STrib: U of M 'athletics village' project delayed again

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BleedGopher

BleedGopher

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per Jason Gonzalez:

The Board of Regents approval vote needed to break ground on the Gophers’ $190 million athletics village will be delayed again — at least until October — Chair Dean Johnson told the Star Tribune on Tuesday.

An informational meeting for the university facilities committee will be held on Sept. 10, and on Oct. 9 the regents, “hope to take a vote on the athletics village, which would include a plan for the track [complex],” Johnson said.

“There are many reasons for that [delay], and all good reasons,” Johnson added. “No. 1, it’s a very visible program and we have to do it right. No. 2, we have to make sure the appropriate financing is in place. No. 3, that the actual facility will meet the competitive needs for our student-athletes. No. 4, this building will be closely watched.”

http://www.startribune.com/u-of-m-athletics-village-project-delayed-again/322894871/

Go Gophers!!
 

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Go Gophers!!
 

By the time this thing is built it will already be outdated.
 

I'm guessing this delay may explain, in part, the timing of the pay raise deals for Kill and Pitino. It is probably a good thing to keep them as happy as possible given the frustration associated with all the facility delays. Hopefully, October is the month!
 



This whole thing is so Minnesotan.... we're going to delay this thing until what we could've gotten for $150MM will cost $190MM, then $230MM. And then people with B!tch about how the costs are mounting.

Unbelievable..
 

Do it right. What's a little delay? Coach Kill recognizes that.
 





hungan1 said:
Jerry Kill: "It's important that the University get it right when it comes to building the new athletics facilities since they're "only going to build it once."

http://www.startribune.com/kill-shows-patience-amid-gophers-facility-delays/321931791/
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I'm too lazy to look it up, but Kill also has been quoted about the urgency to break ground in August. Recently he took one for the team and said football was part of the problem, wanting to get it right. That goes against everything his program is about: his staff did not drop the ball and not have their part done a long time ago. But, because he's dancing the line, he probably is saying FB had to adjust to a lower dollar amount. All of this is purely guessing, but this is becoming a fiasco and JK knows coaches salaries are not something potential recruits care about. You want a championship here? Get the facility built and your chances go up.
 

They better get this going. I have to believe the new facilities is having some what of an impact on the great 2016 recruiting class we have going. I wonder how many of those guys will not sign if this is delayed further.
 

BleedGopher said:
“There are many reasons for that [delay], and all good reasons,” Johnson added. “No. 1, it’s a very visible program and we have to do it right.

Go Gophers!!
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I like this line because it implies that previously the plan was to do it wrong.
 

All along the plan has been to break ground in the fall. October is still fall last I checked.
 



I posted about a month ago the conversation I over heard at the Big Ax bar in Nisswa. Many of you took me to task. Your honor, I rest my case.
 

It sure seems like this project is now going to be delayed until the spring. Imagine whatever plan they come up with for track will be met with more resistance from somewhere.
 

scools12 said:
It sure seems like this project is now going to be delayed until the spring. Imagine whatever plan they come up with for track will be met with more resistance from somewhere.
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I don't think that's a given.
The track issue needs leadership to essentially make tough decisions, and our AD is now gone.
Seriously the stupidity of whoever is dragging their feet on the track issue is amazing.
They are risking the entire future of the AD.
They need to just accept that the new facility will be on the st paul campus, and it will be awesome. It will help recruiting. It will allow the team to host big meets again.
But it's going to be on the st paul campus. Deal with it.
The design for the village is done, there's enough prelim funding to get started, and the only damn issue is the Fing track team isn't happy about practicing in the best facility in the state for two years and having their brand new home on the next door campus.
Unbelievable.
 

killme said:
I'm too lazy to look it up, but Kill also has been quoted about the urgency to break ground in August. Recently he took one for the team and said football was part of the problem, wanting to get it right. That goes against everything his program is about: his staff did not drop the ball and not have their part done a long time ago. But, because he's dancing the line, he probably is saying FB had to adjust to a lower dollar amount. All of this is purely guessing, but this is becoming a fiasco and JK knows coaches salaries are not something potential recruits care about. You want a championship here? Get the facility built and your chances go up.
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Jerry Kill also seems like the kind of guy to step back and look at the whole picture. Yes, he wanted shovels in the ground earlier. But if he ultimately gets the new facility, with an athletic department fully supporting him, waiting another year for that facility could be acceptable. If Jerry's end goal is to take this program to a Big Ten Championship, and facilities is what he believes is the missing piece, what is the downside to waiting an extra year?

Maybe you miss out on a recruit in one class vs. the next. Sure. Fine. But if he has the support of the whole AD behind him, he could still be in a position to accomplish his goals. Basically, I don't see him as the kind of guy to just jump ship and ruin what he and his staff have worked hard to build. I do see him getting pissed if his assistants aren't rewarded accordingly. Just my take.
 

Gopher alums or fans should not be surprised. They can F-up pretty much anything over there.
Kill is being the team player, but is there any doubt he is probably pissed off and very frustrated?
 

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Ole said:
I don't think that's a given. The track issue needs leadership to essentially make tough decisions, and our AD is now gone. Seriously the stupidity of whoever is dragging their feet on the track issue is amazing. They are risking the entire future of the AD. They need to just accept that the new facility will be on the st paul campus, and it will be awesome. It will help recruiting. It will allow the team to host big meets again. But it's going to be on the st paul campus. Deal with it. The design for the village is done, there's enough prelim funding to get started, and the only damn issue is the Fing track team isn't happy about practicing in the best facility in the state for two years and having their brand new home on the next door campus. Unbelievable.
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If this is true, it cannot be overstated how frustrating it is.

Can you imagine Alabama or Ohio State constantly putting off critical upgrades to the football facility in order to appease the track team and its relatively tiny handful of supporters?
 

WanderingGopher said:
If this is true, it cannot be overstated how frustrating it is.

Can you imagine Alabama or Ohio State constantly putting off critical upgrades to the football facility in order to appease the track team and its relatively tiny handful of supporters?
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+1 Only in Minnesota does this happen.
 

WanderingGopher said:
If this is true, it cannot be overstated how frustrating it is.

Can you imagine Alabama or Ohio State constantly putting off critical upgrades to the football facility in order to appease the track team and its relatively tiny handful of supporters?
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Nope.
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
+1 Only in Minnesota does this happen.
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Exactly why I can totally see the appeasing of the track team taking place. With the Title IX investigation and Teague's behavior the Board of Regents will over correct and the revenue generating sports will take the hit because it's the Minnesotan thing to do.
 

Gopherdrummer said:
Jerry Kill also seems like the kind of guy to step back and look at the whole picture. Yes, he wanted shovels in the ground earlier. But if he ultimately gets the new facility, with an athletic department fully supporting him, waiting another year for that facility could be acceptable. If Jerry's end goal is to take this program to a Big Ten Championship, and facilities is what he believes is the missing piece, what is the downside to waiting an extra year?
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There are folks here that know more about everything that is going on than I do. But, it seems to me some people have made promises to JK that they have not kept. In turn, believing those promises, JK has reiterated those promises to others, perhaps recruits. If the facility doesn't get started, it would not be unreasonable for those recruits to hold JK accountable, not some administrator they didn't speak to. This has the potential to undermine the integrity of the program. He is not the typical snake-oil salesman, who only cares about the sale, so it's reasonable to assume he is VERY unhappy about this situation.

If he was promised it would get done this fall, and it doesn't, how many times should he believe the next promise?

It's hard to win a championship. Many programs are all-in towards winning one. Some of them have the money, but can't find the right guy. I think most Gopher fans believe JK could be the guy. I think he wants to stay at Minnesota, but I think his top priority is to win a championship. If you're honest with yourself, you wouldn't want it any other way. Someone needs to recognize the opportunity at hand and get this done or all bets are off.
 

Gopherdrummer said:
Jerry Kill also seems like the kind of guy to step back and look at the whole picture. Yes, he wanted shovels in the ground earlier. But if he ultimately gets the new facility, with an athletic department fully supporting him, waiting another year for that facility could be acceptable. If Jerry's end goal is to take this program to a Big Ten Championship, and facilities is what he believes is the missing piece, what is the downside to waiting an extra year?

Maybe you miss out on a recruit in one class vs. the next. Sure. Fine. But if he has the support of the whole AD behind him, he could still be in a position to accomplish his goals. Basically, I don't see him as the kind of guy to just jump ship and ruin what he and his staff have worked hard to build. I do see him getting pissed if his assistants aren't rewarded accordingly. Just my take.
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I can't speak for Kill but I would be shocked if this was true. Kill wanted this thing done yesterday and there is no way he is happy or ok with all these delays. Publicly he will be a good soldier and say the right things but I don't believe for one second he is ok with this behind the scenes. Coaches, especially those at high levels are not the most patient people and I could be wrong but I have zero doubt in my mind that he is pissed about all these delays but in the end it is out of his hands so he has to try and put the best spin on it he can for recruits.
 

MNVCGUY said:
I can't speak for Kill but I would be shocked if this was true. Kill wanted this thing done yesterday and there is no way he is happy or ok with all these delays. Publicly he will be a good soldier and say the right things but I don't believe for one second he is ok with this behind the scenes. Coaches, especially those at high levels are not the most patient people and I could be wrong but I have zero doubt in my mind that he is pissed about all these delays but in the end it is out of his hands so he has to try and put the best spin on it he can for recruits.
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I am not suggesting he is happy with it at all. I am just suggesting maybe he has decided to be a little patient? Yes, it sounds like there were promises made that haven't been kept. But in the grand scheme of things it appears to us that Kill has the full support of the AD in regards to how he runs his program and his health. Some on here may think Kill seriously thinks about jumping. I think he is a little more level headed to see what becomes of this delay before just pulling the plug on everything he has done in the last five years here.
 

hungan1 said:
Do it right. What's a little delay? Coach Kill recognizes that.
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Assuming the delay actually is "to get it right" then yes, I agree. Not sure I'm buying that reasoning tho.
 

Gopherdrummer said:
I am not suggesting he is happy with it at all. I am just suggesting maybe he has decided to be a little patient? Yes, it sounds like there were promises made that haven't been kept. But in the grand scheme of things it appears to us that Kill has the full support of the AD in regards to how he runs his program and his health. Some on here may think Kill seriously thinks about jumping. I think he is a little more level headed to see what becomes of this delay before just pulling the plug on everything he has done in the last five years here.
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Kill seemingly had the support of the former AD (although now there are stories coming out about how they didn't get along), remains to be seen what will happen when a new AD is hired. The good news for all of us is that at the moment if Kill were to jump the move would have to be lateral at best and most likely a step back. That is not his MO, when he leaves a place it is for a better situation for himself and his staff.

Now if he manages to win the West and go another full year with no health issues those better jobs just might start to take a look, but for the moment those that are worried about him leaving are wasting their time because he isn't going anywhere unless it is a step up in class.

So as it relates to the delay, I totally agree with your contention that he wouldn't just pull the plug and leave because of it, but I also don't think he is in any way shape of form OK with it behind the scenes.
 

I believe a lot of the delay is due to addressing the track issue, I blame Teague for the problem, it was the 600 lb gorilla in the room he refused to address.
 

nsmike said:
I believe a lot of the delay is due to addressing the track issue, I blame Teague for the problem, it was the 600 lb gorilla in the room he refused to address.
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Justin Gaard said as much on his sunday show. He's probably plugged in more than most people in the TC.
It's been reported and admitted that the whole title IX investigation wasn't an actual title IX incident or issue, but instead a way to force Teague and the U to bend to the track team's wishes.
It's unbelievable considering the horsesh#t track they have now is probably too dangerous and ripped up to even train on. I used to run down there in 2007 and my out of shape ass turned an ankle on the thing, a B1G level sprinter would be in danger.
It's pretty obvious reading between the lines that the title IX thing has indeed forced the regents to consider the track team, and that there are no easy answers that will make all parties happy. Track team:Move the fing thing to st paul, build a track and field mecca, be happy you're fully funded by Jerry Kill and his football program.
 

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