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Good riddance for Tim Lester. Since '18 (pre-Covid) the administration (@Pres_Montgomery, etc) at WMU continued to build road blocks for the program. Over 20% operating budget cut, ONE full-time strength coach, NO full-time recruiting position -Pres can't even come to bowl games!

https://twitter.com/DrewRob52/status/159...xhrCg&s=01

Mentioned this in another thread, but what MAC school hasn't been operating at shoestring budgets and slashing costs these days, especially since COVID?

Budgets aren't the only issue. 2018 was the first major red flag for this staff, and that was due mostly (IMO) to the on-field product.

If Montgomery could cut sports, he would. He has no use for athletics.

He is also incredibly unpopular with faculty and staff.

Basically, the only people who like him are the board members that pull his strings.

Drew is reporting OLD news.

Everything has now changed with new AD.
WMU athletics is now spending & hiring significantly.

I have mixed feelings about this firing (though I understood the "we're just kicking the can down the road" argument). While I'm sure we'll experience some excitement in looking ahead to what's next, it's still a sad day for TL and his family.

We went though the whole 'He didn't get enough $$$ support' conversations when Hawk was let go, too. Whether it's true or not, we're a MAC institution bleeding enrollment and 'income' like most other MAC brethren.

The problem wasn't budgetary support, it was losing multiple big games that were eminently winnable.

(11-28-2022 11:15 AM)RunningGame Wrote:  The problem wasn't budgetary support, it was losing multiple big games that were eminently winnable.

[slaps table] THANK YOU

(11-28-2022 08:38 AM)okgc Wrote:  Drew is reporting OLD news.

Everything has now changed with new AD.
WMU athletics is now spending & hiring significantly.

I'll remember that when the Gary Fund makes their annual calls humping my leg for money because it's "so hard to come by".

(11-28-2022 11:25 AM)ktotten Wrote:  

(11-28-2022 11:15 AM)RunningGame Wrote:  The problem wasn't budgetary support, it was losing multiple big games that were eminently winnable.

If the former is true, you don't think that'd have an impact on the latter?

I don't think more money solves problems like laying an egg against an NIU team that half quit in 2019, or letting Ball State rip off 17 points in the 4th quarter in 2020 to sink our title hopes, or giving the ball to Khalil Pimpleton multiple times in 2021 to help him resurrect his dejected and defeated teammates.

One of those games goes differently and I don't think we're here. Maybe an impact player somewhere or a more buff player would have helped, but I don't think recruiting or player development were the problems in those losses.

My one piece of advice to Tim Lester moving forward is light the book on fire and throw it in Lake Michigan.

Whatever "book" TL was using didn't seem to be playing the actual percentages, anyway.

(11-28-2022 11:34 AM)RunningGame Wrote:  

(11-28-2022 11:25 AM)ktotten Wrote:  

(11-28-2022 11:15 AM)RunningGame Wrote:  The problem wasn't budgetary support, it was losing multiple big games that were eminently winnable.

If the former is true, you don't think that'd have an impact on the latter?

I don't think more money solves problems like laying an egg against an NIU team that half quit in 2019, or letting Ball State rip off 17 points in the 4th quarter in 2020 to sink our title hopes, or giving the ball to Khalil Pimpleton multiple times in 2021 to help him resurrect his dejected and defeated teammates.

One of those games goes differently and I don't think we're here. Maybe an impact player somewhere or a more buff player would have helped, but I don't think recruiting or player development were the problems in those losses.

My one piece of advice to Tim Lester moving forward is light the book on fire and throw it in Lake Michigan.

I never really understood his public admission that he relied on 'the book' to make coaching decisions. I was actually totally turned off by that. While anything can be factored in during the decision making process relying on 'the book' is/was ridiculous. If all I need is 'the book' why do I need a highly paid coach? I thought the whole thing was ridiculous. Probably Dan did too.

(11-28-2022 11:35 AM)wmubroncopilot Wrote:  Whatever "book" TL was using didn't seem to be playing the actual percentages, anyway.

I think most of the decisions were good, including a lot more 4th down attempts than you might otherwise see, but I think the overall problem is offloading decision making to a math formula when football is a game of emotion and confidence. The fact that he talked about it a lot leads me to believe it loomed large in his mind. Everyone says Lester was a confident, emotional competitor, but that trait never seemed to express itself on gameday and translate to his players.

(11-28-2022 11:15 AM)RunningGame Wrote:  The problem wasn't budgetary support, it was losing multiple big games that were eminently winnable.

Exactly. Budgetary problems aside, Tim's awful decisions and game management in winnable games are what sunk him.

Remember, WMU had a 2nd half lead in every game except for 1 in the 2021 season. We ended up going 1-4 in the MAC West. You just can't do that while having the most talented team in the MAC with NFL talent at QB, WR, OL.

(11-28-2022 11:38 AM)bronco1988 Wrote:  I never really understood his public admission that he relied on 'the book' to make coaching decisions. I was actually totally turned off by that. While anything can be factored in during the decision making process relying on 'the book' is/was ridiculous. If all I need is 'the book' why do I need a highly paid coach? I thought the whole thing was ridiculous. Probably Dan did too.

A more polished coach refers to "the book" as analytics. It is all the same stuff by another name. A bulk of programs these days rely on this data to inform decisions. Right or wrong, more often than not our execution on many of the "questionable" plays helped bring the % down for everyone.

Who is Drew Robinson

(11-28-2022 12:33 PM)Bronc33 Wrote:  Who is Drew Robinson

Former director of operations

Every team has financial issues in the MAC. Realistically, WMU is a superior university as a whole, in comparison to 90% of the conference. From the standpoint of resources, student body, campus, nearby vibrant city, etc… we have more to offer a student athlete than most MAC schools. Yet, we have little to show for it, outside of a few years with Fleck. It has always baffled me that we don’t crush every teams regularly.
I put maybe Ohio U and Miami above us from an overall institutional standpoint, the rest are far below.
One of these days, the city of Kalamazoo and the school will realize that they are each others best resource for growth and health.
If WMU enrollment will increase it will be due to out of state enrollment. We have tapped in state. To do this, marketing is needed. Sports should sit on the forefront of this effort.
The infustructure is there, the school needs to quit trying to be something it isn’t (MIT or Harvard) and try to be the Boise State or Gonzaga of the Midwest. It’s possible.

The leadership that the board consistently just blindly shows support of in spite of the staff sending constant no confidence votes is sign that something is broken... and badly. Montgomery and the Proudfoot debacle... just a circus.

(11-28-2022 01:14 PM)flushtheherd Wrote:  The leadership that the board consistently just blindly shows support of in spite of the staff sending constant no confidence votes is sign that something is broken... and badly. Montgomery and the Proudfoot debacle... just a circus.

100%

Both are horrible and need to go away. Montgomery has no vision for WMU.