Link: Barry Alvarez Gives Lame Reason as to Why SEC Teams Pay Assistants More than B1G

fundytide said:

B1G: Be sure to send that memo to all of the public universities (such as OSU) whose existence is dependent upon the public endowment you refer to as a "handout". Then we can dispense with the argument about whether a varsity sports program should be profit centres because there won't be a university to administer the program anyway.

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Helping people get an education is one thing, supporting their hobbies is another.

B1GTide said:

Helping people get an education is one thing, supporting their hobbies is another.

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Is varsity sport a hobby or a teaching and learning opportunity for the student athlete? And from a competitive standpoint among universities, does offering a range of varsity programs help attract more and better students? There are a great many life lessons to be learned outside the classroom and sports- not just football- are an excellent way to learn some of them.

fundytide said:

Is varsity sport a hobby or a teaching and learning opportunity for the student athlete? And from a competitive standpoint among universities, does offering a range of varsity programs help attract more and better students? There are a great many life lessons to be learned outside the classroom and sports- not just football- are an excellent way to learn some of them.

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They can get them in life. My boys are both very talented musicians. I have had to pay for everything that they have done to learn their skills and participate in school programs because there just isn't enough money to support everything. Same now applies in college. I don't whine about it because I understand and I hold no grudge against those who participate in programs which receive more support. Life isn't fair.

This thread:

RTR91 said:

Since the governor of each state is most likely the highest paid state employee (outside of Alabama since Bentley won't take a pay until unemployment reaches a certain level), I guess every college coach should make less than $188,000 each year since that is how much the governor of Pennsylvania made in 2013 and 2014 - the highest amount of any governor.

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If you read what I wrote, you would see that I am not endorsing that argument. I'm stating that the issue of coaches salaries compared to other senior public employees is an issue that ADs are increasingly becoming concerned about and I would not be surprised at all if those politics factored into Alvarez's decision. And there is precedent-even within the SEC.

http://www.newsday.com/sports/colle...y-rise-of-college-football-coaches-1.10322532

Mark Richt is a good man.

rizolltizide said:

Mark Richt is a good man.

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he's now a good man with a tan

92tide said:

he's now a good man with a tan

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He pays his assistants well, also.

B1GTide said:

They can get them in life. My boys are both very talented musicians. I have had to pay for everything that they have done to learn their skills and participate in school programs because there just isn't enough money to support everything. Same now applies in college. I don't whine about it because I understand and I hold no grudge against those who participate in programs which receive more support. Life isn't fair.

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I've done the same thing for my daughters in soccer and rowing. And I have not paid for it with a view that it's a 'hobby'. I expect them to do a lot more than show-up- that's how the lessons are learned. They will both be going to university in the next three years. I would hope that they have an opportunity to continue to develop those skills outside the classroom when they are in university rather than essentially being told "sorry, we can't make enough money off of ticket sales to women's sports to pay for your program and we really need to keep our defensive coordinator so too bad-all we can afford is men's football and the rest of you- 99.9% of the student population- are on your own because we're cutting your program."

You're right- there isn't enough money to support everything. However, I think a little perspective is in order. This isn't the NFL, it's athletic programs at public institutions of higher learning.

Finally, I am not whining about anything nor am I holding a grudge against those who participate in any program that receives more support.My point is that when someone makes an argument that a university should cut entire sports programs to pay a higher salary to one assistant football coach, they might be putting the cart before the horse in terms of the institution's mission and purpose. Thankfully, those are decisions I will never have to make.

RTR91 said:

You're not? Because this suggest you are....

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Actually, it doesn't. It suggests that there are others who might feel that way. It really doesn't matter to me- I am not paying the taxes that fund the salaries or accruing the benefits of the associated work.

I haven't seen a breakdown of how the money is spent, which would be very helpful for this discussion. However, Wisconsin spent $125,096,235 for its 23 sports while Alabama spent $120,184,128 on its 21 sports. Do those two sports alone make up the $4,912,107? I wouldn't think so. If they don't, then Wisconsin is using its money in other areas that Alabama doesn't.

Barry can say he doesn't allow his head coaches to pay assistants more because he has more sports to fund, but I struggle to see two additional sports only costing $4,912,107. Therefore, I'm going to believe Wisconsin is spending more money in areas Alabama isn't, which is fine. Just would be nice for Barry to say that instead of putting blame on others.

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I have no idea how much Wisconsin spends on other sports either. Nor do I know what Alabama spends on other sports. But I would be shocked if Alabama spends more than $500,000 per year on the women's rowing program (assuming the costs for the newly built facilities were not amortized) and equally shocked if Wisconsin spent over $1 million for their men's and women's rowing programs.

And as I said before, I agree with you that I think Barry Alvarez is being disingenous with his comments on this. But he has never been a shrinking violet, has he?

fundytide said:

But I would be shocked if Alabama spends more than $500,000 per year on the women's rowing program

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Actually, that information was a lot easier to find than I thought

http://www.cw.ua.edu/article/2014/02/ua-rowing-team-awaits-new-boathouse

Very interesting that “The UA Athletic Department is financially self-sustaining,” Lane said. “Revenues come from ticket sales, donations, merchandising/licensing, NCAA and SEC television revenues and postseason play. Athletic department revenues fund all sports. No state funds are used for athletics. (emphasis mine).

rizolltizide said:

mark richt is a good man.

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Riz - You're alive!!

I suspect all but one or maybe two on this thread could care less if Alabama has a rowing team or not. It's a sport, thus a leisure activity. There are plenty of opportunities to learn about team, commitment, physical well-being, etc. before going to college. One could easily argue that surplus monies would be better spent in research and facilities.

Go Bama said:

I suspect all but one or maybe two on this thread could care less if Alabama has a rowing team or not. It's a sport, thus a leisure activity. There are plenty of opportunities to learn about team, commitment, physical well-being, etc. before going to college. One could easily argue that surplus monies would be better spent in research and facilities.

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That's fine- this thread is not required reading.

Intl.Aperture said:

This thread:

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REOW!!!! I can understand though... Just giving these guys a hard time. Nothing wrong with a good debate

False choice, Barry. If your programs are successful and/or supported enough then there need not be a choice. It's all a matter of emphasis and support. It's about making choices based on what you value. Barry doesn't value football like Alabama does and his program is nowhere near as successful. He has chosen to not invest as much in it. That's perfectly fine, but no need to denigrate those who do.

As for the side debate, not everyone will see eye to eye on everything. If that offends you then get over yourself. If it motivates you to do something to make more people care then go for it; but being offended isn't going to get it done. It will just turn people off. Fact is, I don't keep up with most sports at Alabama but when they succeed I am happy for them and proud that my school has fielded a successful team. I don't care much about baseball, but I do want the team to be successful. Same for softball or rowing or diving and so on. And if Alabama cuts one of those other teams I won't be as impacted or upset as I would be about football or basketball. I also want Alabama to be wise regarding which programs they field and to only field those they are willing to support at a championship level. That doesn't mean every team will always be successful, but if you aren't going to do it right just don't do it at all. I at least want to be proud of the effort.

fundytide said:

That's fine- this thread is not required reading.

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Do you walk to school or carry your lunch?