Is it Time for Dave Benedict to Find a New Job?

[uconndogs]

well you just gave Benedict a pass?

No I didn’t.

 

[huskypantz]

I know someone that kind of had a pet racoon. It lived outside but it used to hang out in his garage with him. He'd be wrenching on his car at night with the door open and the racoon would just come and sit on the work bench. he'd feed it fruits sometimes and had a water bowl for him so he could wash the food.

Raccoons love marshmallows, as do feral pigs.

 

[zls44]

So you agree we got what we deserved.

Maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle of the mile-wide chasm between you and Pudge's opinions?

 

[whaler11]

Maybe the truth is somewhere in the middle of the mile-wide chasm between you and Pudge's opinions?

Nope. Come back in 5-6 years - you’ll see how she neglected her fiducary responsibiity to the University as a whole.

 

[Ellington]

IMO, this was NEVER a job for a first time AD. His football contracts (bonuses) are the laughing stock of P5 ADs across the country. USA Today embarrasses us each week talking about another loss , but at least RE made 4 grand for scoring first and out-rushing the opponent ( that threw for 500 yards). That genius move hasn't quite taken hold across the nation. DB basically turned in his own MBB program for violating NCAA rules to save money on KO. Now that Uncle Vic is retiring, the guy is on an island.
The guy was omni present early and has gone into hiding this year. He lacks the chops/ influence / respect to lead a move anywhere, even back to the Big East. Sadly, the most challenging days are directly ahead of us. I blame the administration that hired the man (who had NEVER been an AD) and gave him the keys to the car.

 

[Pudge]

So you agree we got what we deserved. You just care that UConn students are marginally better than ten years ago and don’t want to admit it’s going to slide backwards as the state eliminates funding and Herbst built nothing sustainable.

Cool.

Really?

Is Storrs Center gonna be flushed. Is the STEM initiative gonna slide own the way to Willimantic. Are 40 top demand professors gonna pick up & go to Temple. Sustainable? The academic profile is night & day different.

Whine about Benedict? Sure. It’s darn terrible we lost a Mount Rushmore NC coach; Geno can’t win 12 in a row ... just Final Four 12 Times; facilities? Werth Center + Hockey East + new Soccer & Baseball.

P5 is about Football. No survey gets us anywhere.

Here’s a good exercise: Go into the archives. Look at UCONN football 2002 Roster. Look at every Freshman name (and Orlovsky) and think of their impact over their entire college career. Yikes. Edsall is pretty damn good at evaluating and development.

 

[CL82]

In UConn's case since there is a historical bias against decent funding of the university,

You aren't from Connecticut are you?

 

[whaler11]

Really?

Is Storrs Center gonna be flushed. Is the STEM initiative gonna slide own the way to Willimantic. Are 40 top demand professors gonna pick up & go to Temple. Sustainable? The academic profile is night & day different.

Whine about Benedict? Sure. It’s darn terrible we lost a Mount Rushmore NC coach; Geno can’t win 12 in a row ... just Final Four 12 Times; facilities? Werth Center + Hockey East + new Soccer & Baseball.

P5 is about Football. No survey gets us anywhere.

Here’s a good exercise: Go into the archives. Look at UCONN football 2002 Roster. Look at every Freshman name (and Orlovsky) and think of their impact over their entire college career. Yikes. Edsall is pretty damn good at evaluating and development.

LOL. It’s sad what what is going to happen over the next ten years to UConn but at least I’ll be able to search for posts like this and giggle.

First of all your post makes zero sense beyond excusing Benedict who is an inept clown. Second it’s a guy who buys into the P6 nonsense who believes Randy Edsall should be at the helm of even a middling football program. Third, UConn joining Hockey East is the biggest debacle they stumbled upon yet - maybe they can hope for cold weather and play shinny on Coventry Lake.

 

[UCFBfan]

I still think a decent first step would be a formal study to map a direction on how UConn could make it into the B10 or ACC. It may need to come from the governor's office.

Sorry, this almost made me spit out my coffee! Do you live in CT? Do you know how broke we are? We are about to possibly put tolls all over our highways to try and raise money. Not just tolls at the border, no, no, like Jersey Parkway tolls.

So to think anyone at the government level would spend a dime on this report is laughable. If word got out that they were doing this, the 20 people on this board might be happy while the rest of the state marches towards the capitol building with torches and pitchforks. You'll end up seeing Lamont's head on top of the Old State House in the middle of downtown for all to see.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Sorry, this almost made me spit out my coffee! Do you live in CT? Do you know how broke we are? We are about to possibly put tolls all over our highways to try and raise money. Not just tolls at the border, no, no, like Jersey Parkway tolls.

So to think anyone at the government level would spend a dime on this report is laughable. If word got out that they were doing this, the 20 people on this board might be happy while the rest of the state marches towards the capitol building with torches and pitchforks. You'll end up seeing Lamont's head on top of the Old State House in the middle of downtown for all to see.

Look, I don't like paying taxes either. And there are many sincere and well-meaning fiscal conservatives in the state. But universities across the nation do these strategic plans for their athletic departments. If you want to have Benedict do it, that is possible, but it may have better chances for success coming from outside of the university. Here is basic argument: The state's economy is not going to rebound and thrive without a research focused university working closely with the state's businesses. (Yale is not interested in such initiatives. It likes more theoretical research and sees itself as a global university.) The university needs to help business in developing and bringing to market new products and services. (Texas AM has done this very well.) UConn under the new president -- with his extensive engineering background -- is ideal for this mission. I would challenge anyone to find more than a handful of public research-focused universities that are not in P5 athletic conferences. I think the athletic success helps in promoting the university's brand on these other fronts including appealing to the business community, potential donors, being competitive for research grants. (Schools like MIT and CalTech don't need these approaches but they are different as private world-renowned schools.) The new president and Gov. Lamont need to promote the message that UConn is not the source of the state's economic woes but is a key part of the 21st century solution. Here are some more examples of studies: together-we-win (PDF) - University of North Carolina Athletics Boston College Strategic Plan (PDF) - Boston College Athletics https://oaa.osu.edu/sites/default/f...anning/strategic-plans/ath-strategic-plan.pdf http://president.uc.edu/thirdcentury/docs/UC-Athletics-Strategic-Plan.pdf http://system.usf.edu/board-of-trus...-19-2016-ACE/USF Athletics Strategic Plan.pdf Strategy to Win Executive Summary DRAFT (PDF) - Texas Tech University Athletics

 

[BlueDogs]

This. Exactly this!

The women lost in the final four for third time in three years. That is simply unacceptable. I mean MBBs basketball is in the middle of rebuild and football has been a smoldering pile of crap for years, but when the women attain only final fours and not natties, it is time to take bold decisive strokes.

What we clearly need is study/map as to how to get the B1G or the ACC. But it can't be any study. It needs to be a formal one and done by politicians. Surely when the Big Ten of ACC presidents see it's helvetica type, fine bond paper and glossy cover they will know that we are serious.

Thank you @LoyalFanCT. Thank you for your genius. I hope that we are witnessing the start of movement.

Been saying this for years. This requires the governor and legislature to make this an economic initiative.

 

[Chief00]

I think there's a strong argument to be made that the problems reach much higher than the athletic director. I don't think Dave's been great but everything under Susie was a disaster. If things get better after she leaves, we'll know it was her. Otherwise it might be a problem with people even higher up than her.

Agree, Susie was a disaster.

 

[AAC Guru]

I appreciate your skepticism but try to give him a chance. I do not recall another UConn president who has an engineering background -- not to mention he was the No. 2 guy at the nationally respected UVA and was dean of the engineering school at Duke. Perhaps, if we can somehow turn around our men's BB and FB teams -- and field hockey and women's BB can win a few more national championships -- he can use his contacts with UVA, Duke etc. to have us reconsidered for the ACC. He has made it a priority to double federal research funding, recruit top professors, has already met with state business leaders, and no doubt is aware UConn fundraising has to get better. Either he could give clear direction to Benedict what he wants to see in athletics, or he could work with someone else in the post. As fans, we have to make it clear to the new president we want a competitive football program, as well as excellence in other sports.

Virginia and Duke hold little weight when it comes to ACC realignment. FSU, Virginia Tech, and Clemson are calling the shots.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

UConn sports does not seem to have improved with David Benedict as athletic director. UConn football was awful last season. The once mighty UConn men's basketball team was mediocre. And UConn WM basketball just lost a heart breaker to Notre Dame. The men's hockey team struggled despite having talent. Field Hockey fell apart in OT against Maryland in the NCAAs. Baseball may become our one hope. Is it time for Benedict to find another job? Isn't he supposed to give leadership to the overall program? If we don't get better soon, UConn won't even be on the radar screen if an opening comes in a P5 conference.

Are we the most bi-polar sports fans in the country? When Dave Benedict was hired we were happy...Now because WBB lost in the final 4, the MBB is bad, the FB team is terrible, and it is because of Dave? Amazing, should we fire Gino because he hasn't won a championship in 4 years? Sorry, bi-polar fans, you need to get off the ledge... I think we'll be back...as a strong G5 school.

 

[HuskyDogArt]

You have your opinion and others have theirs
Show some tolerance and understand that there are a lot of folks who are not on the DB bandwagon
I don't agree with you but I won't call your comments stupid or a fantasy
I'm glad your happy - on the other side I feel DB was a questionable hire at best - JC set up the Dan Hurley hire and a monkey could have closed that deal
Relevance is a very broad term.........

When DB was hired, 99% of the fans were happy to have an AD from a SEC school. Now people are saying that he is a bad hire. Really, we have bi-polar fans...

 

[zls44]

Staff Directory - University of Connecticut Athletics

Do a CTRL+F for the words "Assistant" and "Associate" and prepare to have your mind blown.

 

[CL82]

Staff Directory - University of Connecticut Athletics

Do a CTRL+F for the words "Assistant" and "Associate" and prepare to have your mind blown.

I posted the numbers elsewhere but our administrative cost is way above average for P5 programs. That's just nuts. I'd love to go through the AD G/L line item by line item. I'm very confident that there is a ton of waste.

 

[freescooter]

LOL. Yeah a ton of waste. I remember when John Rowland was gonna balance the star budget by eliminating waste. Reagan was going to eliminate the federal budget deficit by eliminating “fraud waste and mismanagenet.” Everybody thinks they can eliminate waste until they try. Then they discover that the waste either wasn’t there like they thought, it will actually cost MORE because it is the result of older facilities that aren’t efficient but cost a lot to upgrade, or as they say waste is in the eye of the beholder.

 

[zls44]

LOL. Yeah a ton of waste. I remember when John Rowland was gonna balance the star budget by eliminating waste. Reagan was going to eliminate the federal budget deficit by eliminating “fraud waste and mismanagenet.” Everybody thinks they can eliminate waste until they try. Then they discover that the waste either wasn’t there like they thought, it will actually cost MORE because it is the result of older facilities that aren’t efficient but cost a lot to upgrade, or as they say waste is in the eye of the beholder.

I'd usually agree, but this is a ridiculous number of associate ADs.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

I'd usually agree, but this is a ridiculous number of associate ADs.

Could be &/or a ridiculous amount of job/role title inflation; the latter’s never happened within many an organization

 

[CL82]

LOL. Yeah a ton of waste. I remember when John Rowland was gonna balance the star budget by eliminating waste. Reagan was going to eliminate the federal budget deficit by eliminating “fraud waste and mismanagenet.” Everybody thinks they can eliminate waste until they try. Then they discover that the waste either wasn’t there like they thought, it will actually cost MORE because it is the result of older facilities that aren’t efficient but cost a lot to upgrade, or as they say waste is in the eye of the beholder.

There are a whole lot of people who make a pretty decent living by identifying and eliminating "waste and mismanagement." It is easy enough to do if you roll up your sleeves and do the work. UConn's administrative costs being way higher than average is a good indication that that is the place to start.

In my experience when faced with any challenging issue there is always a group of people who will tell you it is too hard to be fixed. I've found it is best to ignore them if you want to get anything done.

 

[ThabeetDown]

UConn sports does not seem to have improved with David Benedict as athletic director. UConn football was awful last season. The once mighty UConn men's basketball team was mediocre. And UConn WM basketball just lost a heart breaker to Notre Dame. The men's hockey team struggled despite having talent. Field Hockey fell apart in OT against Maryland in the NCAAs. Baseball may become our one hope. Is it time for Benedict to find another job? Isn't he supposed to give leadership to the overall program? If we don't get better soon, UConn won't even be on the radar screen if an opening comes in a P5 conference.

Wow, you're an insufferable human being. Get a new hobby.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

Wow, you're an insufferable human being. Get a new hobby.

So I just understand, I am "insufferable" -- I assume you mean arrogant -- because a state employee, whose salary is paid by my taxes, is questioned, when he does not perform at an adequate level. So if a guy who plows the snow for the state DOT fails to plow the area on which you drive, you should not question it? I guess you do not believe in accountability of government employees. Hope you are not an elected public official.

 

[Madmannsucks]

I hate myself for even replying to this....

Football
-Inherited the Diaco mess and fired him, as he should.
-Brought in RE on the cheap
-Hasn't panned out
Grade: D (only because he fired Diaco)

Men's Basketball
-Was handed KO and successful program at time
-Personal issues in KO's life caused coaching and team to plummet.
-Let KO go through a possible loop (who knows)
-Hires Hurley
Grade: A- (Need to see more from Hurley)

W Basketball
-We have Geno
-Shut Up about us losing. Programs would kill to have a coach reach the Final Four 20 times in their career
Grade: A+ (Only because he has stayed away and let Geno be Geno)

So I'm not saying AD Dave is the right guy. Just saying he was dealt a crappy hand and outside his football hire, he's done ok with the only thing he can control, coaches.

Pretty sure I read men's and women's BB teams posted large attendance gains this past season.

 

[junglehusky]

I still think a decent first step would be a formal study to map a direction on how UConn could make it into the B10 or ACC. It may need to come from the governor's office. Once the report is available it would give ammunition to the AD as what steps need to be taken. The study could have as its premise that UConn should be on the top levels of college sports with a strong football program. That elite level would help UConn and the state in numerous indirect and direct ways. Being an elite sports program is expensive -- no question -- but in the long run it would pay for itself. Generally, public research-intensive universities are in P5 conferences. If the AD can't deliver armed with that report, he or she has to be accountable.

LMAO. Form a commission to look into the Big Ten and write a study... Why didn't anybody think of that.

 

[Sky ball]

Here's one guy that if we paid enough -- and he wouldn't come cheap -- may be able to turn things around at UConn:
Kirby Hocutt AD at Texas Tech.
Another one is Jamie Pollard AD at Iowa State.
Don't like these names please list some others.

How about Jim Delany?

 

[uconnbill]

The entire state needs a forensic audit as there is much waste everywhere.

I like Benedict as I think it was Susan Herbst who was the issue and not our AD.

 

[LoyalFanCT]

To those who are skeptical about Susan Herbst improving UConn academically, here are two recent prestigious honors that schools like Yale and Harvard brag about if their faculty/students get them:
UConn Photography Professor Awarded 2019 Guggenheim Fellowship
Akshayaa Chittibabu ’19 (CLAS) has been named a Marshall Scholar, one of the most prestigious honors available to undergraduate students in the U.S.

 

[Adios]

How is Benedict going to leave for a lower paying job if he is so bad?

 

[Willowglen]

The elephant in the room is football. A school must be competitive in all football program aspects - including a decent stadium and a television following - to meaningfully be considered for a P5 (or whatever occurs hereafter with consolidation) conference. Heck, football destroyed the Big East, for two plus decades the best collegiate basketball league ever created. As a former ACC scholarship athlete (old school, before Florida State), I cant stand that Louisville was let into the ACC. They don’t remotely fit into the league academically, (UConn would have been a great fit on that element), but Louisville spent the money on football. I am not sure what UConn can do other than stay the course in football, but it is a tough road ahead.