Christie: "We're in the Big Ten. We should act like it,'

[RC85]

"If we want to be serious players in college athletics, then we need to
invest in them,'' Christie said. "If we don't, then we don't. Then we
should become schools that aren't in the Big Ten. You're in the Big Ten
and that decision was made by Rutgers, then you better be ready to
compete with Michigan and Ohio State and Wisconsin and all of those
other schools in the Big Ten that compete every day.''

http://www.nj.com/rutgersbasketball/index.ssf/2015/03/gov_christie_says_its_on_rutgers_to_be_able_to_com.html

 

[motel00]

Who is "we"?

 

[bac2therac]

many of us have been echoing this for months now...if you are going to be in the Big 10 act like it, if you do not want to spend and invest then you should not be in this conference. My fear is that Barchi is the type of president that wants to just collect the check...ditto for the BOG and BOT..where is their leadership here.

The disturbing quote from this article is from the University spokesperson EJ Miranda...note this not coming from the athletic department...he says there is no plan yet. That's disturbing and that to me indicates that they want no spending and that Julie is under orders to worry about the subsidy and making sure football is strong. The plan is not part of her job directive given to her. That's unfortunate.

 

[RC85]

Barchi takes his marching orders from Christie re: firing Pernetti only after the big man publicly wanted it. I think the Guv's message to Barchi now is find a way to get it done that makes him (the Guv) look fair and balanced, or at least not take any political hits from it.

 

[ru66]

bac--what are you saying now? it was herman who said she was "planning" and studying--now you're relieving her of that responsibility??? and it's not her job to come out with a plan--geez

 

[bac2therac]

You dont get it...her bosses are not putting it a priority. ..she does as her bosses say...the previous 2 ADs got canned for freewheeling it

 

[Caliknight]

Rutgers is the state school of NJ. NJ should act like it.

 

[e5fdny]

Originally posted by bac2therac:

many of us have been echoing this for months now...if you are going to be in the Big 10 act like it, if you do not want to spend and invest then you should not be in this conference. My fear is that Barchi is the type of president that wants to just collect the check...ditto for the BOG and BOT..where is their leadership here.

The disturbing quote from this article is from the University spokesperson EJ Miranda...note this not coming from the athletic department...he says there is no plan yet. That's disturbing and that to me indicates that they want no spending and that Julie is under orders to worry about the subsidy and making sure football is strong. The plan is not part of her job directive given to her. That's unfortunate.

When the B1G did a little fact finding visit awhile back they obviously knew what we had from a facilities and infrastructure standpoint.

What they did not know was about the little things that make RU Athletics so "interesting" to follow/frustrate us.

There was more than one disappointed "wait...what?" from the gang from Park Ridge (now Rosemont) on their first visit to the Banks.

 

[TDIrish1]

The decision to bring RU and Maryland into the Big Ten was about an East Coast footprint and TV sets for the BTN pure and simple.

Bac regarding JH she has been quoted as stating facilities are a top priority and she's not happy unless there are Cranes working on the campus.

By blaming Barchi for everything you essentially give her a 5 year pass .

It's the job of the AD to raise money and I cannot fathom either the BOG or the President being presented a well thought out plan to raise the money and saying " no don't do that " .

In regards to the subsidy the reality is going to be that it isn't going away no matter how much their share of the revenue comes to. Ten years from now let's hope it gets cut in half. There will be so many hands out when that check arrives that it will make their heads spin.

I could live with a partnership with the state where RU comes up with half the money and the state loans them the rest but asking them to fully fund it is ridiculous-----not with all the alum Rutgers has in the tri state area.

 

[Knight_Light]

Originally posted by bac2therac:

many of us have been echoing this for months now...if you are going to be in the Big 10 act like it, if you do not want to spend and invest then you should not be in this conference. My fear is that Barchi is the type of president that wants to just collect the check...ditto for the BOG and BOT..where is their leadership here.

The disturbing quote from this article is from the University spokesperson EJ Miranda...note this not coming from the athletic department...he says there is no plan yet. That's disturbing and that to me indicates that they want no spending and that Julie is under orders to worry about the subsidy and making sure football is strong. The plan is not part of her job directive given to her. That's unfortunate.

RU was invited to join the Big Ten Conf over 2 1/2 years ago...and obviously there were discussion/negotiations with the Big Ten prior to the official invite.

Did someone at RU lie to the Big Ten in regards to RU's own financial situation/desperation?

Its shocking for an Univ spokesperson to admit that RU is still in the "planning stage"...some 3 years since negotiations with the conf started to take place.

 

[SBP]

Christie..spoken like a true Notre Dame fan..He doesn't really care. You can hear the sarcasm dripping from his chops.

Why doesn't HE propose something!!??? He's a blow hard. All talk, no substance.

Hey, Guv, hows about this. "I propose that State commit to LOANING the University a proportion of the amount to build the new practice facilities ONCE THE PLAN IS IN PLACE" Hell, they can loan the entire amount, and that would be the end of it, that's all it would take. They would get paid back WITH INTEREST, and MAKE MONEY ON THE DEAL!!

But, I guess that's not a real vision, and commitment from the State that ALL these other States have for THEIR schools.

 

[bac2therac]

well TP screwed that one up. He did have a plan although it seemed a little ambitious for such a small price tag and not sure it addressed the need of all sports. Of course TP set the school back 5 years instead of working on and planning on upgrade the 18 months leading up to the Big 10, Rutgers was hosing out a scandal so for all those championing how great he was, he is part of the reason we are in this situation.

He had raised some monies and some of that used for RAC scoreboard, lighting and minor improvements, he didn't have enough though and people throw around money pledged. Of course that was lost when he was let go. The plans were scrapped. I believe Julie had to a lot of work to do in learning the lay of the land the first year and the 2nd year was spent shoring football up as its Rutgers bread and butter. I think that focus has taken away from coming up with any plan...and I will say this, Barchi and the BOG adamant about not borrowing means that figuring out a quick plan was not a priority that they put on Julie.

Every single other program need serious help. Its not a quick fix and its going to cost a lot of money.While most of my ire has been towards Barchi, I think its the BOG and BOTs who need to get their heads out of their asses as they have been the constants here of not spending and failure to invest. Even when Mulcahy rammed expansion, they had to fire him as a fall guy to deflect blame off of them

 

[TonyLieske]

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

The decision to bring RU and Maryland into the Big Ten was about an East Coast footprint and TV sets for the BTN pure and simple.

Bac regarding JH she has been quoted as stating facilities are a top priority and she's not happy unless there are Cranes working on the campus.

By blaming Barchi for everything you essentially give her a 5 year pass .

It's the job of the AD to raise money and I cannot fathom either the BOG or the President being presented a well thought out plan to raise the money and saying " no don't do that " .

In regards to the subsidy the reality is going to be that it isn't going away no matter how much their share of the revenue comes to. Ten years from now let's hope it gets cut in half. There will be so many hands out when that check arrives that it will make their heads spin.

I could live with a partnership with the state where RU comes up with half the money and the state loans them the rest but asking them to fully fund it is ridiculous-----not with all the alum Rutgers has in the tri state area.

Bac, and others, believe someone other than donors should pay for stuff. Even though Rutgers spends more on its athletics department than any other school, you will continue to see the mantra that "The School refuses to invest! Therefore I won't donate!"

It is a self-defeating, downward spiral that Rutgers Men's Basketball is in. Hopefully Julie is able to find donors willing to spend what it takes to win.

 

[TDIrish1]

SBP

They already loaned Rutgers 110 million for a stadium expansion which was not popular politically.

I'm not a Christie fan on alot of things but that isn't his job-------that's the AD's job.

 

[ru8081]

No it is not his job but he should say something like this. "If the RU administration responsible for coming up with a plan cannot propose a plan of action by June 30th, 2015 then I will push for the removal of those in charge."

 

[Section114]

You dont get it...her bosses are not putting it a priority. ..she does as her bosses say...the previous 2 ADs got canned for freewheeling it

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

If she is only doing this, we don't need her. We need someone to make shit happen! She certainly doesn't have an easy task, but..... she doesn't strike me as a tow the line kind of gal!

 

[ru8081]

Her bosses should be put on notice that WE are their bosses.

 

[bac2therac]

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

The decision to bring RU and Maryland into the Big Ten was about an East Coast footprint and TV sets for the BTN pure and simple.

Bac regarding JH she has been quoted as stating facilities are a top priority and she's not happy unless there are Cranes working on the campus.

By blaming Barchi for everything you essentially give her a 5 year pass .

It's the job of the AD to raise money and I cannot fathom either the BOG or the President being presented a well thought out plan to raise the money and saying " no don't do that " .

In regards to the subsidy the reality is going to be that it isn't going away no matter how much their share of the revenue comes to. Ten years from now let's hope it gets cut in half. There will be so many hands out when that check arrives that it will make their heads spin.

I could live with a partnership with the state where RU comes up with half the money and the state loans them the rest but asking them to fully fund it is ridiculous-----not with all the alum Rutgers has in the tri state area.

I am not saying she isn't fundraising. I am sure she and Sarah are working hard on this. They aren't going to announce some elaborate plan until they feel there is enough funding to go through with it and obviously there isn't at this time. I am sure she and others have plans. Its the Barchi and BOG who don't...note where this press release came from

 

[DennisHajekRC84]

Originally posted by RC85:
"If we want to be serious players in college athletics, then we need to
invest in them,'' Christie said. "If we don't, then we don't. Then we
should become schools that aren't in the Big Ten. You're in the Big Ten
and that decision was made by Rutgers, then you better be ready to
compete with Michigan and Ohio State and Wisconsin and all of those
other schools in the Big Ten that compete every day.''

http://www.nj.com/rutgersbasketball/index.ssf/2015/03/gov_christie_says_its_on_rutgers_to_be_able_to_com.html

We we joined the B1G we should have also started to call ourselves RUNJ....Rutgers University of New Jersey. Folks can still call us just Rutgers but it would be 1 way to get this State back into the mix.

Nobody calls us Rutgers - The State Univ of NJ

Frankly, I think there is something needed once again to gt the people of New Jersey to relate to the school. Then perahps more support would be forthcoming.

 

[TonyLieske]

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

SBP

They already loaned Rutgers 110 million for a stadium expansion which was not popular politically.

I'm not a Christie fan on alot of things but that isn't his job-------that's the AD's job.

The state didn't loan Rutgers a penny for the stadium. The University issued its own bonds (as part of a larger bond issue) to cover the cost. The estimates I have seen are in the 90-100 million range. An additional $5 million was spent after the bond issue to pay for the recruiting terrace, but that was 100% paid for by donations.

 

[Knight_Light]

Originally posted by SBP:
Christie..spoken like a true Notre Dame fan..He doesn't really care. You can hear the sarcasm dripping from his chops.

Why doesn't HE propose something!!??? He's a blow hard. All talk, no substance.

Wow...talk about going off on the deep end.

You want the NJ Governor to come up with a plan to help improve RU Basketball Facilities and RU Athletic Fundraising overall, all because the Univ practically haven't done squat over the past 20-25 years to improve their own facilities/situation?

Man...political hate...like the above...no wonder some are just blinded to facts and how the real world (or the Univ Athletic World) works.

 

[ru8081]

Rutgers University is the face to the rest of the nation as to what is good about NJ. When the rest of the nation views us as incompetent it reflects badly on the State of New Jersey and masks many of the things that are good about RU & NJ. The Governor has every right and he has a responsibility to call out incompetence and remind this University of one of it's missions. And yes advertisement via Athletics is one of our missions to attract students, alumni and researchers. Christie should have done this sooner.

 

[bac2therac]

Originally posted by TonyLieske:

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

SBP

They already loaned Rutgers 110 million for a stadium expansion which was not popular politically.

I'm not a Christie fan on alot of things but that isn't his job-------that's the AD's job.

The state didn't loan Rutgers a penny for the stadium. The University issued its own bonds (as part of a larger bond issue) to cover the cost. The estimates I have seen are in the 90-100 million range. An additional $5 million was spent after the bond issue to pay for the recruiting terrace, but that was 100% paid for by donations.

exactly like the school should do again for all of the facility upgrades needed despite you continually repeating some lame line that I want the state to pay for it

 

[seels2662]

nm

This post was edited on 3/25 11:12 AM by seels2662

 

[TonyLieske]

Originally posted by bac2therac:

exactly like the school should do again for all of the facility upgrades needed despite you continually repeating some lame line that I want the state to pay for it

Just to be clear, I would be ecstatic if the state "paid for" facility upgrades, I just don't think it would ever happen in a million years, so IMHO it is a waste of time to tilt at that particular windmill.

The one thing I do like to keep driving home (

) is that the notion that Rutgers doesn't support (or "invest in") athletics is ludicrous on its face, being that the school consistently provides the highest (or occasionally second highest) direct support compared to any school. The difference between Ohio State, Penn State, or even Michigan State and Rutgers isn't the amount of support the athletes receive from the school...the difference is the amount of support they get from alumni and fans. If anything, Rutgers (The University) provides far MORE financial support to its athletics programs than any other school in the conference and the country. It is us, the donors, that do not provide as much support.

All that being said, if the BoG decide to fund an upgrade to facilities I wouldn't even be "against" it. I just understand why they aren't jumping at the notion of doing it. IMHO the long term financial health of the athletic department would be improved if we could fund facilities upgrades through donors rather than through borrowing.

 

[derleider]

Originally posted by bac2therac:

many of us have been echoing this for months now...if you are going to be in the Big 10 act like it, if you do not want to spend and invest then you should not be in this conference. My fear is that Barchi is the type of president that wants to just collect the check...ditto for the BOG and BOT..where is their leadership here.

The disturbing quote from this article is from the University spokesperson EJ Miranda...note this not coming from the athletic department...he says there is no plan yet. That's disturbing and that to me indicates that they want no spending and that Julie is under orders to worry about the subsidy and making sure football is strong. The plan is not part of her job directive given to her. That's unfortunate.

If the Big Ten wanted us to invest like a Big Ten team, then they should pay us like a Big Ten team, not like a Big East team. Until then, we will probably spend like a Big East team, not like a Big Ten team.

That is unless our donors step up and act like Big Ten donors, not Big East donors.

But one or the other needs to happen - we either need Big Ten donors or Big Ten funding. We have neither, apparently, right now.

 

[Ty Webb]

Originally posted by SBP:
Christie..spoken like a true Notre Dame fan..He doesn't really care. You can hear the sarcasm dripping from his chops.

Why doesn't HE propose something!!??? He's a blow hard. All talk, no substance.

Hey, Guv, hows about this. "I propose that State commit to LOANING the University a proportion of the amount to build the new practice facilities ONCE THE PLAN IS IN PLACE" Hell, they can loan the entire amount, and that would be the end of it, that's all it would take. They would get paid back WITH INTEREST, and MAKE MONEY ON THE DEAL!!

But, I guess that's not a real vision, and commitment from the State that ALL these other States have for THEIR schools.

Are their examples of support that other BIG teams get from their states with regards to enhancing athletics programs?

A quick look shows that OSU and Michigan have funded all their athletic enhancements in house - no support from the state. For example, the $226 million dollar renovation at Michigan for their stadium was all self-funded.

 

[RUaMoose]

Hopefully, momentum is building towards a NB arena. Renovating the RAC is a waste of money imo unless it's converted to the coveted "practice facility" in conjunction with said arena
This post was edited on 3/25 2:58 PM by RUaMoose

 

[Greene Rice FIG]

Originally posted by TonyLieske:
The state didn't loan Rutgers a penny for the stadium.

Directly yes, indirectly???

If push came to shove and RU couldn't make interest/principal payments would the state of NJ step in?

 

[TonyLieske]

Originally posted by Greene Rice FIG:

Originally posted by TonyLieske:

The state didn't loan Rutgers a penny for the stadium.

Directly yes, indirectly???

If push came to shove and RU couldn't make interest/principal payments would the state of NJ step in?

Not indirectly either.

Someone on this board posted the actual bond issue pamphlet. It specifically stated that these are NOT backed by the state and Rutgers University is solely reposnsible for paying them back. That being said, I think at the time, Rutgers had a better credit rating than NJ.

 

[ru66]

has ground been broken on the baseball facility???? I think not--we have nobody in RU's administration doing anything agressively--and it's not the bog or president who should make recommendations about athletics--WE need advocates not those who are affraid to speak up and yes one should fight your boss if you believe he's wrong
This post was edited on 3/25 1:32 PM by ru66

 

[lester19]

Christie is always eager to invest state money in private ventures -- How much money has gone into funding the ancillary construction around Metlife Stadium, the Sixers facility in Camden, that god forsaken wasteland once called Xanadu? He had no problem spending lots of state money on that "special" senate election. He has no problem dumping lots of Port Authority money into funding projects in towns that endorsed his candidacy for re-election. But he has no interest in increasing any type of funding for Rutgers, let alone RU athletics. He is very quick to criticize, but he never offers any concrete solutions. While 95% of his attention is focused on national politics we can forget about anything positive coming out of the governor's office.

 

[bac2therac]

I believe the Wyoming legislature matched a single donors contribution of $10 million for Wyomings upgrade of facilities

 

[TDIrish1]

How much do you think the State should put toward the NJIT facility ?

 

[MADHAT1]

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

How much do you think the State should put toward the NJIT facility ?

The same amount they put in any of the other NJ Public Colleges and Universities sports facilities.

 

[TDIrish1]

Well they did beat Michigan-----on the road. :)

 

[TonyLieske]

Originally posted by TDIrish1:

How much do you think the State should put toward the NJIT facility ?

FWIW, the public is putting at least $50 million towards it, I believe.

Again, Rutgers paid every penny of its stadium expansion on its own. Not a single penny from the state, not even indirectly via "government backed" bonds.

As an aside, Rowan received a $10 million grant to take over UMDNJ's Osteopathic school in Southern NJ. Rutgers, which is taking over the vast majority of UMDNJ's operations, was told to pay for it themselves. The State of NJ is not a friend to Rutgers and has an antagonistic relationship with the school. Christie, a ND fan, is probably one of the closest to being at least reasonably friendly, as he makes a point to not criticize the school or its decisions. Lesniak, who all these fans are now acting like is the savior, has taken every opportunity possible to criticize RU, and even jumped on to the Sweeney bandwagon when he tried to unilaterally force Rutgers to change its governance and stack the BoG with his cronies. Criticizing Rutgers is a winning strategy for our NJ legislature, unfortunately, which is why I think it is preposterous that they would provide any funding (although again, If they did, I would be ecstatic).

 

[bac2therac]

Gotta love poster lije Irish and Knightlight who are associated with our schools but feel the need to lecture us on what Rutgers should be doing

 

[KJ_RU]

I didn't read this entire thread because I've read several threads on this topic over the past few days. The bottom line is that Christie used all those words to say Rutgers should invest in facilities and act like you're in the B1G, while saying at the same time saying don't expect a dime from the State. All he did was cover himself by telling RU fans what they want to hear, while at the same time keeping his voters happy by not committing any state funds to the cause.

He is supposed to be the guy that gets things done, a powerful Governor, yet it seems that he can't get anything done unless it helps him politically. So publicly he comes out and says RU should invest, while behind closed doors he advocates for the exact opposite. It's like bridge gate...in the end he can say, I wanted Rutgers to spend money on athletics but they wouldn't listen, and he is supposed to be the most powerful man in the state.

 

[RUBlackout]

Bac--you don't think The AD should present her grand vision for where she wants to take facilities until she has raised enough money to make it a reality?

If that is the case, I would fire her tomorrow! And this is
Coming from someone who believes she can get something done here

If you want momentum and gain donors you need to sell your vision to everyone. Get people to believe and get them excited. No one will make a commitment in donating without this vision. Now if she already has a plan and sells it privately to big donors to give them a first look then that works. Otherwise, get it out there or step aside.

By the way, I actually know there is a plan and was supposed to be unveiled by now.