News Article: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Coming to UA

Jack Handey

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Jan 15, 2017
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You will love everything about Greg Byrne

Arizona Wildcat here...it is a sad day in Tucson. He is a phenomenal fund raiser and a great relationship builder. He will engage your entire fanbase from students to octogenarians...everybody likes the guy. He has tremendous passion for his job and has been a wonderful representative of our university in every way. He strived to make football more important at Arizona and I think he really struggled with our fan base's apathy...he will love being in a football-crazy environment and you will love having him. He will stay out of the way of your coaches and let them do their jobs...he has been critical when he needed to be and made changes when they needed to be made. If he stayed I think RichRod would be on a very short leash after such a disappointing season. But RR was a good hire at the time and he got us to the Pac-12 title game in year 3 (somewhere we had never been). Sean Miller was in place when Byrne arrived but Sean went on and on today about how supportive Greg has been and how much he will miss him personally. You are going to absolutely love this guy.
 

rgw

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Sep 15, 2003
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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Well, no better thing to hear than a fan from the school he's leaving speak so highly of him.
 

deliveryman35

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Just as I figured. I think several of the schools around us have been going the new dedicated basketball route instead of Coleman's multi-purpose arena approach. Something feels like Duke or Kansas' arena would be fabulous and I hope that is exactly what we do instead of creating a cavernous multi-purpose mistake again.
Not sure that our fan base would consistently fill up and fully utilize a Dean Dome or Allen Field House type environment, but I agree in principle that we need a brand new, dedicated facility exclusively for basketball and replacing Coleman Coliseum. If what I'm reading consistently about Byrne's fundraising acumen is even half true, we should be in good hands going forward. Just hope that the BOT will stay out of his way and let him do his work(having Saban on speed dial should alleviate that problem..lol).
 
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rgw

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Yeah, I think what the best basketball schools have is an arena where the stands are almost spitting distance from the court. We couldn't make it as big but I think we should go for that almost claustrophobic feeling for the opposing team...especially when we can fill that thing up with a good product.
 

CaliforniaTide

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Aug 9, 2006
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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Yeah, I think what the best basketball schools have is an arena where the stands are almost spitting distance from the court. We couldn't make it as big but I think we should go for that almost claustrophobic feeling for the opposing team...especially when we can fill that thing up with a good product.
Gallagher-Iba Arena comes to mind...
 

TiderJack

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Jul 9, 2010
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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Yeah, I think what the best basketball schools have is an arena where the stands are almost spitting distance from the court. We couldn't make it as big but I think we should go for that almost claustrophobic feeling for the opposing team...especially when we can fill that thing up with a good product.
Something similar but a little larger than the Barn's arena maybe?
 

Rama Jama

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Jan 4, 2011
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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Not sure that our fan base would consistently fill up and fully utilize a Dean Dome or Allen Field House type environment, but I agree in principle that we need a brand new, dedicated facility exclusively for basketball and replacing Coleman Coliseum. If what I'm reading consistently about Byrne's fundraising acumen is even half true, we should be in good hands going forward. Just hope that the BOT will stay out of his way and let him do his work(having Saban on speed dial should alleviate that problem..lol).
I agree we would not fill a 22,000 seat arena. A more manageable size would 12500 to 14000 with tiered seating. Coleman only having one level makes it look empty even when you have 7000 or 8000 there. There needs to be changes made to tide pride that people who want tickets and actually show up get priority. Too many tide pride fans only buy tickets only for points so the can get football tickets and never come to any games except the Auburn or maybe UK games. If they buy tickets, track the tickets to see if they are used. If not, give them the option of buying tickets or buying points. Or you could add points to the account of the fan who is a tide pride ticket holder simply by them showing up.
 

TIDE-HSV

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Not sure that our fan base would consistently fill up and fully utilize a Dean Dome or Allen Field House type environment, but I agree in principle that we need a brand new, dedicated facility exclusively for basketball and replacing Coleman Coliseum. If what I'm reading consistently about Byrne's fundraising acumen is even half true, we should be in good hands going forward. Just hope that the BOT will stay out of his way and let him do his work(having Saban on speed dial should alleviate that problem..lol).
Despite the fairy tales one hears, our BOT has always been pretty hands-off, particularly with athletics. They've been a little more proactive since PBJ joined the board...
 

CrimsonProf

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Throwing this out there in case anyone else heard it. I was listening to BHM sports radio - not WJOX - and a north Alabama radio host with ostensibly deep ties to the University was quite clear in suggesting his apprehension that we have hired an AD who: a. is not an alum b. was hired "in the dead of night" and c. that the University did not "take its time" in making the hire. Also tried to draw comparisons to the last time we hired a non-alum in the dead of night and how things didn't go well.

Among the more bizarre things I've heard and from someone who should, frankly, know better.
 

bamacon

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Throwing this out there in case anyone else heard it. I was listening to BHM sports radio - not WJOX - and a north Alabama radio host with ostensibly deep ties to the University was quite clear in suggesting his apprehension that we have hired an AD who: a. is not an alum b. was hired "in the dead of night" and c. that the University did not "take its time" in making the hire. Also tried to draw comparisons to the last time we hired a non-alum in the dead of night and how things didn't go well.

Among the more bizarre things I've heard and from someone who should, frankly, know better.
You talking about Bockrath? Come on. Byrne is a well known AD with a clear track record of success, a great fund raiser, and most importantly EXPERIENCE in the SEC West. The reason it was so fast is that it is a coup. Our leadership is ALL is a LOOOOOOOT better than those days. That host needs to get real.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

CrimsonProf

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

You talking about Bockrath? Come on. Byrne is a well known AD with a clear track record of success, a great fund raiser, and most importantly EXPERIENCE in the SEC West. The reason it was so fast is that it is a coup. Our leadership is ALL is a LOOOOOOOT better than those days. That host needs to get real.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thing is that this had been quietly in the works for several months. This was appalling ignorance from someone who should know better.
 

Crimson1967

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Nov 22, 2011
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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Battle had a four year contract that expires in March. I'd be willing to bet he let them know a long time ago he wasn't going to stay any longer and that they had been searching under the radar for some time, with Battle's full knowledge and consent. It wouldn't surprise me if he aided in the search.
 

deliveryman35

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

Despite the fairy tales one hears, our BOT has always been pretty hands-off, particularly with athletics. They've been a little more proactive since PBJ joined the board...
That's encouraging to hear, Mr Earle. That was certainly not the vibe I got when I lived in Ttown in the 90s and very early 2000's. Of course, A LOT has changed since then. Even with all that CMM did--and he did quite a bit--we still need upgrades in certain areas and it looks like GB is the type that can get it done. At his age he could be here 20 years.

I'm thrilled with this hire.
 

TIDE-HSV

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Re: Bill Battle Stepping Down; Greg Byrne Reportedly Coming to UA

That's encouraging to hear, Mr Earle. That was certainly not the vibe I got when I lived in Ttown in the 90s and very early 2000's. Of course, A LOT has changed since then. Even with all that CMM did--and he did quite a bit--we still need upgrades in certain areas and it looks like GB is the type that can get it done. At his age he could be here 20 years.

I'm thrilled with this hire.
That's ironic if it were the general impression, because that's the period when they were the most hands-off - and Bockrath retained Dubose without their knowing he was going to do it, making it look like it was all about Ws & Ls. Those were exactly the cousin, who was on the board, used in describing the situation to me. Shortly thereafter they formed the BOT "Athletic Oversight Committee," which was just to make certain they at least stayed in the loop. Witt fired Price over the feelings of a majority of the BOT. It is not at all the situation at UT, where three boosters have dictated Fulmer's hiring, if they get away with it...
 

RTR91

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Nov 23, 2007
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Byrne's presser happening now...

Byrne: We are so fortunate and excited to be here at the University of Alabama.
Byrne: To be here today with our family just means the world to us.
Byrne: You don't get a chance to compete for championships without strong support from your leadership.
Byrne: "There's never been a better school that has shown more commitment and support to intercollegiate athletics than the Univ of Alabama"
Byrne: We will work our tail off and give great energy every day
Byrne: Regina and I got to spend time with Coach Saban and Miss Terry and I can't tell you how great it was.
Byrne: Coach Saban is one of the greatest coaches of all time.
Byrne: It's great to be back in the SEC. I love this conference.
Byrne: I admire so much the history and what makes it so special here at Alabama.
Byrne: I thought, even from a young age, what a great place (the University of Alabama) is.
Byrne said the hair on the back of his neck stood up when he heard a video of Bear Bryant years ago.
Byrne: These are historical times here at the University of Alabama. The amount of leadership Nick Saban has brought here is incredible.
Byrne: We can never be complacent. The competition isn't resting.
Byrne: If we're going to keep score, we're going to try to win
Byrne: We will do everything we can to compete for championships. We're going to balance that with strong academics.

 
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crimsonaudio

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"We can never be complacent. The competition isn't resting. If we're going to keep score, we're going to try to win. We will do everything we can to compete for championships. We're going to balance that with strong academics."

BOOM!

Welcome to The Capstone, AD Byrne!
 

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