Herbst Stepping Down

[UConnNick]

Hasn't the knock on Herbst always been that she didn't fit this description? Many of her critics seemed to portray her as somebody who didn't recognize the value of athletics and football in particular. Or maybe that was just whaler. Either way, from a distance I wouldn't have pegged her as the 'everything wrong with college sports' type.

My remarks about college presidents were intended as general in nature, not specifically about Herbst. Her problem is she never seemed to grasp the importance of athletics historically and the role athletics played in UConn's rise in academic prominence nationally.

I live in a part of the country a great distance from CT. 25 years ago or more, you could wear a shirt here with "UCONN" on it and few people would have recognized it as even the name of a college. Some thought it referred to the Canadian province. Back in those days I deliberately bought shirts that had "University of Connecticut" all spelled out, for that reason.

Now when you wear a shirt with only "UCONN" on it, most people that see it know what the name represents, even on the left side of the country. I once met a UConn alum originally from Amarillo, TX. She was a huge fan of the women's BB team as a little girl. She attended and graduated from UConn just because of that. Athletics was the springboard that put UConn on the national map, including academically. Herbst never understood that and still doesn't.

 

[CL82]

What ever you are smoking please pass it around.

Maybe not, it may be K2.

 

[champs99and04]

My remarks about college presidents were intended as general in nature, not specifically about Herbst. Her problem is she never seemed to grasp the importance of athletics historically and the role athletics played in UConn's rise in academic prominence nationally.

I live in a part of the country a great distance from CT. 25 years ago or more, you could wear a shirt here with "UCONN" on it and few people would have recognized it as even the name of a college. Some thought it referred to the Canadian province. Back in those days I deliberately bought shirts that had "University of Connecticut" all spelled out, for that reason.

Now when you wear a shirt with only "UCONN" on it, most people that see it know what the name represents, even on the left side of the country. I once met a UConn alum originally from Amarillo, TX. She was a huge fan of the women's BB team as a little girl. She attended and graduated from UConn just because of that. Athletics was the springboard that put UConn on the national map, including academically. Herbst never understood that and still doesn't.

OK, I figured that was the case, I was just seeking clarification. What you say there is more in line with what I had heard previously.

It's interesting you cite that particular anecdote, though, because I feel like branding has long been the school's biggest handicap. That's not to say it's necessarily anyone's fault, because it's an issue that long predated Herbst, but the athletic programs in general, for as successful as they are, have struggled to generate pull even on a regional level. The lone exception seems to be women's basketball - if you're a girl playing youth basketball, your first association with the game is often UConn. Same with their parents. A distant family member noticed my UConn sweatshirt at Easter and asked me what happened. I was a sentence or two into my reply before I realized he was talking about the women's game that had occurred a couple nights earlier. Stupid me, but that's a perfect illustration of my point - I think if the women's basketball program alone had been properly leveraged in conference realignment, it would have gone a long way. (And yes, I understand that, in a vacuum, women's basketball means 0% in those decisions, but from a macro standpoint, it's an opportunity to funnel eyeballs towards the school in a way that creates additional revenue indirectly.)

Ultimately, I don't know enough about the situation to assess her legacy myself. I think some of the good she's done could be seen as false positives. I also think it's somewhat paradoxical to expect the president of any school to fully recognize the value of athletics in a holistic sense, which again brings us back to branding. You don't turn into Michigan overnight, but there's something to the idea that sentiment is what sustains the overarching mission of the institution. A lot of the time athletics and academics are separated when so many of the principles are interchangeable. In my opinion, you want to illuminate that commonality in a way that maximizes reach. Nobody bothers to differentiate between academics and athletics when it comes to Michigan because it hardly matters. I think what UConn has at times failed to realize is that a lot of their revenue comes either from alums or people who didn't attend the school at all. More importantly, they've failed to realize that building a fanbase and upping admission standards are not mutually exclusive. I can't imagine the transition from Connecticut to UConn has helped on this front and I wonder if the gains we've credited the current administration for aren't merely the returns of seeds planted by people who worked here 25 years ago.

 

[CL82]

thletics was the springboard that put UConn on the national map, including academically. Herbst never understood that and still doesn't.

What do you base this belief on?

I'm also not sure how sure how others can say she ran athletics into the ground. Did she secretly make lead the raid on the Big East?

 

[whaler11]

She should have asked Whaler.

Rest assured... I would have had Bob Diaco removed by campus police 90 seconds after he arrived.

You just aren’t a person with a legitimate opinion.

I flat out spelled out how Suzie Lax was building her resume on our spending... and then the second the money train ended she cut and ran to prove me right.

If you had any pride you wouldn’t be saying my name you’d be deleting your account.

 

[whaler11]

What do you base this belief on?

I'm also not sure how sure how others can say she ran athletics into the ground. Did she secretly make lead the raid on the Big East?

If a doctor could recommend a prostate exam based on message board posts - this pathetic trickle would suffice.

After predicting UConn to the Big Ten for years... now you are absolving people who condemned UConn to the American?

 

[Stainmaster]

Rest assured... I would have had Bob Diaco removed by campus police 90 seconds after he arrived.

2016

Okay. (CC: @uconnphil2016)

 

[whaler11]

2016

Okay. (CC: @uconnphil2016)

Yep one time I tried to appease the masses.

Quote the other 5k posts.

 

[Stainmaster]

Yep one time I tried to appease the masses.

Quote the other 5k posts.

You're claiming you actually wanted to appeal to the masses at one point? This is like that one time Serrano yelled at me for being an to someone. Weird stuff.

 

[whaler11]

You're claiming you actually wanted to appeal to the masses at one point? This is like that one time Serrano yelled at me for being an to someone. Weird stuff.

You are a bright kid. How many likes did that post get?

Yeah when you have upset some you tell them a little bit what they want to hear so they listen to the rest.

 

[Bryan Lord]

Stepping down with cause? Confirmed?

 

[Chief00]

This doesn't make me feel very sanguine that our conference situation will be changing anytime soon.

Regardless of what Malloy, McHugh and posters here think of her, Herbst wasn’t well liked or respected in the President’s club. I would make that a critical qualification this time around. It’s essential to getting in a major conference.

 

[dennismenace]

Find me a public university in the USA and I can find you many useless administrators. Every public High School too. And just as many useless professors teaching useless subjects. UConn isn't unusual in that regard.

Add to that the rating systems which consider those pluses (ratios etc.) and you can understand why the costs are a runaway freight train

I think you have a tough time with concepts of macro economics

It appears that companies and individuals with wealth who are leaving the state have a pretty good view that their are better
macro views in other states. I don't think Uconn is the problem per se at all. It really is a great investment and though I did not attend here I talk it up to anyone I meet. Every bureaucracy needs to be looked at regularly to reign in costs just like a household. It is the cities that are killing this state and they had best find a way to get private investment here or we will continue to deteriorate.

 

[8893]

Regardless of what Malloy, McHugh and posters here think of her, Herbst wasn’t well liked or respected in the President’s club. I would make that a critical qualification this time around. It’s essential to getting to a major conference.

Do they like Bunkey?

 

[TRest]

Do they like Bunkey?

Chief rolls with all the elite.

 

[outlaw]

so, does this mean Spring Weekend is back?

 

[Robertelamin]

so, does this mean Spring Weekend is back?

Gone forever

 

[CL82]

If a doctor could recommend a prostate exam based on message board posts - this pathetic trickle would suffice.

After predicting UConn to the Big Ten for years... now you are absolving people who condemned UConn to the American?

Ah, so you have no basis for how she "ran UConn athletics into the ground." Why am I not particularly surprised?

 

[huskymedic]

Should be good for another page or so...

Cournant Editorial: Susan Herbst's Great UConn Leadership

 

[upstater]

Regardless of what Malloy, McHugh and posters here think of her, Herbst wasn’t well liked or respected in the President’s club. I would make that a critical qualification this time around. It’s essential to getting to a major conference.

Up north, they hire faculty to be presidents.
Down south, they hire ex-Senators and businessmen. Two different type of people.

 

[upstater]

Add to that the rating systems which consider those pluses (ratios etc.) and you can understand why the costs are a runaway freight train

Except costs aren't up.
People confuse exponential increases in tuition with a rise in costs. Expenditures are not rising faster than the cost of living.
Tuition is rising exponentially faster.
I posted an article on costs/tuitions on the realignment board a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Waquoit]

Regardless of what Malloy, McHugh and posters here think of her, Herbst wasn’t well liked or respected in the President’s club.

Is it because of the vagina thing?

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Ah, so you have no basis for how she "ran UConn athletics into the ground." Why am I not particularly surprised?

-She was ill prepared to manage conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD was ill prepared to hire conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD hired Bob Diaco.
-Her hire for AD was responsible for Ollie's ridiculous contract stipulations/buy out.
-She's been completely tone deaf regarding athletics and its impact to the state/alumni.

UConn football can't seem to win more than 3 games a season and basketball just had back to back losing seasons.

Athletics are in the tank, in a horrible league and the AD is bleeding money.

Are you going to argue we're in better shape now than when she took over?

 

[JMick]

-She was ill prepared to manage conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD was ill prepared to hire conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD hired Bob Diaco.
-Her hire for AD was responsible for Ollie's ridiculous contract stipulations/buy out.
-She's been completely tone deaf regarding athletics and its impact to the state/alumni.

UConn football can't seem to win more than 3 games a season and basketball just had back to back losing seasons.

Athletics are in the tank, in a horrible league and the AD is bleeding money.

Are you going to argue we're in better shape now than when she took over?

Yeah but what about all the sports nobody cares about?! They're doing great.

 

[UConnNick]

What do you base this belief on?

I'm also not sure how sure how others can say she ran athletics into the ground. Did she secretly make lead the raid on the Big East?

She and Manuel appeared to sit idly by watching Tom Jurich run the end around play to get the ACC bid. Maybe Loserville gets it anyway, but the lack of effort from our administration was negligent and clueless. You can also argue it's hindsight, but she hired Manuel without the recogniton and awareness that he already had one foot out the door toward Ann Arbor from day one at UCONN. He also made a disasterous hire when Bobby Fiasco landed in Storrs. Sorry, but she gets to own those two hires and the resulting disaster that football has become, hindsight or not.

 

[ConnHuskBask]

Yeah but what about all the sports nobody cares about?! They're doing great.

I should add the move to Hockey East was crazy as well.

Just adding more scholarships and costs to run a program that we have no means to pay for and the vast majority of people don't care about. Hell, we don't even have a building for them to play in with a requirement for an on-campus area supposedly due by 2019.

 

[whaler11]

I should add the move to Hockey East was crazy as well.

Just adding more scholarships and costs to run a program that we have no means to pay for and the vast majority of people don't care about. Hell, we don't even have a building for them to play in with a requirement for an on-campus area supposedly due by 2019.

They are going to be like that team in the Atlantic League that only plays road games.

 

[Waquoit]

Hockey's not a success all of a sudden?

 

[ConnHuskBask]

They are going to be like that team in the Atlantic League that only plays road games.

The Pennsylvania Road Warriors!

Hockey's not a success all of a sudden?

Is it sustainable? Just like gaming the US News Rankings, it's fine when you can afford to do it, but what happens when the chickens come home to roost? Where is the money coming from the run the program, let alone build a new arena?

 

[UConnNick]

-She was ill prepared to manage conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD was ill prepared to hire conference realignment.
-Her hire for AD hired Bob Diaco.
-Her hire for AD was responsible for Ollie's ridiculous contract stipulations/buy out.
-She's been completely tone deaf regarding athletics and its impact to the state/alumni.

UConn football can't seem to win more than 3 games a season and basketball just had back to back losing seasons.

Athletics are in the tank, in a horrible league and the AD is bleeding money.

Are you going to argue we're in better shape now than when she took over?

The affect of the Herbst Era on UCONN athletics cannot be summarized any better than this.