed in bold, all played at the Frank Erwin Center unless otherwise noted;
All times Central; *Big 12 Conference Game;
FSN = Fox Sports Network (check www.TexasSports.com to confirm affiliates)
ESPN Plus = ESPN Regional/Big 12 Conference Television Network (check www.TexasSports.com to confirm affiliates);
LSN (FSSW) = Longhorn Sports Network (games seen on Fox Sports Southwest in the state of Texas only;
check www.TexasSports.com to confirm affiliates);
** = game seen on Fox Sports Southwest in state of Texas only except in Dallas and Houston (over-the-air clearances in those markets TBA)