(06-18-2013 08:20 PM)Riceman2004 Wrote:  After a self-imposed blackout of Rice due my boycott of participating in all Rice activities (alumni, admissions volunteering, giving) due to the Basketball scandal, with the exception of lurking during the Baseball post-season, I just saw this and am thrilled to hear the news. Obviously, it is sad whenever someone loses their job, but it was a necessary step for all involved.

Some thoughts:
1. It hasn't been mentioned but the program is too much of a mess to just go out and hire someone. I would propose a "McKinsey II" process where Leebron and the BOT endorse a rough vision for Rice Athletics for candidates to understand BEFORE serious interviews are conducted.

2. Leebron must unambiguously acknowledge the damage caused by the Basketball scandal and vow for a change in culture with Rice athletics. This can be done without overtly throwing Greenspan more under the bus than he already has. This is a necessary step in making clear that the University will not tolerate even the implication of anything close to what was alleged (whether true or not) so that we can move forward.

3. It's important that those of us who walked away from Rice due to frustration over athletics be brought into the fold and show a demonstrated commitment. Does anyone know what the deadline is for the Annual fund? It would be great if those of us who feel this way were able to pool funds together to show that we love Rice, are committed going forward and that there are incentives to making decisions that further Rice's reputation.

4. I don't have any strong opinions about the characteristics of the ideal hire or know enough about current players, but it's clear we need someone who has the ambition and abilities to engineer a turnaround and bring a lot of disenchanted people back into the fold, while working quickly to better position Rice for conference realignment. Going down with C-USA is not acceptable.

5. If JVG could be hired for Basketball, I would walk down from NYC to go to the games. He'd be a huge shot in the arm for the program and I'd write him a blank check to take it on (if only I had the bank account). However, from everything I've heard, he's very happy with his current ESPN gig and any return to coaching would be for a plum NBA job.

Per your comment in bold above, as I mentioned in a previous post, the fiscal year ends a week from Sunday, June 30th....and I agree wholeheartedly that in light of recent events (Greenspan's departure, Mello serving as interim AD, the great finishing kick and post-season run by the baseball team, and the very encouraging prospects for the upcoming football season), it would be a strong signal of "demonstrated commitment" by the Rice alumni and athletic supporters if those who have not yet given to the Owl Club or any of the SIDs (e.g., RBI Club) this year can make a statement with their checkbooks this week (regardless to how small). In fact, I'd encourage those who consider doing so not just to go online to make the contribution, but to call up someone in the athletic department (e.g., Kim Koehn, Marc Laney, Rick Mello, or whomever answers to AD phone) and give them your "2-cents" about the direction of the athletic department and the upcoming AD search process while making your donation.

I just finished a conversation for someone in the department, and they are definitely listening to feedback at this point. For my "2-cents" worth, I told them that RG's departure and naming Rick Mello as interim AD (amongst the options we had) we both good first steps, but that the strong signal to us of real progress and heading in the right direction will be the naming of the AD search committee and the process they plan to follow (not to mention the qualifications identified of potential candidates).