Mar 15 / Todd

Our List of Demands

Rob and I have spent three plus years somehow trying to get up three posts a week, having a great time becoming better fans, meeting a lot of fellow Dukes, and often being mocked by our wives and close friends for this little hobby.  We’re not pros by any stretch and this is absolutely a pure labor of love.  So it goes without saying that this week, with the Dukes breaching the perimeter of relevance on the national college sports landscape, is one of the happiest, and to some extent, validating, periods since we started JMUSB.  We could easily spend the whole week writing sanctimonious stories and thanking those that have helped us along.  But we’d be remiss if we didn’t use a little bit of this window of opportunity, when we may have the attention of a few in the JMU community, to highlight a few concerns.  No frills, no links, no pictures, just a few thoughts we hope some of our newer or casual readers will join us in pondering, maybe even advocating, about.  While this seems certain to provoke a few of our regulars into rising to the defense of the bigwigs they get to hobnob with, we have no such relationships and someone has to hold the administration accountable for some of the failings of leadership in the Athletics Department.  We’ll get back to all the fun of constant Agent Steinzz coverage in the Washington Post, having the ability to spark memes in minutes like #lasttimeJMUwentdancing, and smugly making jokes at the expense of other CAA schools.

But when we’re all purpling out, and especially as we inaugurate President Alger today, keep in mind the following items:

1) Our basketball coach, Matt Brady, who is now the darling of the dance, is currently working without a contract beyond April 8 (the title game of course) because the administration is too friggin’ tight to risk any kind of a decision.  If Brady bolts for the open job at his alma mater Siena, we wouldn’t blame him and this one would be entirely on Athletic Director Jeff Bourne, and probably even more on his overlord, VP/CFO Charlie King.  They refused to fire him last summer when they would have had to pay a buyout, but they also refused to extend him and left him in lame duck status out of fear of having to buy him out this spring.  Now they’ve presumably hamstrung his recruiting and left him with a bittersweet taste in his mouth during what should be a glorious time.  And while fans may have been calling for Brady’s head, it’s now clear his recruiting class was top quality and the man can really coach.  Those two pay too much attention to popular opinion and dollars and cents and not enough to what coaches are doing to recruit and develop their programs.  (Also, to the Professor who sent the Dart in the Breeze re: Brady’s bonus for winning the CAA, we’d just like to quote Jim Calhoun: “what was the take tonight?!”  Or in other words, how much notoriety and massively increased morale did your course bring to JMU this week? It’s a market economy and we’re cheap enough already without also trimming standard clauses from coach’s contracts).

2) On that note, as long as Athletics reports up through Finance and has an affable, but seemingly powerless figurehead like the AD, your’re going to get nonsense like this.  And…

3) Road playoff games at Easter f’in Kentucky when you just spent $68 million on a new stadium and shouldn’t have been outbid for a home game by any school not coached by Nick Saban.

4) Rumors the JMU Pep Band won’t join the team if they end up in Dayton’s play-in games.  Class time doesn’t seem to be an issue for the teams and cheerleaders, but suddenly these guys and gals, the best fans and representatives of JMU we have, can’t handle it?! Or could it be the old penny-wise-pound-foolish ways again where an administration is missing the point that THIS is what those kids will remember from their four years and THIS is an opportunity to showcase our world-class university in a manner we hardly ever get to avail ourselves of?

5) The UTTER lack of vision and expression regarding the future of JMU athletics.  Specifically the future of the football program.  We long thought $68 million spoke for itself but here we sit in a crumbling CAA and FCS, while ODU has rolled right past us and App. St. and Ga. Southern seem destined to do the same, further weakening FCS into D2.  Rob and I differ slightly in our opinions of the costs and benefits of moving up or staying put, but we never disagree that the failure to lead by taking a position is becoming a concern.  And not just for athletics, but the university as a whole.  If you don’t believe the money, the risks, and future of football as a sustainable college sport are worth making the jump, then say so.  If you think it will hurt our academic mission and/or piss off the ivory tower too much, we get it.  But have the balls to say so.  Don’t feed us a bunch of bullshit about “monitoring the situation” or “peer institutions” when there is hardly a thing resembling a “peer” in terms of our new and remaining CAA brethren.

6) On the flip side, you spent all that money on a stadium (partially under the guise of needing it for graduation of the now-enormous student body even though you’ve bait n’ switched the student body and their families on that now too), yet you seem to allow the football program to continue largely adrift and unaccountable.  Maybe we’re naive, but it sure looks like we have all the trappings of a big-time program (arrests, coach-hiring craziness, recruiting wars, a tailgating scene, and a slew of boosters who think they’re more important than they are) without the rewards (television contracts, bowl games), the relevance, or most importantly the success (getting to be a long time since ’08 and even longer since ’04).  The sands are still shifting, but it sure feels like things are settling down again and JMU will be one of the last ones left without a chair.  Like most HUGE decisions in life that come with high risks and rewards, there’s probably never going to be a “perfect time” or a “perfect situation” and you need to make a move if that’s what you think is best.  If that means a less prestigious conference than some of the big boys, a difficult logistical challenge for other sports, and blowback from academia, have the balls to deal with it and be confident in your decisions.

In any case, as we formally welcome Mr. Alger into office, we humbly ask the administration for better.  Because we’re just dorky, middle-aged sports bloggers, we’ll let Goethe say it best: Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.  (That’s for Dr. Cash and Dr. Facknitz)

25 Comments

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  1. Dukie95 / Mar 15 2013

    Nothing but love for both of you, but I’ve been enjoying this period of fun where we can forget about having no OC, no FBS invite, no free nuggets against UNCW…this is more of an April topic, I think.

  2. jmu04 / Mar 15 2013

    great piece! we have seen firsthand this week what a national stage can do for our university. put us on a national stage more often, administrators! extend brady, like today, and get us playing at the top level of college football. doors wide open, no more letting them shut on our faces again!

  3. FormerDukeBlocker / Mar 15 2013

    Great post. Well said, but all the responsibility for what needs to be done is completely on the President of the University. We will see if he truly has what it takes to lead JMU into a successful future.

  4. Shady_P / Mar 15 2013

    GREAT POST and I cannot agree more. With a new President (well actually Alger has been president for almost a year) it is time for him to take the bull by the horn and clearly define the athletic direction of JMU. A robust and successful athletic program can do more for JMU at this point in time than anything else. The media exposure from the CAA title should open the eyes of the Powers that BE at JMU.

    The way JMU left Coach Brady hanging in the breeze for the last 12 months is crazy. The impact a lame-duck coach can have on recruiting is major. I just hope it did not impact JMU too bad.

    No matter where JMU ends up playing its first NCAA game the JMU PEP BAND deserves to be there along with the Cheerleaders and Dukettes. Without the PEP BAND the Convo would be dead – they are hands down the best PEP BAND in the CAA and one of the best around. Give them there due too – they deserve it.

    Also, forget the wait and see attitude. Right now JMU (Bourne/King or whoever is in charge of the athletic department) should be doing everything possible to get all sports but football an invite to the Atlantic-10 after they get gutted by the Cathloic-7. Those schools fit out demographic/culture/region far better than what will be left of the CAA. The Atlantic-10 wanted JMU too when Richmond left for the A-10 and JMU took the wait and see approach. Lets not make that mistake again. Be proactive. Football will be ok (can stay in CAA like Richmond) or move on elsewhere.

  5. Sean / Mar 15 2013

    Nothing I love more than your response to the Professor dart. Not to be “That Dude” but I had some opportunities at what some see as better academic schools but I wanted a school with school spirit and where I can enjoy sporting events. That place was JMU so that is at least one example of sports being the front porch to a university and the athletics attracting students. Brady and Matthews earn their contracts.

  6. Shady_P / Mar 15 2013

    And can we please finalize in order or importance:
    1. Get Matt Brady a new contract. (should have happened this week)
    2. Hire a freaking OC for football. (should already be a done deal)

  7. Dukeman / Mar 15 2013

    This the first step towards getting better

    Very well said, going places that most do not have the courage to go.

    We need to change the paradigms at JMU – we should be more relevant, we should be big time, we need human capital, this should not be a small quiet southern college. Lets build something.

  8. 2004 Duke / Mar 15 2013

    ” Or in other words, how much notoriety and massively increased morale did your course bring to JMU this week?”

    #bestcomebackever

    I absolutely HATE haughty professors. I bet you anything it was some tool in the humanities department. I’m with shady- if I wanted to study under elitiest professors, I would have gone to Princeton. I came to JMU to get a degree and tailgate for the next 40 years.

  9. BSKB 24 / Mar 15 2013

    It is a “Yeah, but” world in which we live. Personally, I am basking in the glory of this wondrous occasion. Enjoying the ride, so to speak. You, on the other hand are taking advantage of it to point out everything you think is wrong with JMU athletics. Why not give the administration an opportunity to work out a good contract with Coach Brady on their mutual timeline. Brady has enough on his plate this week without the distraction of renegotiating his contract. Did you see the article today where he said he has only had 7 hours sleep in the past 3 days?

  10. maddukes98 / Mar 15 2013

    To be fair, the Dart was from a “frustrated staff member” who couldn’t make ends meet. I am guessing it wasn’t from an elitist professor, it was probably someone from an administrative or other support staff. Having said that, $20K is not really that much for doing something that hasn’t been done in 19 years. #GetOverIt

  11. Coach Priz / Mar 15 2013

    I agree with most of what you said except I need to clear up a bit of (I think) misinformation.

    If JMU and the CAA follow the rules of Texas and the Big 12, any money earned from the Dayton is split among the league after the costs of traveling to the game. This would suggest JMU would be better off by flying the pep band to Dayton since they have to split whatever is left over with the CAA. Texas rewarded it’s players, band, student mamagers etc with gifts and hotel rooms (all NCAA legal) and had this as part of the cost of the trip. THe fact that JMU isn’t letting the pep band go suggests that JMU either really does think the Pep band needs to attend classes or they don’t understand finances very well.

  12. JMUskinsfan07 / Mar 15 2013

    Great post and I really hope this manages to find it’s way in front of some of the people in the administration.

    The way that Bourne has handled the Men’s Basketball program has been borderline negligent. There is absolutely no excuse for having Brady go into this season as a lame duck. I can’t imagine this didn’t have a significant impact on Brady’s ability to recruit the incoming classes.

    I won’t even get into the football program. I’ve become fed up with the lack of communication from the Athletics Department about the overall vision for the future. They spend millions of dollars to upgrade half of the stadium, only to sit on their hands and not even communicate with the fanbase/alum’s about the plans going forward. I’m fed up with the “monitoring the situation” BS.

  13. SunChase / Mar 15 2013

    I guess I have a couple things to say in response to this post, which first and foremost raises a LOT of good points. But in the interest of time, I’ll stick to basketball.

    It is my position, and has been for a long time, that Brady deserves a contract. At least another five years. Personally, I’d give him seven. I’d be okay with more. If I discussed this with administrators and Athletics staff, I assume a couple would ask me if I’m planning on putting myself through rehab soon.

    I remember coming back from spring break last year and finding out that JMU had passed on re-upping Brady’s contract going into his final year. I flipped shit- I couldn’t believe they had left him to recruit in a defining year for basketball without an extension. But they were throwing down the gauntlet, and sending the message that if he wanted to stay here, he better produce this year. Needless to say, Brady picked the gauntlet up off the ground, took a shit in it, and threw it back at the administration like it was a grenade.

    Pay the man. And I’m not just talking about the 20 large Matt gets (and deserves) for coaching his ass off and winning a conference championship/NCAA bid. I’m talking about locking him in. Putting a face to JMU basketball. Establish a program. Stop with the musical chairs. If they would have done what I said suggested in a rather salty column I wrote after said spring break last year and signed him to a 1-2 year extension before this season, they wouldn’t be in this situation right now.

    Instead, now Brady has ALL the bargaining power. He’s as gracious a guy that ever was, and is working his butt off this week, trying to make the most out of the media opportunities that are LITERALLY popping out of thin air for JMU Basketball. And if I know him, he’s not really thinking contract stuff. He probably had a chuckle, and feels vindicated. But he knows what this team has an opportunity to do (given the right matchup) come next week and is focused on THAT. and damn it if that isn’t why he’s the right coach to begin with, and has been all along.

    So pay the man. He accepted your challenge, Jeff Bourne, and rose to and beyond it. 20-win season. Conference champions. And, going forward, the potential to launch one of the most monumental upsets in NCAA history.

    I am aware that JB and Brady have talked about an extension, though I don’t know how deep the conversation went. Brady refuses to address it with media because he’s focusing on more important things, which I’m completely okay with. I’m only hoping the new contract gives MB more than enough to change any wafting thoughts he might have on taking the open position at Siena, his alma mater.

    Seth Greenberg (via Mark Selig) said it best. JMU should be concerned with locking Brady up pretty soon. He’s produced three 20-win seasons in the last five years. When was the last time that happened?

  14. Rob / Mar 15 2013

    Todd and I don’t always agree on everything, but we both love JMU and I think he does a great job here of making his points here. Even if you don’t agree with him on everything, give him credit for putting it out there and having an opinion. I think he brings up some things that we as fans should at least discuss.

    Of the two of us, I’ve probably been more of a Brady apologist. And while I thought they should have extended him last year, maybe I should give Bourne some credit for motivating him a bit. I’d like to think that Brady would have done a great job this year anyway, but a small part of me thinks that he might have stepped his game up and done things differently this year since his back was against the wall (bringing in Deane for ex.). Regardless, I like him a lot and hope he re-ups with JMU.

  15. Todd / Mar 15 2013

    Thanks everyone for the support and critiques. In either case, Dukeman is correct that this type of discussion is the first step towards bigger things.

    BSKB – We sincerely respect your perspective over on the Boards and in the matter of negotiating this week, and you’re definitely correct about that in the immediate. We don’t think there’s a ton wrong with JMU Athletics and as late 90’s grads, we are constantly amazed at the positive transformation that has occured just since our time. We just think someone needed to do more than simple cheerleading and backslapping this week.

  16. Jake / Mar 15 2013

    Please, please, please fire Jeff Bourne. When you have to send out an apology letter to the JMU nation for screwing up your job so badly (playoff hosting), you should be fired. I agree it starts at the top with the President, but getting the right people in place around you is essential to driving the bus in the right direction.

    That being said, the last 10 years have been a good time to be a JMU sports fan. National Championship, Beat VT, Going to the Dance.

    GO DUKES

  17. Todd / Mar 15 2013

    Quick update: We have been informed that some of the EKU fiasco was due to the Colonels’ conference, the OVC, kicking in extra money to the bid that year. While that “may” partially excuse the actions of our administration in that particular instance, that also means the Ohio Valley Conference is doing more for its members than the CAA is for JMU. Just sayin’

  18. Ray Cilimberg / Mar 16 2013

    Good article and discussion guys. There is so much about the EKU bid that you don’t know or you would be less critical. JMU has bid on many a playoff game. Our guys knew what they were doing.

    EKU and the OVC over paid for the game and took a big loss to do so. They had less than 3,000 people at the game which would have been less without JMU fans. They knew the first round was the only round they had the chance to win and put all their chips in for that round.

    JMU had large bids for home games on weekends not called Thanksgiving when students were out and VT was playing UVA an hour away. That being said, JMU’s bid more than double the minimum required. This would have won the bid against any school accept EKU & the OVC kick in money. The bid had to be placed 3-4 weeks prior to the end of the season. The expected first round opponent was a MEAC, Big South or NEC school some of which would not even bid to host.

    2011 was only the second year of the play in round. There wasn’t much history to go on. Considering the presumed make up of the participating schools, JMU made a strong bid to host. It is great to sit in the seat of decision maker after the fact and criticize people for making a good bid on a game that was going to be a tough draw. I feel you and everyone else who complains about losing the bid to EKU is so disconnected with the process tht their opinion lacks objectivity. If I were sitting in the chair of the decision maker at the time the decision was being made, I would have done the same thing.

    Jeff Bourne apologized because he is a stand up guy and genuinely felt bad for the JMU Nation. In my eyes, he never needed to do so. The decision that was made was a solid one.

  19. Ray Cilimberg / Mar 16 2013

    I am 100% in agreement with your comment about Charlie King running athletics. Charlie has been a tremendous asset to JMU during his tenure here. He is the man behind the growth of the physical plant and has been instrumental in building what is one of the most visually beautiful campuses in the country. I have nothing but respect and praise for the work he has done.

    All this being said, Charlie should not be running athletics. As an outsider, I don’t see personnel as being one of his strengths. Hiring coaches is the single most important job of an AD. Of all the Virginia schools, I feel Jim Miller at UR is probably the best at finding talented coaches and hiring them. Sure VCU has done a good job with men’s basketball coaches but Miller for me is the best.

    I honestly do not know how good Jeff Bourne would be because he has never been given the opportunity to run the athletics department on his own. I am pretty sure he would love the opportunity to do so. If he fails, he would be the first guy to accept responsibility for HIS decisions and accept the consequences of them.

    Mr. Alger is fully engaged in the university and appears to be well liked by the faculty and staff. He needed a year to get his feet under him and access priorities. Athletics should not have been number one on his list. I do think giving the AD authority to run athletics should be done now if not sooner. If Jeff is not successful, then bring in another guy. Either way, the VP of Finance should not be your decision maker nor should he be involved in athletics at all other than budgeting meetings with the AD and President.

  20. Ray Cilimberg / Mar 16 2013

    Who is to say Matt Brady wants to negotiate a new contract right now? It is in his best interest to wait. With every win, his value goes up. JMU’s administration had the opportunity to extend him last year and chose to not do so. They were unsure that Matt was their guy. Now they want him and so does the rest of JMU Nation. Funny how winning a CAA title all of the sudden made Matt a good coach.

    IMO, the contract delays are coming from Matt and not JMU and I am pretty sure I am right. The Administration gave Matt one more year to prove himself hoping he would be successful but also giving them the ability to move on without a buyout. That decision means Matt is going to get a better contract than he would have gotten last year. JMU likely is okay with that because it means JMU is getting the exposure it wants from its men’s basketball program. It also hopefully means the community buys tickets in the convo next year and recruiting gets a bump as well. The timing could not be better in that regard as JMU has five scholarships available assuming Semenov gets a sixth year of eligibility.

    You can spin the contract situation however you want but the big picture is that JMU and Matt Brady are both likely going to win which is the best possible outcome any of us could have hoped for a year ago.

  21. TheDudeWithTheJMUTat / Mar 16 2013

    Excellent points. Honestly, I think you should market this site on the zone more often. There are probably 2,000 unique viewers every 2 or 3 days on there. Now that we have the casual fan’s attention, now is the time to strike with our demands. Now is the time to call Bourne out for his lack of transparency. Our fellow Alumni need to speak up. There is power in numbers, and we’re finally getting those numbers.

    DUKES

  22. Dukes80 / Mar 17 2013

    Love what you guys do. I hope everyone’s as passionate about supporting the Duke Club as they are about posting. We’d welcome and need all boosters we can get …..who are very important. BTW, JMU gets a total of 200 tickets for Dayton, Pep Band is beyond awesome but that makes it tough.

  23. SwimJMU / Mar 18 2013

    As a former member of one of the two dozen ‘lesser’ sports teams who enjoyed sustained success prior to being cut for more investment in football/basketball (the Title IX excuse was a ruse), I’m excited to see JMU succeed and finally make it back to the dance.
    It is, of course, only 12 short years after they cut scholarship funding from the other sports…twelve years…to win a weak conference…just saying.
    For football, they were pretty much immediately more successful in 2004 and we thought things would be moving up. But I agree with the post, what is the plan?
    ECU was very similar to JMU ten years ago with respect to athletics, and a similar ‘great party’ school reputation within the state. Now? They made brilliant conference choices, increased exposure, and are perhaps the best football program in NC – oh, and yes they did it by keeping most of the lesser sports.
    How? Leadership and Vision. These are qualities Bourne never had the resume for before he took over, and has had few exceptions since. I cannot believe he is still employed there, it’s amazing to me. And the one coach doing great is not even handled correctly? Wow.
    Great job with the blog, first time seeing it today.

  24. Ray Cilimberg / Mar 19 2013

    Towson just cut baseball and soccer. UR cut soccer and track this year. D1 schools cut sports every year. Some choose to cut football. JMU fully funds all of the sports it has now. Before, they had to partially fund many of their sports. None of the money from sports that were cut has gone to football or basketball. It all went to the other remaining sports.

    If your argument is that JMU should have kept swimming while eliminating other sports, than that is an opinion you are entitled to have just as others are entitled to theirs. If I was a swimmer, I would not have wanted to see my sport cut either.

    Your post comes across as an ax to grind because the sport you loved was eliminated. Title IX was not an excuse. It is real and schools are having to make tough choices because of it. Sadly, male scholarships are the ones being impacted. Our federal government refuses to acknowledge that their is no female sport equivalent to football. Baseball/softball, soccer, basketball, tennis, golf etc. all fit gender equity and women are granted the equivalent number of scholarships. What is the female equivalent of football?

    You cannot compare ECU to JMU. JMU had far more sports than ECU did. Dr. Carrier believed in funding any sport the student body wanted. Unfortunately, he could not have planned for Title IX and its impact on college athletics. JMU also is now 62% female which means 62% of its scholarships have to be female grants. What is ECU’s ratio?

    Scholarships are not an entitlement. Each school decides which sports will be scholarship sports. They can also change which ones are funded over time. My son plays club lacrosse at ODU. Should I be angry because ODU is going 1A and not fully funding lacrosse instead? We can all twist an argument to make a point that just isn’t true.

    I am sorry your sport got cut and you feel personally slighted. Perhaps you should feel grateful for having a scholarship. They are slowly going away in many sports as colleges, especially mid majors, struggle financially to keep up with the rising costs of scholarships. The big boys continue to attempt to monopolize the industry and ESPN, CBS, NBC etc. are helping them to do so. The day may come when schools like JMU have no scholarships. Between the federal government and the greed of the more established universities in our country, it may end up happening one day.

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