I'll bite, HFD.
Good read, here are my comments.
- the apr thing is a joke. We all know the measure is a joke. What's worse is we know most schools lie and make up numbers and we didn't have the balls to do the same. I get it. It's on the old administration. Since warde has been here we have not had a problem. True. But as part of getting off probation we had to have good numbers. So no matter who was in charge we were going to get good scores and report good scores. Bottom line. The so many tutors stuff is all bs. It really was. People who believe that kind of more advisors stuff are the gullible fans. The issue was kids left without finishing class. No matter how many advisors you have the kids left. What truly hurt us was perception due to apr. since warde has come here I have still yet to see us handle the situation. We actually to this day have coaches recruiting vs us saying we're still on probation. Here's a example. And sorry if this goes off a bit left but follow please. Last week while its not public until I type this, KO worked for 2 hours on Thursday in a lock gym with paschal a local recruit. Part of that was a big talk with some immediate people around his life. Another coach who I will not name has been pitching to paschal a camp that uconn was in trouble, probation and couldn't play in the ncaas. We all know here that isn't true. Because we're fans. But the public perception has never been handled so there are literally ppl that to this day do not know or understand what happened. We have dropped the ball. We have still yet to fix it. Within the past couple years PSU and tosu have both been in deep poop for different things. The apr issue was a side show issue and not a big deal. If the apr issue was at Rutgers they still would have got a b10 invite. It's a small issue but perception in college sports is what matters 2nd to only money. We fail that measure over and over. Warde as ad, has done nothing to fix that perception. No matter who was ad, we were going to fix the numbers so we could get back to the ncaas. Anyone that tells you warde brought us back from the apr depths is lying to you about what is actually involved with it. It's a joke.
-I am a fan of uconn sports. I did not go to uconn. I have more than a handful of family members who have uconn degrees or who are there now. I am family wise invested into uconn. But my 2 degrees personally are not. So I don't root for better English teachers. I get the whole AAU thing and I think it's important. I get it. AAU, research, funding and local jobs etc. go for it..go big or go home. If you want to tell me uconn has 10 dollars to spend and we can either spend 5 on the AAU, 3 on a stadium expansion and 2 on bball I would say spend all 10 on AAU for ASAP invites opportunities. But I don't hear that. So I am skeptical. I see that we're pushing for it. Good. But I can't sit here and root for that and buy tickets to that. So you have to feed fans like me elsewhere.
- they are easy yup. The recruiting grounds are just as important as Jamaica is for us football wise. The return dates are bad. They are however good brand names and TV games. I am fine playing them. My beef is that's the best warde has done. The reason they see value in uconn is because the same thing we see which is schools desperate to find TV games that can help there own resumes. That's simple. Playing San Jose st isn't going to help Boise opposed to uconn tv wise. End of story. The tenn and UVA series were already in play per warde. I already listed in this tread why Michigan did not buy out the game. It wasn't charm on a phone call from warde. Get real. Other AAC teams have scheduled BCS games. We have not under warde. He has however put Villanova and stony brook on the schedules. Impressed now? The b10 announced no more fcs programs. If there was ever a tell about where were heading, this sucks huh?
- the Florida series is a good one. It's stuff like that I have been begging for. I gave warde his due in the fl thread on the bball board for it. But we're uconn. Bball wise we should easily be able to be those games. I'm happy, but I don't see it as a major accomplishment and I think anyone who does has extremely low expectations. Get Florida for football and then we will talk...
- no one is going to travel to Barclays. Not to mention the fball game on the same night. We all know the story....I'm happy were going to be on tv yes, but there are way better times to play a bball game vs md and those would make tv also. It's a good brand matchup. No matter what happens, the nit wil not go well because fans will not be packing 1 event and be a bit split. Either the rent will look empty or the Barclays will be all red. Not to mention our on field issues fball wise....
-most ppl here got there first tastes of KO when he was named coach. A select few here have been in his camp for years. I am one of those guys. The family of players are in this camp also. Locals in the gyms(important ones) are in this camp. If you look back in threads a couple years ago you would read me sticking my chin out and KO and Kayleigh Heckel and how bright the future is. I have seen him many times in person on the trail. The past 3 classes have all been KO. JC took these guys around and made lasting connections and then gave him the keys years ago. It started with Daniels and boatshow. KO got Daniels in a 2 hr workout down in fl. It's been on ever since. Warde dragged out something that did not need to happen. I realize some here take the other side like u. To the ppl like me who saw what was going to be life under KO, we were all deeply insulted by warde. That's that. He will never be forgiven or trusted. And if u think this is silly so be it, but there is a not small group of people who put on a nice face and smile but truly would rather but a laser beam between his eyes for payback. Welcome to the woods warde. We don't play games when it comes to our special bball program up here. That's the motto down here.
- you know where I stand uconn bc ct and the dog etc. I think it's all a new fresh ploy for sales and I think it's rubbing a lot of ppl the wrong way. I also believe the state doesn't deserve to be outed name wise yet invest so much into the school. Uconn used to be a nickname and a cheer that mattered term wise. Now it's a muddy name that sounds like a mix of a community college and a commuter school. Every other school name that starts with a state laughs at us for this. The red vs blue and so on. Its all wrong. I really hope I can get a artist to get out my ideas for free and we can do some type of write up about it to show u guys what I was talking about. I think it would open eyes. I want new unis and all the cool stuff don't get me wrong. I just feel we went down the wrong path. I will leave it at that.
-the xl should not get a penny or any uconn games. That is a mistake to reap that contract. The rent I argue could either be left to die or expand it. Fixing the scoreboard is neither. Either u use it until 2025 and then knock it down for on campus or u expand it and its our home for 50 years. Dumping money into it but not expanding is the worst decision yet. That's another decision made by the crew that will bite years from now. Take that money and keep it n pocket or something. I get that the holding company wants to spend money. Pave the lots or something. Chests Christ. Put more blue chairs in instead of bleachers. Casual fans want ease and comfort. Chairs fit that. Wives don't like walking thru mud parking lots. Pave them. Then they go home and don't have to wash there sneakers. Aka they come back with husbands again. This stuff is not rocket science. But again and again we fail at it. c k the scoreboard. Knock it down and put more bleachers temp ones for all I give a dam. Who here needs to see a score anyway? We know how ugly its going to be with P.
-I already explained why Michigan held its commitment. That's the god truth. They explorer buying it out and getting another home game. All they could get was non BCS teams which would have hurt there SOS and TV stuff. So instead they lobbied for NYC but had no power to do so. It was just a pr campaign by them to save face. Remember that whole perception thing we don't get? They get it. The old ad did this deal and they now to save face made it seem like we're the bad guy. Perception is everything. They get it. We don't. Syracuse is on a much different mission then what this board thinks NYC wise. It's protecting themselves from the Sunys first off. Once they decided private vs SUNY flagship they knew the acc was there end goal and not the b10. The other thing is ny state has been pumping buffalo as a city meanwhile Cuse is trying to rebuild its city. Is a private vs public war going on quietly. Cuse has brand athletics, so they are trying to use those to gains attention in NYC which in turn will turn attention to the city of Cuse. It's a long road bc thing going on. Let them play there games. Ignore them. It does not affect us.
- warde hung out with wake Forrest. As soon as he left buffalo they decided to do the whole ny state thing. He's not the "rockstar" ppl think he's is. Many in the business think he's a phony who plays big man but has no substance to back it up. Before anyone tries to say this I will, we have a major connection as MSU in the b10. That connect is thru JC and JC made sure it stays a live even when he's not here. It has nothing to do with warde.
-U21 is very interesting what recently happened. UVA and uconn were joined by 2 b10 schools. Can con kity give us a theory? Lol
In summary, we all want uconn to be the best and play with the best and make money etc. I agree with a lot of what you say. BUT please read this and understand what I am asking. Not one person here has been able to honestly answer it yet:
What has warde done or what decision has he made that has been a good one?
If your answer is getting the 2nd best hockey coach or a fl bball series or a scoreboard at the rent or a game vs BYU then your expectations on what a uconn ad should be doing are sacre heart low. He'll the horrible JH got Michigan and Tennessee football games for Christ sake. See what I'm saying? The guy has yet to do something.
I wonder, would people here actually read a report if I wrote it up on what needs to go on? I think most here would laugh and not read it. I could take this ad and the decisions to pieces. If I had actual numbers money wise I would make this place eat crow for years. What's going on right now by warde is a fraud. Plain and simple. Susan is not good athletics wise and she bought a slick talking guys words. That is the issue. The sooner ppl get this the better.
What you wrote was a good read. I respect your input. But to be very honest you did not give me one thing warde has done that should make you, me or anyone say wow he's a good ad. That's what I'm getting at. But 99% of this board avoids answering the actual question with substance because they can't find it which is my point.
