The Illinois AD Search

Second and Chalmers · Dec 14, 2015

dmac279 said:
Cubit was a cheap option.

WE PAID MIKE THOMAS $2.5 MILLION TO GO AWAY FOR NO REASON.

Other than the fact that it's totally wrong and misguided, the HERP DERP ILLINOIZ IS CHEAP explanation makes me mad because it is ultimately forgiving of people who should not and cannot be forgiven. This was done because the people who made this decision were willfully ignorant of how college football works. Period, end of story. Every other option was available to them, they were appraised of the consequences of all of them, and they chose the worst possible one out of pure arrogance and stupidity.

PaytonHighstep · Dec 14, 2015

Second and Chalmers said:
Hasn't made a revenue sport hire at NIU, JFWIW.

They also have atrocious football attendance, which makes me sad. All the weekday night games don't help and it's a common problem in the MAC, but that's a hell of a program that people should get out and support.

I agree, but how many potential diehard NIU fans are there between Madison and Chicago? They are in a tough spot geographically to convert fans into NIU backers. Wisconisin is, well Wisconsin, same with Notre Dame, then you add in NW has been pretty successful over the same time frame. There aren't that many people that live around there to convert in all those small towns.

dmac279 · Dec 14, 2015

AutoPoster 3000 said:
Exactly. I love how everyone wants to cling to this blueprint. First get our "home run" AD. Then wait out a throwaway 2016 season before our football savior rides into town.

Except all Cubit has to do is stumble to a 6-6 record (not too tall a task with so many returning starters) to shift the debate next year to whether he should at least be retained for 2017 if not extended beyond that. Oh, but that wouldn't happen, right? It's not like we have a history of giving mediocrity additional chances. OK, there was Tepper in 1995. And Turner in 2003. And Zook in 2009. And Beckman in 2014. And Cubit himself in 2015.

But not Cubit in 2016. No way we would make that mistake again. I mean, fool me five times shame on you. Fool me six times, shame on me.

I would be highly surprised if hey went 6-6. The guy that went to Syracuse should have been hired AD or not. We're stuck now that's why AD hire is so mportant

dmac279 · Dec 14, 2015

orangeswarm76 said:
Cubits contract still has not been signed has it?

Even if he did, he'd be cheap to get rid of.

PaytonHighstep · Dec 14, 2015

Illwinsagain said:
Frazier's bio covers a lot of bases.

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/sean_frazier_853395.html

Oh... I hope he gets hired.... I can't wait to read posts about a New Yawker running the show down in C-U! It could be priceless reading some of the quotes coming from fan conventions interacting with this guy.

edit: So, Cubit is from Philly and Sean Frazier from Long Island. This has a wiseguy feel for the future of the athletic department. Gold chains and pinky rings for everyone!

dmac279 · Dec 14, 2015

sigint said:
I love how there's this sentiment that our interim AD can't make a coaching hire, but nobody says anything about our interim Chancellor making our AD hire. Surely, by this logic, you would need to make sure you got the home run chancellor hire in place before trying to hire an AD.

Interim positions cannot hire permanent positions. It's just not how the process works... right?

Lol, you would mention that. Houston we've got problems !

BZuppke · Dec 14, 2015

I think one of the things Frazier has going for him is his Wisconsin connections. He could possibly bring Dave Aranda or Dave Doeren here. People work for people they know and trust. Same way HC's get assistant coaches. Having the right connections is paramount in this business.

PaytonHighstep · Dec 14, 2015

BZuppke said:
I think one of the things Frazier has going for him is his Wisconsin connections. He could possibly bring Dave Aranda or Dave Doeren here. People work for people they know and trust. Same way HC's get assistant coaches. Having the right connections is paramount in this business.

True, but did people like working with/for him? Easy to make all the connections on an organizational chart over the years, but how were their interactions with Frazier? That's the question that needs answered when digging into his background with coaches.

BZuppke · Dec 14, 2015

Good point. I'm confident Wilson will ask these questions

BZuppke · Dec 14, 2015

Guess we'd have to make room at the law school too for Mrs Frazier.

Joel Goodson · Dec 14, 2015

BZuppke said:
Guess we'd have to make room at the law school too for Mrs Frazier.

I'm guessing will not be an issue if Frazier is the choice.

BZuppke · Dec 14, 2015

She was once at Wisconsin law school but I think she is now at NIU. Would be a nice promotion to Illinois' law school.

Dan · Dec 14, 2015

Illinois search process for new athletic director is ruffling feathers

The Illinois search committee's process for identifying a new athletic director is turning off some prospective candidates and has some board of trustee members considering an independent search, sources told the Tribune..

Two potential candidates who are sitting athletic directors were contacted through their university email addresses, sources said, which is against the typical protocol of hiring searches and could jeopardize an AD's current position.

Sources also said the committee has vetted candidates first through peripheral associates rather than directly contacting the candidates or their inner circles, which also can cause friction for candidates under contract at other universities. One source called the process "backward."

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sport...-director-search-spt-1215-20151214-story.html

MA Illini · Dec 14, 2015

And the death spiral continues . . . . . holy crap the imcompetence.

IlliniCaboose · Dec 14, 2015

Wow. Valar Morgulis I guess. Actually maybe Valar Dohaeris makes more sense. "All Men must serve." Being an Illinois fan is my penance.

Second and Chalmers · Dec 14, 2015

JMO, no inside info, but it strikes me that the fact that there are clearly some power players who are taking whatever missteps they can find and SCREAMING to the press about them immediately a bigger symbol of the dysfunction going on than any of the stuff that's been reported.

There's gonna be a guy at a podium in mid-January. There are going to be trustees, donors, and other stakeholders whispering to reporters about what an in-over-his-head joke he is by Valentine's Day, no matter who that person is. That's why I keep saying inside baseball is the make-or-break thing for the next AD.

Lots of athletic departments have loud rebels. Only Illinois is in such chaos that it doesn't have the institutional credibility to counter that noise.

Second and Chalmers · Dec 14, 2015

Also, all the people peddling their numbskull herp derp search firm conspiracy theories are forbidden from complaining about this.

orangeswarm76 · Dec 14, 2015

Maybe they should use some of the students to run this probably would be better handled better

Illiniboardfan · Dec 14, 2015

Second and Chalmers said:
JMO, no inside info, but it strikes me that the fact that there are clearly some power players who are taking whatever missteps they can find and SCREAMING to the press about them immediately a bigger symbol of the dysfunction going on than any of the stuff that's been reported.

There's gonna be a guy at a podium in mid-January. There are going to be trustees, donors, and other stakeholders whispering to reporters about what an in-over-his-head joke he is by Valentine's Day, no matter who that person is. That's why I keep saying inside baseball is the make-or-break thing for the next AD.

Lots of athletic departments have loud rebels. Only Illinois is in such chaos that it doesn't have the institutional credibility to counter that noise.

I agree with a lot of what you've said here. These are all clear signs that the athletic department is not working as a team currently. I would love to see a new AD come in and clean house.

Second and Chalmers · Dec 14, 2015

Illiniboardfan said:
I agree with a lot of what you've said here. These are all clear signs that the athletic department is not working as a team currently. I would love to see a new AD come in and clean house.

Oh this goes well above the athletic department. The people pushing this stuff in the public are people the new AD can't just fire. They are going to have to win them over, or more accurately, establish a broad base of support that can drown them out.

The hardcore anti-Thomas people were pathetic and ridiculous. There was nothing MT could have or should have done to please them. But after Wise was fired, and they came for his head again, MT did not have the kind of coalition of loyal, diverse stakeholders to stick up for him that would have preserved his job. THAT was his fault.

Ron Guenther faced more dissent than Thomas ever did, over years and years and years. But RG knew where his bread was buttered and he was always sure that the key people that needed to like him LOVED him.

blmillini · Dec 14, 2015

Second and Chalmers said:
Oh this goes well above the athletic department. The people pushing this stuff in the public are people the new AD can't just fire. They are going to have to win them over, or more accurately, establish a broad base of support that can drown them out.

The hardcore anti-Thomas people were pathetic and ridiculous. There was nothing MT could have or should have done to please them. But after Wise was fired, and they came for his head again, MT did not have the kind of coalition of loyal, diverse stakeholders to stick up for him that would have preserved his job. THAT was his fault.

Ron Guenther faced more dissent than Thomas ever did, over years and years and years. But RG knew where his bread was buttered and he was always sure that the key people that needed to like him LOVED him.

You make it sound like something that cannot be fixed until those people are completely gone or a miracle occurs. We are going to be really bad for years, aren't we?

Second and Chalmers · Dec 14, 2015

blmillini said:
You make it sound like something that cannot be fixed until those people are completely gone or a miracle occurs. We are going to be really bad for years, aren't we?

I think we're setting up this next AD for failure. But we don't need all those people to be gone, or a miracle.

We just need steadfast, dogged, defiant competence. People caught in this mess would be drawn to a figure that can deliver that.

frankfortillini · Dec 14, 2015

I find it hard to believe people are emailing ADs at work asking them about Illinois. But I'd believe people may be reaching out asking to chat about "opportunities" or "networking" - not uncommon for that outreach to hit work email. That said the conversations all occur offline or through personal channels. This article is bizarre and how did it get printed? Wtf is going on behind the scenes?

EJ33 · Dec 14, 2015

Second and Chalmers said:
We just need steadfast, dogged, defiant competence.

Yes, but it sounds like it takes a special kind of competence to bring everybody together. I think that's the attraction to George - whether it's an accurate assessment or not.

Second and Chalmers said:
The hardcore anti-Thomas people were pathetic and ridiculous. There was nothing MT could have or should have done to please them.

He could have hired some good coaches that kept us out of lawsuits and national ridicule.

AutoPoster 3000 · Dec 14, 2015

The weirdest thing about that article for me was this:

Wilson told campus senators recently that she was getting "countless emails about this position, probably many more ... than any other position that we're searching for right now."

Probably more emails -- she's not 100% on that, she didn't count them or anything -- but probably more emails. It's like she's mildly shocked that this AD thing is generating a bit more heat than the university's search for a new head of the Kinesiology Department or director for the Internal Medicine Residency Program.

We really aren't talking enough about how everything that comes out of Wilson's (and Killeen's) mouth is sheer lunacy. It starts with their inexplicable belief that hiring a permanent interim head coach will provide stability for the football program and ends, most recently, with the revelation that they are still kicking around the idea of bringing in a search firm. Six weeks into the process. Still contemplating that. Whilst simultaneously contacting potential candidates via their work emails.

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