AD Search

[Flipper]

Football is a bit of a mess...and with the move towards Super Conferences...I question if we can approach the limited relevance we had even 7 years ago. Not suggesting we drop football...but I think the future of the department is in basketball. The assets are there to compete with mid majors and there doesn't seem to be any efforts afoot to further separate mid majors from the power schools.

Next AD could have a major headache beyond the usual stuff and NIL's. Saw a fascinating article on the Athletic site ... Former Villanova player Trey Johnson sued Villanova and a number of other schools in 2019 arguing that athletes should be recognized as University employees and that the NCAA should be recognized as a joint employer. That would open the door for all kinds of revenue sharing between the schools, athletes and the NCAA. Members of Congress are looking at a broad restructuring of the landscape legislatively that would open the door to profit sharing, long term medical care and other benefits.

To top it off...NLRB general counsel Jennifer Abruzzo generated a memo last year that states that football players and other revenue sport athletes should be considered employees...that opens the door for them to bargain collectively for better conditions...she's gone so far as to threaten legal action against NCAA schools over the use of term "student athlete" as it is a deliberate misclassification designed to obscure the nature of the relationship between schools and the players.

Seems like a lot of very powerful people have college athletics in the crosshairs

[hammb]

Spoke with a source close to the university. Rogers is currently seeking out a search firm to hire and assist in finding the next athletic director. There is obviously urgency behind this given football begins next week.

Some names I was told to watch out for:

Haven Fields, Deputy AD, Ball State
Scott Garrett, AD, Cleveland State
Anton Goff, Senior Associate AD, NIU
Carey Hoyt, Senior Associate AD, Ohio State
Tom Moreland, Senior Associate AD, Purdue
Mark Shook, VP of Intercollegiate Athletics, Kentucky Wesleyan
Jermaine Truax, AD, Bucknell
Steve Watson, AD, Loyola-Chicago - BG alum and son is on the men's hoops roster

Belief is once the search firm is in place that things will move pretty quickly.

A few thoughts. Full disclosure, I either know or know of a few of these folks personally due to my work. Of this list, Scott Garrett is my favorite. We can afford him and he is a rising star AD who has experience in Big 12 football, and has made great hires at CSU. He knows the area and is great at talking to donors.

I think Truax would be a great administrative fit because of his knowledge of BG and the area, but he is already making about $300k and I don't think he would want to come back here (unless it is to finish his PhD, which he is apparently working on at BG). I also don't really know about his fundraising skill or his hiring skills (the football coach he put in place has been horrible).

Some other names I think would be worth a look:
- Brandi Laurita, AD at Findlay. Has been at the helm for 8-9 years and has run a really successful D-2 program on a shoestring budget
- Robby Poteat, Sr. Associate AD at University of Dayton. Terrific fundraiser who knows the region and has worked closely with UD's football program, who is usually competitive despite being non-scholarship and playin in a dump of a stadium.
- Mario Morris, Executive Deputy AD, Notre Dame. Great with budgets, very knowledgeable of NIL ins and outs, known as one of the best administrators in the country. (I think he'd be hard to convince to come work with such a small budget, but he'd be great at figuring out how to make it go as far as possible)

Thanks for the insight Billy.

I don't know any of these guys or really much about any of their careers. I am very intrigued though by AD experience at either Findlay or CSU. Regional athletic departments that face similar budget constraints. Also both places that put emphasis on their basketball programs, which is me being selfish, but what I want to see most (I don't think our recent ADs have really taken the time to run that program).

I'm not a big fan of anybody with close ties to the inner workings of the BG athletic department either. I just think that department has really stuck with the status quo from AD to AD and need some fresh ideas to come in and bring things up to snuff. Concessions/Gameday ops, NIL stuff, etc...we need a complete regime change.

[hammb]

Football is a bit of a mess...and with the move towards Super Conferences...I question if we can approach the limited relevance we had even 7 years ago. Not suggesting we drop football...but I think the future of the department is in basketball. The assets are there to compete with mid majors and there doesn't seem to be any efforts afoot to further separate mid majors from the power schools.

I'll always be a fan of BG football, but to me the focus of BGSU's Athletic Department should absolutely be basketball and hockey. Our women's hoops program has had TONS of success over the past 2 decades. Bill Frack's generosity puts us with a legitimately competitive budget in men's basketball. And of course our Hockey program has history like no other in this school.

Football is great. We do have a damned good mid major history there as well. But the changing landscape of the sport makes it tough. We have the opportunity to pursue greatness in basketball & hockey, it seems to me we should do what it takes to do so. Football will always take the bulk of the budget and be a primary focus. It is unprecedented in its ability to draw alumni back to campus and create community. But when it comes to the ability to succeed within the lines, I'd definitely like to see football not be the primary focus.

In reality you hope that the Athletic Director can find a way to pursue greatness in every program, but we all know resources here are finite.

[notkithughes]

There seems to be this belief that, "If we could only raise more money all our problems will be solved!" Well, yea. Duh.

BGSU doesn't have enough deep pocketed donors to solve our issues with money nor are we located in an area that is going to attract corporate $$$s. We have 18 sports - way over the NCAA Division 1 because we choose to have football and hockey. Yet we sit here trying to figure out how to stay within striking distance of the Power 5 schools. We have no chance to EVER compete with them in football (we do have that possibility with hockey and M/W Basketball) so why do we continue wasting time?

There are two ways to attack a budget problem. Either from the revenue side or the expense side. We have tried addressing the revenue side for years. We can barely keep this operation running now and continue to fall further behind the rest of the MAC. We have failed. We have a few women's teams at BGSU that are woefully underfunded (gymnastics, tennis, swimming etc..). Frankly, the way we have treated these female athletes with poor equipment, facilities and coaches is an embarrassment. It is time to seriously look at other options - including FCS.

So who do we hire? No idea. I can tell you I don't give a darn if they went to BGSU. That's irrelevant to me and never understood why that is seen as a priority to so many. BGSU thinkin' got us into this mess. It won't get us out.

[jpfalcon09]

There seems to be this belief that, "If we could only raise more money all our problems will be solved!" Well, yea. Duh.

BGSU doesn't have enough deep pocketed donors to solve our issues with money nor are we located in an area that is going to attract corporate $$$s. We have 18 sports - way over the NCAA Division 1 because we choose to have football and hockey. Yet we sit here trying to figure out how to stay within striking distance of the Power 5 schools. We have no chance to EVER compete with them in football (we do have that possibility with hockey and M/W Basketball) so why do we continue wasting time?

There are two ways to attack a budget problem. Either from the revenue side or the expense side. We have tried addressing the revenue side for years. We can barely keep this operation running now and continue to fall further behind the rest of the MAC. We have failed. We have a few women's teams at BGSU that are woefully underfunded (gymnastics, tennis, swimming etc..). Frankly, the way we have treated these female athletes with poor equipment, facilities and coaches is an embarrassment. It is time to seriously look at other options - including FCS.

So who do we hire? No idea. I can tell you I don't give a darn if they went to BGSU. That's irrelevant to me and never understood why that is seen as a priority to so many. BGSU thinkin' got us into this mess. It won't get us out.

The department needs to be functional before we can start talking about ways to improve fundraising. That's priority #1. Excessive payroll, those who are in certain positions haven't done much of anything to improve the athletic experience for many in the last 15 years. Going to the Doyt is on par with Sunday mass. You know exactly how things are going to go, the order they go in, and the quality you're going to get. Largely the same with hoops and hockey. So that needs to be fixed. People will be willing to donate if they know their money is being spent on the right things and can see those improvements first hand. Moosbrugger and those before him really screwed the pooch on that, and now there's mistrust from the casual observer to want to help.

On top of that as you mention, expenses are going to increase due to the pressures of inflation. How much more is it going to cost the football team this year to fly to LA and Starksville? On top of hotels, meals, etc. Same for basketball and hockey. So there are going to have to be other cuts made to offset the increase operating costs to keep these programs running. The paychecks from those games help, but the model itself is eventually going to become unsustainable.

[BillyLP]

BGSU doesn't have enough deep pocketed donors to solve our issues with money nor are we located in an area that is going to attract corporate $$$s.

This was true 25, 20, 15, even 10 years ago, but is much less true now. The wealth of BG alum has risen a lot and there are a ton of untapped major giving prospects out there right now. Funny enough, I think a lot of the fundraising issues come from the lack of funding for a fundraising department. BG Athletics needs another two full-time fundraisers, at least, but they have been laser focused on immediate dollars rather than the 3-5 year cultivation process that is needed for long term growth (in my humble opinion), and that has resulted in a dipping annual fund and the big gifts are starting to become fewer and further between.

[factman]

We should have hired Watson instead of Moose, when we had the chance!

[jpfalcon09]

Briggs article on what the focus should be for the next AD. Of note he suggests going all in on hockey, auditing the football program, fundraising, and getting better marquee home games in football and basketball.

https://www.toledoblade.com/sports/bgsu ... 61725121-1

[jpfalcon09]

I was told today that the university should have a search firm picked within the next two weeks. The expectation is barring a significant turn of events in football that the new AD will have the support of President Rogers and the Board to "put their stamp on the program in the form of a new coach".

Rogers wants to get football righted as he sees it as the main vehicle to bring back a donor base which has dwindled the past few years due to the poor performance on the field. The university has lost some corporate donors to Toledo over that same amount of time as well.

Lastly, I was told that there may be a renewed commitment towards the hockey program as Rogers and several prominent alumni view that program as the best way to connect with the student body, general community, and some significant donors being who would be willing to donate to the general athletic fund.

More to come, obviously.

[hammb]

I was told today that the university should have a search firm picked within the next two weeks. The expectation is barring a significant turn of events in football that the new AD will have the support of President Rogers and the Board to "put their stamp on the program in the form of a new coach".

Rogers wants to get football righted as he sees it as the main vehicle to bring back a donor base which has dwindled the past few years due to the poor performance on the field. The university has lost some corporate donors to Toledo over that same amount of time as well.

Lastly, I was told that there may be a renewed commitment towards the hockey program as Rogers and several prominent alumni view that program as the best way to connect with the student body, general community, and some significant donors being who would be willing to donate to the general athletic fund.

More to come, obviously.

So, still no word on committing to wisely spend the money for the one program that already has a massive influx of private donations funding it to one of the highest budgets in our conference?

If there is anything at all I've learned about donating to BGSU sports it's that you NEVER should grant them money when you pass on. If you're not there to hold your feet to the fire, it's gonna be wasted.

I totally understand a commitment to hockey, it makes sense historically and in the community. I understand the ability of football to pull in alumni to an eventlike atmosphere that no other sport can emulate. But we have one sport playing in the newest arena in the conference with by far the highest amount of private funding...and we still just piss it away.

As a fan of that sport it sure as hell feels like there is a checklist and it just says "Private funding secured" next to basketball, then they move on to everything else.

[jpfalcon09]

I was told today that the university should have a search firm picked within the next two weeks. The expectation is barring a significant turn of events in football that the new AD will have the support of President Rogers and the Board to "put their stamp on the program in the form of a new coach".

Rogers wants to get football righted as he sees it as the main vehicle to bring back a donor base which has dwindled the past few years due to the poor performance on the field. The university has lost some corporate donors to Toledo over that same amount of time as well.

Lastly, I was told that there may be a renewed commitment towards the hockey program as Rogers and several prominent alumni view that program as the best way to connect with the student body, general community, and some significant donors being who would be willing to donate to the general athletic fund.

More to come, obviously.

So, still no word on committing to wisely spend the money for the one program that already has a massive influx of private donations funding it to one of the highest budgets in our conference?

If there is anything at all I've learned about donating to BGSU sports it's that you NEVER should grant them money when you pass on. If you're not there to hold your feet to the fire, it's gonna be wasted.

I totally understand a commitment to hockey, it makes sense historically and in the community. I understand the ability of football to pull in alumni to an eventlike atmosphere that no other sport can emulate. But we have one sport playing in the newest arena in the conference with by far the highest amount of private funding...and we still just piss it away.

As a fan of that sport it sure as hell feels like there is a checklist and it just says "Private funding secured" next to basketball, then they move on to everything else.

The feeling I got from my conversation yesterday is that poor performance across the spectrum of football, basketball, and to an extent hockey is driving away a casual donor base who would otherwise feel compelled to give money if those programs were showing success on the field/court/ice. People obviously don't feel the urge to give if they see their money going to perceived waste (lack of wins). So I wouldn't say men's basketball is being cast aside because of the Frack money. It's an all encompassing issue. Leadership however sees the football program as the most visible entity in athletics and is the top priority to get fixed.

BGSU is going to see an increase in state funding in FY23 of $3.1 million. The student general fee is also going up around $40 per head, which is another $800K influx. The new AD will have the opportunity to not only attack the sporting issues but also the departmental problems that exist.

[Flipper]

After Loeffler is fired...if the new AD can make some budgetary promises to coaching candidates (like bringing us up to the upper third of the conference) and playing only one paycheck game per year instead of two...I would think this job becomes a lot more attractive.

Hockey needs to draw higher level talent...those second, third and fourth round NHL draft picks that are going to NCHC schools. The really high end talents are usually a one and done at schools like Owen Power or Matty Berniers at Michigan but a kid like Shai Buium gets drafted by Detroit and they let him play at Denver for 3 or 4 years to develop. That's who we need need to attract. Even Miami lands some of those kids...we can compete with Miami...

Basketball...where are those $$$ being spent? Huger is a bit like Louis Orr in that he isn't exactly a dynamic personality....we need a coach who has the ability to create some excitement and most importantly...the impression that he's actually coaching the team.

I'm thinking donations are down because we're losing AND it seems there's no excitement. People love to hate on Dino Babers, but he was a hype master. We're gonna play fast and we're going to be fun to watch. Is SL 's team fun to watch? Hell no... I sat through every home game in the awful season that was 2000....but I have zero interest in going to a game this year because it's frustrating as hell to watch our QB miss Wr's and throw end over end passes or balls that get batted down at the line because he's winding up like Justin Verlander.

[Schadenfreude]

For what it's worth, we will be competing with Ball State, which just lost its athletic director to Iowa.

[jpfalcon09]

For what it's worth, we will be competing with Ball State, which just lost its athletic director to Iowa.

Would not be surprised if their Deputy AD gets promoted.

[Falcon Commander]

For what it's worth, we will be competing with Ball State, which just lost its athletic director to Iowa.

Would not be surprised if their Deputy AD gets promoted.

We can’t get. Compendent AD or Deputy.

(Two weeks to find a Search Co?!
smh)