I have repeatedly pointed out how vastly differently the PJ Star staff covered Geno Ford compared to Jim Les -
but now even though we only have five months of experience we can also see a huge difference in the way they are covering Brian Wardle & his Bradley Braves (or lack of coverage) compared to how they covered Ford.
Go back to 2013 in the Geno era - between July 4 and Labor Day Dave Reynolds had at least 4-5 columns about BU basketball...and a couple about recruits...
...this was the year they went to Bahamas so it might be understandable - and also Bobby Parker blogged about 20 times, and there were lots of tweets praising Geno, the team, the superior recruiting, etc...
Then in 2014 again Dave Reynolds had 5 columns between July 4 & Labor day...mostly recruiting...
but even tho Austin Barnes had been arrested - Dave was almost completely silent on that -- the only coverage of Barnes was from unnamed Sports Department writers called..
"Journal Star Staff"
http://www.pjstar.com/article/20140919/SPORTS/140919001
Reynolds also tweeted FREQUENTLY in 2014 about how Bradley was doing
https://twitter.com/DaveReynolds2/status/509342686374285313
and when he did write about Bradley and had the chance to address the Auston Barnes arrest - oddly he mostly ignored it...seemingly acting only as PR-agent telling us gobs of great stuff and hyping BU basketball under Geno endlessly. The spin was so over-the-top dripping positive that no way Geno'd be ably to live up to it so they were unknowingly setting him up for a fall.
http://www.pjstar.com/article/20140909/SPORTS/140909203/12701/SPORTS?rssfeed=true&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter
http://blogs.bradley.edu/bloggingwithbp/2013/08/
http://blogs.bradley.edu/bloggingwithbp/2014/08/
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24206
Now it's like a blackout - the only info on Bradley basketball coming from BradleyFans.com
Even BOBBY PARKER hasn't blogged at all since May 28, and not one blog entry about basketball since Brian Wardle hired.
http://blogs.bradley.edu/bloggingwithbp/2015/05/
So why all the complete lack of coverage?? You may like it or not, but if you say the PJS staff has treated Jim Les, Geno Ford, and Brian Wardle equally then please show me the tiniest evidence - since I see enormous evidence to the contrary.
They went so far overboard to build up Geno, exaggerate whatever good there was, make up plenty more good that didn't exist, overrated everyone, and ignored all the bad stuff - almost sweeping the discipline issues, arrests, and suspensions under the rug - even totally ignoring some of the suspensions.
I swear - it was almost as if they had money or their jobs riding on helping Geno (and thus Cross & Glasser) succeed so they hyped everything as success and if anything negative happened they distorted fact to try to blame it all on someone from the past.
BTW - this distortion and rewriting of history is still their #1 ploy as they just tried to pull it again and fabricate some argument that it was Ken Kavanagh who discontinued the Itoo Supper - when that was totally false. Ken himself saw this lie as worthy of contacting the Journal Star staff and demanding a retraction - which did happen.
Now under Brian Wardle, lots and lots of good things are happening - despite having an incredibly young group - perhaps the youngest team in the US - and despite that they look good & Dave even admits he's seen them work out & practice - there's nothing.
And when yet another Geno player stepped out of line and had to be booted (Jones) - again virtually nothing more than a short concise statement. No effort to dig or come up with the police report or exaggerate and lie about ligature marks or choking with hands...
What's up - they're shootiong themselves in the foot - the loyal Bradley fan base would love decent coverage of Bradley basketball and yet they're not getting it except from BardleyFans.com
There's no wonder the traffic & page views at BradleyFans trump the entire PJS web site - people know...
There was one really nice column on Dr. Chris Reynolds although it didn't even touch on basketball.
But then, every other new outlet also has covered Chris Reynolds extensively - HOI news, WMBD, even WMBD radio....so that Chris Reynolds column was just a little catch-up.
The other news outlets have had gobs or other pieces on Bradley, their summer workouts, their community service, their work on and around campus, etc...
So be prepared for scant coverage and tepid assessments of the really great stuff happening. I would laugh my *** off if any of the coverage compares our recruiting class to the best Bradley has ever had - or likens our big men to Donald Reese or Bayo - or talks about a 17-loss season as vast improvement predicting a TOP FOUR finish...
Friday, August 28, 2015
Wednesday, August 26, 2015
More good records that all happened in the FIVE YEARS before the JG/Cross/Geno era
Just for comparison....
after you read the prior entry in this blog and see how many horrible records were set by the people running Bradley and BU Athletics the past 5 years or so...then take a look at the things that were PROVEN to be tremendous POSITIVE record in the FINE years BEFORE Dr. Cross took over.
-Record home attendance
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=826173&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1363177&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-Record revenue and donations YEAR after YEAR!
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=9434
-Record growth of the Braves Scholarship Society that provided $2 million per year to BU Athletics - much of which dried up overnight under the crew from the past five years.
-Record fundraising - over $160 million raised that built numerous new facilities on campus -
-First time since the 1950's that Bradley had FOUR consecutive 20+ win seasons
-First Sweet Sixteen in the modern era - 64+ teams
-many, many sellouts and multiple games over 11,000
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=187370&SPID=1498&SPSID=25068
-BEST regular season home attendance average IN HISTORY!!! 10,115 !
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1424846&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-SIX of the TEN largest crowds in history had occurred in the span of 2006-2009!
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1394888&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-HOME ATTENDANCE that kept Bradley ranked in the TOP 40-50's in ALL of Division I - considerably better than many BIG STATE schools and BCS schools. (now we're falling out of the top 100!)
-MOST post-season wins in a 4-year span
-multiple NBA & top pro (European) players produced
-League leaders, multiple All Conference, and even NATIONAL statistical leaders in that era...
-All this and MORE - in the preceding five seasons - then the JG/MC/GF era kicked in and it went poof.
-
after you read the prior entry in this blog and see how many horrible records were set by the people running Bradley and BU Athletics the past 5 years or so...then take a look at the things that were PROVEN to be tremendous POSITIVE record in the FINE years BEFORE Dr. Cross took over.
-Record home attendance
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=826173&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1363177&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-Record revenue and donations YEAR after YEAR!
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=9434
-Record growth of the Braves Scholarship Society that provided $2 million per year to BU Athletics - much of which dried up overnight under the crew from the past five years.
-Record fundraising - over $160 million raised that built numerous new facilities on campus -
-First time since the 1950's that Bradley had FOUR consecutive 20+ win seasons
-First Sweet Sixteen in the modern era - 64+ teams
-many, many sellouts and multiple games over 11,000
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=187370&SPID=1498&SPSID=25068
-BEST regular season home attendance average IN HISTORY!!! 10,115 !
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1424846&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-SIX of the TEN largest crowds in history had occurred in the span of 2006-2009!
http://www.bradleybraves.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=3400&ATCLID=1394888&SPID=1498&SPSID=25965
-HOME ATTENDANCE that kept Bradley ranked in the TOP 40-50's in ALL of Division I - considerably better than many BIG STATE schools and BCS schools. (now we're falling out of the top 100!)
-MOST post-season wins in a 4-year span
-multiple NBA & top pro (European) players produced
-League leaders, multiple All Conference, and even NATIONAL statistical leaders in that era...
-All this and MORE - in the preceding five seasons - then the JG/MC/GF era kicked in and it went poof.
-
A few ALL TIME Records from the past 4-5 years
Just a few things from the JG/Mike Cross/Geno Ford era at Bradley that teams for generations to come will have to aim at to get in the record books.
- Worst single season record ever 7-25 in 2011-12
- Most losses ever in one season 25
- Worst 4-year record ever
- Most consecutive Thursday night appearances
- Worst coaching career record at Bradley
- Fewest wins in a season (modern era since the depression)
- Most 20-loss seasons in a row
- Worst home attendance average since moving from Armory (and maybe even before)
- Worst attendance ever for any game on our own home court - possible since the 1920's!
...home vs. Green Bay 3/20/13 - 1801
- Worst dropoff in attendance over 1-year, 3-year, and 4-year spans
- Longest stretch of any coach NOT having a single one of his own players make All-Conference or go on to play pro ball.
- Biggest single year dropoff in donations ever
- Most losses in any single 4-year span in Bradley's history
- and we haven't even gotten into the most histori housecleaning, most personnel cleaned out all at once and player turnover...
- Then we can talk about worst single season MVC Baseball record ever (only 2 wins)
- Worst Volleyball record 2-26
- and it even went all the way to the worst campus-wide financial mess & crisis and worst dropoff in enrollment - but then we have people who still think that this past 4-5 years was the best era they have seen at Bradley, hmmmm. Gotta wonder about their mental health.
Well, thankfully, the smart fans saw all this coming years ago - and cried out in the form of letters to the editor, calls and e mails to the Board members (who were pretty slow to respond until the disaster reached historic proportions and fans cancelled season tickets by the thousands), plus open conversations, phone calls, and loud & clear posts on the message board that we now know all the admin & Board members actually read on a regular basis.
Thank you to those great fans who helped with a tidal wave of energy to get this ship going in the right direction despite the clueless, squeaky-wheel fans who wanted to keep going with the status quo.
Can't imagine another year with that same mess we had - not to mention with four years head start, we were sitting in the spring of 2015 without a single recruit signed, not a single recruit pledged, not even a single recruit even interested - so ZERO help on the way for the team that was far & away the worst team in the Valley the past four years - with the only bright spots being the players Jim Les left behind.
So the crew that sunk us to the worst point in the history of Bradley Athletics is...
STRAIGHT OUTTA PEORIA and now long gone...and a new, young, enthusiastic bunch that are widely appealing and favored by the fans are in place and things are looking far brighter right away.
The first sign was the massive showing of over 1,200 for an off-season midweek luncheon that drew more people than were actually at some of our recent home games (not the phony attendance figures meant to help out the Geno/PJS guys who tried in vain to hype and sell a sinking ship as "light years better", "deeper and better talent than we've had in decades - even since the Mitchell Anderson/Donald Reese era", and "difference-makers & go-to guys, and "best ever recruiting classes").
The effort goes on by the locals to try to rewrite history to hide the failures on this recent, fired administration and crew - but sadly they will have to live with all these ALL TIME Records for quite some time to come.
- Worst single season record ever 7-25 in 2011-12
- Most losses ever in one season 25
- Worst 4-year record ever
- Most consecutive Thursday night appearances
- Worst coaching career record at Bradley
- Fewest wins in a season (modern era since the depression)
- Most 20-loss seasons in a row
- Worst home attendance average since moving from Armory (and maybe even before)
- Worst attendance ever for any game on our own home court - possible since the 1920's!
...home vs. Green Bay 3/20/13 - 1801
- Worst dropoff in attendance over 1-year, 3-year, and 4-year spans
- Longest stretch of any coach NOT having a single one of his own players make All-Conference or go on to play pro ball.
- Biggest single year dropoff in donations ever
- Most losses in any single 4-year span in Bradley's history
- and we haven't even gotten into the most histori housecleaning, most personnel cleaned out all at once and player turnover...
- Then we can talk about worst single season MVC Baseball record ever (only 2 wins)
- Worst Volleyball record 2-26
- and it even went all the way to the worst campus-wide financial mess & crisis and worst dropoff in enrollment - but then we have people who still think that this past 4-5 years was the best era they have seen at Bradley, hmmmm. Gotta wonder about their mental health.
Well, thankfully, the smart fans saw all this coming years ago - and cried out in the form of letters to the editor, calls and e mails to the Board members (who were pretty slow to respond until the disaster reached historic proportions and fans cancelled season tickets by the thousands), plus open conversations, phone calls, and loud & clear posts on the message board that we now know all the admin & Board members actually read on a regular basis.
Thank you to those great fans who helped with a tidal wave of energy to get this ship going in the right direction despite the clueless, squeaky-wheel fans who wanted to keep going with the status quo.
Can't imagine another year with that same mess we had - not to mention with four years head start, we were sitting in the spring of 2015 without a single recruit signed, not a single recruit pledged, not even a single recruit even interested - so ZERO help on the way for the team that was far & away the worst team in the Valley the past four years - with the only bright spots being the players Jim Les left behind.
So the crew that sunk us to the worst point in the history of Bradley Athletics is...
STRAIGHT OUTTA PEORIA and now long gone...and a new, young, enthusiastic bunch that are widely appealing and favored by the fans are in place and things are looking far brighter right away.
The first sign was the massive showing of over 1,200 for an off-season midweek luncheon that drew more people than were actually at some of our recent home games (not the phony attendance figures meant to help out the Geno/PJS guys who tried in vain to hype and sell a sinking ship as "light years better", "deeper and better talent than we've had in decades - even since the Mitchell Anderson/Donald Reese era", and "difference-makers & go-to guys, and "best ever recruiting classes").
The effort goes on by the locals to try to rewrite history to hide the failures on this recent, fired administration and crew - but sadly they will have to live with all these ALL TIME Records for quite some time to come.
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Correcting the errors again
A couple more major inaccuracies in the newspaper...
claim that it was Ken Kavanagh that phased out the BUI Spaghetti Supper at the Itoo Hall.
This one is false and has been totally debunked but continues to get stated in a weak effort to shore up the legacy of Dr. Cross who indeed was the one who made this unpopular move.
The Itoo Supper was the mainstay of the fall Bradley schedule - and was held every year up thru 2009.
In 2007 it was held at Haussler & the Fieldhouse to celebrate the end of an era - as the Fieldhouse was being torn down.
The final Itoo Supper was held ion October of 2009 only months before Dr. Cross got to Bradley and he made it known he was ending the event - so please, stop the effort to blame all the bad & unpopular moves on the people who served Bradley well.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=25373
Then the effort to blame all the "red ink" - a fancy way of saying the horrible financial losses - on the people who were here before Cross or Glasser.
I call BS on this one since right up thru 2010 Bradley was still drawing almost 10,000 fans and was still hitting record revenue and donation goals...
In fact, 80% of the money to build the Renaissance project were already in the coffers thanks to those people who were here before Glasser & Cross.
Nope, the major financial mess that we are still suffering through is 100% the responsibility of Dr. Glasser & Dr. Cross. Dr. Glasser began the firings of the basketball staff in 2010 forcing out Buescher & Brooks. The increase in losses really didn't hit 'til 2010 and later - again just a failed effort to shift blame.
I count on Chris Reynolds to get this mess fixed - it's obvious he's well on the way to getting it done, and I appreciate a nice article about him but feel compelled to correct those errors.
claim that it was Ken Kavanagh that phased out the BUI Spaghetti Supper at the Itoo Hall.
This one is false and has been totally debunked but continues to get stated in a weak effort to shore up the legacy of Dr. Cross who indeed was the one who made this unpopular move.
The Itoo Supper was the mainstay of the fall Bradley schedule - and was held every year up thru 2009.
In 2007 it was held at Haussler & the Fieldhouse to celebrate the end of an era - as the Fieldhouse was being torn down.
The final Itoo Supper was held ion October of 2009 only months before Dr. Cross got to Bradley and he made it known he was ending the event - so please, stop the effort to blame all the bad & unpopular moves on the people who served Bradley well.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=25373
Then the effort to blame all the "red ink" - a fancy way of saying the horrible financial losses - on the people who were here before Cross or Glasser.
I call BS on this one since right up thru 2010 Bradley was still drawing almost 10,000 fans and was still hitting record revenue and donation goals...
In fact, 80% of the money to build the Renaissance project were already in the coffers thanks to those people who were here before Glasser & Cross.
Nope, the major financial mess that we are still suffering through is 100% the responsibility of Dr. Glasser & Dr. Cross. Dr. Glasser began the firings of the basketball staff in 2010 forcing out Buescher & Brooks. The increase in losses really didn't hit 'til 2010 and later - again just a failed effort to shift blame.
I count on Chris Reynolds to get this mess fixed - it's obvious he's well on the way to getting it done, and I appreciate a nice article about him but feel compelled to correct those errors.
Friday, August 21, 2015
As a companion - here's the All Time Best
The All Time Best things that happened to Bradley Basketball - and will limit to going back only to the 1960's since it was a far different game & different national scene before that and few of us were there to compare to now.
#10- Any of the times we beat ISU in the great rivalry - the War on 74..
...from the tremendous game in the 1986 MVC Tourney semi and the title game blowout in 1988 - right down to the more mundane regular season wins that we used to pile up regularly - only to have those wins become a distant memory in the Geno Ford era.
#9- Move to the Civic Center - the Fieldhouse was a great place to play but this move had to be made to bring Bradley into the modern DI era. Thankfully we did not listen to the silly hype that we'd be better off shifting all our games to tiny Ren-Col. http://is.gd/yiaDLe
#8- The 2015 housecleaning - few realize how close Bradley was to a complete disaster - and as hard as this was, it was as necessary as yanking a badly abscessed tooth.
#7- Bringing in Chet Walker, Joe Allen, Levern Tart, etc... - this would be higher except for the remoteness now being 5 decades ago - but those were great players and we have Joe Stowell and Chuck Orsborn to thank..
#6- Hiring Jim Molinari - he gave Bradley a decade of fine teams, great players, and a lot of wins & success - and kept the arena filled - something that today's fan has a hard time remembering when hit with all the sparse crowds we have now.
#5- Hiring Jim Les - again, many will disagree - but look at the decade of great teams including NCAA Sweet 16 & NIT teams and more post-season victories that in any other decade.
Jim Les also helped spearhead the $160 million fundraising that ended up resulting in just about every single thing that the next administration ever found to brag about...but it was pretty obvious that the credit for all those great things that resulted, all those building projects, and all those tremendous funds that were raised (and later largely squandered) go to Jim Les and not to the people into whose laps it fell when he was canned.
#4- 2006 Sweet Sixteen - like it or not this was historic and isn't likely to be repeated soon nor often, although I sure hope I am wrong on that. It is truly sad that any Bradley fan under the age of 25 probably doesn't really even remember much about that great 2006 season - but we are on a new course now so watch out.
#3- NIT Championships - 1957, 1960, 1964, 1982 and even a couple Final Fours in the decade before that - we haven't had a single NCAA or NIT run quite like those from the 1950's to the 1980's.
#2- Hiring Dick Versace - this was the move that led to #1 but also gave Bradley fans almost a decade of great basketball - ranked teams, multiple future NBA stars, championships, exciting play, legendary wins over our rivals, and the last time we really dominated in our league - even winning that National Championship.
#1- It is hard to settle on a #1 that would be unanimous and others may disagree, but..
I think landing Hersey Hawkins as 4-year star at Bradley University from 1984 through 1988 was the single best thing that boosted Bradley University, that was satisfying & enjoyable to the fans, and that put Bradley on the map for the rest of Division I basketball to see. There was a short-term and temporary dropoff in the Albeck years but for the most part from 1982 through the early 2000's Bradley was regularly strong, filled the arena and had the most loyal fan base in the Valley, sent the most players to the NBA & other levels of pro ball of any MVC program, and kept Bradley largely at the top of the best midmajor conference in the nation.
#10- Any of the times we beat ISU in the great rivalry - the War on 74..
...from the tremendous game in the 1986 MVC Tourney semi and the title game blowout in 1988 - right down to the more mundane regular season wins that we used to pile up regularly - only to have those wins become a distant memory in the Geno Ford era.
#9- Move to the Civic Center - the Fieldhouse was a great place to play but this move had to be made to bring Bradley into the modern DI era. Thankfully we did not listen to the silly hype that we'd be better off shifting all our games to tiny Ren-Col. http://is.gd/yiaDLe
#8- The 2015 housecleaning - few realize how close Bradley was to a complete disaster - and as hard as this was, it was as necessary as yanking a badly abscessed tooth.
#7- Bringing in Chet Walker, Joe Allen, Levern Tart, etc... - this would be higher except for the remoteness now being 5 decades ago - but those were great players and we have Joe Stowell and Chuck Orsborn to thank..
#6- Hiring Jim Molinari - he gave Bradley a decade of fine teams, great players, and a lot of wins & success - and kept the arena filled - something that today's fan has a hard time remembering when hit with all the sparse crowds we have now.
#5- Hiring Jim Les - again, many will disagree - but look at the decade of great teams including NCAA Sweet 16 & NIT teams and more post-season victories that in any other decade.
Jim Les also helped spearhead the $160 million fundraising that ended up resulting in just about every single thing that the next administration ever found to brag about...but it was pretty obvious that the credit for all those great things that resulted, all those building projects, and all those tremendous funds that were raised (and later largely squandered) go to Jim Les and not to the people into whose laps it fell when he was canned.
#4- 2006 Sweet Sixteen - like it or not this was historic and isn't likely to be repeated soon nor often, although I sure hope I am wrong on that. It is truly sad that any Bradley fan under the age of 25 probably doesn't really even remember much about that great 2006 season - but we are on a new course now so watch out.
#3- NIT Championships - 1957, 1960, 1964, 1982 and even a couple Final Fours in the decade before that - we haven't had a single NCAA or NIT run quite like those from the 1950's to the 1980's.
#2- Hiring Dick Versace - this was the move that led to #1 but also gave Bradley fans almost a decade of great basketball - ranked teams, multiple future NBA stars, championships, exciting play, legendary wins over our rivals, and the last time we really dominated in our league - even winning that National Championship.
#1- It is hard to settle on a #1 that would be unanimous and others may disagree, but..
I think landing Hersey Hawkins as 4-year star at Bradley University from 1984 through 1988 was the single best thing that boosted Bradley University, that was satisfying & enjoyable to the fans, and that put Bradley on the map for the rest of Division I basketball to see. There was a short-term and temporary dropoff in the Albeck years but for the most part from 1982 through the early 2000's Bradley was regularly strong, filled the arena and had the most loyal fan base in the Valley, sent the most players to the NBA & other levels of pro ball of any MVC program, and kept Bradley largely at the top of the best midmajor conference in the nation.
The fallout continues
Won't completely rehash all the past fallout - way too much for even a long paragraph to do justice to all the losing, arrests, financial disaster, player ineptitude and loss of fans & revenue.
But the fallout continues as the new coach Brian Wardle generously offers a roster spot to Geno Ford's recruit, Warren Jones, and simply expects him to be a good citizen, a good student, and honor his own pledge to abide by the Code of Athletic Conduct.
Must have been too much to ask, and now Warren Jones is a goner, too.
On the surface it looks devastating to lose the best scorer, but I doubt it would make any difference at all. Given all the injuries, suspensions, arrests, and games where Jones chucked gobs of bad shots, I can't really say this next fallout hurts that much at all.
Keep in mind we still will suffer further fallout from the horrible moves of the recent past - as Bradley is expected to finish 10th in the MVC by everybody.
We still likely have a couple years of agonizing difficulties that are direct fallout from the Joanne Glasser/Mike Cross/Geno Ford era of horrible negligence and mismanagement, even though the rewrite of history goes on and the local media keep heaping accolades on those who destroyed BU Athletics while trying to fabricate blame to heap onto people from the distant past.
I know it's hard to re-read all this but I have ranked the TEN WORST decisions and actions in the entire 112-year history of Bradley Athletics...
10- All other bad moves in the past (firing Versace, firing Mo, hiring Albeck, hiring friends as head coaches, creating horrible work environments of oppressive oversight & micro-management, and trying to appeal to a small, clueless squeaky-wheel - bunch of fans who hated Jim Les because they were enamored with WM) still barely add together to total enough damage to maybe place that sum of all messes at position #10.
9- The firing of Ken Kavanagh - all you have to do is look what he's done at FGCU and you can't help but see that even 10% of all he's done to benefit them would have pleased the fans here at Bradley. I'd rank this higher except this actually turned out to be the single greatest thing that ever happened to Ken. How many AD's could possibly get fired, have to seek another spot without any recommendation from his prior boss - even being painted as a bad-guy by his admin. & the local drive-by media - and yet he gets a great position at FGCU - beating out a hundred other top candidates, will become a legend there and wins the AD of the YEAR! It's turned out so good for KK that maybe I am actually happy it happened this way - otherwise the admin here would have taken him down as well - and we'd be just as bad even if he was here.
8-The recruiting- holy cow - how could anyone possibly think those guys who couldn't even play well in high school or juco without being kicked off their teams - would turn into great players at the DI-level? The list goes on and on of players Geno & staff recruited and hyped, and of course they got help hyping them from the PJS-boys who claimed Geno's recruits were best ever, TOP recruiting classes, deep/talents/versatile - better and deeper at every position, etc..
It was a veritable comedy for four years where the only bright spots were the "empty-cupboard players" such as Dyricus, Walt, Will, Jake, Taylor, and even Nate wells who were all "light years" better than what Geno brought in.
(Tie - Moving games to Ren-Col - shrewd plan that would have destroyed BU Athletics even worse had it not been halted instantly when JG/MC were sent packing.)
7-Scheduling - need I say more - the basketball schedule was responsible for half the lost fans. Plus there were schizophrenic moves like swearing & vowing we will never do buy-games then when you get desperate and find that you've wasted $$ millions, you do buy games to get some money back in your pockets so you have more to waste.
6- Firing Jim Les - Les has gone on to a very respectable four years at UC-Davis, Conference Coach of the Year - playing in the post-season, filling his own arena, record-breaking attendance & Revenue there, etc...while it's been the exact polar opposite at BU. Need I say more, this act put Bradley Athletics on the true slippery slope. Take a bow JG, MC, and of course Gerald Shaheen.
Went straight from 20-win seasons to worst basketball ever seen on the Hilltop, 25-loss seasons, and the loss of not just a massive number of games but the loss of half the fan base and close to $20 million in revenue down the drain trying to fix the immediate fallout.
5- Hiring Dr. Cross- again don't really blame MC as his role was just to be a yes-man and he did that pretty well.
4- Hiring Geno - but I really don't blame Geno all that much, as he was put into a situation that just about anyone should have been able to win but the leadership above him added so many negatives and distractions that it negated anything he did.
3- Throwing good money after bad - the Board allowing Dr. Glasser to spend money like it was Monopoly dollars - jacking up the offer to $750,000 to finally lure some desperate coach into taking the job that over a dozen other candidates turned down because they didn't want to work under the terms and conditions that were in place at the time.
They also threw good money after bad in wasting bunches to hire assistants who were unproven but who may bring in over-heralded recruits, in developing logos & mascots, in acting irresponsibly to provoke lawsuits and threats of other lawsuits and having to then pay out buyouts & lawyers' fees, and in other things like buying a couple extra games at the end of a bad season, just to be able to get two more wins and try to lay claim to "improved" - thus paying out more bonuses and adding pain to misery by then giving raises & extensions to everyone who was performing miserably.
2- Letting the decision-making in 2007 fall into the hands of Gerald Shaheen, a proponent of handing the reins over to Joanne Glasser and letting her run amok, unchecked and unbridled to nearly destroy a Great University and Athletic Program.
1 - Hiring of Joanne Glasser - in just a few years Bradley Athletics went from Sweet Sixteen, NCAA, and NIT plus record donations, record fund-raising - to a point by 2011 that we were a laughingstock in most every sport, then we got worse from there, losing half the fan base and more than half to donations and nearly went bankrupt and dropped to DIII.
All this required a historic and unprecedented firing of everyone at the top to clean house and hire the right kind of people to get us back on track.
Is it not unbelievable that there were clueless fans just weeks ago still touting Dr. Glasser as the best president ever? But then those same fans have shown a consistent cluelessness for years.
But the fallout continues as the new coach Brian Wardle generously offers a roster spot to Geno Ford's recruit, Warren Jones, and simply expects him to be a good citizen, a good student, and honor his own pledge to abide by the Code of Athletic Conduct.
Must have been too much to ask, and now Warren Jones is a goner, too.
On the surface it looks devastating to lose the best scorer, but I doubt it would make any difference at all. Given all the injuries, suspensions, arrests, and games where Jones chucked gobs of bad shots, I can't really say this next fallout hurts that much at all.
Keep in mind we still will suffer further fallout from the horrible moves of the recent past - as Bradley is expected to finish 10th in the MVC by everybody.
We still likely have a couple years of agonizing difficulties that are direct fallout from the Joanne Glasser/Mike Cross/Geno Ford era of horrible negligence and mismanagement, even though the rewrite of history goes on and the local media keep heaping accolades on those who destroyed BU Athletics while trying to fabricate blame to heap onto people from the distant past.
I know it's hard to re-read all this but I have ranked the TEN WORST decisions and actions in the entire 112-year history of Bradley Athletics...
10- All other bad moves in the past (firing Versace, firing Mo, hiring Albeck, hiring friends as head coaches, creating horrible work environments of oppressive oversight & micro-management, and trying to appeal to a small, clueless squeaky-wheel - bunch of fans who hated Jim Les because they were enamored with WM) still barely add together to total enough damage to maybe place that sum of all messes at position #10.
9- The firing of Ken Kavanagh - all you have to do is look what he's done at FGCU and you can't help but see that even 10% of all he's done to benefit them would have pleased the fans here at Bradley. I'd rank this higher except this actually turned out to be the single greatest thing that ever happened to Ken. How many AD's could possibly get fired, have to seek another spot without any recommendation from his prior boss - even being painted as a bad-guy by his admin. & the local drive-by media - and yet he gets a great position at FGCU - beating out a hundred other top candidates, will become a legend there and wins the AD of the YEAR! It's turned out so good for KK that maybe I am actually happy it happened this way - otherwise the admin here would have taken him down as well - and we'd be just as bad even if he was here.
8-The recruiting- holy cow - how could anyone possibly think those guys who couldn't even play well in high school or juco without being kicked off their teams - would turn into great players at the DI-level? The list goes on and on of players Geno & staff recruited and hyped, and of course they got help hyping them from the PJS-boys who claimed Geno's recruits were best ever, TOP recruiting classes, deep/talents/versatile - better and deeper at every position, etc..
It was a veritable comedy for four years where the only bright spots were the "empty-cupboard players" such as Dyricus, Walt, Will, Jake, Taylor, and even Nate wells who were all "light years" better than what Geno brought in.
(Tie - Moving games to Ren-Col - shrewd plan that would have destroyed BU Athletics even worse had it not been halted instantly when JG/MC were sent packing.)
7-Scheduling - need I say more - the basketball schedule was responsible for half the lost fans. Plus there were schizophrenic moves like swearing & vowing we will never do buy-games then when you get desperate and find that you've wasted $$ millions, you do buy games to get some money back in your pockets so you have more to waste.
6- Firing Jim Les - Les has gone on to a very respectable four years at UC-Davis, Conference Coach of the Year - playing in the post-season, filling his own arena, record-breaking attendance & Revenue there, etc...while it's been the exact polar opposite at BU. Need I say more, this act put Bradley Athletics on the true slippery slope. Take a bow JG, MC, and of course Gerald Shaheen.
Went straight from 20-win seasons to worst basketball ever seen on the Hilltop, 25-loss seasons, and the loss of not just a massive number of games but the loss of half the fan base and close to $20 million in revenue down the drain trying to fix the immediate fallout.
5- Hiring Dr. Cross- again don't really blame MC as his role was just to be a yes-man and he did that pretty well.
4- Hiring Geno - but I really don't blame Geno all that much, as he was put into a situation that just about anyone should have been able to win but the leadership above him added so many negatives and distractions that it negated anything he did.
3- Throwing good money after bad - the Board allowing Dr. Glasser to spend money like it was Monopoly dollars - jacking up the offer to $750,000 to finally lure some desperate coach into taking the job that over a dozen other candidates turned down because they didn't want to work under the terms and conditions that were in place at the time.
They also threw good money after bad in wasting bunches to hire assistants who were unproven but who may bring in over-heralded recruits, in developing logos & mascots, in acting irresponsibly to provoke lawsuits and threats of other lawsuits and having to then pay out buyouts & lawyers' fees, and in other things like buying a couple extra games at the end of a bad season, just to be able to get two more wins and try to lay claim to "improved" - thus paying out more bonuses and adding pain to misery by then giving raises & extensions to everyone who was performing miserably.
2- Letting the decision-making in 2007 fall into the hands of Gerald Shaheen, a proponent of handing the reins over to Joanne Glasser and letting her run amok, unchecked and unbridled to nearly destroy a Great University and Athletic Program.
1 - Hiring of Joanne Glasser - in just a few years Bradley Athletics went from Sweet Sixteen, NCAA, and NIT plus record donations, record fund-raising - to a point by 2011 that we were a laughingstock in most every sport, then we got worse from there, losing half the fan base and more than half to donations and nearly went bankrupt and dropped to DIII.
All this required a historic and unprecedented firing of everyone at the top to clean house and hire the right kind of people to get us back on track.
Is it not unbelievable that there were clueless fans just weeks ago still touting Dr. Glasser as the best president ever? But then those same fans have shown a consistent cluelessness for years.
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
MVC Roster Comparison
Based on a review of the 2015-16 basketball rosters as posted by the school's web site:
Bradley:
12 players who were recruited from high schools (but one is a recruited walk-on)
2 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Drake:
12 players who were recruited from high schools (one is a walk-on)
2 transfers from another 4-year school
Evansville:
10 players who were recruited from high schools
1 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Indiana State:
12 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
1 transfers from another 4-year school
3 player recruited as juco transfers
Loyola:
8 players who were recruited from high schools - one is a walk-on
2 transfers from another 4-year school
4 player recruited as juco transfers
Missouri State:
9 players who were recruited from high schools - one is a walk-on
5 player recruited as juco transfers
Northern Iowa:
13 players who were recruited from high schools - three are walk-ons
2 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Southern Illinois:
7 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
2 transfers from another 4-year school
5 player recruited as juco transfers
Wichita State:
13 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
3 transfers from another 4-year school - two are recruited walk-ons but scholarship-caliber
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
So - who is JUCO-U?? - without question it is a tie between SIU & Missouri State
Who is TRANSFER-U?? - Wichita State wins this one.
..but definitely Loyola & Illinois State also have a big number of kids that were recruited after they left high school.
Time will tell - but at least Bradley did not go the multi-late-juco route that Missouri State & SIU have just taken...we're doing it the right way!
But here's an odd thing - some of the teams with a lot of jucos & transfers, like Wichita & ISU, have done well - far better than some with few such jucos & transfers (like Drake).
But the schools with the most substantial player turnover - players departing in just 1-2 years (such as Bradley under Geno & SIU) are definitely the ones who have done most poorly.
So the winning formula is to build a team with mostly 4-year guys coming from high school or maybe better prep schools, and throw in an occasional transfer and juco guy when the right one comes along to fill the needs.
That's the formula that best describes the teams that have been in the upper half of the Valley - Wichita, UNI, and recently Indiana State, Evansville...
Thank you Coach Wardle for doing just that and not loading up this past spring with gobs of whatever available jucos there were....a pattern Bradley fans had been all to familiar with under Geno & his advisors..
Bradley:
12 players who were recruited from high schools (but one is a recruited walk-on)
2 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Drake:
12 players who were recruited from high schools (one is a walk-on)
2 transfers from another 4-year school
Evansville:
10 players who were recruited from high schools
1 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Illinois State:
9 players who were recruited from high schools
2 transfers from another 4-year school
3 player recruited as juco transfers - one is a walk-on
2 transfers from another 4-year school
3 player recruited as juco transfers - one is a walk-on
Indiana State:
12 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
1 transfers from another 4-year school
3 player recruited as juco transfers
Loyola:
8 players who were recruited from high schools - one is a walk-on
2 transfers from another 4-year school
4 player recruited as juco transfers
Missouri State:
9 players who were recruited from high schools - one is a walk-on
5 player recruited as juco transfers
Northern Iowa:
13 players who were recruited from high schools - three are walk-ons
2 transfers from another 4-year school
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
Southern Illinois:
7 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
2 transfers from another 4-year school
5 player recruited as juco transfers
Wichita State:
13 players who were recruited from high schools - two are walk-ons
3 transfers from another 4-year school - two are recruited walk-ons but scholarship-caliber
1 player recruited as a juco transfer
So - who is JUCO-U?? - without question it is a tie between SIU & Missouri State
Who is TRANSFER-U?? - Wichita State wins this one.
..but definitely Loyola & Illinois State also have a big number of kids that were recruited after they left high school.
Time will tell - but at least Bradley did not go the multi-late-juco route that Missouri State & SIU have just taken...we're doing it the right way!
But here's an odd thing - some of the teams with a lot of jucos & transfers, like Wichita & ISU, have done well - far better than some with few such jucos & transfers (like Drake).
But the schools with the most substantial player turnover - players departing in just 1-2 years (such as Bradley under Geno & SIU) are definitely the ones who have done most poorly.
So the winning formula is to build a team with mostly 4-year guys coming from high school or maybe better prep schools, and throw in an occasional transfer and juco guy when the right one comes along to fill the needs.
That's the formula that best describes the teams that have been in the upper half of the Valley - Wichita, UNI, and recently Indiana State, Evansville...
Thank you Coach Wardle for doing just that and not loading up this past spring with gobs of whatever available jucos there were....a pattern Bradley fans had been all to familiar with under Geno & his advisors..
Friday, August 14, 2015
Comparison
Just a little comparison between two similar midmajors...
Bradley - their main sport is basketball, they have a great tradition - been to Final Fours, draws well - ....8,000 to 10,000 average home attendance all the way from the 1980's thru 2010...great fan base, seemingly always have winning teams.
Partnered in May of 2013 with Nelligan Sports - now Learfield, to market Bradley better in hopes of boosting Bradley's profile and increasing attendance, donations, improved financial situation after a very, very successful 10-year drive for funds and improved on campus facilities...etc...
VCU - their main sport is basketball, they have a great tradition - been to Final Fours, draws well - ....8,000 to 10,000 average home attendance all the way from the 1980's thru 2010...great fan base, seemingly always have winning teams.
They have also partnered long term with Learfield Sports, to market VCU better in hopes of boosting VCU's profile and increasing attendance, donations, improved financial situation ...etc....
http://www.vcuathletics.com/sports/ramFund/2015-RAF-Recap
OK, you get the picture....two amazingly similar schools - both poised with every opportunity back in 2006-2007 to move up to the big time....
Two schools that up 'til just a few years ago - were very, very similar schools in every respect....however quite clearly Bradley was the BETTER school - AT THAT TIME - in a better conference, and poised to jump to the big time in a much stronger sense than VCU!
VCU spent most of the 80's & 90's with losing records - while Bradley did NOT. Bradley had the BIGGER fan base and MORE revenue!
But somewhere around a decade ago - BOTH schools started a stretch of 20-win seasons and doing exceptionally well on a national scene, going to the post-season, sending players to the NBA, and growing attendance, fan base, and getting record donations & revenue!!! Then the similarities ended and one school went up, up, up...while the other began a plummet that was historic and painful for the fans.
...VCU made the right decisions at that time and it is definitely debatable that Bradley did not.
The hirings Bradley made starting in 2007 when the Board chose Joanne Glasser as President, followed by coaching changes, and a new AD were disastrous. In the interval since 2007 Bradley has gone from winning 20 games per year regularly to losing 20+ and finishing at the bottom of the conference, while VCU has risen al most to the BCS-level in national prestige and prowess.
There's also an enormous difference in how things have gone campus-wide.
Bradley dropped to disastrous levels financially with waste and reckless overspending by the admin in charge...practically destroying BU athletics in the process - only the uprising of a few brave & vocal fans who finally got in the Board's ear and got them to take off their blinders and look at the facts rather than believe the crap being spewed by the admin, the one supporting Board member who had his reputation tied to Dr. Glasser, and the clueless media....saved Bradley athletics.
It was absolutely stunning to see how fast and how BROAD-SWEEPING the changes were once the Board members took off their blinders and read the letters and e mails the fans were sending.
I applaud those fans for their efforts - it has turned night into day!
Remember - the letter writing ONLY began in earnest in November & December of 2014.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24493
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24490
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24553
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24390
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=299611#post299611
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24837
Yup - these fans who got the ball rolling saved Bradley basketball - without them we'd be watching Geno Ford rounding up obscure, unknown juco kids who can't play at DI level and we'd be looking forward to another 25 loss season, another last place finish, and another year of Kirk Wessler & Mike Cross telling the fans they are uninformed and don't see how much better Bradley really is - "light years better"!! - LOL
And one more question - why if VCU goes with Learfield and it's a great relationship and boosts their following, their attendance, their revenue...etc...
then why are we doing so incredibly badly with the same deal with the same people.
The "Learfield position" at Bradley has been a revolving door - half the time they have NOBODY hired and the position is empty and the other half the time it is a frikking revolving door with one person after another there and nothing getting done. Information from inside sources says the whole thing has been nothing but ineptitude and bungling since Dr. Cross set this whole thing up...but then that's a different story since nothing Dr. Cross did in his five years at Bradley help on tiny bit - with his main bragging point being the development of a silly mascot and a bland looking "B" logo.
The important things like growth of the fan base, boosting revenue, improved athletic performance - especially in basketball, getting attendance and donations going upward, etc...
All those were unmitigated DISASTERS and the worst five-year interval at Bradley for sure - but even perhaps the worst five-year interval at just about any DI school ever - nearly driving Bradley down to Division III not to mention the loss of $20+ million in wasted spending, poor hires, and even misleading financial numbers that shocked the board.
Is it any wonder than within weeks of finally taking off those blinders - the Board fired the President, the Athletic Director, and the head basketball coach -
Has this ever happened anywhere ever in Division I??? Anywhere?? All the big dogs sent packing no matter what the cost because to keep them was even more costly - then the first public statement from the new AD was that basically we are reversing every decision and policy change of the last 5 years !!!
No more cramming fans into the ladies' gym, restart the ITOO, get the fans back and stop alienating them with insulting ego-centered policies...
well - Bradley is on the right track now with the right people - but I would sure love the chance to go back to 2007 when the bad hirings and bad decision had their origins...
had we NOT made that move - and then the subsequent ones og firing Ken Kavanagh and hiring Dr. Cross - things would surely be different.
Would they be VCU-level different?? Don't know - but sure would have loved to find out...now we have to start from literal scratch and dig our way out of a huge hole left to us by those who have been sent packing. Talk about leaving an empty cupboard...that gang left a cupboard filled with the most unimaginable waste and pestilence.....I'd rather it just have been empty.
One more laugh for you all.....
ran across the column that PJStar's Kirk Wessler wrote right after Bradley beat Jacksonville State to open the 2013-14 season. The prediction Wessler made was absolutely stunning...
"After back-to-back last-place MVC finishes, the first under Les and the second under Ford,
the Braves tied for seventh last season. A return to the solid middle this season is likely,
and a top-four finish is possible. Considering that BU has not finished above fourth since 2001,
that would be considered significant progress."
Bradley - their main sport is basketball, they have a great tradition - been to Final Fours, draws well - ....8,000 to 10,000 average home attendance all the way from the 1980's thru 2010...great fan base, seemingly always have winning teams.
Partnered in May of 2013 with Nelligan Sports - now Learfield, to market Bradley better in hopes of boosting Bradley's profile and increasing attendance, donations, improved financial situation after a very, very successful 10-year drive for funds and improved on campus facilities...etc...
VCU - their main sport is basketball, they have a great tradition - been to Final Fours, draws well - ....8,000 to 10,000 average home attendance all the way from the 1980's thru 2010...great fan base, seemingly always have winning teams.
They have also partnered long term with Learfield Sports, to market VCU better in hopes of boosting VCU's profile and increasing attendance, donations, improved financial situation ...etc....
http://www.vcuathletics.com/sports/ramFund/2015-RAF-Recap
OK, you get the picture....two amazingly similar schools - both poised with every opportunity back in 2006-2007 to move up to the big time....
Two schools that up 'til just a few years ago - were very, very similar schools in every respect....however quite clearly Bradley was the BETTER school - AT THAT TIME - in a better conference, and poised to jump to the big time in a much stronger sense than VCU!
VCU spent most of the 80's & 90's with losing records - while Bradley did NOT. Bradley had the BIGGER fan base and MORE revenue!
But somewhere around a decade ago - BOTH schools started a stretch of 20-win seasons and doing exceptionally well on a national scene, going to the post-season, sending players to the NBA, and growing attendance, fan base, and getting record donations & revenue!!! Then the similarities ended and one school went up, up, up...while the other began a plummet that was historic and painful for the fans.
...VCU made the right decisions at that time and it is definitely debatable that Bradley did not.
The hirings Bradley made starting in 2007 when the Board chose Joanne Glasser as President, followed by coaching changes, and a new AD were disastrous. In the interval since 2007 Bradley has gone from winning 20 games per year regularly to losing 20+ and finishing at the bottom of the conference, while VCU has risen al most to the BCS-level in national prestige and prowess.
There's also an enormous difference in how things have gone campus-wide.
Bradley dropped to disastrous levels financially with waste and reckless overspending by the admin in charge...practically destroying BU athletics in the process - only the uprising of a few brave & vocal fans who finally got in the Board's ear and got them to take off their blinders and look at the facts rather than believe the crap being spewed by the admin, the one supporting Board member who had his reputation tied to Dr. Glasser, and the clueless media....saved Bradley athletics.
It was absolutely stunning to see how fast and how BROAD-SWEEPING the changes were once the Board members took off their blinders and read the letters and e mails the fans were sending.
I applaud those fans for their efforts - it has turned night into day!
Remember - the letter writing ONLY began in earnest in November & December of 2014.
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24493
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24490
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24553
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24390
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=299611#post299611
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?t=24837
Yup - these fans who got the ball rolling saved Bradley basketball - without them we'd be watching Geno Ford rounding up obscure, unknown juco kids who can't play at DI level and we'd be looking forward to another 25 loss season, another last place finish, and another year of Kirk Wessler & Mike Cross telling the fans they are uninformed and don't see how much better Bradley really is - "light years better"!! - LOL
And one more question - why if VCU goes with Learfield and it's a great relationship and boosts their following, their attendance, their revenue...etc...
then why are we doing so incredibly badly with the same deal with the same people.
The "Learfield position" at Bradley has been a revolving door - half the time they have NOBODY hired and the position is empty and the other half the time it is a frikking revolving door with one person after another there and nothing getting done. Information from inside sources says the whole thing has been nothing but ineptitude and bungling since Dr. Cross set this whole thing up...but then that's a different story since nothing Dr. Cross did in his five years at Bradley help on tiny bit - with his main bragging point being the development of a silly mascot and a bland looking "B" logo.
The important things like growth of the fan base, boosting revenue, improved athletic performance - especially in basketball, getting attendance and donations going upward, etc...
All those were unmitigated DISASTERS and the worst five-year interval at Bradley for sure - but even perhaps the worst five-year interval at just about any DI school ever - nearly driving Bradley down to Division III not to mention the loss of $20+ million in wasted spending, poor hires, and even misleading financial numbers that shocked the board.
Is it any wonder than within weeks of finally taking off those blinders - the Board fired the President, the Athletic Director, and the head basketball coach -
Has this ever happened anywhere ever in Division I??? Anywhere?? All the big dogs sent packing no matter what the cost because to keep them was even more costly - then the first public statement from the new AD was that basically we are reversing every decision and policy change of the last 5 years !!!
No more cramming fans into the ladies' gym, restart the ITOO, get the fans back and stop alienating them with insulting ego-centered policies...
well - Bradley is on the right track now with the right people - but I would sure love the chance to go back to 2007 when the bad hirings and bad decision had their origins...
had we NOT made that move - and then the subsequent ones og firing Ken Kavanagh and hiring Dr. Cross - things would surely be different.
Would they be VCU-level different?? Don't know - but sure would have loved to find out...now we have to start from literal scratch and dig our way out of a huge hole left to us by those who have been sent packing. Talk about leaving an empty cupboard...that gang left a cupboard filled with the most unimaginable waste and pestilence.....I'd rather it just have been empty.
One more laugh for you all.....
ran across the column that PJStar's Kirk Wessler wrote right after Bradley beat Jacksonville State to open the 2013-14 season. The prediction Wessler made was absolutely stunning...
Bradley had just squeaked by Jacksonville State, a team that ended up that year being TERRIBLE (even though some posters on the PJStar board claimed they were a very good team) -
and Wessler said this..."After back-to-back last-place MVC finishes, the first under Les and the second under Ford,
the Braves tied for seventh last season. A return to the solid middle this season is likely,
and a top-four finish is possible. Considering that BU has not finished above fourth since 2001,
that would be considered significant progress."
BUT - of course this touchdown dance over beating a woeful Jacksonville State team was just a little off base - as they turned out to be a bad team and so did we...another horrible losing year with lots of blowout losses and a play-in end to the season.
Friday, August 7, 2015
Now that we've pondered how easy it would have been - what kind of scorers did Geno recruit?
Last post listed all the reasons Geno's recruiting should have been better than his predecessors - and yet it was not...
Here is a comprehensive list of EVERY player recruited and landed at Bradley by Geno Ford - and the career scoring total of all of them.
Every coach Bradley has had developed great scorers - and players who are enshrined in the 1000-Point Club. Pretty good bet that Geno will not have anyone in the 1000-Point Club.
Player -- Career points for Bradley - updated up thruf Jan 9, 2016.
Tyshon Pickett - 773
Auston Barnes - 607
Omari Grier - 569
Ka'Darryl Bell - 455 (**still active but career likely over/injury)
Tramique Sutherland - 272
Josh Cunningham - 260
Warren Jones - 249
Jalen Crawford - 217
Xzavier Taylor - 189
Shayok Shayok - 169
Nate Wells - 91
Donte Thomas - 220 (**still active)
Mike Shaw - 58
Anthony Fields - 56
Jermaine Morgan - 55
Jordan Swopshire - 34
Mason Alwan - 33
Anthony Fields - 32
Chris Blake - 31
Jimmy Gavin - 13
Stefan Zecevic - 12
Darrion Harris - 9
Donivine Stewart - 4
Devon Hodges - 0
Aaron Ganson - 0
Jackson Kane - 0
Kendahl Amerson - 0
I guess if Ka'Darryl had a dream season in his 4th year, and averaged double digits, he could surpass Tyshon Pickett (played only 2 years) and become Geno's all time top producer...but he still won't come within a mile of the 1000-Point Club.
I think this just stands to confirm what many smart Bradley fans saw the minute the Geno recruits took the floor in their debut Red-White games. We saw how weak his recruiting classes were, how poorly they shot and scored, etc....and despite the hype and the incredible touting they all got from Dave Reynolds and Kirk Wessler as "difference makers", "light years better", "go-to guys", and "deep, talented, scorers"....now the story can be told....Bradley fans suffered through a virtual draught of scoring and playing ability during the four year Glasser/Cross/Ford era. Can there be any doubt this four year span that some fans who wanted Jim Les run out were.excited to see and happy to have....
I have a feeling those clueless fans and PJS writers kinda know how badly they judged the 2011-2015 span, but do you think they'll ever admit it? LOL
Here is a comprehensive list of EVERY player recruited and landed at Bradley by Geno Ford - and the career scoring total of all of them.
Every coach Bradley has had developed great scorers - and players who are enshrined in the 1000-Point Club. Pretty good bet that Geno will not have anyone in the 1000-Point Club.
Player -- Career points for Bradley - updated up thruf Jan 9, 2016.
Tyshon Pickett - 773
Auston Barnes - 607
Omari Grier - 569
Ka'Darryl Bell - 455 (**still active but career likely over/injury)
Tramique Sutherland - 272
Josh Cunningham - 260
Warren Jones - 249
Jalen Crawford - 217
Xzavier Taylor - 189
Shayok Shayok - 169
Nate Wells - 91
Donte Thomas - 220 (**still active)
Mike Shaw - 58
Anthony Fields - 56
Jermaine Morgan - 55
Jordan Swopshire - 34
Mason Alwan - 33
Anthony Fields - 32
Chris Blake - 31
Jimmy Gavin - 13
Stefan Zecevic - 12
Darrion Harris - 9
Donivine Stewart - 4
Devon Hodges - 0
Aaron Ganson - 0
Jackson Kane - 0
Kendahl Amerson - 0
I guess if Ka'Darryl had a dream season in his 4th year, and averaged double digits, he could surpass Tyshon Pickett (played only 2 years) and become Geno's all time top producer...but he still won't come within a mile of the 1000-Point Club.
I think this just stands to confirm what many smart Bradley fans saw the minute the Geno recruits took the floor in their debut Red-White games. We saw how weak his recruiting classes were, how poorly they shot and scored, etc....and despite the hype and the incredible touting they all got from Dave Reynolds and Kirk Wessler as "difference makers", "light years better", "go-to guys", and "deep, talented, scorers"....now the story can be told....Bradley fans suffered through a virtual draught of scoring and playing ability during the four year Glasser/Cross/Ford era. Can there be any doubt this four year span that some fans who wanted Jim Les run out were.excited to see and happy to have....
I have a feeling those clueless fans and PJS writers kinda know how badly they judged the 2011-2015 span, but do you think they'll ever admit it? LOL
Wednesday, August 5, 2015
Amazing he couldn't do better
When Geno Ford came in at Bradley ...
-he was paid way more than any coach Bradley ever had and more than a lot of BCS coaches
-he had almost endless resources compared to the previous coach...
-a nearly "unlimited recruiting budget" by comparison
-incredible BCS-caliber campus facilities largely provided and built by the former AD & head coach
-he was allowed to hire any assistant he wanted, something former coaches were not allowed
-he was allowed to pay the new assistants more than twice what former assistants got
-he was given undeserved contract extensions, which normally help a coach recruit better
-he was given carte blanche on who he could recruit - no vetoes or oversight from the admin
-he was given a really, really cushy, soft schedule with which to fatten his record
-he had the benefit of MULTIPLE ALL Conference players left behind for him "in the cupboard" - guys like Lemon, Brown, Dyricus, etc...who were the only spark of optimism for four years - even Nate Wells got him a couple of the only wins he had in year-four!
He did no such favor for the coach that follows...leaving behind a pretty classic description of an empty cupboard.
-he coached during a span that the MVC was far weaker - especially at the bottom
-even one of the top teams left and was replaced by a bottom-dweller
-he was given the benefit, even at the expense of a huge revenue loss, of getting home games in a band box on-campus arena
-he was given the gift of a couple of buy-games as post-season easy wins - which helped boost a 16-16 final record to 18-17, just to lay claim to having a winning season and ask for a raise
-he had an amazingly favorable, lapdog press that complimented his every move even while he was recruiting & coaching poorly and racking up the worst record in the history of Bradley basketball
-he had an amazingly favorable admin that had their whole legacies tied to him winning, so they helped in any way they could to get those few wins here & there to boast about being "most improved" and "on an upswing" and "deep & talented"
-he had the benefit of 9,000 fans - and 7,000 season tickets sold in his first couple years - and no prior coach, no matter how bad - not even in the Albeck era had ever blown off and ran out so many fans as to drop attendances into the 2000-3000 range - yet he succeeded.
-and he even had the benefit of certain recruits that were left behind by his predecessor (Alec Peters, Remy Abell...) who were just waiting for a call and yet he didn't think enough to go after them and instead stocked up on non-scoring jucos and obscure transfers and rejects.
-lastly - he happened to come in when Bradley's revenue & donations were at ALL TIME HIGH, the Braves Scholarship Society was actually being capped as there was no more room for them and lower bowl seats were non-existent....all of which has frittered away and is now gone - and now needs complete rebuilding.
I guess it's an obvious question - how is it that GF could NOT help but be successful - it was practically right there being handed to him??
How did he do so badly? Most fans know the answer - some still do not and cannot understand it...and some even think he should still be here trying some more with the same failed effort that left us in April of 2015 facing MULTIPLE open scholarships and ZERO recruits signed, ZERO recruits pledges, and even zero recruits or prospects even on the horizon.
I guess some fans know so little about basketball and even so little about success that they can't tell crap from Shinola - thus we got stuck with the crap.
-he was paid way more than any coach Bradley ever had and more than a lot of BCS coaches
-he had almost endless resources compared to the previous coach...
-a nearly "unlimited recruiting budget" by comparison
-incredible BCS-caliber campus facilities largely provided and built by the former AD & head coach
-he was allowed to hire any assistant he wanted, something former coaches were not allowed
-he was allowed to pay the new assistants more than twice what former assistants got
-he was given undeserved contract extensions, which normally help a coach recruit better
-he was given carte blanche on who he could recruit - no vetoes or oversight from the admin
-he was given a really, really cushy, soft schedule with which to fatten his record
-he had the benefit of MULTIPLE ALL Conference players left behind for him "in the cupboard" - guys like Lemon, Brown, Dyricus, etc...who were the only spark of optimism for four years - even Nate Wells got him a couple of the only wins he had in year-four!
He did no such favor for the coach that follows...leaving behind a pretty classic description of an empty cupboard.
-he coached during a span that the MVC was far weaker - especially at the bottom
-even one of the top teams left and was replaced by a bottom-dweller
-he was given the benefit, even at the expense of a huge revenue loss, of getting home games in a band box on-campus arena
-he was given the gift of a couple of buy-games as post-season easy wins - which helped boost a 16-16 final record to 18-17, just to lay claim to having a winning season and ask for a raise
-he had an amazingly favorable, lapdog press that complimented his every move even while he was recruiting & coaching poorly and racking up the worst record in the history of Bradley basketball
-he had an amazingly favorable admin that had their whole legacies tied to him winning, so they helped in any way they could to get those few wins here & there to boast about being "most improved" and "on an upswing" and "deep & talented"
-he had the benefit of 9,000 fans - and 7,000 season tickets sold in his first couple years - and no prior coach, no matter how bad - not even in the Albeck era had ever blown off and ran out so many fans as to drop attendances into the 2000-3000 range - yet he succeeded.
-and he even had the benefit of certain recruits that were left behind by his predecessor (Alec Peters, Remy Abell...) who were just waiting for a call and yet he didn't think enough to go after them and instead stocked up on non-scoring jucos and obscure transfers and rejects.
-lastly - he happened to come in when Bradley's revenue & donations were at ALL TIME HIGH, the Braves Scholarship Society was actually being capped as there was no more room for them and lower bowl seats were non-existent....all of which has frittered away and is now gone - and now needs complete rebuilding.
I guess it's an obvious question - how is it that GF could NOT help but be successful - it was practically right there being handed to him??
How did he do so badly? Most fans know the answer - some still do not and cannot understand it...and some even think he should still be here trying some more with the same failed effort that left us in April of 2015 facing MULTIPLE open scholarships and ZERO recruits signed, ZERO recruits pledges, and even zero recruits or prospects even on the horizon.
I guess some fans know so little about basketball and even so little about success that they can't tell crap from Shinola - thus we got stuck with the crap.
One more Dr. Cross post
It is potentially good for Bradley that Dr. Cross has achieved other employment - even though his salary at Penn State will be only about 1/3 of what Bradley was contractually obligated to pay him according to reports...
..so contrary to some idiotic comments, this is not an upward or lateral move...
If I recall - reports stated
http://www.pjstar.com/article/20150216/SPORTS/150219345
http://wglt.org/wireready/news/2015/03/06892_glassman_EIU_171146.shtml
.. that Dr. Cross had a contract with Bradley that went a couple years into the future....so just as
happened when Coach Les left - I would suspect that by getting employed elsewhere, this might reduce the burden on Bradley for the buyout.
The publicly released info from Pennsylvania indicates that assistants in the Athletic Dept. at Penn State earn up to around $100K...although some less.
(btw- Penn State just hired yet another assistant AD - http://www.gopsusports.com/genrel/080515aab.html
- sounds like her's is a much bigger job responsibility overseeing 325 other employees!)
I also wonder why the only statement regarding why Dr. Cross was leaving was "Cross declined to give a reason"...
This is pretty strange given the extent that the press dug into issues when KK and JL left - speculating, reporting falsehoods, leaked e mails, rumors, even quoting unnamed "past employees" and "disgruntled ex-staff from the Athletic Dept." just to smear them as they went to better jobs.
They even found someone who had been let go due to his inability to even do his job under Kavanagh - and culled some smear about alleged personality traits!
Wonder if they'll do some digging and get some answers this time or just hug them as they have done recently- well, on second thought - I don't wonder.
..so contrary to some idiotic comments, this is not an upward or lateral move...
If I recall - reports stated
http://www.pjstar.com/article/20150216/SPORTS/150219345
http://wglt.org/wireready/news/2015/03/06892_glassman_EIU_171146.shtml
.. that Dr. Cross had a contract with Bradley that went a couple years into the future....so just as
happened when Coach Les left - I would suspect that by getting employed elsewhere, this might reduce the burden on Bradley for the buyout.
The publicly released info from Pennsylvania indicates that assistants in the Athletic Dept. at Penn State earn up to around $100K...although some less.
(btw- Penn State just hired yet another assistant AD - http://www.gopsusports.com/genrel/080515aab.html
- sounds like her's is a much bigger job responsibility overseeing 325 other employees!)
I also wonder why the only statement regarding why Dr. Cross was leaving was "Cross declined to give a reason"...
This is pretty strange given the extent that the press dug into issues when KK and JL left - speculating, reporting falsehoods, leaked e mails, rumors, even quoting unnamed "past employees" and "disgruntled ex-staff from the Athletic Dept." just to smear them as they went to better jobs.
They even found someone who had been let go due to his inability to even do his job under Kavanagh - and culled some smear about alleged personality traits!
Wonder if they'll do some digging and get some answers this time or just hug them as they have done recently- well, on second thought - I don't wonder.
Tuesday, August 4, 2015
For the record...
"...a vastly experienced administrator with significant success in identifying and creatively developing new and enhanced revenue generation opportunities"
"...ferocious fund-raiser..."
..so what are the facts...not the hype....how has "revenue generation" and fundraising gone at BU over the past 6-8 years?
..all facts stated here are from the actual committee reports and minutes of the BU Board of Trustees from October & November, 2014 and other sessions.
And nobody wants to see Bradley succeed both as a University and Athletically than I do - but things were headed badly in the wrong direction - while those steering & cheering kept saying and apparently even believing that things were going in the right direction. Sad that so few who were misinformed and badly wrong could do so much to hurt such a fine institution, and an irresponsible and inept media failed to report on it honestly and accurately.
Many of these reports and facts were once available on the internet and via links, but some if not many have been "scrubbed" or are no longer available. This info should not be lost as one who ignores the facts mistakes of history are doomed to repeat them.
November 5, 2014 - per Bradley University .. financial statements:
"FY13 (fiscal year 2013) had loss of $6.3 million."
"Athletics loss ballooned to over $7.1 million."
"Unrestricted Contributions were down 46% to only $.8 million"
"Bradley's deficit position (that they were facing) ..was $5.2 million in FY14"
(that was before the "cost reductions" that were implemented and "belt tightening" in 2014)
"Athletics losses continue to grow at a pace of about $.5 million more every year. Ten years ago, the Athletics loss was $2.1 million and it is now $7.1 million."
"Athletics (cost) has increased 240%" - while - "General Administration (cost) increased by 47%)"
Then the clincher that was relevant to the Board's "housecleaning only a couple months later...
"Non-disclosure and lack of transparency at appropriate time has rendered the April 2014 committee report incomplete"
In 2006, 0% of University-wide financial resources went to Athletics, and in 2007 it was 0.5%.
That figure then grew yearly as follows...
2008 - 0.5%
2009 - 0.9%
2010 - 1.1%
2011 - 2.2%
2012 - 3.4%
2013 - 3.9%
2014 - 4.0%
Here are the actual dollar-losses in Athletics from 2005-2014:
(there is a 332% increase from 2006 thru 2014, and 2/3 of that occurred after 2009)
2005 - $2.086 million
2006 - $2.136 million
2007 - $2.746 million
2008 - $2.926 million
2009 - $3.267 million
2010 - $3.165 million
2011 - $4.766 million
2012 - $5.915 million
2013 - $6.698 million
2014 - $7.093 million
So it is pretty easy to conclude that finances and budget were pretty stable and pretty satisfactory until around 2007. 2007's fiscal year began with the hiring of a new President, who was highly touted as a fundraiser and economic organizer. The deficit and financial irresponsibility then zoomed out of sight - taking off even further exponentially after 2009, when a new AD was hired.
The Board was kinda kept in the dark about all the financial mess (thus the reference to NON-DISCLOSURE and LACK OF TRANSPARENCY) - but once the Board members became aware in late 2014, the decision to clean house followed almost immediately.
So why did the Board not see all this mess coming? Well, follow the facts. Many Board members and even Board Chairmen were businessmen who benefited from their relationship with Bradley and whose businesses (insurance, constructions, etc.) were getting paid by Bradley for contracted services.
In 2013 Robert Turner was elected to the position as Chairman of the Board. Turner has given tens of millions of dollars to Bradley, has buildings named after him and entire curricula named for him, so nobody can doubt his honesty and sincerity in wanting the best for Bradley.
But shortly after becoming President he became aware of some of the serious problems and "non-disclosure" and attempted to address those issues. In the end we all know what happened - he was rebutted by the President and at least one other influential Board member and eventually resigned as President over these "UNSUSTAINABLE PRACTICES" - causing the loss of millions in future pledges from Turner.
Those facts can be confirmed here.
http://www.bradley.edu/about/publications/hilltopics/2013spring/notebook/page3.dot
http://bradleyfans.com/vb/showthread.php?p=297155
With the "belt tightening" and the all new leadership over the past year, now Bradley is back on the right track. The financial year 2014 finances show an OPERATING SURPLUS of $1.1 million.
Yes, you heard that right - not only did the actions over the past year stop the waste and the slide, they've actually begun to create a surplus!
Buying out all the bloated contracts in early 2015 will unfortunately stall that financial turnaround, but those were necessary steps to get Bradley back on the right track.
To recap - Bradley finances were great all the up through 2007. There were record donations, record revenues, and in Athletics there were great crowds, record attendance, record membership in the higher levels of the Chiefs Club and booster groups....all of which have been thoroughly documented.
Then came the dismissal of the AD, Ken Kavanagh, then the hiring of a new AD in late 2009, then more firings and changes that were terribly destructive and poorly conducted.
In the end - the period from 2008 through 2014 were a horribly bad period with leadership that took Bradley and BU Athletics to the very brink of disaster and talk of dropping down to DII or DIII.
Thankfully the fans wanted better, began posting opinions, writing letters, and got the attention of enough members of the Board to oust a group that had pushed Bradley into fiscal crisis and even may have been deceptive in doing so ("lack of transparency" is a nice way of saying dishonest and up-front).
Had the fans waited for the media to report on this, it would have never happened.
This all needs to be documented so we know how to avoid this in the future, but I am confident we have the right people there to lead us back to success.
For more that was posted at that time go here:
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2014/12/some-interesting-facts.html
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2014/12/a-remarkable-letter-from-bradley.html
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2014/12/bradleys-astounding-plunge-in.html
http://bubravesblogger.blogspot.com/2014/12/letter-of-nov-24-2014.html
UNSUSTAINABLE: (page 37)
http://www.bradley.edu/academic/cio/senate/documents/2013-2014/Bradley+University+Senate+Agenda+May+2014+website.pdf
http://www.bradley.edu/dotAsset/289317bd-9752-4b4c-aa2d-ad71fe9c1b85.pdf
http://www.bradley.edu/academic/cio/senate/documents/2013-2014/Bradley+University+Senate+Agenda+April+2014.pdf
http://www.dacbond.com/dacContent/doc.jsp?id=0900bbc78013c6cc
http://www.bradley.edu/dotAsset/6fd0131a-89a4-4e41-8c14-e01ee26e0fed.pdf
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