S-T article on Coach, Toledo, and more...

[It's the Journey...]

There's more than a few positions and budgets that are still bloated given the economic issues right now.

What budgets are you talking about? That's one of my frustrations with this whole thing. Accusations are being tossed around with nothing to back them up. Are these academic budgets or athletic budgets? What could be reduced in these budgets in general terms? Let's get this stuff out in the open!

I think a giant hurdle has been the fact that the Ice Arena is not operated by the athletic department and instead falls under Recreation and Wellness.

This is an obvious problem and needs to be fixed. In my opinion, either all of our facilities need to be grouped together for maintenance and upkeep needs OR they need to be better divided between departments.

I think hockey does a wonderful job staying within their budgetary constraints and even has less paid coaches than some of our non-revenue sports.

Again, which sports are we talking about here? Are we doing a direct comparison between assistant coaches? Do some of these other coaches/programs have outside funds that contribute to their salary?

The millions of dollars (not including the Sebo which was needed) spent on renovating the football stadium while our arena crew tried to fix holes in the wall with chicken wire and spackle was a slap in the face to a lot of people.

Now which position are we supporting here? If the Ice Arena is not supported and maintained by the Athletic Department then how is it the department (Athletic Directors) fault the facility is in its current condition or their responsibility to make improvements?

We definitely saw an influx of money to the general budget of the athletic department when Mr. Christopher was hired. Hell, it's what the guy does best. But, hockey has been told time and time again to just keep waiting and they'd get their fundraising campaign only for them to be canceled again, and again, and again until the program was setup in the chopping block. It doesn't matter who's fault it is that it happened but the current administration is in a position to fix the issue and a lot of what's been coming out recently sounds like the same song-and-dance many saw for 10 years. They're tired of waiting and frankly, don't have a lot of trust for any of the administration members. That kind of issue isn't fixed overnight. Continue to give the financial and operational support and you will see a return on your investment.

Again, this line of thinking was SO successful with Dr. Cartwright! If there are things going on then let's get them out in the open. That's all i'm asking. I honestly don't think this campaign is getting canceled. The financial support is there. If it doesn't matter who's fault this is then why are we comparing this to supposed campaigns of the past? If we wipe the slate clean on half the board then why not clean the whole thing?

Willy is one of our own. He holds 2 degrees from BGSU and is the kind of model coach you want representing your program. He is vocal in the community, is strict about academic goals (he's already suspended one player for missing class this year), and demands that his players respect the history of BGSU hockey. You can't give a man a butterknife and expect him to cut down a sequoia. Stability is something that has been missing here for a long time. Dennis gives you that.

No argument here. He's a damn fine coach and person. I hope he keeps the top spot for YEARS to come! But let's do a full search and make sure this is the right decision with Williams as the preferred candidate.

[Redwingtom]

Redwing- You stated that the program needed a "name" with a "track record." Well, we've tried that before. Paluch came in with the pedigree..and we all know how well that turned out. Secondly, this new coach could be the second coming of Scotty Bowman or Herb Brooks and with what the progam was left with, I honestly doubt that the record would be any different. Third, had you heard of Enrico Blasi before he became head coach at the NCAA runner-up Miami?? No, well he had graduated from Miami in 1994...and he's been head coach for 11 years. If you do the math, that doesn't make much of a "name." What about Tom Serratore at Bemidji State? He's a Bemidji alum and has been HC for 9 years. They have both been successful...and is that a "name?"

I think you misunderstood my comment. I did not say we needed a "Name" or a "Track record". I merely said bringing in such a coach COULD immediately restore credibility and signify a strong university commitment to hockey. Mainly because such a coach would require a hefty price tag. And by name and track record I am referring to someone who was a head coach with success at one or more institutions. Paluch had neither.

And yes, I knew who Enrico Blasi was. He was one of my favorite opposition players when I watched him play for Miami.

[NWLB]

[BGDrew]

There's more than a few positions and budgets that are still bloated given the economic issues right now.

What budgets are you talking about? That's one of my frustrations with this whole thing. Accusations are being tossed around with nothing to back them up. Are these academic budgets or athletic budgets? What could be reduced in these budgets in general terms? Let's get this stuff out in the open!

http://bgsufalcons.com/staff.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;?

Let me point out just a few redundancies:
Director of ticket sales vs. Director of ticket operations
Interim director of of student-athlete services vs. Assistant director of student-athlete services (This one doesn't include the assistant athletic director or the two grad assistants also under this section)
Director of golf vs. Assistant director of golf

How about the fact our football team stays in a hotel the night before home football games? I'm not sure, but I think housing 100+ in a hotel might be a bit costly.

I think hockey does a wonderful job staying within their budgetary constraints and even has less paid coaches than some of our non-revenue sports.

Again, which sports are we talking about here? Are we doing a direct comparison between assistant coaches? Do some of these other coaches/programs have outside funds that contribute to their salary?

I will again direct you to http://bgsufalcons.com/staff.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;?
Here is a list of each sport and how many paid positions fall under their budgets:
Baseball: 3
Men's Basketball: 5
Women's Basketball: 5
Cross Country: 1
Football: 13
Women's/Men's Golf: 1
Gymnastics: 2
Hockey: 3
Men's Soccer: 3
Women's Soccer: 2
Softball: 3
Swimming: 2
Tennis: 2
Track: 3
Volleyball: 4

The millions of dollars (not including the Sebo which was needed) spent on renovating the football stadium while our arena crew tried to fix holes in the wall with chicken wire and spackle was a slap in the face to a lot of people.

Now which position are we supporting here? If the Ice Arena is not supported and maintained by the Athletic Department then how is it the department (Athletic Directors) fault the facility is in its current condition or their responsibility to make improvements?

As the main tenant of the building the department needs to ensure that the needs of the building are kept. If the building is having issues with the upkeep then they should be helping the Recreation and Wellness department secure funding or soliciting donations.

We definitely saw an influx of money to the general budget of the athletic department when Mr. Christopher was hired. Hell, it's what the guy does best. But, hockey has been told time and time again to just keep waiting and they'd get their fundraising campaign only for them to be canceled again, and again, and again until the program was setup in the chopping block. It doesn't matter who's fault it is that it happened but the current administration is in a position to fix the issue and a lot of what's been coming out recently sounds like the same song-and-dance many saw for 10 years. They're tired of waiting and frankly, don't have a lot of trust for any of the administration members. That kind of issue isn't fixed overnight. Continue to give the financial and operational support and you will see a return on your investment.

Again, this line of thinking was SO successful with Dr. Cartwright! If there are things going on then let's get them out in the open. That's all i'm asking. I honestly don't think this campaign is getting canceled. The financial support is there. If it doesn't matter who's fault this is then why are we comparing this to supposed campaigns of the past? If we wipe the slate clean on half the board then why not clean the whole thing?

This campaign will not be canceled. What we must guarantee is that those with the most knowledge of the program will be the ones making the decisions with the money. I merely brought up the continued cancellations to show why there's the distrust of some in power.

Willy is one of our own. He holds 2 degrees from BGSU and is the kind of model coach you want representing your program. He is vocal in the community, is strict about academic goals (he's already suspended one player for missing class this year), and demands that his players respect the history of BGSU hockey. You can't give a man a butterknife and expect him to cut down a sequoia. Stability is something that has been missing here for a long time. Dennis gives you that.

No argument here. He's a damn fine coach and person. I hope he keeps the top spot for YEARS to come! But let's do a full search and make sure this is the right decision with Williams as the preferred candidate.

Why couldn't the search happen this summer when we had 3 months to get ready for the season? It's not like this is Williams first head gig. He did very well for himself one step down for D3 Neumann and spent time at UAH under DC. I'd like to think I at least have a basic knowledge of the guy and I think he's got a pretty strong attachment to the university. But, if you don't feel welcome by your boss you'll find somewhere where you do feel welcome.

[transfer2BGSU]

http://bgsufalcons.com/staff.aspx" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;?

Let me point out just a few redundancies:
Director of ticket sales vs. Director of ticket operations
Interim director of of student-athlete services vs. Assistant director of student-athlete services (This one doesn't include the assistant athletic director or the two grad assistants also under this section)
Director of golf vs. Assistant director of golf

The Director of Ticket Sales is actually responsible for GROUP sales. She has come up with many different ideas as to how to get the word out about ticket opportunities for groups interested in attending BGSU sporting events. She is out and about Northwest Ohio, not just sitting in an office on-campus. Also, I believe her position is actually a part-time position and she does more than a full-time job with it (I doubt she would make minimum wage if she were to punch a time clock). This is a MARKETING position, not a ticket office position.

The Interim Director of Student-Athlete Services is one of the Assistant Director of Student-Athlete Services. She is serving in the INTERIM capacity while the ACTUAL Director of Student-Athlete Services is serving in the INTERIM as the Compliance Person. This position was opened up late in the summer when the Director of Compliance left the university (I believe he went to Illinois in the same capacity). This section is down one person at the time and is responsible for maintaining the academic eligibility of over 450 student-athletes.

The Director of Golf and the Assistant Director of Golf are the two club pros at Forrest Creason - one is a man and the other is a woman (most [not all] clubs have two pros - one male and one female)

Why couldn't the search happen this summer when we had 3 months to get ready for the season? It's not like this is Williams first head gig. He did very well for himself one step down for D3 Neumann and spent time at UAH under DC. I'd like to think I at least have a basic knowledge of the guy and I think he's got a pretty strong attachment to the university. But, if you don't feel welcome by your boss you'll find somewhere where you do feel welcome.

My boss had to interview for his position after serving as the INTERIM Director for a little over one year. It's a fact of life that sometimes you have to go through the bureaucratic red tape when you work for a state institution. I think Williams is getting a lot more support from his AD than Dakich received from the folks at IU when he was the Interim coach after the Sampson fiasco. Also, Coach Williams knew what was going to happen when he signed on as the INTERIM head coach. He had two options - take the job on the Interim basis with the opportunity to interview for the head coach position or leave and pursue other opportunities. I'm glad he took the first option.

[KeyWestParrot]

I have to start by saying I'm absolutely INFURIATED by this article.

Christopher does NOT have the best interests of this program in mind.
GO FALCONS!!
Erika

I don't think I ever want to tick Erika off.