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By Stuart
[h=3]Colorado Daily[/h] June 8th
Emma Coburn goes out with another NCAA title
From cubuffs.com … Emma Coburn finished her outstanding career at the University of Colorado with a bang when she won her second NCAA 3,000-meter steeplechase crown on Saturday afternoon at the NCAA Championships.
The 2012 Olympian was the overall favorite heading into the race as she has the best time by an American this year (9:28.26) and she did not disappoint, winning the race in 9:35.38. Her finishing time was the fifth best in NCAA history and coincidentally all five of those times belong to the Buffs.
Heading into the race, there was a lot of hype surrounding Coburn about whether or not she would go for the NCAA record in the event (9:25.54), which is held by former CU standout Jenny (Barringer) Simpson. Ultimately Coburn did not break the record, but she didn’t seem too upset since she came away from the meet with another championship.
“On a day like this I have to look at the conditions and competition and think about if it is wise to shoot for the record and today I decided to be more conservative,” Coburn said. “I had to be smart. I‘d rather have an NCAA title and I didn’t want to risk not getting that. Today was just about winning the title and its fine with me.”
Overall this is Coburn’s third NCAA championship. She also won the steeplechase in 2011 and the 2013 indoor mile crown this past March. *She is also a six-time All-American for the Buffs, three times in the steeplechase, twice in the indoor mile and once in cross country.
This is the sixth steeplechase title the Buffs have won in the last eight years. Simpson won in 2006, 2008 and 2009 and Shalaya Kipp, who is redshirting this season, won in 2012 while Coburn was redshirting.
–
Kronshage tell coach MacIntyre that*he didn’t tweet the racial slur
From the Daily Camera … Kronshage, a three-star offensive lineman from The Woodlands High School near Houston, became involved in an ugly war of words last weekend between players and fans of The Woodlands baseball team and a rival school, Rockwell, during a three-game series to determine which team would move on to the state Final Four.
Brandon Manger, a player on The Woodlands team, first began using racial slurs toward Rockwell center fielder Kendall Coleman, who is black. Soon after a post from Kronshage’s Twitter account also directed to Coleman put him squarely in the conflict.
The post read. “You’re a n—–. #Seasonover”
Ordinarily, MacIntyre wouldn’t have much option here. The only choice would be to call Kronshage, ask him about the post and if he admitted posting it, then pull his scholarship and cut ties with him.
Period.
But MacIntyre made that call and when he heard the explanation, the ugly situation became much more complicated.
Kronshage told MacIntyre that he wasn’t at the baseball game. He was at a supervised post-graduation party where he was swimming. He said that while he was in the pool, someone used his phone to access his Twitter account and post the racist tweet. He did not know who used his phone.
… MacIntyre said he has never had any reason to believe Kronshage is anything but an honorable young man with integrity and a good heart. He said there were no red flags about Kronshage that came up in recruiting and he pointed out that Kronshage committed to former CU coaches Kanavis McGhee and Jon Embree, both of whom are black.
… “I have to trust the young man and trust what’s going on here,” MacIntyre said. “I do believe them. So we’re in the process of trying to make sure what we’ve been told is definitely real.”
–
Mac-2: “Our trust factor with our players is growing on a daily basis”
BuffPlayBook.com has published its interview with coach MacIntyre. The website has granted free access to the full interview, which can be found here.
Some highlights:
BPB Question: Compare the talent at San Jose State when you first arrived there as the head coach to the talent you have here in your first year as Head Football Coach at the University of Colorado.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: The main difference was the fact that we were only working with 75 scholarships the first season at San Jose State compared to the 85 scholarships you normally have allotted. Talent wise we have a few more play makers here at Colorado than we did at SJSU and we have more size here at CU. Overall we are starting off with a more athletic team here in Boulder. We did a great job recruiting at San Jose State, we feel that we will be able to do even a better job of recruiting athletes to our incredible campus at Colorado.
BPB Question: Talk about turning football programs around, your approach, your focus on how to make Colorado a winning football program.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: The most important thing is developing the young man instead of just worrying about developing him as an athlete. The more well rounded person you have, the better football player you are going to have, I truly believe that.
It’s important for us as coaches to build a trust with our student athletes, if there is no trust you won’t be able to turn it around. You have to show them you care about them and that they can trust you. It’s also about believing you can accomplish great things and that you will be successful. Our trust factor with our players is growing on a daily basis and that’s something that I’m very excited about.
BPB Question: Give all Buff fans a little information on your offensive and defensive philosophies.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: On offense we will run out of the pistol formation and have a downhill physical style running attack. The offense will be about getting the ball out of your hands quickly and get it into our playmakers hands. We will run multiple speeds on offense and we will bring in a lot of different personnel groups in and out of the game to utilize our talents the best that we can.
On defense we will run out of a 4-3 front and a 4-2-5 formation based on who we are playing. We will definitely bring the pressure, we will have to defend a lot of spread offenses, we have to be aggressive on the defensive line of scrimmage and knock down some quick passes. We want to create a lot of turnovers, we work a lot on that aspect of our game.
–
June 7th
CU recruit tweets racial slur
From the Daily Camera … Sam Kronshage, a football signee with the University of Colorado, recently tweeted a racial slur to a baseball player from an opposing school, and it has led to an investigation of a nasty Twitter exchange between the schools, The Dallas Morning News reported.
Kronshage, who is an offensive lineman from The Woodlands (Texas) High School, was one of many students who tweeted each other Saturday night after The Woodlands defeated Rockwall High to advance in the Texas Class 5A playoffs. According to the Morning News, Kronshage, who is white, tweeted Rockwall center fielder Kendall Coleman, a black player who signed with Iowa.
The tweet, according to the report, contained the n-word, and ended with: “#SEASONOVER.” It has since been removed from his Twitter account.
On Monday, Kronshage sent Coleman a tweet reading, “hey man, I’ve been trying to get ahold of you. Just wanted to say sorry for what happened on Saturday.”
Colorado first-year coach Mike MacIntyre said through the school on Thursday night that he has yet to talk with Kronshage.
“It is something we would never condone by our current athletes or any of our prospective recruits,” MacIntyre said. He plans to talk with Kronshage today before taking any possible action.
… In a follow-up story in the Dallas Morning News, however, it appears that the issue is already old news in Dallas.
Corbett Smith’s story, which includes all of the tweets which are at issue, can be found here
The report … I’ve been contacted by one of The Woodlands students who retweeted the post, who asked not to be named. The student said that Rockwall students engaged in vicious trash-talking of their own, at one point writing that one of The Woodlands’ students classmates “looked like she had Down’s Syndrome.”
“I am not a racist person,” said the student – who called me to ask if the names of those who retweeted Kronshage’s message could be pulled from the blog post. The student couldn’t give me a reason why they retweeted Kronshage’s post.
To me, there’s little doubt that there was inappropriate trash-talk from BOTH sides, which have since been deleted. But the tenor of the conversation isn’t the issue; that it devolved into racist taunts is.
June 4th
Vincent Hobbs and Gerald Thomas back; Davien Payne gone
In a move which has been anticipated for much of the spring, it’s being reported that red-shirt freshman running back Davien Payne is no longer with the team. A three-star recruit out of Perris, California, Payne was considered by Rivals to be the 46th-best running back prospect in the nation out of the recruiting Class of 2012 (Rivals bio). Payne had offers from a number of schools, including UCLA, both Washington schools, and Arizona State.
Payne was suspended during the spring (academics), and was not considered likely to return to Boulder this fall.
But, the good news … Sophomore tight end Vincent Hobbs and sophomore wide receiver Gerald Thomas are back and working out with the team. Last season Hobbs was second on the team in receptions amongst CU tight ends, with 16 catches for 153 yards. Hobbs was being counted on to replace Nick Kasa as the main tight end threat this fall. Hobbs,*however, missed most of the spring*as he was back in Dallas with his family. Hobbs’ father was paralyzed due to a tumor in his spine, and was only released from the hospital in March. With family concerns (rightfully) coming first, there was a question as to whether Hobbs would be coming back to*Boulder, but reports are that he*has done*just that.
Gerald*Thomas played as a true freshman last season, but perhaps was not utilized as often as might have been possible. Thomas played in all 12 games, with nine rushing attempts for 56 yards, 18 catches for 171 yards, and two punt returns for 12 yards. There*were questions about Thomas’ hands, but he had a good spring. In fact, in the*first series of the first scrimmage of the Mike MacIntyre era,*Thomas*had a 45-yard catch. Still, Thomas was buried*in fourth position on the*post-spring wide receiver depth chart, prompting speculation that he would not return to the team for the*fall. However, reports are that Thomas is learning to play the slot, giving him the best opportunity for playing time.
–
Jordan Webb preliminary hearing postponed
From the Daily Camera … A preliminary hearing for University of Colorado quarterback Jordan Webb and former CU lineman Alexander Lewis in their assault cases has been postponed after attorneys said they needed more time to prepare for the hearing.
Lewis, 21, faces one count of second-degree assault and two counts of harassment while Webb, also 21, faces one count of second-degree assault after police say the two assaulted a man on University Hill in May.
The preliminary hearing is now scheduled for July 1 in Boulder County Court. Prosecutor Bruce Langer indicated there were still some records that he and the defense attorneys needed to obtain and review before a preliminary hearing.
–
Former CU President Gordon Gee to retire
An old joke in our family: What is the only thing that I and*my wife, a graduate of Ohio State and a dedicated non-sports fan, have in common?
Answer: Diplomas with the signature of E. Gordon Gee.
It was announced today that the former President of the University of Colorado is about to become the former President of The Ohio State University (never forget the “The“).
From ESPN … Ohio State University president Gordon Gee announced his retirement Tuesday after he came under fire for jokingly referring to “those damn Catholics” at Notre Dame and poking fun at the academic quality of other schools.
Ohio State initially called the remarks unacceptable and placed Gee on a “remediation plan” to change his behavior.
Gee, 69, said in a statement that he decided during a vacation last week to step down on July 1.
“During my days away, I also spent some time in self-reflection,” Gee said. “And after much deliberation, I have decided it is now time for me to turn over the reins of leadership to allow the seeds that we have planted to grow. It is also time for me to re-energize and refocus myself.”
… Under Gordon Gee, the CU football team enjoyed its greatest success. Many who have complained about the lack of support from the CU administration for the CU athletic department point to the era of Gordon Gee (and Gee’s subsequent success at Vanderbilt and Ohio State) as the proper way for the President’s office to support athletics.
Now, Gee is out at Ohio State, and there have been rumors in recent months about CU President Benson retiring … you don’t think …?
… Naw, too much to ask.
June 2nd
CU looking to double athletic department donations over the next five years
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but*CU is about to get serious about fund-raising (If you have a weak stomach for such things, don’t read the “Athletics 2010 goals” reprinted below … from the 2004 CU media guide).
From the Daily Camera … “If we’re going to be in the big leagues now, we’ve got to be doing more fundraising,” Benson said.
CU-Boulder’s athletic department — which switched to the Pac-12 in 2011 — pulled in $11.79 million in donations last year. The entire university system raised $228 million last year — a figure that Benson wants to push up to at least $400 million annually.
…His “sustainable excellence” fundraising plan had significant donations in the queue, he said. He also implemented a donor seat tax in basketball that brought $400,000 in annual revenue. CU has a “fragile, but loyal, fan base,” said Bohn, adding that 50 percent of donors are non-alumni.
… Early in his tenure, when Bohn discussed his idea to create “The Buff Club Cabinet” — an upper echelon of donors who give athletics at least $25,000 a year — he was met with naysayers who said getting people to give $10,000 a year was hard enough.
The cabinet, Bohn said, has had up to 68 members.
When CU athletics last year pulled in $11.79 million in donations, it was an increase from $7.59 million the previous year. Prior to Bohn’s arrival, fundraising in 2005 — a turbulent period following the fallout from a football recruiting scandal — was just $6.46 million.
CU athletic department fundraising
2003: $7 million
2004: $7.13 million
2005: $6.46 million
2006: $9.34 million
2007: $10.79 million
2008: $11.29 million
2009: $14.22 million
2010: $7.42 million
2011: $7.59 million
2012: $11.79 million
But … We’ve heard this all before …
Remember “RTD”? … When Gary Barnett returned from Northwestern to become the CU head coach in 1999? Barnett, who had been an assistant coach under Bill McCartney, told the story about coming down the turnpike on his way back to Boulder, noting the familiar logo on the*RTD buses.
And “RTD” … “Return to Dominance” was born.
It was more than just a mantra, there was a fund-raising campaign. I still have my “RTD” memento, shaped like a piece from a jigsaw puzzle. On*it was a*hand-written note from Barnett, thanking me for being a “piece of the*puzzle” in returning Colorado to dominance.
Remember the bricks? … *It’s been awhile now. My “brick”, on the ground below the Ralphie sculpture just to the southwest of the stadium, is a little scuffed. After all, its been there for a few years – enough years that I don’t even remember what the fund-raising scheme was, or what the funds were used for. But … I bought a brick to help the CU athletic department raise money.
Remember “Athletics 2010″? … The plan was grand, and was announced with great fanfare. The CU athletic department had a Plan, and the Plan was to be in place by 2010.
The following is taken from the 2004 CU media guide concerning “Athletics 2010″ …
Athletics 2010: Four Key Elements
1) Education – Including graduating every student-athlete and retaining nine out of ten;
2) Winning – Goals were set for each program in the department, with CU overall to win the Director’s Cup, given out each year to the school which accumulated the most overall points during an academic year (a fairly bold hope, considering CU competed in the minimum number of sports). Football’s goal was to be in the top ten nationally each year, with the goal of men’s basketball to be in the top 15;
3) Culture – Creating a culture which would achieve the goal to “aggressively embrace and promote diversity and equity”; and
4) Facilities – Worth quoting in its entirety:
“Facilities. Athletics 2010 will provide the University with facilities to better recruit, educate, train and compete at the highest national levels without adversely impacting the institution’s academic priorities. Plans for these enhancements are as follows:
“- Develop facilities with financial integrity and ensure that they provide revenue opportunities;
“- Provide state-of-the-art academic support facilities;
“- Establish facilities for year-round practice and competition that provide priority access and scheduling for all intercollegiate sports;
“- Expand Folsom Field and build a new stadium complex, including suites, club seating, additional northeast seating, a parking structure and a Fieldhouse on the northeast side (first portion completed in 2003);
“- Build Olympic sport fields;
“- Expand and remodel the Coors Events Conference Center for practice facilities (including a new volleyball venue), meeting space, ticket operations and concessions;
“- Collaborate with the campus and community to establish facilities sharing”.
That was CU’s goal for the future a decade ago. And today … a great deal of talk … again …
Originally posted by CU At the Game
Click here to vie
[h=3]Colorado Daily[/h] June 8th
Emma Coburn goes out with another NCAA title
From cubuffs.com … Emma Coburn finished her outstanding career at the University of Colorado with a bang when she won her second NCAA 3,000-meter steeplechase crown on Saturday afternoon at the NCAA Championships.
The 2012 Olympian was the overall favorite heading into the race as she has the best time by an American this year (9:28.26) and she did not disappoint, winning the race in 9:35.38. Her finishing time was the fifth best in NCAA history and coincidentally all five of those times belong to the Buffs.
Heading into the race, there was a lot of hype surrounding Coburn about whether or not she would go for the NCAA record in the event (9:25.54), which is held by former CU standout Jenny (Barringer) Simpson. Ultimately Coburn did not break the record, but she didn’t seem too upset since she came away from the meet with another championship.
“On a day like this I have to look at the conditions and competition and think about if it is wise to shoot for the record and today I decided to be more conservative,” Coburn said. “I had to be smart. I‘d rather have an NCAA title and I didn’t want to risk not getting that. Today was just about winning the title and its fine with me.”
Overall this is Coburn’s third NCAA championship. She also won the steeplechase in 2011 and the 2013 indoor mile crown this past March. *She is also a six-time All-American for the Buffs, three times in the steeplechase, twice in the indoor mile and once in cross country.
This is the sixth steeplechase title the Buffs have won in the last eight years. Simpson won in 2006, 2008 and 2009 and Shalaya Kipp, who is redshirting this season, won in 2012 while Coburn was redshirting.
–
Kronshage tell coach MacIntyre that*he didn’t tweet the racial slur
From the Daily Camera … Kronshage, a three-star offensive lineman from The Woodlands High School near Houston, became involved in an ugly war of words last weekend between players and fans of The Woodlands baseball team and a rival school, Rockwell, during a three-game series to determine which team would move on to the state Final Four.
Brandon Manger, a player on The Woodlands team, first began using racial slurs toward Rockwell center fielder Kendall Coleman, who is black. Soon after a post from Kronshage’s Twitter account also directed to Coleman put him squarely in the conflict.
The post read. “You’re a n—–. #Seasonover”
Ordinarily, MacIntyre wouldn’t have much option here. The only choice would be to call Kronshage, ask him about the post and if he admitted posting it, then pull his scholarship and cut ties with him.
Period.
But MacIntyre made that call and when he heard the explanation, the ugly situation became much more complicated.
Kronshage told MacIntyre that he wasn’t at the baseball game. He was at a supervised post-graduation party where he was swimming. He said that while he was in the pool, someone used his phone to access his Twitter account and post the racist tweet. He did not know who used his phone.
… MacIntyre said he has never had any reason to believe Kronshage is anything but an honorable young man with integrity and a good heart. He said there were no red flags about Kronshage that came up in recruiting and he pointed out that Kronshage committed to former CU coaches Kanavis McGhee and Jon Embree, both of whom are black.
… “I have to trust the young man and trust what’s going on here,” MacIntyre said. “I do believe them. So we’re in the process of trying to make sure what we’ve been told is definitely real.”
–
Mac-2: “Our trust factor with our players is growing on a daily basis”
BuffPlayBook.com has published its interview with coach MacIntyre. The website has granted free access to the full interview, which can be found here.
Some highlights:
BPB Question: Compare the talent at San Jose State when you first arrived there as the head coach to the talent you have here in your first year as Head Football Coach at the University of Colorado.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: The main difference was the fact that we were only working with 75 scholarships the first season at San Jose State compared to the 85 scholarships you normally have allotted. Talent wise we have a few more play makers here at Colorado than we did at SJSU and we have more size here at CU. Overall we are starting off with a more athletic team here in Boulder. We did a great job recruiting at San Jose State, we feel that we will be able to do even a better job of recruiting athletes to our incredible campus at Colorado.
BPB Question: Talk about turning football programs around, your approach, your focus on how to make Colorado a winning football program.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: The most important thing is developing the young man instead of just worrying about developing him as an athlete. The more well rounded person you have, the better football player you are going to have, I truly believe that.
It’s important for us as coaches to build a trust with our student athletes, if there is no trust you won’t be able to turn it around. You have to show them you care about them and that they can trust you. It’s also about believing you can accomplish great things and that you will be successful. Our trust factor with our players is growing on a daily basis and that’s something that I’m very excited about.
BPB Question: Give all Buff fans a little information on your offensive and defensive philosophies.
Coach MacIntyre’s Answer: On offense we will run out of the pistol formation and have a downhill physical style running attack. The offense will be about getting the ball out of your hands quickly and get it into our playmakers hands. We will run multiple speeds on offense and we will bring in a lot of different personnel groups in and out of the game to utilize our talents the best that we can.
On defense we will run out of a 4-3 front and a 4-2-5 formation based on who we are playing. We will definitely bring the pressure, we will have to defend a lot of spread offenses, we have to be aggressive on the defensive line of scrimmage and knock down some quick passes. We want to create a lot of turnovers, we work a lot on that aspect of our game.
–
June 7th
CU recruit tweets racial slur
From the Daily Camera … Sam Kronshage, a football signee with the University of Colorado, recently tweeted a racial slur to a baseball player from an opposing school, and it has led to an investigation of a nasty Twitter exchange between the schools, The Dallas Morning News reported.
Kronshage, who is an offensive lineman from The Woodlands (Texas) High School, was one of many students who tweeted each other Saturday night after The Woodlands defeated Rockwall High to advance in the Texas Class 5A playoffs. According to the Morning News, Kronshage, who is white, tweeted Rockwall center fielder Kendall Coleman, a black player who signed with Iowa.
The tweet, according to the report, contained the n-word, and ended with: “#SEASONOVER.” It has since been removed from his Twitter account.
On Monday, Kronshage sent Coleman a tweet reading, “hey man, I’ve been trying to get ahold of you. Just wanted to say sorry for what happened on Saturday.”
Colorado first-year coach Mike MacIntyre said through the school on Thursday night that he has yet to talk with Kronshage.
“It is something we would never condone by our current athletes or any of our prospective recruits,” MacIntyre said. He plans to talk with Kronshage today before taking any possible action.
… In a follow-up story in the Dallas Morning News, however, it appears that the issue is already old news in Dallas.
Corbett Smith’s story, which includes all of the tweets which are at issue, can be found here
The report … I’ve been contacted by one of The Woodlands students who retweeted the post, who asked not to be named. The student said that Rockwall students engaged in vicious trash-talking of their own, at one point writing that one of The Woodlands’ students classmates “looked like she had Down’s Syndrome.”
“I am not a racist person,” said the student – who called me to ask if the names of those who retweeted Kronshage’s message could be pulled from the blog post. The student couldn’t give me a reason why they retweeted Kronshage’s post.
To me, there’s little doubt that there was inappropriate trash-talk from BOTH sides, which have since been deleted. But the tenor of the conversation isn’t the issue; that it devolved into racist taunts is.
June 4th
Vincent Hobbs and Gerald Thomas back; Davien Payne gone
In a move which has been anticipated for much of the spring, it’s being reported that red-shirt freshman running back Davien Payne is no longer with the team. A three-star recruit out of Perris, California, Payne was considered by Rivals to be the 46th-best running back prospect in the nation out of the recruiting Class of 2012 (Rivals bio). Payne had offers from a number of schools, including UCLA, both Washington schools, and Arizona State.
Payne was suspended during the spring (academics), and was not considered likely to return to Boulder this fall.
But, the good news … Sophomore tight end Vincent Hobbs and sophomore wide receiver Gerald Thomas are back and working out with the team. Last season Hobbs was second on the team in receptions amongst CU tight ends, with 16 catches for 153 yards. Hobbs was being counted on to replace Nick Kasa as the main tight end threat this fall. Hobbs,*however, missed most of the spring*as he was back in Dallas with his family. Hobbs’ father was paralyzed due to a tumor in his spine, and was only released from the hospital in March. With family concerns (rightfully) coming first, there was a question as to whether Hobbs would be coming back to*Boulder, but reports are that he*has done*just that.
Gerald*Thomas played as a true freshman last season, but perhaps was not utilized as often as might have been possible. Thomas played in all 12 games, with nine rushing attempts for 56 yards, 18 catches for 171 yards, and two punt returns for 12 yards. There*were questions about Thomas’ hands, but he had a good spring. In fact, in the*first series of the first scrimmage of the Mike MacIntyre era,*Thomas*had a 45-yard catch. Still, Thomas was buried*in fourth position on the*post-spring wide receiver depth chart, prompting speculation that he would not return to the team for the*fall. However, reports are that Thomas is learning to play the slot, giving him the best opportunity for playing time.
–
Jordan Webb preliminary hearing postponed
From the Daily Camera … A preliminary hearing for University of Colorado quarterback Jordan Webb and former CU lineman Alexander Lewis in their assault cases has been postponed after attorneys said they needed more time to prepare for the hearing.
Lewis, 21, faces one count of second-degree assault and two counts of harassment while Webb, also 21, faces one count of second-degree assault after police say the two assaulted a man on University Hill in May.
The preliminary hearing is now scheduled for July 1 in Boulder County Court. Prosecutor Bruce Langer indicated there were still some records that he and the defense attorneys needed to obtain and review before a preliminary hearing.
–
Former CU President Gordon Gee to retire
An old joke in our family: What is the only thing that I and*my wife, a graduate of Ohio State and a dedicated non-sports fan, have in common?
Answer: Diplomas with the signature of E. Gordon Gee.
It was announced today that the former President of the University of Colorado is about to become the former President of The Ohio State University (never forget the “The“).
From ESPN … Ohio State University president Gordon Gee announced his retirement Tuesday after he came under fire for jokingly referring to “those damn Catholics” at Notre Dame and poking fun at the academic quality of other schools.
Ohio State initially called the remarks unacceptable and placed Gee on a “remediation plan” to change his behavior.
Gee, 69, said in a statement that he decided during a vacation last week to step down on July 1.
“During my days away, I also spent some time in self-reflection,” Gee said. “And after much deliberation, I have decided it is now time for me to turn over the reins of leadership to allow the seeds that we have planted to grow. It is also time for me to re-energize and refocus myself.”
… Under Gordon Gee, the CU football team enjoyed its greatest success. Many who have complained about the lack of support from the CU administration for the CU athletic department point to the era of Gordon Gee (and Gee’s subsequent success at Vanderbilt and Ohio State) as the proper way for the President’s office to support athletics.
Now, Gee is out at Ohio State, and there have been rumors in recent months about CU President Benson retiring … you don’t think …?
… Naw, too much to ask.
June 2nd
CU looking to double athletic department donations over the next five years
Stop me if you’ve heard this before, but*CU is about to get serious about fund-raising (If you have a weak stomach for such things, don’t read the “Athletics 2010 goals” reprinted below … from the 2004 CU media guide).
From the Daily Camera … “If we’re going to be in the big leagues now, we’ve got to be doing more fundraising,” Benson said.
CU-Boulder’s athletic department — which switched to the Pac-12 in 2011 — pulled in $11.79 million in donations last year. The entire university system raised $228 million last year — a figure that Benson wants to push up to at least $400 million annually.
…His “sustainable excellence” fundraising plan had significant donations in the queue, he said. He also implemented a donor seat tax in basketball that brought $400,000 in annual revenue. CU has a “fragile, but loyal, fan base,” said Bohn, adding that 50 percent of donors are non-alumni.
… Early in his tenure, when Bohn discussed his idea to create “The Buff Club Cabinet” — an upper echelon of donors who give athletics at least $25,000 a year — he was met with naysayers who said getting people to give $10,000 a year was hard enough.
The cabinet, Bohn said, has had up to 68 members.
When CU athletics last year pulled in $11.79 million in donations, it was an increase from $7.59 million the previous year. Prior to Bohn’s arrival, fundraising in 2005 — a turbulent period following the fallout from a football recruiting scandal — was just $6.46 million.
CU athletic department fundraising
2003: $7 million
2004: $7.13 million
2005: $6.46 million
2006: $9.34 million
2007: $10.79 million
2008: $11.29 million
2009: $14.22 million
2010: $7.42 million
2011: $7.59 million
2012: $11.79 million
But … We’ve heard this all before …
Remember “RTD”? … When Gary Barnett returned from Northwestern to become the CU head coach in 1999? Barnett, who had been an assistant coach under Bill McCartney, told the story about coming down the turnpike on his way back to Boulder, noting the familiar logo on the*RTD buses.
And “RTD” … “Return to Dominance” was born.
It was more than just a mantra, there was a fund-raising campaign. I still have my “RTD” memento, shaped like a piece from a jigsaw puzzle. On*it was a*hand-written note from Barnett, thanking me for being a “piece of the*puzzle” in returning Colorado to dominance.
Remember the bricks? … *It’s been awhile now. My “brick”, on the ground below the Ralphie sculpture just to the southwest of the stadium, is a little scuffed. After all, its been there for a few years – enough years that I don’t even remember what the fund-raising scheme was, or what the funds were used for. But … I bought a brick to help the CU athletic department raise money.
Remember “Athletics 2010″? … The plan was grand, and was announced with great fanfare. The CU athletic department had a Plan, and the Plan was to be in place by 2010.
The following is taken from the 2004 CU media guide concerning “Athletics 2010″ …
Athletics 2010: Four Key Elements
1) Education – Including graduating every student-athlete and retaining nine out of ten;
2) Winning – Goals were set for each program in the department, with CU overall to win the Director’s Cup, given out each year to the school which accumulated the most overall points during an academic year (a fairly bold hope, considering CU competed in the minimum number of sports). Football’s goal was to be in the top ten nationally each year, with the goal of men’s basketball to be in the top 15;
3) Culture – Creating a culture which would achieve the goal to “aggressively embrace and promote diversity and equity”; and
4) Facilities – Worth quoting in its entirety:
“Facilities. Athletics 2010 will provide the University with facilities to better recruit, educate, train and compete at the highest national levels without adversely impacting the institution’s academic priorities. Plans for these enhancements are as follows:
“- Develop facilities with financial integrity and ensure that they provide revenue opportunities;
“- Provide state-of-the-art academic support facilities;
“- Establish facilities for year-round practice and competition that provide priority access and scheduling for all intercollegiate sports;
“- Expand Folsom Field and build a new stadium complex, including suites, club seating, additional northeast seating, a parking structure and a Fieldhouse on the northeast side (first portion completed in 2003);
“- Build Olympic sport fields;
“- Expand and remodel the Coors Events Conference Center for practice facilities (including a new volleyball venue), meeting space, ticket operations and concessions;
“- Collaborate with the campus and community to establish facilities sharing”.
That was CU’s goal for the future a decade ago. And today … a great deal of talk … again …
Originally posted by CU At the Game
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