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Mike Bohn wasn't an ordinary athletic director at CU

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News Junkie
By Kyle Ringo Buffzone.com

Long after Tad Boyle had finished talking at the Colorado basketball recruiting luncheon in 2011 and the room had cleared of all but a handful of workers and media members, former University of Colorado athletic director Mike Bohn stayed behind helping the cleanup crew clear tables.

Originally posted by Daily Camera
Click here to view the article.
 
I think with a different administration Bohn would have flourished. Anybody who think Bohn is responsible for the late Hawkins fire, and Embree hire are stupid ****ing dickholes (specifically Big Bang). Expect nothing different as long as DiSteffano is at Regent.
 
I think with a different administration Bohn would have flourished. Anybody who think Bohn is responsible for the late Hawkins fire, and Embree hire are stupid ****ing dickholes (specifically Big Bang). Expect nothing different as long as DiSteffano is at Regent.
That's well documented, but at the same time, by not resigning, he's taking responsibility for those moves.
 
That's well documented, but at the same time, by not resigning, he's taking responsibility for those moves.

I would like to meet all these people who would resign from their jobs every time they disagree with a decision from above...
 
I think with a different administration Bohn would have flourished. Anybody who think Bohn is responsible for the late Hawkins fire, and Embree hire are stupid ****ing dickholes (specifically Big Bang). Expect nothing different as long as DiSteffano is at Regent.

DiStefano is Chancellor not regent. Part of Bohn's problem was that his superiors didn't respect him. Hopefully the new AD will have enough pull to demand certain things from DiStefano/Benson
 
I would like to meet all these people who would resign from their jobs every time they disagree with a decision from above...
It took 3 major and separate actions over 2+ years, along with a 4 month job search before I resigned from my last employer. I believe I have a pretty strong set of morals I live by, but I also have to feed a family and pay a mortgage.

PS - did you know if you max out FICA for the year at one employer, they don't account for it and assume you had zero withheld when you start at the next employer? Me neither. Oh, well. It gets trued up when you file your taxes the following year.
 
DiStefano is Chancellor not regent. Part of Bohn's problem was that his superiors didn't respect him. Hopefully the new AD will have enough pull to demand certain things from DiStefano/Benson
I understand that, but his office is on Regent Drive. I don't know what dream world you guys live in that PD/and BB will respect anyone that they hire enough to allow any demands. As a lifelong bureaucrat, Phil isn't going to jeopardize his position with somebody that wont provide cover for him. Bohn was fired as a screen to deflect blame from the top, not because he has done a bad job.
 
I would like to meet all these people who would resign from their jobs every time they disagree with a decision from above...
Hiring a football coach is as big of a decision as you can have as AD. If Mike Bohn was that in demand, wouldn't he go somewhere, where he could be trust. Sorry but you sound like a Bohn apologist here.
 
Hiring a football coach is as big of a decision as you can have as AD. If Mike Bohn was that in demand, wouldn't he go somewhere, where he could be trust. Sorry but you sound like a Bohn apologist here.

Bohn wasn't given the opportunity. He was set up to fail. Call me what you like, but I know what really happened.
 
Bohn wasn't given the opportunity. He was set up to fail. Call me what you like, but I know what really happened.
Yeah of course, like everyone else who claims to be in the know. If he was set-up to fail, if he has dignity shouldn't he try to find a better situation? If you are set-up to fail at your job, do you look for a better opportunity? Just asking!
 
Yeah of course, like everyone else who claims to be in the know. If he was set-up to fail, if he has dignity shouldn't he try to find a better situation? If you are set-up to fail at your job, do you look for a better opportunity? Just asking!

Is he leaving Boulder? Just asking.
 
So you want to answer my question? And Why do you think Bohn would stay when he was "set-up to fail?"

He is not leaving Boulder because he likes it there. That's the reason he wasn't looking for another opportunity. There I spelled it out for you. Im sure you are still confused, though.
 
He is not leaving Boulder because he likes it there. That's the reason he wasn't looking for another opportunity. There I spelled it out for you. Im sure you are still confused, though.
You win the award as the ultimate Bohn apologist. I'm not confused at all. He was complacent. He also didn't have much better offers. He was one of the lowest paid Pac-12 ADs, if he had a chance to get more autonomy, a better salary, at a better school, my guess is he's gone. The truth is CU kept him this long because he was cheap and they knew this was a destination job for him.

Again, if you want to be pushed around by your company, that's fine, just don't whine about like you are with the "set up to fail," when you are let go. If you're at your company for eight years and a lot of meddling is going on, you look pretty foolish if you are sticking around knowing you'll get blamed for decisions largely out of your control and ultimately costing you your job.
 
I'm pretty sure I'm the ultimate Bohn apologist.

I prefer "supporter" to "apologist" though, if you don't mind.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2
 
I'm pretty sure I'm the ultimate Bohn apologist.

I prefer "supporter" to "apologist" though, if you don't mind.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2

Not a problem, I'll refer to you as the ultimate Bohn supporter from here on out.
 
I agree completely with Fatty. In a situation where those above him were functional I think Bohn would have done an excellent job. Instead he landed in a situation where incompetence (DiStephano) and missguided politics (Benson) thrived in an environment where those who are jelous of the attention that athletics gets have more influence that logic and reason should ever allow.

Bohn is a guy who has built a career working with the people he works for. He in not going to create confrontation or strife even if it is to his detriment. If you can blame him for one thing it is that he let his desire to return to Boulder override his good judgement in seeing the administrative disaster he was stepping in to. I am sure that had he wanted to he could have disclosed a bunch of things that happened while he had the job and leave us all with a giant pile of buffalo turds sitting on the feet of those above him. You can blame him for hiring Hawkins and even for extending him but when it was time to fire him Bohn had a plan that he was not allowed to implement so we were stuck with another year. He then had JE forced down his throat either directly or because of a complete lack of willingness to spend what it would have taken to hire a legitimate candidate and rub against the vocal glory days faction.

We know that there were decisions that Bohn wanted to make that he was overruled on by those above him. He could have stomped his feet and run to the media every time he had to deal with their medling in what should have been his job and decision. He could have done what others would have donel and quit, instead he tried to stick with it and do the best job he could.

I don't think anyone here is saying that Bohn should be a candidate for the athletic directors hall of fame. At the same time had he been allowed to do his job I certainly don't see how the situation would be as bad as it is.

Bohn can be removed but the problem is still there sitting in the chair or the offices that he reported to.
 
Bohn can be removed but the problem is still there sitting in the chair or the offices that he reported to.

Exactly.

I am not a Bohn supporter. Honestly, he was too weak of a hand to stand up and force a change. He was a politician. He was a good manager, but Dr. Phil and BB were and are a larger part of the problem.
 
I agree completely with Fatty. In a situation where those above him were functional I think Bohn would have done an excellent job. Instead he landed in a situation where incompetence (DiStephano) and missguided politics (Benson) thrived in an environment where those who are jelous of the attention that athletics gets have more influence that logic and reason should ever allow.

Bohn is a guy who has built a career working with the people he works for. He in not going to create confrontation or strife even if it is to his detriment. If you can blame him for one thing it is that he let his desire to return to Boulder override his good judgement in seeing the administrative disaster he was stepping in to. I am sure that had he wanted to he could have disclosed a bunch of things that happened while he had the job and leave us all with a giant pile of buffalo turds sitting on the feet of those above him. You can blame him for hiring Hawkins and even for extending him but when it was time to fire him Bohn had a plan that he was not allowed to implement so we were stuck with another year. He then had JE forced down his throat either directly or because of a complete lack of willingness to spend what it would have taken to hire a legitimate candidate and rub against the vocal glory days faction.

We know that there were decisions that Bohn wanted to make that he was overruled on by those above him. He could have stomped his feet and run to the media every time he had to deal with their medling in what should have been his job and decision. He could have done what others would have donel and quit, instead he tried to stick with it and do the best job he could.

I don't think anyone here is saying that Bohn should be a candidate for the athletic directors hall of fame. At the same time had he been allowed to do his job I certainly don't see how the situation would be as bad as it is.

Bohn can be removed but the problem is still there sitting in the chair or the offices that he reported to.
First off, I don't blame him for hiring Hawk or extending him, both looked like great moves at the time (at the very least, extending him looked like a good one).

A little pattern here, Bohn wasn't allowed to make the crucial decisions to do his job effectively. It was more important to stay in Boulder than pursue another job. So Mike Bohn was complacent with the situation? If you were in Mike Bohn's shoes knowing your job was on the line because of the decisions or others, would you stick it out or be allowed to be the administration's punching bag?

Many people have to deal with higher-ups who aren't the best. Sometimes you just have to rise to the occasion. If things weren't going great for Tad, I guess we could all blame it on the administration to shift blame.


This is what Mike Bohn said when he was hired,
"In these positions, you look for opportunity for a fit, and the opportunity to be in Boulder, my hometown, and be in the Big 12 and the BCS may never come up again," he said.

He knew very well this was a destination job for him and he likely wasn't going to be able to do better. That's why he was willing to accept the limitations that came with this job.
 
Exactly.

I am not a Bohn supporter. Honestly, he was too weak of a hand to stand up and force a change. He was a politician. He was a good manager, but Dr. Phil and BB were and are a larger part of the problem.

While I think he deserves his share of credit with basketball. I think Bzdelik deserves some as well for where they are. He demanded better facilities. Bohn was too much of a "yes man" here. Managing down is only part of the job, you have to "manage up" as well like a GM who goes to ownership and asks for more $$$ to spend on players.
 
First off, I don't blame him for hiring Hawk or extending him, both looked like great moves at the time (at the very least, extending him looked like a good one).

A little pattern here, Bohn wasn't allowed to make the crucial decisions to do his job effectively. It was more important to stay in Boulder than pursue another job. So Mike Bohn was complacent with the situation? If you were in Mike Bohn's shoes knowing your job was on the line because of the decisions or others, would you stick it out or be allowed to be the administration's punching bag?

Many people have to deal with higher-ups who aren't the best. Sometimes you just have to rise to the occasion. If things weren't going great for Tad, I guess we could all blame it on the administration to shift blame.


This is what Mike Bohn said when he was hired,


He knew very well this was a destination job for him and he likely wasn't going to be able to do better. That's why he was willing to accept the limitations that came with this job.

At the time the Hawk hire was considered a good one. If CU had not hired him it is virtually certain that another AQ conference school would have, he was "the" hot candidate at the time. Even the extension was coming of a year where we went to a bowl and hopes were high.

Bohn could have kicked and screamed about how the decisions later on were being made but that isn't his way of doing things. The basic premise of this thread is that Bohn in a situation where he had authority and support would have likely had better results, something I agree with. The idea that he should have fought back against his bosses, quit, or somehow else resisted is a different question.

The gist of the discussion is the part that is bolded. Had Bohn left or made a public opposition to what happened getting himself fired would we be in better shape. I would say no, the two stooges would have simply replaced him with someone who was willing to be even more compliant with their wishes, a fear that I have in the current process of replacing Bohn.
 
At the time the Hawk hire was considered a good one. If CU had not hired him it is virtually certain that another AQ conference school would have, he was "the" hot candidate at the time. Even the extension was coming of a year where we went to a bowl and hopes were high.

Bohn could have kicked and screamed about how the decisions later on were being made but that isn't his way of doing things. The basic premise of this thread is that Bohn in a situation where he had authority and support would have likely had better results, something I agree with. The idea that he should have fought back against his bosses, quit, or somehow else resisted is a different question.

The gist of the discussion is the part that is bolded. Had Bohn left or made a public opposition to what happened getting himself fired would we be in better shape. I would say no, the two stooges would have simply replaced him with someone who was willing to be even more compliant with their wishes, a fear that I have in the current process of replacing Bohn.
Were in agreement on the Hawk hire/extension, no need to argue this.

Bohn's downfall is he is too much of a "company guy," this is by his own admission. As I've stated before, I like Bohn personally. I could see him getting another shot at the BCS level eventually, probably will have to serve as an Assistant AD at a BCS-level school or go to a smaller school, but I'm not sure if he'll ever succeed. He's great at marketing. He did a good job with the "Your Team," C-Unit, Band, etc campaigns.

I'm not saying he should've tried to get himself fired. I'm saying he should've looked for other opportunties where the higher-ups would've let him do his job effectively. There's no other way to say it, he was either too complacent or there were no other viable opportunties available for him. He did say ftr, that he did have other offers while at CU but stayed for loyalty purposes. He didn't exactly say what they are. My guess is considering he was one of the lower paid AD's in the Pac-12, that if something materialized, he would've atleast gotten a decent raise based on it. I don't think he ever saw much of a raise besides inflation, he got extended once? (maybe twice)

He's a very class guy, besides how he handled the Embree dismissal (not that there's a good way to handle it but it couldn't have been handled much worse). If he had left for a better opportunity I'm pretty sure, he would not have sligged mud on his way out like Embree did.
 
At the time the Hawk hire was considered a good one. If CU had not hired him it is virtually certain that another AQ conference school would have, he was "the" hot candidate at the time. Even the extension was coming of a year where we went to a bowl and hopes were high.

Bohn could have kicked and screamed about how the decisions later on were being made but that isn't his way of doing things. The basic premise of this thread is that Bohn in a situation where he had authority and support would have likely had better results, something I agree with. The idea that he should have fought back against his bosses, quit, or somehow else resisted is a different question.

The gist of the discussion is the part that is bolded. Had Bohn left or made a public opposition to what happened getting himself fired would we be in better shape. I would say no, the two stooges would have simply replaced him with someone who was willing to be even more compliant with their wishes, a fear that I have in the current process of replacing Bohn.

This is what will happen, and if by chance they do hire somebody who wants to take control of the AD they will resign in frustration. I don't see losing Bohn as a positive, not because he was a great AD, but because we are almost sure to end up with an AD that is even less effective than MB. Bruce and Phil have paid lip service to supporting athletics, but they have only acted when the heat is too unbearable to ignore. If football does turn around it will be because of luck, and not any plans that have been implemented.
 
I'm not sure many BCS schools would have taken a chance on Hawkins once they actually talked to him. Hiring coaches is more than looking at resumes or taking a consultant's word as gospel.
 
I'm not sure many BCS schools would have taken a chance on Hawkins once they actually talked to him. Hiring coaches is more than looking at resumes or taking a consultant's word as gospel.
That's really revisionist IMO, it's really easy to say that now. After his second year here, he was getting offers from other schools, which he declined and part of the reason he got an extension.
 
I'm not sure many BCS schools would have taken a chance on Hawkins once they actually talked to him. Hiring coaches is more than looking at resumes or taking a consultant's word as gospel.

Yeah, I'm not buying this either. I sure as hell wouldn't buy that zen bull**** again, but he was a hell of a snake oil salesman.
 
Sad to say administrations that are clueless like ours is I don't think are that rare.

Hawk was the name coach, the guy with the glittery record and the sportcenter highlights. His ability to turn on the charm and talk like he knew something special would have closed the deal.

Hindsight is always 20/20 but while some schools may have seen through Hawks BS plenty of others would have jumped at hiring him given the opportunity.
 
Sad to say administrations that are clueless like ours is I don't think are that rare.

Hawk was the name coach, the guy with the glittery record and the sportcenter highlights. His ability to turn on the charm and talk like he knew something special would have closed the deal.

Hindsight is always 20/20 but while some schools may have seen through Hawks BS plenty of others would have jumped at hiring him given the opportunity.
You're always looking for the hot up-and-coming coach and Hawk looked like that. Not all the "hot hires" work out.
 
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