The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

[sfjacksfan99]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

I made a call to Mike and Craig and asked them why no one was asking the same questions of USD that were asked repeatedly at SDSU. At the time I made that call I wasn't fully aware of the fact that Mike and Craig were so opposed to the DI move that they had checked out so I got crap for answers.

Your call to Craig is classic Craig. "It's my show and I'll bully you around and interrupt you even if your points are legit and if I don't agree with them"

I have no respect for Craig Mattick and his views of D-1 athletics. In his little KWSN world, his preference would be to talk about his beloved NAIA and below, with his occasional poke at SDSU. I don't know where his disdain for SDSU started, but it was even before they went D-1. I could go on for days with examples of his complete lack of knowledge and disregard to the D-1 world. My wonder is if he will give his little pokes at USD beginning next year, or if he will make excuses for them as the only higher lever school than USF that he pays attention to and coddles is USD.

[Jack4Life]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Your call to Craig is classic Craig. "It's my show and I'll bully you around and interrupt you even if your points are legit and if I don't agree with them"

I have no respect for Craig Mattick and his views of D-1 athletics. In his little KWSN world, his preference would be to talk about his beloved NAIA and below, with his occasional poke at SDSU. I don't know where his disdain for SDSU started, but it was even before they went D-1. I could go on for days with examples of his complete lack of knowledge and disregard to the D-1 world. My wonder is if he will give his little pokes at USD beginning next year, or if he will make excuses for them as the only higher lever school than USF that he pays attention to and coddles is USD.

As Mattick says, if you don't agree, change the station. I did, and have not gone back in over a year except for maybe one time. It is a low-rent show that has no knowledge of what is happening in the area. Other than his NAIA and Udot love, he knows very little about college athletics. The last I listened, they did cover HS sports pretty well for the SF area. I have also wondered what his sour feelings against SDSU stems from. Even when Hendrickson was on the air (who I believe had a daughter or son graduate from SDSU), they couldn't bash SDSU enough. Basically if they didn't think it was a good idea, they wouldn't accept anyone other opinions.

[Yote53]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Again, a major flaw in the approach to transition. You've made several huge assumptions that are in error. USD and its fans/supporters don't need to worry about what supporters of other programs think. It doesn't matter if Joe Blow from SDSU thinks USD has a shot at DI or not. All that matters is whether USD has a solid plan in place and even then they probably need to catch some breaks. There is a good chance, no great chance, that some of the breaks they need to catch are going to come through SDSU.

The smack your catching as a USD fan has to do with the lack of transparency as it applies to the transition. Abbott himself told me the funds were in place for scholarships and infrastructure but when I asked him specifically about numbers, facilities, conference affiliation, etc.. he simply repeated that things were in place.

I made a call to Mike and Craig and asked them why no one was asking the same questions of USD that were asked repeatedly at SDSU. At the time I made that call I wasn't fully aware of the fact that Mike and Craig were so opposed to the DI move that they had checked out so I got crap for answers.

Here is what I've heard. A new building will be going up just south of the dome. That building will provide facilities for basketball and volleyball. I assume that means practice and games. Coach Ed says scholarships for football will be at 57 this year and 63 by the next year allowing them to then schedule a money game. FB has the Great West Conference for now. I've not heard about BB or VB trying to find a home. Track, both men's and women's will be the sports on the "fast track" to post-season eligibility. Good move IMHO.

Abbott says "the money is in place". I don't doubt him. The USD foundation has had great success raising money through alumni donations. I do wonder, as other here have, about corporate support. I don't worry about it I just wonder.

The thing that gets under the skin of some of you USD guys is the fact that we just don't give a damn if we ever play you again. If USD fan doesn't realize that a transition even partially as successful as SDSU's has been would be great for USD, I'm not sure I can help that guy. Hope is not a viable plan.

JackMD this was a great post. This is exactly what is going on from the new facility to the increase in scholarships, and that is a typical Jim Abbott response. I will say this, the guy is no fool, he's scary good at finding money and having connections. So when he says it's taken care of, I tend to believe him. I believe USD does have the cash, what is killing SDSU fans is they want to know, dollar for dollar, where it is coming from. It seems you can't believe that ANYONE would give money to USD. I agree they could be more transparent, but then the University has never really been that transparent in how they conduct their business. The buildings they are constructing on campus now are perfect examples. They announce the plans and then they build it.

You State fans are pretty good at finding things out. Can anybody here find out the size of the USD Foundation? What are their endowments at and how does the USD Foundation compare to the other 3 Dakota schools? Links to documents would be nice.

Another thing, I did get a letter a month or so back about how the fundraising for athletics was going to be structured. I don't remember the specifics. I guess the point is that there are plans in place, they just don't get publicized as much as some here would like.

Finally, I don't care what fans of other schools think. It really doesn't phase me any to hear fans of either of the XDSU's shout about never playing the U schools again, or setting some moratorium on number of years before we compete, because it doesn't matter what you think, just like it doesn't matter to USD what I think. Until I hear an official from either XDSU come out and say "We will not play" or "We will block any move by UXD to get in our conference" I am not going to worry about it. I'll never have to worry about it, because about the time a statement like that is made is about the same time the phone from the BOR is going to ring and someone's losing a job. So I don't really have to care if we do play again, we will, just give it time. I'll also add that I think you care more than you want to admit, whether it's driven by an affinity for a fellow state school or hate, probably hate, you still care, as evidenced by this 29 page thread, along with the many others on this board, dedicated to the discussion of USD athletics.

[jackrabit1]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Actually, it's 29 pages... that wonderful USD education at work, I see!

And have you noticed that the largest threads are in the "Smack" section? You guys just make it too easy to make fun of you!

By the way, how's that baseball team doing?

[Yote53]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Amended my post to 29 pages just for you, jackrabit1.

You're Coyote Baseball smack is old and played, kind of like SDSU V LaCrosse smack. Notice we quit playing that card long ago, maybe you should follow suit.

[MilwaukeeJacksAlum]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

JackMD this was a great post. This is exactly what is going on from the new facility to the increase in scholarships, and that is a typical Jim Abbott response. I will say this, the guy is no fool, he's scary good at finding money and having connections. So when he says it's taken care of, I tend to believe him. I believe USD does have the cash, what is killing SDSU fans is they want to know, dollar for dollar, where it is coming from. It seems you can't believe that ANYONE would give money to USD. I agree they could be more transparent, but then the University has never really been that transparent in how they conduct their business. The buildings they are constructing on campus now are perfect examples. They announce the plans and then they build it.

You State fans are pretty good at finding things out. Can anybody here find out the size of the USD Foundation? What are their endowments at and how does the USD Foundation compare to the other 3 Dakota schools? Links to documents would be nice.

Another thing, I did get a letter a month or so back about how the fundraising for athletics was going to be structured. I don't remember the specifics. I guess the point is that there are plans in place, they just don't get publicized as much as some here would like.

Finally, I don't care what fans of other schools think. It really doesn't phase me any to hear fans of either of the XDSU's shout about never playing the U schools again, or setting some moratorium on number of years before we compete, because it doesn't matter what you think, just like it doesn't matter to USD what I think. Until I hear an official from either XDSU come out and say "We will not play" or "We will block any move by UXD to get in our conference" I am not going to worry about it. I'll never have to worry about it, because about the time a statement like that is made is about the same time the phone from the BOR is going to ring and someone's losing a job. So I don't really have to care if we do play again, we will, just give it time. I'll also add that I think you care more than you want to admit, whether it's driven by an affinity for a fellow state school or hate, probably hate, you still care, as evidenced by this 29 page thread, along with the many others on this board, dedicated to the discussion of USD athletics.

CoyoteFan could learn from that post and probably would get much less caustic responses if he did so. I understand it's the smack section, but many well-intended and logical questions were asked about USD's financial plans moving forward. The questions were asked because we know how difficult it is to raise funds.

I will say that I think USD will benefit in fundraising by SDSU's relative success so far in the D1 world. If I was a USD fan, I would be more compelled to give to USD if only so I could help USD get to SDSU's level and hopefully beat them at their own game. Also, USD has some deep pockets to dig into. USD is in full "scorned girlfriend" mode at this point. She is going to lose that 20 pounds and start working out again to show her boyfriend (SDSU in this comparison) what he lost. I think Jim Abbott is going to use that sort of feeling to his advantage and will likely be successful in doing so.

The one question that's not answered in that is where are the new women's scholarships going to come from? What sports are they going to use to come up with the 30 or so scholarships they'll need to be Title IX compliant? That is a more interesting question to me than where the money is coming from.

[jackrabit1]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Okay, how's the wrestling teams and men's tennis teams doing?

[Yote53]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Okay, how's the wrestling teams and men's tennis teams doing?

LOL. You guys never quit.

[EQguy]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Let me ask this. Does it matter who got to 63 FB scholarships faster? Does someone get a DI trophy for getting to 63 the fastest?

There are several paths to fully funding football. Our athletic department had their vision and did it their way. Their department is going to do it their way and if its wrong or convoluted it will show itself sooner or later.

[jackmd]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Its foolish to assume that the administration of USD doesn't have a plan in place to get them through transition. Its equally as foolish to assume that our successful transition thus far guarantees anything for USD. Lastly, as I've said so many times before, any degree of relative success, mediocrity, or outright failure at the DII level does not necessarily translate to DI. Its a completely different ball game.

[Hammersmith]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

You State fans are pretty good at finding things out. Can anybody here find out the size of the USD Foundation? What are their endowments at and how does the USD Foundation compare to the other 3 Dakota schools? Links to documents would be nice.

Some of these figures aren't exactly apples to apples, but they're close. The total assets are easy enough to find, but the endowment numbers are a little tougher.

Endowments:
UND: $125,573,397
USD: $119,000,000(approx)
NDSU: $96,012,671
SDSU: $77,000,000(approx)

Foundation Total Assets:
UND: $205,540,982
USD: $184,034,889
NDSU: $142,789,460
SDSU: $120,000,000(approx)

References:
USD: USD Foundation Annual Report, USD Foundation FY07 Press Release
UND: NDUS Financial Report 2007
NDSU: see above
SDSU: SDSU Foundation Press Release for Retiring President(Dec '07)

[1stRowFANatic]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

I did a quick skim through the report Nidaros linked to and it had a chart showing the max schollies for sports in D1 and D2. If my math was correct (I did not use a calculator), if USD went to the max D1 from the max in D2 in the women's sports listed, it would be an increase of 31.8. If they increase 27 in football and 3 in men's basketball that would leave them 1.8 more for women. I think that should suffice for one prong of the three prong test for Title 9, which I believe is all required by the federal law. It is my understanding that the SD Board of Regents has required that SD institutions meet all the tests under Title 9. I readily admit that I do not know enough about the law to comment how each prong is applied, but it looks like to me that they could make it without adding any women's sports.

[JimmyJack]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

SDSU fans will be waiting for USD to fail miserably. Enjoy your wait.

Don't mistake the passions of this smack board for any great hope among SDSU fans that USD fails. You'll struggle in transition for a while, but I'm sure your coaches and student athletes will adjust. I hope USD has a successful transition because it matters to me that the student athletes have a good experience (many of them are South Dakota kids and all of them deserve to get a good education and compete at the D1 level). If they're not playing SDSU (and they won't be for a good bit of time) why should I root against them?

I'd say Coyote_Fan has been realistic about the situation. We've had fun with him when he claimed that DII and FCS are equivalent (talk to us again after you've dealt with Dally and Barden from Cal Poly). But generally, he's not viewing USD's prospects with rose-colored glasses. In fact, he has taken a good bit of flack from USD fans for being too negative.

SDSU has made it a bit easier for USD by removing the novelty from the move up. The media is far less interested in USD's every move because they assume that there are smart people at USD who can figure this out. I don't always like the way they do things (they'll have to step up their event management, including security) but I'm going to take a wait-and-see attitude here.

Sorry if that's not smacky enough. I'm too tired to duke it out right now.

[Coyote_Fan]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

I'm one who is not interested in the failure of an institution.

But...I am looking forward to seeing whether some of your predictions, CoyoteFan, will be close to the actual facts. Sixty-three scholarships in half the time of SDSU? Yeah, right. The old cliche' "time will tell" applies and the actual facts will unfold before us all in the next few years.

I don't think you should make any big bets on your predictions, CoyoteFan.

JackJD,

Please quote me on those predictions that you are talking about. I am not quite sure what you are getting at exactly.

[Coyote_Fan]

Re: The Official USD to D-I Smack Thread

Again, a major flaw in the approach to transition. You've made several huge assumptions that are in error. USD and its fans/supporters don't need to worry about what supporters of other programs think. It doesn't matter if Joe Blow from SDSU thinks USD has a shot at DI or not. All that matters is whether USD has a solid plan in place and even then they probably need to catch some breaks. There is a good chance, no great chance, that some of the breaks they need to catch are going to come through SDSU.

The smack your catching as a USD fan has to do with the lack of transparency as it applies to the transition. Abbott himself told me the funds were in place for scholarships and infrastructure but when I asked him specifically about numbers, facilities, conference affiliation, etc.. he simply repeated that things were in place.

I made a call to Mike and Craig and asked them why no one was asking the same questions of USD that were asked repeatedly at SDSU. At the time I made that call I wasn't fully aware of the fact that Mike and Craig were so opposed to the DI move that they had checked out so I got crap for answers.

Here is what I've heard. A new building will be going up just south of the dome. That building will provide facilities for basketball and volleyball. I assume that means practice and games. Coach Ed says scholarships for football will be at 57 this year and 63 by the next year allowing them to then schedule a money game. FB has the Great West Conference for now. I've not heard about BB or VB trying to find a home. Track, both men's and women's will be the sports on the "fast track" to post-season eligibility. Good move IMHO.

Abbott says "the money is in place". I don't doubt him. The USD foundation has had great success raising money through alumni donations. I do wonder, as other here have, about corporate support. I don't worry about it I just wonder.

The thing that gets under the skin of some of you USD guys is the fact that we just don't give a damn if we ever play you again. If USD fan doesn't realize that a transition even partially as successful as SDSU's has been would be great for USD, I'm not sure I can help that guy. Hope is not a viable plan.

Finally a reasonable post from an SDSU fan. Your questions are legitimate and most of those questions I have myself. We are just going to have to see how things play out. As far as we know maybe USD has a reason for keeping their exact plans in secret right now. I wish they would be more public about more specifics with the move but maybe there is a reason. I will give USD the benefit of the doubt. I am assuming a respected institution knows what they are doing and has a plan. Sure I would like to know more but I don't need to know in the long run as long as things are being taken care of.

I would like to see general improvement in some areas of the athletic department but as critical as I am towards things I do realise that since Joel Nielson took over the success of athletics has generally gone up. In football and basketball most fans consider them to be slightly disappointing. 10-20 years ago those same seasons would have been considered successfull. It used to be that 2 of the 3 highest profile sports were always bad but now all three are looking pretty good. Nielson and Abbott as a combination are better than any other combo that I have seen since I have been a fan (since the early 90's).