Les Miles to Kansas Brings Immediate Relevancy and Respect

[Dooley]

Kansas - every bit a hoops school like UConn - has had enough. They're investing significant money into football to secure their place inside the power conference world, regardless of what happens in the Big 12's future. They are putting $300M into upgrading their football stadium/facilities. Now, they bring in a national champion head coach to inject some life in KU football. And they're winning national headlines in hiring Miles. We can't afford to spend $300M to upgrade the Rent...but we can absolutely positively afford to spend "Les Miles Kansas" money on a football coaching staff.

$2.8M/yr to hire Miles. That's a financial sphere that UConn has to operate in. Why should UConn continue funding all sports with a G5 leading $70M budget if it doesn't spend the money necessary to win in the one (and only) sport that moves the athletic financial needle??

 

[Pudge]

We can't

 

[huskymedic]

They also pay Jeff Long $1.5m compared to Dave Benedict’s $550k

 

[Dooley]

Yup, Kansas is being very smart with their P5/Big 12 money. Long was a good hire pulling him away from SEC country so that he can focus on improving football. Under his leadership, they've announced a very robust facility upgrade project and now a hiring of a former national champion as head coach. That is a pair of very serious football statements and it positions them VERY well for life in the Big 12 and life after the Big 12 dissolves, should that happen. They are already AAU, a basketball powerhouse like UConn, and if things go their way in football, they will put them atop the Big 10's next "wish list".

I *thought* we were doing the same here bringing Benedict from SEC country to improve football but, so far, we have continued pinching pennies and spending money on every sport BUT football. Very disappointing to watch UConn continue to position itself well outside the power conference discussion and the power conference money.

 

[huskysupporter]

Honest question - where are we going to get the type of money we need to invest in the program? Our head coach and assistants pay lags and I we don’t get p5 money?

How does a football program get the funds?

 

[JMick]

Honest question - where are we going to get the type of money we need to invest in the program? Our head coach and assistants pay lags and I we don’t get p5 money?

How does a football program get the funds?

Subsidies

 

[uconnphil2016]

Knowing next to nothing about how these things work, I wonder why we don’t just field like 6 athletic teams—men’s and women’s hockey, football, men’s and women’s basketball, and I guess field hockey and baseball. Cut the rest and invest more in revenue sports. We have tens of millions of dollars of investments that are on the brink of becoming useless—burton and shenk, as well as all of the money to get football started at FBS. We need to figure a way out to free up several million more for coaches in order to avoid having flushed over 100 mil down the toilet for nothing.

 

[Dooley]

Honest question - where are we going to get the type of money we need to invest in the program? Our head coach and assistants pay lags and I we don’t get p5 money?

How does a football program get the funds?

Not sure. But here's a pretty simple workflow I would follow if I worked in the UConn AD/BOT:

1. rank all sports that UConn sponsors in order of CR importance. Give appropriate weights to each sport. Example - Football 1 (55%); Men's Hoops 2 (30%)...

2. pay an accounting team to go line-by-line in the UConn AD budget and determine what part(s) of the $70M AD budget will be re-distributed to appropriately fund football at an appropriate FBS level, in relation to weighting determined in step 1.

3. execute step 2.

 

[huskymedic]

How does a football program get the funds?

Rich people who like football and like to feel like they own a sports franchise.

 

[Pudge]

Knowing next to nothing about how these things work, I wonder why we don’t just field like 6 athletic teams—men’s and women’s hockey, football, men’s and women’s basketball, and I guess field hockey and baseball. Cut the rest and invest more in revenue sports. We have tens of millions of dollars of investments that are on the brink of becoming useless—burton and shenk, as well as all of the money to get football started at FBS. We need to figure a way out to free up several million more for coaches in order to avoid having flushed over 100 mil down the toilet for nothing.

... when you identify yourself with that first line.

NO Institution nor major investor walks away from the Capital Investment the University of Connecticut has in College Football. It ain't going to happen. I don't know what Jeff Jacobs or a bunch of pissed off fans are thinking ... this is not a option - regardless of what Whaler11 says.

Then, no major Flagship University walks away from the non-revenue sports as you are proposing. The scholarships are there (often funded) and the cost - given the $80m total we have had - is quite small.

It is NOT tens of millions of dollars. I would say - depending on what method you use to evaluate - this is $400m plus to start.

The bright side of the road? WE have a basketball resurgence in process; that should excite all of us.

 

[Yup!]

We can't

Serious question. Who or where does it say we can’t afford to pay a HC between $2-$3m? We just signed Hurley for almost $3m a year. Don’t we bring in the most money out of all the teams in the AAC?

 

[Fishy]

I don’t think we should be emulating Kansas who bid against themselves to hire a guy that no one else wanted.

 

[Duncan Idaho]

Knowing next to nothing about how these things work, I wonder why we don’t just field like 6 athletic teams—men’s and women’s hockey, football, men’s and women’s basketball, and I guess field hockey and baseball. Cut the rest and invest more in revenue sports. We have tens of millions of dollars of investments that are on the brink of becoming useless—burton and shenk, as well as all of the money to get football started at FBS. We need to figure a way out to free up several million more for coaches in order to avoid having flushed over 100 mil down the toilet for nothing.

I think thats what alot of the B12 schools do. They carry the minimum amount of mens teams for Division 1 and try balancing out the scholarships on the women's side. So they carry maybe 16 teams total. We have 22 23?

 

[SubbaBub]

If UConn was P5, we could. We aren't, so we can't.

We have two choices.

A guy who is committed or a guy who is a risk. We have a committed guy now and can't afford taking a risk on an unknown.

Anyone who wants Edsall gone, needs to provide a realistic name.

 

[Waquoit]

If Les Miles is the answer, what is the question?

 

[J187Money]

We were paying Diaco nearly $2M per year. Edsall had been successful here. Maybe it isn't working, but I don't think it was the wrong idea. I haven't heard anyone say that if Edsall leaves or we have to fire him that we are capped at $1M - but I know people like making things up here.

Crocker didn't work out either - but he had great credentials. Sometimes you miss.

Dunn, IMHO - is doing a good job.

People just love to talk about money without having any evidence that money is actually the problem.

If the point was that we couldn't afford to fire Diaco, pay the buyout, and hire Nick Saban away from Alabama the next day? Ok, sure. But there are only like 5 programs that could afford that.

Everything I've read about Miles to Kansas says that it a truly uninspired hire. Maybe it kickstarts them to get them to the next guy, but I don't think he will do anything great there.

 

[SubbaBub]

Next year it gets easier to judge Edsall 2.0. It won't be definitive because we will still be playing nearly all underclassmen, but the D, OL, Running game, and specials all need to be better. QB/WR will be losing talent, so expect a drop off there.

If we are giving up 50/game (or 40) then it's fair to question RE2.0. Last year, Pindell was terrible. One year in the program made a huge difference as it did with the OL. Can't hold RE responsible for the Defensive failings of true freshmen or the fact that no one could displace them in the line up.

Randy's clock starts next September.

 

[junglehusky]

Yup, Kansas is being very smart with their P5/Big 12 money. Long was a good hire pulling him away from SEC country so that he can focus on improving football. Under his leadership, they've announced a very robust facility upgrade project and now a hiring of a former national champion as head coach. That is a pair of very serious football statements and it positions them VERY well for life in the Big 12 and life after the Big 12 dissolves, should that happen. They are already AAU, a basketball powerhouse like UConn, and if things go their way in football, they will put them atop the Big 10's next "wish list".

I *thought* we were doing the same here bringing Benedict from SEC country to improve football but, so far, we have continued pinching pennies and spending money on every sport BUT football. Very disappointing to watch UConn continue to position itself well outside the power conference discussion and the power conference money.

It's almost like we're not in a power conference and don't have the money that comes with it.

 

[Dooley]

It's almost like we're not in a power conference and don't have the money that comes with it.

And how do we get into a power conference and get that money that comes with it? Hint: it's not by spending $45M to build a part-time hockey arena.

 

[Ldandy]

Knowing next to nothing about how these things work, I wonder why we don’t just field like 6 athletic teams—men’s and women’s hockey, football, men’s and women’s basketball, and I guess field hockey and baseball. Cut the rest and invest more in revenue sports. We have tens of millions of dollars of investments that are on the brink of becoming useless—burton and shenk, as well as all of the money to get football started at FBS. We need to figure a way out to free up several million more for coaches in order to avoid having flushed over 100 mil down the toilet for nothing.

Title 9 would make it impossible to keep football and its 85 scholarships and cut a bunch of women's sports.

 

[Jimmy Serrano]

Kansas - every bit a hoops school like UConn - has had enough. They're investing significant money into football to secure their place inside the power conference world, regardless of what happens in the Big 12's future. They are putting $300M into upgrading their football stadium/facilities. Now, they bring in a national champion head coach to inject some life in KU football. And they're winning national headlines in hiring Miles. We can't afford to spend $300M to upgrade the Rent...but we can absolutely positively afford to spend "Les Miles Kansas" money on a football coaching staff.

$2.8M/yr to hire Miles. That's a financial sphere that UConn has to operate in. Why should UConn continue funding all sports with a G5 leading $70M budget if it doesn't spend the money necessary to win in the one (and only) sport that moves the athletic financial needle??

The only statement that Kansas made is that they are insane for hiring Les Miles.

 

[ibleedhuskyblue]

If Les Miles is the answer, what is the question?

"Who is the SEC version of Randy ?" for $200