Subject: Big Donors and College Sports: Love for Sale
Date: Tue Jan 25 12:46:31 2011
User: LumberJack
Message:This kind of thing happens when people start dropping huge piles of money into an athletic program -- they want something in return. Sometimes having a stadium named for you is enough, and sometimes it is not:
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"UConn donor unhappy with AD"
A major donor of the University of Connecticut wants a $3 million gift to the football program returned and his name taken down off the team's on-campus facility over his dissatisfaction with athletic director Jeff Hathaway, The Day of New London reports.
Robert G. Burton, the chairman and CEO of Greenwich-based Burton Capital Management, LLC, has given more than $7 million to the football program, including a $2.5 million "lead gift" for the Burton Family Football Complex and additional funds to equip the building. He informed Hathaway of his wishes in a letter dated Jan. 19, a copy of which was obtained by The Day, the newspaper reported.
"The primary reason [former UConn coach] Randy [Edsall] took another job is because he couldn't work with you," Burton wrote to Hathaway, according to the report. "You are not qualified to be a Division I AD and I would have fired you a long time ago. You do not have the skills to manage and cultivate new donors."
Edsall, who guided the program's transition from the Football Championship Subdivision to the Big East, abruptly left Connecticut for Maryland after leading the Huskies to the program's first-ever BCS bowl.
In the letter, Burton said he had asked to be "kept in the loop" on the hiring process for Edsall's replacement, saying he wanted to "provide insight" about potential candidates, according to the report. He said he didn't hear back from Hathaway until Jan. 13, by which point UConn had hired former Syracuse coach Paul Pasqualoni -- a decision Burton did not support.
"I was not looking for veto power," Burton said, according to The Day. "Your lack of response on either of these requests tells me that you do not respect my point of view or value my opinion."
In a written response, UConn disputed Burton's version of events, saying Hathaway "did receive and acknowledge Mr. Burton's advice from the beginning of the search" and advised Burton of its choice, according to The Day.
"Many people, including Mr. Burton, shared their ideas about potential candidates with us," the response said, according to the report.
"In the end, the decision was appropriately made by the university in the best interests of UConn and our football program. The Burton family has been exceptionally supportive of the University of Connecticut for many years. The University is grateful to the family, especially for the benefits they have provided to many of our students," the university said.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=6057094
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tsk tsk. When you get in bed with some people, they frequently want more than a little cuddling.
Date: Wed Jan 26 21:29:52 2011
User: tuco928
Message:Pretty sure I read somewhere that his one sons actually was on Paul Pasqualoni's team at SYC...I'm thinking the kid didn't play as much as daddy would have liked and this is a shining example of sour grapes.
Date: Fri Dec 16 22:57:14 2022
User: BuzzClik
Message:I was looking for another thread, but this one has become relevant yet again. The transfer portal (apparently with few if any rules) combined with name/image/likeness payments to players (are there any rules?) created the situation in which the players are now in charge.
Date: Sat Dec 17 00:18:39 2022
User: TNmountainman
Message:This may be happening lots of places, and I just hadn't heard it yet, but the St. of TN has now made it clear that *high school* athletes are fine doing that, too. And really.........is there anything wrong with a h.s. hotshot wanting to promote his favorite pizza? (Assuming no conflict of interest, of course - which may, at some point, be hard to determine.)
But as you note the portal has created a true Wild West situation.
Date: Sat Dec 17 11:14:36 2022
User: BuzzClik
Message:NIL is fine (we can wait for the stories of abuse to emerge, and they will), but the combination of NIL and the transfer portal has created a mess. "I'll pay you $1 million to endorse my muffler shop if you transfer to Swamp Tech", and suddenly the kid is off to Swamp Tech. This is pro ball without the contracts. This will eventually start hurting some of the big name teams, and new regulations and some watchdog agency will be created. This was once the purview of the NCAA; but, the NCAA is a failed entity. I cannot see it surviving.
Date: Sun Dec 18 04:31:28 2022
User: TNmountainman
Message:Agreed. The NCAA got too far behind the 8-ball, and couldn't catch up, with their ridiculous bureaucracy, red tape, and hopelessly outdated attempts to try and shape reality to their wishes. For awhile, the college presidents did ok, but that ended a while back. Hate to say it, but maybe Congress needs to take action? It's (sorta) worked for mlb, I guess. Obviously a different set of issues, but it shows it's not impossible to rein in things.
Date: Thu Jan 19 11:07:55 2023
User: BuzzClik
Message:This is just the beginning. The time line on this mess illustrates shows the insanity involved. You have wealthy donors who want access to top-tier athletes and the feeling of power their money can bring. You have children being recruited with the kind of money they have never known. Mix in agents, parents, and parasitic friends with no rules and no control, and it will end badly.
Binding contract? What's that?
Link: Original article from The Athletic
Date: Thu Jan 19 15:30:24 2023
User: TNmountainman
Message:Nice article. Glad I don't get caught up in any of that stuff. [I'm sure I would have squandered all *my* NIL money back in the day. 😆]
But you know...............the status quo wasn't right, either. College football and basketball are becoming (as we all knew was a work in progress for decades) the minor leagues for the pros. Let's just hope some of them pick up a smattering of education/smarts (not sure which is more important) along the way. 🤞
Date: Mon Mar 13 22:03:39 2023
User: BuzzClik
Message:These stories fit the general tone of this thread, but otherwise are an iffy match:
In the past month, we have two instances of crimes involving NCAA basketball programs with really questionable outcomes:
1) Brandon Miller, University of Alabama basketball. Brandon Miller is a superstar athlete on perhaps the best college basketball program in the country this year. At about 2 a.m. a few weeks ago, Miller received a text from Darius Miles (injured Alabama player sitting out the season) that told Miller to bring Miles's gun to a party. Miller drove to the party and delivered the gun to Miles. Almost immediately, Miles gave the gun to another man who shot and killed Jamea Jonae Harris in the culmination of an ongoing dispute. Although Miles and the shooter were arrested and charged with murder, the Tuscaloosa police never arrested Miller nor have any intentions of bringing any charges at all. There are a lot of places that would find Miller to be an accessory to murder. Miller's coach, Nate Oats, told the media offhandedly that "Miller is a great kid who never did anything wrong -- and still has not -- and was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time." Miller has been heckled at every away game since. However, the loyal 'Bama fans see it another way: many of them wore t-shirts to the SEC championships this past weekend proclaiming: "KILLING OUR WAY THROUGH THE SEC." Lovely.
2) Chirs Beard, former Texas basketball coach. Early this season, University of Texas coach, Chris Beard, was arrested for domestic violence. The victim, Beard's fiancee Randi Trew, claimed to have been strangled by Beard during a fight. Beard was suspended by UT. Several weeks later, felony charges against Beard were dropped because, according to the District Attorney's Office, "After a careful and thorough review of the evidence, recent public statements, and considering Ms. Trew's wishes, our office has determined that the felony offense cannot be proven beyond a reasonable doubt." Texas fired Beard anyway. That all seems logical. Beard probably grabbed his fiancee violently by the throat during a fight, but she said she started the fight. So, another domestic violence dispute gets complicated; many women in these instances don't live to file charges. But that's not the read story; THIS is the real story: "Chris Beard, former Texas men's basketball coach, hired by Mississippi." Wow. I guess Ole Miss isn't too worried about optics.
Date: Tue Mar 14 04:11:53 2023
User: TNmountainman
Message:Sooooooo...................................reading between the lines......................the Rebels offered Trew a great NIL deal? Maybe she's gonna get a lucrative book deal for writing "the next great Southern novel" in Jackson - maybe or maybe not "based on a true story".
Either that, or Mississippi has decided they need to up (translate as "lower") their game to keep pace with the craziness in Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Florida (good luck with that one). In general, Tennessee is a mere straggler in that competition, altho "we" certainly have our moments. Kinda hate to make fun of such things, but it's kinda hard not to, as well. But to be serious a moment, the Beard one stunned me. As did those 'bama t-shirts.
This country as a whole is not doing a very good job of "finding the bottom", but doing a great job of giving it the old college try.
Date: Tue Mar 14 11:21:34 2023
User: BuzzClik
Message:"This country as a whole is not doing a very good job of 'finding the bottom', but doing a great job of giving it the old college try."
Indeed.
Date: Tue Mar 21 16:25:54 2023
User: BuzzClik
Message:Another entitled athlete, but this one is different, and in a positive way:
"Suspended Alabama defensive back Tony Mitchell was driving 141 mph as he attempted to flee police in Florida last week before being arrested, according to an arrest report obtained by AL.com.
"Mitchell and a passenger in his vehicle, Christophere Lewis, were arrested Wednesday by deputies from the Holmes County (Florida) Sheriff's Office and charged with possession of marijuana with intent to sell and/or deliver. Lewis also was charged with carrying a concealed firearm without a permit." (see link)
When Alabama football coach, Nick Saban, was announcing this, he made this comment: "Everybody's got choices to make choices and decisions. There's no such thing as being in the wrong place at the wrong time. You have to be responsible for who you are with, who you are around, and what you do." This was a direct swipe at Alabama basketball coach, Nate Oats, who casually shrugged off the behavior of his star player. (see post from Mon Mar 13 22:03:39 2023 on this thread)
Saban delivers a breath of fresh air in an increasing rancid sporting environment.
Link: Alabama DB arrested
Date: Tue Apr 23 04:17:55 2024
User: TNmountainman
Message:This is a good read - although the author gives this attorney's motives a bit too much credit? But......at least he knows the score, knows which way and how strong the wind's blowing, and *seemingly* wants to help drive the/a (partial) solution. And it's clear that there is indeed movement towards a meritocratic, reality-based potential new world order from multiple directions. (Which of course will be quite similar to the old world order, except moreso - if you can catch that drift.) Hopefully whatever 'structure' is created will be better than the utter Wild West shootout currently going on.
https://sports.yahoo.com/meet-the-man-responsible-for-bringing-disorder-to-college-athletics--and-who-could-shape-its-future-140412574.html
All this stuff will take years to evolve and play out............but 3-5 years from now, we may look back and say "well now.......that wasn't so painful after all, was it? This should have happened decades ago." (Which of course really isn't news.)
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