As Bob Bowlsby Can Tell You, Things Are Tough All Over

Bob Bowlsby, Stanford athletic director

 

Stanford University’s athletic department budget is over $75 million. The school has 35 varsity teams, and they perform quite well.

Last year Stanford won the United States Sports Academy Directors’ Cup for the 14th-straight year. That honor goes to a school from each NCAA division (and the NAIA) to recognize the most successful overall athletics programs, with points based on a school’s success in NCAA championship events.

But Bob Bowlsby, who left the job as Iowa’s athletics director to take a similar post at Iowa, is finding money isn’t exactly growing on the Stanford Tree.

Stanford Tree in happier times

Because of the bad economy, Bowlsby and his school have cut 21 positions in the athletics department.

That’s 13 percent of the department’s 163 administrative and service positions. As someone who works at Gazette Communications, that hits pretty close to home this week. Heck, it hits close to home just because it’s in this country in this sad, disturbing time.

Here’s a passage from the San Francisco Chronicle’s story on the cuts:

Part of Stanford’s problem has been the football program’s inability to fill Stanford Stadium.

“If we could consistently draw bigger crowds, we could solve a lot of our problems,” Bowlsby said. Coach Jim Harbaugh “has done a great job, we had a great recruiting class, and we think we’ll be a fun team to watch. But you can’t bank on those revenues, especially in a soft economy.”

The following isn’t anywhere near as serious a problem for Bowlsby, but it’s not good. He is catching fire for selling student-section seats for the Stanford men’s basketballl team’s home games this week against UCLA and USC.

Jon Wilner of the San Jose Mercury-News wrote these passages in his blog at  http://tinyurl.com/dmy2ca:

Part of the problem is that the people responsible for this decision, athletic director Bob Bowlsby and (senior associate athletic director) Hutchins, aren’t Stanford alums, are relative newcomers to The Farm and have little appreciation for what the Sixth Man Club has meant to Cardinal basketball since its creation in 1993-94.

The athletic department does a poor job reaching out to students and puts a mediocre product on the floor, and after less than one season of lagging turnout decides a tradition that began in 15 years ago — and is so central to the success of Stanford basketball — is worth selling off.

A thousand miles from the situation, I sure don’t know if Bowlsby and his associate are tone-deaf to Stanford tradition or if their economic situation is suddenly forcing their hands.

I always side with the students over the suits and the fat cats, though, so I declare this a bonehead move.

But none of Stanford’s sports have been cut, yet. Which is more than you can say for Northern Iowa unless a king-sized fundraising effort prevails in a tough time to raise funds.

If Stanford is struggling, what’s going to happen to your favorite athletic department?

Stanford has the third largest endowment of any university in the country. As of last fall, Stanford’s  endowment was $17.2 billion. However, that has decreased by $4 billion to $5 billion, and all campus units are cutting their budgets by 15 percent.

 When athletic directors’ salaries are cut, then you know the bottom has fallen out.

The Hlist: President-elect Obama, Please Don’t Let Nick Saban Get Nuclear Capability

 

Opening kickoff

“If we can come out and beat O-State that would clear everything up.”— Michigan senior safety Brandon Harrison about the 3-8 Wolverines’ upcoming game at Ohio State.

Everybody has a dream.

First downs

1. Cool Cats: The Big Ten’s Coach of the Year will probably be Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald.

The Wildcats are 8-3, and will go to a very good bowl with a home win Saturday over decaying Illinois.

In rain, sleet and snow, Northwestern gutted out a 21-14 win at Michigan. That was its first win in Ann Arbor since 1995, when Fitzgerald was the Wildcats’ star linebacker.

“All of a sudden you come out in the second half and it’s snowing,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s a beautiful Big Ten football weather day.”

It wasn’t so lovely to Michigan fans. Most fled their stadium long before the game ended.

They didn’t want to see the Wolverines clinch their first eight-loss season in the program’s 129-year history.

Harrison, so optimistic in the “Opening Kickoff” comment, wasn’t as cheery about the game that had just ended.

“I’m sick to my stomach right now,” he said.

2. Empty Win: LSU’s Tiger Stadium also was emptied out in the fourth quarter of the Troy-LSU game. Those who stayed witnessed the biggest comeback in Tigers history.

LSU rallied from a 31-3 hole for a 40-31 triumph.

The Baton Rouge Advocate’s Randy Rosetta called it “a comeback that will survive as the stuff of legend for years to come in front of the sparse but hearty few thousand fans who stuck it out.”

LSU quarterback Jarrett Lee was booed and benched in the first half. For the seventh time this year, he had an interception returned for a touchdown. But he completed 11 fourth-quarter passes and last year’s national champs awakened in time to avoid an embarrassment.

“Not one time in our minds did we think we were going to lose this game,” Lee said.

Which is more than you could say for LSU’s fans.

3. Band Goes Digital: At halftime of the USC-Stanford game, the ever-irreverent Stanford band formed the number “24,” on the field, referring to the Cardinal’s point total in its shocking 24-23 win at USC.

The band formed the letters “OJ” for its opening number, “Crazy Little Thing Called Love.”

O.J. Simpson won the Heisman Trophy when he played at USC, you see. Forty years ago!

The Trojans won this time around, 45-23.

“There was a lot of talk about revenge coming into the game,” said Stanford Coach Jim Harbaugh. “That’s a word I don’t use in college football.”

“It was revenge,” said USC tailback C.J. Gable.

Stanford, for some odd reason, lined up for a field goal on the game’s last play. USC Coach Pete Carroll, for some odd reason, called a timeout. Stanford changed its mind, and Alex Loukas threw an 18-yard touchdown pass.

“Loukas wanted to go for the end zone,” Harbaugh said. “So I said, ‘Let’s go for the end zone.’ . . . I just wanted to get the last points.”

Carroll’s reaction to Harbaugh’s decision-making: “He can do whatever he wants. I don’t care.”

“If Harbaugh stays at Stanford a while rather than going off to the NFL,” wrote Mark Purdy of the San Jose Mercury News, “this could turn into quite the snarky annual kickoff appointment.”

Fumbles

1. Axed: A not-so-funny thing happened to Minnesota (7-4) on its way to a New Year’s bowl. It lost to Northwestern and Michigan at home, then fell 35-32 at Wisconsin Saturday after holding a 21-7 halftime lead.

The Paul Bunyan Axe remains in Madison.

“We’re going to lay on a sword for the next couple days,” Gophers Coach Tim Brewster said. “We’re going to bleed this one out hard. This will be tough to let go.”

Iowa hopes he’s right. The Hawkeyes will try to extend Minnesota’s misery Saturday night in the Metrodome.

Wisconsin, meanwhile, will try to get to 7-5 by beating Cal Poly Saturday in Madison.

“I really don’t know how the bowl system works,” Badgers center John Moffitt said. “I feel like there’s three guys in a room and they flip a quarter. I’m trying to go every game, one game at a time — just try to win out.”

The Hlist questions why it takes three guys to flip quarters, but not as much as it wonders why Wisconsin is playing Cal Poly in mid-November.

2. Coldcocked: Florida’s 56-6 win over South Carolina was Gamecocks Coach Steve Spurrier’s worst loss in his 309 games as a head coach in college and pro football.

“A loss is a loss, whether it’s by one point or 50 points,” Spurrier said. “Sometimes getting your butt beat real good is better than a one-pointer or two-pointer.”

Sunday, Spurrier sounded more like an apologist than the brash Ol’ Ball Coach who directed Florida to six SEC titles and the 1996 national championship.

“We’re not the first team they’ve ever scored 50 on lately and may not be the last team. But we are 7-4,” he said.

The Orlando Sentinel’s Mike Bianchi: “Seeing Spurrier coming back to The Swamp and getting clobbered was like watching an aging Sinatra returning to the Sands and forgetting the words to ‘My Way.’

“Urban Meyer came to Florida and wanted to be like Steve Spurrier.

“Now Steve Spurrier’s at South Carolina and wants to be like Urban Meyer.”

3. No, Prez, No!: We don’t need our presidents worrying about sports, unless Alabama Coach Nick Saban is close to nuclear capability. Even if he isn’t, he needs to be watched closely.

Anyway, Barack Obama really doesn’t need to pander to the masses by pushing for a college football playoff.

“I don’t know any serious fan of college football who has disagreed with me on this,” Obama said on “60 Minutes” Sunday. “So, I’m going to throw my weight around a little bit. I think it’s the right thing to do.”

“Certainly it’s an important issue for college football and colleges,” said Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany. “Where does it stand in the list of challenges we have in America today? I would say it’s not very high.”

If only the Big Ten Network’s ghastly “Friday Night Tailgate” used that kind of common sense.

“I look forward to talking with (Obama) and explaining to him that it’s not in the best interest of the academic integrity of our institutions,” Ohio State Chancellor Gordon Gee said.

The Hlist thinks that would be useful.

Because in these challenging times, our new president will need all the laughs he can get.

Final gun

“If 35-7 against Kansas on the road isn’t good enough for someone, we’ll just go wherever they tell us to go.” — Texas Coach Mack Brown on a suggestion the Longhorns’ latest win might not have wowed pollsters.

The Hlist – Rat Pac-10 and Buckeyes Black Eyes

hlist

Opening kickoff

“Success against weak Big Ten teams has not only been a means to a bad end in title games, but it might have created something of a mirage of football power. Rankings or no rankings, these failures now raise the question of whether OSU has ever truly been a top-five team the past three seasons.” — Bob Hunter of the Columbus Dispatch after Ohio State’s 35-3 loss at Southern California

First downs

1. No. 1 and Only: When Southern California thrashed Iowa, 38-17, in the Orange Bowl six seasons ago, it was just the tip of the iceberg for what Pete Carroll’s program would do to future opponents in big games. The Trojans’ 35-3 savaging of Ohio State was a full-blown Titanic for the Buckeyes.

“We expected to dominate, and that’s what happened,” USC defensive tackle Fili Moala said. “If we come to play like this every week and stay humble, no one’s going to touch us.”

Way to stay humble, Fili.

2. Two Blowouts: First Notre Dame Coach Charlie Weis had his knee blown out when he inadvertently got rolled up by Irish defensive tackle John Ryan. Then his team finished off a 35-17 rout of Michigan.

Weis tore the ACL and MCL in his left knee on the fluke collision.

“I feel like an athlete,” the rather rotund Weis said after the game. “First time in my life.”

“I feel terrible,” Ryan said after the game. “I apologized to him three or four times during the game. I feel awful. I won’t sleep at all tonight.”

Asked if he were still on scholarship, Ryan said, “I hope.”

3. Viva Nevada-Las Vegas: Iowa State may be fighting the odds in Las Vegas come Saturday night.

UNLV is on a roll. It went to 15th-ranked Arizona State as a 23-point underdog and came home with a 23-20 overtime win.

“Sometimes, it comes down to heart and desire over talent,” Rebels running back Frank Summers said. Mike Sanford’s first three UNLV teams won two games each. If the Rebels beat ISU in Vegas, they’ll be 3-1.

“The victory is great,” Sanford said. “We’re thankful and grateful for it. But if we go get blown out by Iowa State, nobody will remember it. This next game is as important or more than the one we just played.”

4. Mountain Do: “Most weekends, Vegas’ upset would rank as a highlight,” wrote Dave Curtis of Sportingnews.com. “Saturday, it was just decoration.”

See, the Mountain West Conference had its best football weekend in its 10-year existence. It went 7-1 against nonconference foes and 4-0 against the big, bad Pacific-10. Besides UNLV’s great win, TCU mauled Stanford, 41-17. New Mexico downed Arizona, 36-28. And Brigham Young brutalized UCLA, 59-0.

“That was probably one of the most fun games I’ve ever been a part of,” said BYU quarterback Max Hall after he threw seven touchdown passes against the Bruins. “It almost seemed at some points like my job was easy.”

Fumbles

1. Buckeye Black Eye: Ohio State is the Big Ten’s football ruler. Thus, Big Ten football is held in low national esteem today.

That 35-3 loss at USC was the latest of OSU’s flops in huge games. The Buckeyes bombed in the last two national title games. Don’t look for them to get a third straight chance.

“I can’t believe that we screwed up so badly,” OSU left tackle Alex Boone said. “I thought this team made it clear after the national championship game — all the gassers we ran, and all the running we did that we weren’t going to mess up anymore. Apparently, that wasn’t evident.”

Running is one thing. Keeping up with superior talent is another. Mark Whicker of the Orange County Register wrote this:

“It was supposed to be the Collision at the Coliseum, but it wasn’t. To have a collision, both objects must be moving.”

2. Black and Blue: Don’t bother yelling “Go Blue!” to Michigan’s football team this week. The Wolverines are blue enough after their debacle at Notre Dame.

Michigan, once a football program of note, fumbled seven times in South Bend, losing four. Mark Snyder of the Detroit Free Press summarized it neatly:

“The 35-17 loss to Notre Dame was a morass of missed opportunities, poor decisions and atrocious fundamentals.”

“We don’t have our heads down because we know who the better team was,” Michigan defensive back Steve Brown said. “They beat us today. It happens, but in our hearts we know we’re the better team.”

No, the better team would have scored 35 points, not 17.

The Hlist doesn’t believe in ghosts, but will stay out of Ann Arbor this week all the same. The spirit of Bo Schembechler, rest his soul, could be out and about with a fury.

3. Rat Pac: The Pac-10 has USC. Oregon’s pretty good, too.

That’s about it.

The league went 3-7 last weekend. UCLA, Washington and Lehman Brothers Holdings all had their worst week since 1929. UCLA’s 59-0 loss to BYU was its worst defeat since ’29, and Washington’s 55-14 loss to Oklahoma was its worst home loss since the year of the Great Depression.

Arizona offensive coordinator Sonny Dykes said Wildcats senior quarterback Willie Tuitama “played as bad as I’ve seen him play” in their loss at New Mexico.

Arizona State Coach Dennis Erickson’s reaction to losing at home to UNLV: “It’s sickening.”

4. No Offense, But …: Auburn 3, Mississippi State 2

“I am an old defensive coach so I was liking it a little bit but I wish we had scored a few more points,” Auburn Coach Tommy Tuberville said.

“Coincidentally,” wrote Steve Hofstetter of Doghouseboxing.com, “3-2 are the odds that both teams will never score again.”

Final gun

“That’s the big problem, having to sort through those five big guys to find where he is. When they all come off at one time, they look like a herd of water buffalo stampeding at you and there’s a gazelle somewhere in behind them.” — Florida Atlantic Coach Howard Schnellenberger on Michigan State’s offensive line and running back Javon Ringer. Ringer carried 43 times for 282 yards in MSU’s 17-0 win over Schnellenberger’s Owls.