Tuesday, January 27, 2015

BREAKING: The Price of Success



Hold onto your hats folks, but I have learned the total compensation package Columbia is offering for a new football head coach is Earth-shattering by Ivy standards.

How much is it, you ask?

It's in the neighborhood of $4 million to $5 million.

Yeah, you read that right and yes that's a nice neighborhood.

I can't confirm just what part of the package is cash and how much housing and other perks factor into that total.

No matter how they do the math, the offer blows away any kind of salary ever offered to a head coach in this league.

I suspect the hackles will be raised inside and outside of the Columbia world when this number gets out. But I APPLAUD President Bollinger and whomever else is showing the willingness, courage and determination to put this money up in hopes of luring a transformational head coach for football.

That is what Columbia needs, and no one should be under the illusion that a Columbia resurgence in football would be anything less than an earthquake for the rest of the league.

Sheldon Hackney


$$$ + Hackney + Kim = Success

Perhaps the powers that be at Columbia are finally embracing the philosophy that Penn's then-President Sheldon Hackney used when he helped, or at least allowed, the turnaround for Quaker football 33 years ago.

After Penn's transformational 1982 season, it was Hackney who famously said in several speeches that he had discovered that "winning costs less than losing."

In other words, Hackney saw that a winning football team was generating a lot more alumni donations, alumni interest, and student involvement in campus life.

But here's the problem for Columbia and its big pile of money: WILL we get a taker?

Because if we don't get one soon, I believe the administration will let the interim coaching regime stay in place for another season if need be in the belief that 10 more months of this offer out there will surely lure a big fish by then.

Now, I think Coach Chris Rippon is doing a fine job in this interim role. But I also believe allowing an interim coach to remain in place for more than 1-2 more months would be severely harmful for the program. For one thing, it would promote the rumor that no decent coach would ever want to come to Columbia no matter how much money is on the table.

So, I have some advice on that score that could save us all some time and perhaps even save the university some major dollars.

Before you just roll out the big bucks, please also understand that a series of public statements by President Bollinger will go almost as far as those millions of dollars in luring the right coach.

If we want to simply lure a big name coach from D-1 or NFL football, the money might be enough.

But if we want someone more than a former big-time candidate on his way down in his career, the potential pool of applicants needs to hear the right things from Bollinger.

Columbia wants someone on their way up career-wise, and no one who will put winning at the top of his list is coming to Morningside Heights until he knows the administration will allow him to do everything within the rules to win, AND create new rules to give us an edge like Tommy Amaker has clearly been allowed to do with Harvard basketball.

(If anyone is unclear on what new rules/devices Columbia can use that it has thus far not done, they are available in the archives of this blog for all to see. I have been discussing them with the readers here for years).



Jim Yong Kim


Hackney's post-1982 speech was basically copied and improved by then Dartmouth President Jim Yong Kim in 2009.

I say "improved" because Kim made very positive comments about football in not just any speech. He made them in his FIRST speech after being named the president of the College!

Kim then walked the walk; showing up at practices and hanging out on the sidelines playing the role of #1 cheerleader. I know some people inside the actual football program found that annoying, but the value of having a very visibly football-friendly president is a major reason why Dartmouth has returned to respectability in football. Don't let anyone try to convince you otherwise.

I don't think President Bollinger can or will match Kim's enthusiasm, but he can make a similarly bold statement for football and then hire an athletic director who does the same.

The financial commitment has finally been made in a way commensurate with the needs of this Columbia football program.

Now it's time to take the next step, and that involves very clear and very public statements. The days of just communicating with a few alums here and there must be ended.

If not, a fool and his money will be easily parted.




14 comments:

Old Lion said...

Somebody on voyforums is arguing that we should go down to DIII. I don't know who reads this blog, but I have put my money where my mouth is as far as Columbia is concerned for many, many years. That's just a fact. If we drop Ivy football I will immediately terminate all financial support for the College. I don't know if anybody other than me and my financial planners care, but that is the way I feel. The Mangurian hiring and the subsequent refusal to fire him after year 2 are the culmination of a lifetime of disappointing administrative missteps.

Anonymous said...

Sounds a little top heavy for one guy. Maybe this includes staff salaries? They are going to have to pay a full staff since it is going to take more than a head coach to get this done.

Big Dawg said...

Some thoughts:

I discount the hypothesis submitted by oldlion, because it is too absurd, but I agree completely with his conclusion. That would be total surrender which is unacceptable.

Jake, you are destroying your persona. You are offering sound, logical and reasonable thoughts which intelligent people should take completely seriously. I can see no way that anyone could have an objection to your latest comment.

Certainly, if true, the financial package demonstrates the pragmatic seriousness with which CU is trying to attack the problem. However, just as importantly, Bollinger's public actions are critical.
Certain groups involved with this issue have been calling for him to make an unequivocal statement that supports all sports and places athletics in a respected and vital position within the context of CU life.

Why is this important? Because it sends a clear message to potential coach and player candidates, to our faculty, and finally to our student body that Athletics is not a bastard stepchild, but a legitimate and respected component of CU life.

Until that happens, it will be the same old same old.

Coach said...

Jake: so 4 million with a 5 year deal is $800,000 per year. Is my math correct?
This is fantasyland.

Jake said...

It's not fantasyland... but it will induce the ire of a lot of people, no question of that.

But the question is: will it lure the guy we want? So far, it hasn't happened yet.

Coach said...

No problem with the salary- sends a great message to the country that we are serious- and,yes, it will get us a good coach-
But the real issue is admissions. How did Stanford, Northwestern, Duke, and Vandy turn their programs around?
They let players in! When do we ?

Chick said...

Jake, is Lebo holding out for a proven HC? If so, I hope he's not going to give up and give the job to Rippon.

I'm not averse at all to hiring one of the Ivy assistants you listed a while back and described as talented, experienced and at an age where they'd like to get an opportunity. There were several but the only name I remember now is Keith Clark.

There's always an assistant somewhere who'll shine if given the chance. I really fear that if we go with a makeshift crew and throw away still another
year, it could wreck the program.

oldlion said...

Is this an Obama style White House leak in which the administration floats a story about paying a coach some decent money so as to attract all of the campus left wing wing nuts who will predictably lose their lunches over this, resulting in a commotion which will give the administration cover to avoid taking drastic support measures for football?

Columbia_Fan said...

Jake,
Are any of the Alabama staff in our sights? They sure know how to recruit.
A local kid that is a big 0L lineman and a 4.00 student just committed to a nearby small college. I am sure that he was not on any Ivy target list.
We MUST get an assistant that is a top recruiter! Then a big name coach, who can close the deal, will put us back in the Ivy hunt.

Coach said...

When Rick Taylor did the football report for Dartmouth, the findings were made public immediately to the Dartmouth community.
It looks like Columbia will keep their report a secret.

Zero Dark said...

Tim Pernetti, who was heavily rumored for our AD job, has been named president of IMG College Multimedia.

Columbia_Fan said...

It looks to me like we are going from the frying pan into the fire, as far as the CU sports programs are concerned.
CU administration should move into the UN building. Stay tuned, 50 more years of losing football is coming your way, same time, same station. Keep those cards and letters coming.

alawicius said...

You guys (such as Columbia Fan above) are nuts. There's a whole lot of effort and commitment being put into this, and we're on the verge of one of the biggest turnarounds in sports history. Mark my words!

WOF said...

This is coming from the same guy who was telling us that last year's recruting class looked much better and predicted 3 or 4 wins....