I know donors and people who worked in the department that liked Thomas just fine.

He wasn't perfect, and I'm glad he left when he did, but I can't help but laugh at the amount of ignorant message board hyperbole thrown his way.

Well... being that at least one of the poster's in this thread is a large donor and advertiser for UC athletics I'd say your information may be a little off WarningSigns.

(03-29-2012 09:04 AM)mlb Wrote:  Well... being that at least one of the poster's in this thread is a large donor and advertiser for UC athletics I'd say your information may be a little off WarningSigns.

I said I knew donors that did like Thomas. Not that all donors did.

Well... any large donor that is unhappy is a problem. Especially if they are ready to pull their funding. From all accounts that was beginning to happen with MT. There were a LOT of unhappy people over the handling of the football program... during the BK years up through last summer's debacle over the tailgating grid (that BJ had to basically get put into place himself with zero help from MT).

I agree with all that. Unhappy donors is a big problem.

MT came in at a turbulent time for UC athletics--basketball team gutted, no one cared about FB, $40-50 MILLION dollars owed on Varsity Village, running an annual $7 Million dollar deficit, academics and compliance offices were not where they should be, and our fan base was extremely pissed off.

At that time, we didn't need a schmoozer or an outside-the-box marketing genius. We needed someone that could get our sh1t together, clean up our department, put competitive teams on the field and get our programs buzzing again. We also needed to replace some of our old deals, like media rights (ask anyone--we had one of the worst deals in the country before) and our gear contract.

MT did all of that, and the way people refer to his tenure you'd have thought he took a blossoming department and ran it into the ground. I get some inside info, probably not as much as other people on here, but it doesn't take a genius to look at where we were in the fall of 2005 to now and see that a lot of good things happened.

MT's biggest weakness and failure IMO was his ability to connect with the fans and understand the unique challenges of marketing UC to the area. Thats why I was glad he left this past year, and it was probably a year over due. Winning cures all at schools that already have money and an unwavering fan base--and in that sense MT could do pretty well at Illinois. You don't have to sell that program to anyone. Just win, baby.

But UC is different, and having winning teams is only half the battle. I think Whit will do great--you can already see his new line of thinking taking place--but he has been handed a much different department than Thomas was. No cute t-shirt ideas were going to help us in 2005.

Funny thing is if the knuckleheads who wanted Mick fired after year 4 had gotten their way, Groce would have been on MT's list.

I wasnt happy and didnt know any other donors in the end who were happy.

Keep up the good work Whit. I heard he is moving right down the street from Coach Jones. Hope that helps further the relationship.

(03-29-2012 09:57 AM)WarningSigns Wrote:  I agree with all that. Unhappy donors is a big problem.

MT came in at a turbulent time for UC athletics--basketball team gutted, no one cared about FB, $40-50 MILLION dollars owed on Varsity Village, running an annual $7 Million dollar deficit, academics and compliance offices were not where they should be, and our fan base was extremely pissed off.

At that time, we didn't need a schmoozer or an outside-the-box marketing genius. We needed someone that could get our sh1t together, clean up our department, put competitive teams on the field and get our programs buzzing again. We also needed to replace some of our old deals, like media rights (ask anyone--we had one of the worst deals in the country before) and our gear contract.

MT did all of that, and the way people refer to his tenure you'd have thought he took a blossoming department and ran it into the ground. I get some inside info, probably not as much as other people on here, but it doesn't take a genius to look at where we were in the fall of 2005 to now and see that a lot of good things happened.

MT's biggest weakness and failure IMO was his ability to connect with the fans and understand the unique challenges of marketing UC to the area. Thats why I was glad he left this past year, and it was probably a year over due. Winning cures all at schools that already have money and an unwavering fan base--and in that sense MT could do pretty well at Illinois. You don't have to sell that program to anyone. Just win, baby.

But UC is different, and having winning teams is only half the battle. I think Whit will do great--you can already see his new line of thinking taking place--but he has been handed a much different department than Thomas was. No cute t-shirt ideas were going to help us in 2005.

Yes...He did all that.

But the minute that he anounced he was leaving there were huge parties that included coaches and anyone connected to the Athletic Department in any way.

There was no one that was not happy to have him gone.

I don't know about that. I've talked to several people who currently work in the athletic department and they don't seem to have any particularly harsh feelings toward him. They seemed to think that he was too reserved as far as personality and probably delegated too much. They think Whit is a lot more proactive and is much more involved in day to day operations, and he holds everyone much more accountable than MT did.
I do think Babcock is a much better fit for where we want to go. I thought he was a great hire.

(03-29-2012 04:02 PM)JackieTreehorn Wrote:  I don't know about that. I've talked to several people who currently work in the athletic department and they don't seem to have any particularly harsh feelings toward him. They seemed to think that he was too reserved as far as personality and probably delegated too much. They think Whit is a lot more proactive and is much more involved in day to day operations, and he holds everyone much more accountable than MT did.
I do think Babcock is a much better fit for where we want to go. I thought he was a great hire.

Well said.

I have contact with more than enough coaches that I can make that statement.

I have not talked to one coach who is disappointed that MT left.

hmmm....mike thomas or whit babcock......I'LL TAKE WHIT over that AD anytime