Are people seriously suggesting that Haldi should be considered for our AD position? I really hope I'm just missing the internet sarcasm

I would love to be in on that interview. I know it's a corny job interview type question, but the first question I would ask is where do you see NIU 5 years from now? And they better not answer in some stupid canned response like I would give, LOL.

I want to hear someone who wants to grow this program and isn't shy about saying that we want to move up in the world. Say whatever you want publicly, but I want someone who has a plan to raise attendance, schedule good teams at home, and wants to move up in a conference as part of a long term plan to be a BCS school. You never get there without dreaming and planning. Sitting around and hoping is not going to cut it.

(03-11-2013 10:54 AM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  Uhoh, Im sounding like Mike Korcek, that must mean Im getting old :) But I agree 100 percent with him on this one, Ive been saying this for awhile, we need an AD that has the best interest of the university at the forefront and not just their career. It is essential.

do you have tthe best interest in your company over your career???

I appreciate Mike's opinions but he's off base with this one.

Any AD or coach who is successful at NIU will be given opportunities to "move up". Unless he/she is near retirement age, they would be crazy to pass up the huge salary increase that comes with it.

The bigger problem is when they are not successful (O'Dell, Patton, etc). They end up causing more damage to NIU athletics than any negatives caused by staff turnover.

Forget hiring someone based on their past connection to NIU. HIRE THE PERSON WITH THE BEST QUALIFICATIONS.

(03-11-2013 12:58 PM)HuskieBowWow Wrote:  I appreciate Mike's opinions but he's off base with this one.

Any AD or coach who is successful at NIU will be given opportunities to "move up". Unless he/she is near retirement age, they would be crazy to pass up the huge salary increase that comes with it.

The bigger problem is when they are not successful (O'Dell, Patton, etc). They end up causing more damage to NIU athletics than any negatives caused by staff turnover.

Forget hiring someone based on their past connection to NIU. HIRE THE PERSON WITH THE BEST QUALIFICATIONS.

That's what Compher did picking DD over P.J.

That worked out pretty well.

Being a stepping stone is working for NIU. Continue to do it.

There are members of this board who do not believe Compher was all that good and quite frankly, wasn't able to connect with the community, was weak when it came to marketing and scheduling. So maybe it's over-reaching to say the next hire has to be an NIU alum in order to solve those issues, but at least they need to be familiar with NIU's strengths and weaknesses in advance.
During his press conference, Jim Phillips talked about how when he heard of the opening at NIU, he drove over from South Bend, walked around the campus, talked to various people, and he got excited about the potential. Compher never stepped foot here until he got the job, and I'm not suggesting he wouldn't have taken it or wasn't the best candidate, it just might have changed his approach or some staff hires.
Sadler became football coach without seeing the place and then he bitched about all the short-comings in terms of coaches' offices, lockerrooms, meeting rooms, weight rooms, etc. Yes those facilities needed to be addressed, but if he didn't consider NIU anything other than a stepping stone, he should have known about them before taking the job.
In this day of executive search firms, I realize crucial interviews take place near airports or "neutral" sites, but why not have each of the finalist visit once to see the campus and facilities, talk to the major sport coaches as well as a couple Olympic coaches and staff, maybe meet some alums and locals to see and hear positives and concerns in advance. Hopefully, it doesn't discourage them, but instead makes them further see the promise the place has.
In my book, these athletic executive search firms are the world's biggest scam. They make a "recommendation" for 50K or more and then disappear. If the person turns out to hate the place, leaves quickly or gets fired; so what? There's no refund: "hey, we simply made a recommendation, who said you had to follow it?" Problem is who is going to spend that kind of money and not follow the recommendation? Eddie Williams cited a search firm's glowing recommednation as part of the justification for forcing Ricardo Patton's hire. On paper they could make a case for a minority head coach from a major (Big 12) conference who had teams play in the NCAA and NIT tournaments. In reality, those things happened early on and the decline of the program had led to Colorado to let him know he would not be rehired.
Any of you old enough to remember the original "DOG" club? Members had "DOG" buttons which stood for the "Day Odell Goes." Coaches, alums, and fans were united in supporting any job Odell pursued in order to help him get out of DeKalb. Heard stories about some of the Cincinnati coaches afterwards ran into their NIU counterparts and asked "why didn't you warn me?"
I don't want a Huskie Idol search, but I also don't like the idea of the AD hire being made in near secrecy. IF NIU is going to bring presidential candidates to campus to meet with faculty, department chairs, etc., then the athletic director hire should be done in a similar fashion.

Nice.

You mentioned Ricardo Patton, Charlie Sadler and Gerald O'Dell in one post. Just missing Lee Corso in the pantheon of NIU failures.

Compher hired a coach that got NIU to the Orange Bowl. He wasn't Jim Phillips, but very few people are.

(03-11-2013 01:20 PM)7 Wrote:  Compher hired a coach that got NIU to the Orange Bowl. He wasn't Jim Phillips, but very few people are.

My apologies 7 if I got lost in hoping we have a more open search that involves opportunities for everyone to give the hire a chance.
You are correct in saying Compher deserves credit for hiring Doreen; despite what I wrote, I'm aware there are those who felt Phillips was all about himself, those who thought Novak's departure was overdue. As much as I realize no one is going to make veryone on here happy, I'm just hoping we get someone who believe his or her career advancement will be a result of doing the job of helping the Huskie program get closer to its potential. Maybe an alum would work a little harder for that objective, maybe simply a smart but risiing athletic administrator.[/i]

(03-11-2013 01:13 PM)7 Wrote:  Being a stepping stone is working for NIU. Continue to do it.

Worked? Lowest season ticket base in a decade, NIU works, just not with Compher. I dont have anything against him personally but when you have a successful team and you still are losing fans at a record pace, what does that tell you.

Any chance for this guy?

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/armato_carl00.html

(03-11-2013 01:55 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  Any chance for this guy?

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/armato_carl00.html

Interesting. Yes I think there would be a great chance for Armato.

(03-11-2013 01:59 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:55 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  Any chance for this guy?

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/armato_carl00.html

Interesting. Yes I think there would be a great chance for Armato.

No Thank you.

(03-11-2013 02:15 PM)Doggone Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:59 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:55 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  Any chance for this guy?

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/armato_carl00.html

Interesting. Yes I think there would be a great chance for Armato.

No Thank you.

You know at least he wouldnt allow NIU bball to stay down like Phillips and Compher. Phillips and Compher didnt want to touch basketball with a 10 foot pole. He is young, energetic, knows NIU and the region very well. It would certainly be an upgrade to what we have had in Phillips and Compher. I think its a smart move.

(03-11-2013 02:20 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 02:15 PM)Doggone Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:59 PM)MaddDawgz02 Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:55 PM)HuskieJohn Wrote:  Any chance for this guy?

http://www.niuhuskies.com/genrel/armato_carl00.html

Interesting. Yes I think there would be a great chance for Armato.

No Thank you.

You know at least he wouldnt allow NIU bball to stay down like Phillips and Compher. Phillips and Compher didnt want to touch basketball with a 10 foot pole. He is young, energetic, knows NIU and the region very well. It would certainly be an upgrade to what we have had in Phillips and Compher. I think its a smart move.

you are lost

(03-11-2013 01:14 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  There are members of this board who do not believe Compher was all that good and quite frankly, wasn't able to connect with the community, was weak when it came to marketing and scheduling. So maybe it's over-reaching to say the next hire has to be an NIU alum in order to solve those issues, but at least they need to be familiar with NIU's strengths and weaknesses in advance.
During his press conference, Jim Phillips talked about how when he heard of the opening at NIU, he drove over from South Bend, walked around the campus, talked to various people, and he got excited about the potential. Compher never stepped foot here until he got the job, and I'm not suggesting he wouldn't have taken it or wasn't the best candidate, it just might have changed his approach or some staff hires.
Sadler became football coach without seeing the place and then he bitched about all the short-comings in terms of coaches' offices, lockerrooms, meeting rooms, weight rooms, etc. Yes those facilities needed to be addressed, but if he didn't consider NIU anything other than a stepping stone, he should have known about them before taking the job.
In this day of executive search firms, I realize crucial interviews take place near airports or "neutral" sites, but why not have each of the finalist visit once to see the campus and facilities, talk to the major sport coaches as well as a couple Olympic coaches and staff, maybe meet some alums and locals to see and hear positives and concerns in advance. Hopefully, it doesn't discourage them, but instead makes them further see the promise the place has.
In my book, these athletic executive search firms are the world's biggest scam. They make a "recommendation" for 50K or more and then disappear. If the person turns out to hate the place, leaves quickly or gets fired; so what? There's no refund: "hey, we simply made a recommendation, who said you had to follow it?" Problem is who is going to spend that kind of money and not follow the recommendation? Eddie Williams cited a search firm's glowing recommednation as part of the justification for forcing Ricardo Patton's hire. On paper they could make a case for a minority head coach from a major (Big 12) conference who had teams play in the NCAA and NIT tournaments. In reality, those things happened early on and the decline of the program had led to Colorado to let him know he would not be rehired.
Any of you old enough to remember the original "DOG" club? Members had "DOG" buttons which stood for the "Day Odell Goes." Coaches, alums, and fans were united in supporting any job Odell pursued in order to help him get out of DeKalb. Heard stories about some of the Cincinnati coaches afterwards ran into their NIU counterparts and asked "why didn't you warn me?"
I don't want a Huskie Idol search, but I also don't like the idea of the AD hire being made in near secrecy. IF NIU is going to bring presidential candidates to campus to meet with faculty, department chairs, etc., then the athletic director hire should be done in a similar fashion.

i think you are dead wrong on Jeff never setting foot on campus. Patton did not visit.

(03-11-2013 01:34 PM)uiniu57 Wrote:  

(03-11-2013 01:20 PM)7 Wrote:  Compher hired a coach that got NIU to the Orange Bowl. He wasn't Jim Phillips, but very few people are.

My apologies 7 if I got lost in hoping we have a more open search that involves opportunities for everyone to give the hire a chance.
You are correct in saying Compher deserves credit for hiring Doreen; despite what I wrote, I'm aware there are those who felt Phillips was all about himself, those who thought Novak's departure was overdue. As much as I realize no one is going to make veryone on here happy, I'm just hoping we get someone who believe his or her career advancement will be a result of doing the job of helping the Huskie program get closer to its potential. Maybe an alum would work a little harder for that objective, maybe simply a smart but risiing athletic administrator.[/i]

All of you forget, look where the football program is today vs 10 or 12 yrs ago. It is at a level I never dreamed of. This did not happen because of incompttance in the Adm.

Football is the most important component of any Athletic Department. It drives college athletics. Compher helped maintain and build the program by hiring Doeren, there were no scandals or anything in any of our athletic programs, and by all accounts all the student-athletes are doing well in the classroom. As long as an AD can do that, his/her tenure will be a success.

As ugly as it may be, I want to see the next AD and his staff attending home basketball games and cheering on the team.