Coyle Blog: Paying for Athletes Village

[A_Slab_of_Bacon]

I guess the hope is that Joe Citizen would do a little bit of homework before writing a letter to a newspaper about it. But maybe it's crazy to expect someone to do any sort of information-gathering before formulating an outraged opinion. Even the minimum amount of research aka a Google search would have produced the answer to Joe Citizen's issue with this.

There was a news story on the star trib. It was maybe 3 or 4 short paragraphs. It noted some suburb had built a band shell and spruced up a park. In the second paragraph it said the city paid for it outright with cash from a reserve setup years ago to build it all.

The trib comments were 90%: OMG WASTEFUL STUFF LIKE THIS IS WHY WE ARE IN DEBT!!!!

 

[die hard gopher]

It is almost impossible to win over people who don't care about facts and just want to complain.

Complainers: Why are you using my tax dollars for this?
AD: We aren't. All the money for this project is coming from private donations and loans that we are required to pay back.
Complainers: Fine, but why didn't you tell me this?
AD: It says so right on the web site and on all marketing materials for the Athlete's Village. Did you check any of those things?
Complainers: No. But you should have made that more clear.
AD: Ok, I'll try to do a better job of that.
Complainers: Not good enough. You need to take more responsibility for not telling me that you aren't using any of my tax money!

Spot on. Really don't know what Spoofin is complaining about. Ever since Teague made the proposal to the board of regents, it has always been very clearly stated that this will be funded entirely off of private contributions and athletic revenue.

In every comment section from newspaper articles, youtube videos, tweets or Facebook pages, I have always seen people complain about the construction of college athletic facilities. If you look at articles or videos about when Oregon, Texas A&M, Tennessee, Clemson, Iowa etc. all upgraded their facilities, there were plenty with misconceptions about how those projects were funded. It's not a situation unique to the U. There will always be misinformed people that will complain about investment in college athletics.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

I guess the hope is that Joe Citizen would do a little bit of homework before writing a letter to a newspaper about it. But maybe it's crazy to expect someone to do any sort of information-gathering before formulating an outraged opinion. Even the minimum amount of research aka a Google search would have produced the answer to Joe Citizen's issue with this.

Ok, fair but the dept has not been profitable most years save for recently. If your son says he needs twenty bucks for allowance after spending his money on something perceived as frivolous perhaps there's a bit of consternation. If the dept is profitable and not needing injections of cash from the mothership they should shout it from the rooftops. Coyle being Coyle, he cannot articulate it.

 

[e.bigelow]

It is almost impossible to win over people who don't care about facts and just want to complain.

Complainers: Why are you using my tax dollars for this?
AD: We aren't. All the money for this project is coming from private donations and loans that we are required to pay back.
Complainers: Fine, but why didn't you tell me this?
AD: It says so right on the web site and on all marketing materials for the Athlete's Village. Did you check any of those things?
Complainers: No. But you should have made that more clear.
AD: Ok, I'll try to do a better job of that.
Complainers: Not good enough. You need to take more responsibility for not telling me that you aren't using any of my tax money!

+1. This is so accurate.

Ok, fair but the dept has not been profitable most years save for recently. If your son says he needs twenty bucks for allowance after spending his money on something perceived as frivolous perhaps there's a bit of consternation. If the dept is profitable and not needing injections of cash from the mothership they should shout it from the rooftops. Coyle being Coyle, he cannot articulate it.

This project started WAY before Coyle ever got here, so I can't lay much, if any, blame on him for anything. It has been reiterated in media, both in print and via videos (FB, Twitter, YouTube), how this project was to be funded, or is, being funded. The information is out there for people to find if you are willing to spend 10 minutes researching it. It seems some are just choosing either to do no research or ignore what they are being told.

 

[short ornery norwegian]

We will do a more intentional job of sharing this important message.


This made me chuckle. I understand what Coyle is trying to say, but it is worded in a very Coyle-like clunky style. An "intentional" job - suggesting that up to now, they have been doing an "unintentional job" of sharing their message.

Again - Coyle could be the nicest guy in the world in a small-group or private setting. He may be a very capable office manager. but he is not a good communicator - and like it or not, that is part of his job. Unless the U hires a communications assistant for the Athletic Department to coach Coyle on public speaking, and ghost-write every statement for him.

P.S. - I suspect Coyle means they will do a more deliberate job, or a more focused job, or a more public job of sharing the message. but not intentional. Hey, at work today, my boss was sending out a letter to advertisers, and used "have went" instead of "have gone." the English language is tricky.

 

[Hates Monikers]

Well, Coyle did state in his first sentence, Letters to the Editor which typically are not "vetted", to the best of my knowledge, as they are mere opinion pieces from readers regardless if they have all their facts straight.

Sure they are. I wrote a letter to my local paper a few years back, and they called to confirm I wrote it and asked to clarify something. I worked in politics back then and that was common to protect the paper as much as public officials. If the Strib is printing opinions based completely off of incorrect information, someone should probably lose their job.

 

[Spoofin]

Spot on. Really don't know what Spoofin is complaining about.

Again, I'm annoyed that MC is complaining about misunderstandings on a topic where he is in charge of communicating clearly so there are no misunderstandings. If you think he did the best anyone could of on that front then you and I disagree. It really is that simple.


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[e.bigelow]

Sure they are. I wrote a letter to my local paper a few years back, and they called to confirm I wrote it and asked to clarify something. I worked in politics back then and that was common to protect the paper as much as public officials. If the Strib is printing opinions based completely off of incorrect information, someone should probably lose their job.

Sure. They vet you to basically confirm you are a living, breathing, human so that they can attach a name to the response. This is basically all our local papers in West Central, MN do as I have written a few, recently, as well.

There are plenty of Opinion articles/letters to editors/responses to articles that newspapers print that are so far off base that I can't imagine they have been fact checked. People say outlandish, ridiculous stuff (in print) all the time. Have you read the Opinions section in the daily Star Tribune ever?

 

[Hates Monikers]

Sure. They vet you to basically confirm you are a living, breathing, human so that they can attach a name to the response. This is basically all our local papers in West Central, MN do as I have written a few, recently, as well.

There are plenty of Opinion articles/letters to editors/responses to articles that newspapers print that are so far off base that I can't imagine they have been fact checked. People say outlandish, ridiculous stuff (in print) all the time. Have you read the Opinions section in the daily Star Tribune ever?

Do people write ridiculous things? Sure. Can they base an entire letter off of facts that are completely off base? No.

I don't expect the Strib and other papers to check every fact in every letter. But when the entire letter and outrage is based based on a falsehood? Yes, it's their job to throw that letter away.

 

[bizzle22]

Again, I'm annoyed that MC is complaining about misunderstandings on a topic where he is in charge of communicating clearly so there are no misunderstandings. If you think he did the best anyone could of on that front then you and I disagree. It really is that simple.


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I don’t know if I’d call it complaining, but I think he’s making the point that he’s already made this information readily available and anyone who doesn’t know it is being lazy.

It would be like if you and your wife are going to go out for dinner and you leave a meal in the fridge for your kid with a note on the outside of the fridge saying dinner is in the fridge. And then, while you are out with your wife, your kid calls you asking what he/she is supposed to eat for dinner. Would you be a little annoyed?

What more is Coyle supposed to do? How can he better communicate this information other than putting it on the web site and in every piece of marketing material for the village?

 

[Rickman55]

I am annoyed that MCoyle is complaining (again) about misunderstandings when he is in charge of communicating the topic clearly. I blame him. Others don't. That is the disagreement.


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You should know what it's like to complain. You do enough of it. Complaining about Coyle complaining (again). How ironic.

 

[Spoofin]

You should know what it's like to complain. You do enough of it. Complaining about Coyle complaining (again). How ironic.

Try to keep up. My complaint isn't about Coyle complaining in itself. I love complaining. If you were complaining about the misunderstandings on this topic it wouldn't annoy me as you aren't in charge of the communications to eliminate those misunderstandings. Coyle on the other hand is - so the only thing ironic is Coyle complaining about them. Try to keep up Rickman - you are always behind.


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[Rickman55]

Try to keep up. My complaint isn't about Coyle complaining in itself. I love complaining. If you were complaining about the misunderstandings on this topic it wouldn't annoy me as you aren't in charge of the communications to eliminate those misunderstandings. Coyle on the other hand is - so the only thing ironic is Coyle complaining about them. Try to keep up Rickman - you are always behind.


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Reading your posts on Coyle is like reading a newspaper found in the wall of a house that was torn down for renovation purposes. It's old, very old and so yesterday.

 

[Cruze]

Anyone who spends any amount of time reading newspaper reader comments, internet message boards, and presidential tweets understands that facts don't matter anymore in America. It is irrational to interpret Coyle's blog as a complaint rather than just one more in a long line of attempts by him and others at the U to explain to the public and media how Athlete's Village is being funded. Those who do think he is complaining are exposing their "I Hate Coyle" agenda. It is rare to read GopherHole for an entire day without without coming across the haters. Since Coyle is probably going to be the Gopher's AD at least until his children graduate from college, the rest of us are going to have to put up with their childish ways for at least that long.

 

[Iceland12]

Anyone who spends any amount of time reading newspaper reader comments, internet message boards, and presidential tweets understands that facts don't matter anymore in America. It is irrational to interpret Coyle's blog as a complaint rather than just one more in a long line of attempts by him and others at the U to explain to the public and media how Athlete's Village is being funded. Those who do think he is complaining are exposing their "I Hate Coyle" agenda. It is rare to read GopherHole for an entire day without without coming across the haters. Since Coyle is probably going to be the Gopher's AD at least until his children graduate from college, the rest of us are going to have to put up with their childish ways for at least that long.

True. Every time we see your name we know it's going to be a hate filled post full of disparagement.

It has to be a bit, to post the same thing over and over without a hint of self awareness. Bravo whoever you are.

 

[60's Guy]

Can we agree on this? Almost all the information we have on funding the Athletes Village came from Teague. Beth provided some updates during her time. Mark Coyle has been cryptic regarding the progress of any news on the Athletes Village because funding has been pretty much at a standstill since Coyle took office. Construction news has been much more publicized recently than funding information under Coyle.

 

[Word]

Anyone who spends any amount of time reading newspaper reader comments, internet message boards, and presidential tweets understands that facts don't matter anymore in America. It is irrational to interpret Coyle's blog as a complaint rather than just one more in a long line of attempts by him and others at the U to explain to the public and media how Athlete's Village is being funded. Those who do think he is complaining are exposing their "I Hate Coyle" agenda. It is rare to read GopherHole for an entire day without without coming across the haters. Since Coyle is probably going to be the Gopher's AD at least until his children graduate from college, the rest of us are going to have to put up with their childish ways for at least that long.

I don't think anyone is complaining that Coyle responded to the letters to the editor. I think what he wrote in his blog makes sense. I really just hope he realizes that 99.9% of those people aren't reading his blog and that he has to find other ways to get his message out. He needs his blog piece to be in the newspaper. He needs to get on radio shows and explain it and help tout the U of M athletes and how things get funded. I'm sure Sid and Dave would let him on their show and I'm sure Coyle could work it out that they ask him about the funding. It's not that hard. That's why a lot of us just wish Coyle would get some PR training or hire someone in the department that knows something about PR because it is clearly a weakness for him.

 

[Pompous Elitist]

What has the budget looked like the last several years?

This is the stuff in the papers. It’s not surprising people are “misinformed”. Is the excerpt below Fake News? I think the misconception I see most often amongst the public and even on this board is that football loses money while in fact it pays a large share of the bills for the non-revs (well, most). The non-revs/women’s programs are the loss leaders.

https://www.twincities.com/2015/11/15/umn-athletics-budget-shortfall-is-among-biggest-in-big-ten/

Spending in the U’s athletics department is way up from $71 million in 2010, but revenues have kept pace. The deficit has been steady over the past five years, between $7 million to $8 million each year.

The study focused on colleges that rely on student fees to cover losses at money-losing sports programs. That’s not the case at the U, where the sports subsidies are built into the general operating budget.

The original story and budget charts can be found at http://pioneerpr.es/Chronicle and http://pioneerpr.es/HuffPost online.

 

[Spoofin]

I don't think anyone is complaining that Coyle responded to the letters to the editor. I think what he wrote in his blog makes sense. I really just hope he realizes that 99.9% of those people aren't reading his blog and that he has to find other ways to get his message out. He needs his blog piece to be in the newspaper. He needs to get on radio shows and explain it and help tout the U of M athletes and how things get funded. I'm sure Sid and Dave would let him on their show and I'm sure Coyle could work it out that they ask him about the funding. It's not that hard. That's why a lot of us just wish Coyle would get some PR training or hire someone in the department that knows something about PR because it is clearly a weakness for him.

Word


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[WorkingMyTailOff]

" but I understand that it’s on me, and my staff, to correct these misconceptions. We will do a more intentional job of sharing this important message."

He seems to acknowledge that here.

Yep, I think he did a nice job with this.

 

[PhillyGopher]

You should know what it's like to complain. You do enough of it. Complaining about Coyle complaining (again). How ironic.

Spoofin gonna Spoofin

 

[caliGopher]

To be fair (and I’m not close to an expert on the financial shell games/accounting practices at the U) perhaps most years the university has kicked in at least a few million to the A.D. I believe there were some years of profitability recently but I don’t have the relevant links.

One would think that with the recent enormous increase in tv profit-sharing revenue there wouldn’t be a need for those types of injections and the department could self-fund entirely most years.

To summarize, I can see where some of the confusion arises from and Joe Citizen doesn’t read Gopherhole everyday or know that BTN/Fox/ESPN money is a thing.

My guess is some of the misinformation is coming from within the “U” itself.

The culture of the school is broken and why a real leader is necessary of you want to change the culture at the U.

There are none of those in the administration. There haven’t been any in a very long time.

Unless something dramatically changes the culture and politics within the institution, There isn’t a coach alive (or dead for that matter) that can build and sustain a program that can outlive the culture at the U.

With a couple of whinging palms leading the university and athletic department, the task is even more difficult.

And before Cruze can post a history of all of the bad things that have happened at the U I’m not saying people who will allow athletics to run rampant. I’m saying leaders that can hold both athletics leaders and academic leaders accountable for the entirety of the university vs the battle waged against each other we have had for decades.


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[Cruze]

What has the budget looked like the last several years?

This is the stuff in the papers. It’s not surprising people are “misinformed”. Is the excerpt below Fake News? I think the misconception I see most often amongst the public and even on this board is that football loses money while in fact it pays a large share of the bills for the non-revs (well, most). The non-revs/women’s programs are the loss leaders.

https://www.twincities.com/2015/11/15/umn-athletics-budget-shortfall-is-among-biggest-in-big-ten/

Spending in the U’s athletics department is way up from $71 million in 2010, but revenues have kept pace. The deficit has been steady over the past five years, between $7 million to $8 million each year.

The study focused on colleges that rely on student fees to cover losses at money-losing sports programs. That’s not the case at the U, where the sports subsidies are built into the general operating budget.

The original story and budget charts can be found at http://pioneerpr.es/Chronicle and http://pioneerpr.es/HuffPost online.

Below are are the revenue/expense numbers for the U's Athletics Department in 2015-2016:

Total Revenue = $113,506,279

Total Expenses = $110,673,824

Student Fees/Direct Institutional Support = $7,055,984 (OSU/PSU/Purdue = $0; Rutgers = $28 million; and Maryland = $15 million)

http://sports.usatoday.com/ncaa/finances/

 

[Pompous Elitist]

Coaching salaries increased roughly 300% over 2005-2015. Absolutely astounding.

Unless I am misreading this, and consistent with the PiPress article, the department is accepting roughly 7 million from the school per year. If I am not misunderstanding that allocation, and Coyle said the facilities are funded by donations and department revenue, it would seem to mean the department and facilities funding are not entirely financially independent. Football and men’s basketball are, but not the department as a whole. Help me out.