So this is the news that so many have been waiting many years for.
News was just posted. More to come....

https://www.inquirer.com/college-sports/...10216.html

"Zillmer is sixth in seniority among Division I ADs at a single school."

honestly just excited to hear about some change...for everyone including dr. zillmer. a lot of people in a lot of fields who were maybe on the verge of a major career change are making it now. i read his quote to say we're walking into a major s***storm on top of what we've already dealt with. appreciate his willingness to step aside and let others decide the long term future of drexel athletics.

who we hire next will say a lot about what direction we want to go. i have no idea who i would like to see in that position...other than somebody who has no affiliation with drexel athletics at all. if we hire in house i'll be really disappointed. we need a fresh set of eyes on everything to see what we can improve.

I think that we're all in agreement here, but our new AD needs to be somebody who will treat Men's Basketball as the most important program and make it the flagship program again. This new person needs to have a really strong ability to market the program, especially men's basketball. He/she needs to be able to take on the challenge of bringing back excitement to a dead program and not be afraid to challenge our Big Five rivals. One of the biggest challenges to take on is trying to make sellouts at MBB games to be the norm and not the exception.

This is a great news, but until we hire we dont know how good of news this is. It is however a start in the right direction to potential progress. The hire will absolutely tell us all we need to know about where athletics is headed.

This has to be great news. How could we do worse?

It was way past time, but I'm not necessarily optimistic that the next AD will prioritize men's basketball the way we want them to. Squash is Fry's baby, any AD that he hires is going to have to keep squash a priority. That said, the chance for some new blood is at least something.

(02-16-2021 02:03 PM)Spearsie Wrote:  This has to be great news. How could we do worse?

I totally agree. If anything, this at least gives us something to look forward to and get excited about.

I'm not really liking all of the cynical talk of "Well it's Drexel so they'll probably screw it up by bringing in a championship squash player who doesn't care about basketball".

We were all excited when Bruiser finally got the can, yet the program still hasn't progressed any faster than the program could have gone had Bruiser stayed. We have no idea what's going to happen in the coming years, but at least it's something to look forward to.

That means Spiker will probably get one more year. Then the new AD will make his/her first decision.

(02-16-2021 03:31 PM)J.B. Wrote:  

(02-16-2021 02:03 PM)Spearsie Wrote:  This has to be great news. How could we do worse?

I totally agree. If anything, this at least gives us something to look forward to and get excited about.

I'm not really liking all of the cynical talk of "Well it's Drexel so they'll probably screw it up by bringing in a championship squash player who doesn't care about basketball".

We were all excited when Bruiser finally got the can, yet the program still hasn't progressed any faster than the program could have gone had Bruiser stayed. We have no idea what's going to happen in the coming years, but at least it's something to look forward to.

I see the 2 as the same and the same reasons for skepticism. It is time and the right move is happening, which means there is a new opportunity. That is always positive and what everyone wants. It does also lead to the unknown and out of the comfort zone most are in. Same way with Bruiser. The hire has not ended up making much of a difference, but it was still the right thing to do. Same deal here. We do not know what the future will be but I agree it at least springs hope. Based on the past including the Spiker hire, I completely understand not getting too excited because they have to prove we can make a good hire at some point.

But I feel like this is a better spot than when we replaced Bruiser. Drexel basketball is a tough sell. Selling an entire athletics program is much easier and much more desirable.

also for everyone's reading pleasure...

https://www.inquirer.com/college-sports/...3Dsharebar

(02-17-2021 03:05 PM)dan10 Wrote:  also for everyone's reading pleasure...

https://www.inquirer.com/college-sports/...3Dsharebar

it was nice to see at least one honest comment on that article. somebody said he basically made drexel athletics irrelevant. i think most of the other comments on social media are coming from the inner circle...which is kept way too tight.

there haven't been many comments in general. this message board should be blowing up and it's not. silence means more sometimes.

(02-18-2021 12:30 PM)hiroshimacarp Wrote:  

(02-17-2021 03:05 PM)dan10 Wrote:  also for everyone's reading pleasure...

https://www.inquirer.com/college-sports/...3Dsharebar

it was nice to see at least one honest comment on that article. somebody said he basically made drexel athletics irrelevant. i think most of the other comments on social media are coming from the inner circle...which is kept way too tight.

there haven't been many comments in general. this message board should be blowing up and it's not. silence means more sometimes.

If this was back in the glory days of the CAA Zone, there would be 100 posts by now. But there are only a few people who post here. I do there a lot more read it silently, but don't post.

This message board is only a handful of people that post, any more. Most are elsewhere on social media. With that said, I agree, I think its mostly a topic to stay away from due to the closeness of our program and who reads these places. I think most would rather say nothing than hurt themselves and their potential standing with the program by saying something.

With that said, for the replacement what I look for is pretty simple:

Someone who has been an AD previously that had a successful run at their school (Ideally, previous D1 experience, but not required)

Someone who prioritizes mens and womens basketball as the true workhorse sports of our institution and is willing to put resources forth to make both successful at our level and when those demands are not being met, making changes, not sticking with status quo

Someone who can still keep our tight group of alums involved while still growing our alumni base and general interest in school pride.

What I do NOT want:

Internal candidate or someone who has not been an athletic director previously (especially not someone who doesnt have a background in athletics)

(02-18-2021 01:57 PM)dan10 Wrote:  This message board is only a handful of people that post, any more. Most are elsewhere on social media. With that said, I agree, I think its mostly a topic to stay away from due to the closeness of our program and who reads these places. I think most would rather say nothing than hurt themselves and their potential standing with the program by saying something.

With that said, for the replacement what I look for is pretty simple:

Someone who has been an AD previously that had a successful run at their school (Ideally, previous D1 experience, but not required)

Someone who prioritizes mens and womens basketball as the true workhorse sports of our institution and is willing to put resources forth to make both successful at our level and when those demands are not being met, making changes, not sticking with status quo

Someone who can still keep our tight group of alums involved while still growing our alumni base and general interest in school pride.

What I do NOT want:

Internal candidate or someone who has not been an athletic director previously (especially not someone who doesnt have a background in athletics)

I understand that change is needed to help bring our program in a new direction and I'm excited for this change. However, you won't read anything negative from me about Dr. Zillmer. He's recognized me as an important member of our fanbase and has been the ultimate gentlemen as I've gotten to know him and chatted with him over the years. At most schools, it's unlikely that a regular fan like myself would get to know the Athletic Director so well, but that's not the case at Drexel. I wish Dr. Zillmer all the best and I hope that his successor treats our entire fanbase the same way.

dan10, I agree with you on all fronts, except I don't think that they have to have been the top dog AD in the past, as long as this person was being groomed as a potential future D1 AD. There are some great candidates out there that may just be blocked from getting that opportunity. I may have written this earlier, but I think that marketing is huge, and having the ability to promote this program beyond where it is now.

Thats fair. If it is an assistant AD in the waiting that is coming from a successful athletics program, I would be thrilled. I dont see many big time successful assistant AD's jumping at this job, though. In fact, I would venture to guess they are making more than our AD position offers.

Edit: My point really is I dont want a truly unproven person. This is not a time to take a big risk. I much rather a safe, but smart hire. One truly focus on athletics and raising the bar to an appropriate level

(02-18-2021 02:21 PM)J.B. Wrote:  I understand that change is needed to help bring our program in a new direction and I'm excited for this change. However, you won't read anything negative from me about Dr. Zillmer. He's recognized me as an important member of our fanbase and has been the ultimate gentlemen as I've gotten to know him and chatted with him over the years. At most schools, it's unlikely that a regular fan like myself would get to know the Athletic Director so well, but that's not the case at Drexel. I wish Dr. Zillmer all the best and I hope that his successor treats our entire fanbase the same way.

i think it's important for an ad to have that reputation...that he'll be friendly with anybody whether they're a big donor or a season ticket holder. you may be a big donor for all i know and wouldn't ask you to disclose that anyway.

being nice to the average guy wasn't his job though. appreciating the artistic side of a game at the palestra wasn't his job either. who knows? maybe he spent the last 22 years banging his head against the wall with higher ups that wouldn't give him what he needed. the armory fiasco comes to mind.

i just hope whoever comes in doesn't have the mindset that almost making the ncaa tournament is a benchmark for success. those of us who have called this out have been treated different. that's fine...since i've taken my money elsewhere especially to penn state with our football season tickets.

The campus looks way different than when I graduated (2012). Hard to say he didnt prioritize campus improvements. Whether you like them or not, is a different question.