Donate or watch football program DIE

[rutgersal]

Tomorrow is a critical point in Rutgers Athletics future. Like everyone else, I'm excited to learn what the facilities plan is going to be, especially for athletics. I'm expecting a plan that's big on concepts, short on details. For details are going to be largely dependent on fundraising, which I think is the #1 priority Julie has in front of her. Everybody has to do what they can to pitch in. If you can only give $1, then give the $1. With large numbers of alumni, working in medical, financial, law, and pharmaceutical fields, huge tailgates, and expensive cars and RVs, I remain convinced that our alumni base has much more to give.

Flood needs our help. With their newly announced $150M facility, Marylands football proposition has rocketed past ours. The football facility is extremely important because kids spend more time there than just about anywhere else. Who wants to train in a 2* facility when they can train in a 5* facility like Ohio States and soon Maryland?

PSU is also making significant upgrades to their already formidable facilities. If no upgrades are made, it will be difficult for Rutgers to compete with OSU, Mich, PSU, MSU, and Maryland. That's potentially 5 losses annually. With upgrades, we can beat ALL of them. But it's going to take the support of ALL of us.

Right now Jerseys best go elsewhere because they see that Rutgers alumni aren't as committed to fielding a NationalChampionship team as OSU alumni, PSU alumni, Michigan alumni, and even alumni of schools like Tennessee and South Carolina. Our facilities just aren't competitive with theirs. Some of our alumni may disagree, because they don't want to donate, but the recruiting results speak for themselves.

Right now there is a decent chance that Rutgers lands 0 of NJs Top 10. In many cases, we are unable to land our first and second choice recruits. While I'm extremely happy about the recruits we have landed, it is difficult to build a competitive B1G program without getting at least a small share of elite recruits.

That's a shame because this year is one of Jerseys best classes EVER. We can put an end to this train by donating and ensuring that our facilities are competitive with our peers.

 

[RCTrooper]

Tomorrow is a critical point in Rutgers Athletics future. Like everyone else, I'm excited to learn what the facilities plan is going to be, especially for athletics. I'm expecting a plan that's big on concepts, short on details. For details are going to be largely dependent on fundraising, which I think is the #1 priority Julie has in front of her. Everybody has to do what they can to pitch in. If you can only give $1, then give the $1. With large numbers of alumni, working in medical, financial, law, and pharmaceutical fields, huge tailgates, and expensive cars and RVs, I remain convinced that our alumni base has much more to give.

Flood needs our help. With their newly announced $150M facility, Marylands football proposition has rocketed past ours. The football facility is extremely important because kids spend more time there than just about anywhere else. Who wants to train in a 2* facility when they can train in a 5* facility like Ohio States and soon Maryland?

PSU is also making significant upgrades to their already formidable facilities. If no upgrades are made, it will be difficult for Rutgers to compete with OSU, Mich, PSU, MSU, and Maryland. That's potentially 5 losses annually. With upgrades, we can beat ALL of them. But it's going to take the support of ALL of us.

Right now Jerseys best go elsewhere because they see that Rutgers alumni aren't as committed to fielding a NationalChampionship team as OSU alumni, PSU alumni, Michigan alumni, and even alumni of schools like Tennessee and South Carolina. Our facilities just aren't competitive with theirs. Some of our alumni may disagree, because they don't want to donate, but the recruiting results speak for themselves.

Right now there is a decent chance that Rutgers lands 0 of NJs Top 10. In many cases, we are unable to land our first and second choice recruits. While I'm extremely happy about the recruits we have landed, it is difficult to build a competitive B1G program without getting at least a small share of elite recruits.

That's a shame because this year is one of Jerseys best classes EVER. We can put an end to this train by donating and ensuring that our facilities are competitive with our peers.

Agree 100%. No good reason that employed Rutgers grads cannot give SOMETHING on an annual basis. Even if it is $50 a year.

 

[Ty Webb]

When did rutgersal become lucid?

 

[zappaa]

Al
Let's assume we all donate here, in my case it's not just money, our venue is always there for Julie to utilize.
What should RU do to make this happen, I think you need to get money from alumni that have never donated, how do they achieve that ?

 

[Jim_from_RU]

Al
Let's assume we all donate here, in my case it's not just money, our venue is always there for Julie to utilize.
What should RU do to make this happen, I think you need to get money from alumni that have never donated, how do they achieve that ?

Corporate sponsorships need to grow also. Like a big $ name for the RAC. Alumni alone aren't going to fund all this.

 

[MozRU]

Al

What should RU do to make this happen, I think you need to get money from alumni that have never donated, how do they achieve that ?

Strong marketing. Detailed literature why money is being raised and where exactly it will go - why it is being raised and what the outcome will be (national prominence that all Alumni want if they admit it or not)

 

[ShiningKnight]

Expecting large numbers of Rutgers alumni to donate to the athletic programs in the short term is a pipe dream. Until recently RU students were oblivious to RU athletics. The vast majority historically could care less. They lack the connection needed to motivate donating. Now build a bandwagon with tickets in short supply and on field performance to brag about and you will have a large pool of donors. We need the state as a whole to care about Rutgers football (and athletics as a whole) and it is SLOWLY happening. The move to the BIG is huge both academically and athletically. We are much more attractive than we have ever been. Win on the field consistently 7 plus games (and be competitive in the rest) with the BIG schedule we have and we will see the fan base grow consistently both within NJ and the entire State of Rutgers. Remember that sports junkies have their existing loyalties but everybody loves a winner. Being competitive in the BIG will open up the donor base both large and small. Proud alumni will donate (not only to athletics).

 

[restartRU]

Al - great post. just missing the link to click and donate.

 

[Ty Webb]

Many will dismiss this because it's an outside perspective but RU is playing a significant game of catch up here. Absolutely, they need to raise money for better athletics facilities. But that's to get to a place where many of the better programs were a decade ago. You now have some schools raising money to endow head coaching positions. Stanford does this, I believe. Notre Dame has taken donations recently to endow the head football coaching position as well as a few other coaching spots (women's basketball coach for one). How are mid-level schools going to compete in an environment where the upper crust basically can cover entire massive coaching salaries without having to spend very much of their revenues? In other words, can RU or Iowa or Arkansas compete with say Alabama or Notre Dame or Ohio State who might be able to cover the ridiculous contracts of their coaches through endowments and not have to pay them through their actual revenues.

Money is driving this thing and it's not just about shiney new facilities, etc. In fact, one could argue, this is just getting more and more out of control and at some point, this entire thing is going to crumble.

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Many will dismiss this because it's an outside perspective but RU is playing a significant game of catch up here. Absolutely, they need to raise money for better athletics facilities. But that's to get to a place where many of the better programs were a decade ago. You now have some schools raising money to endow head coaching positions. Stanford does this, I believe. Notre Dame has taken donations recently to endow the head football coaching position as well as a few other coaching spots (women's basketball coach for one). How are mid-level schools going to compete in an environment where the upper crust basically can cover entire massive coaching salaries without having to spend very much of their revenues? In other words, can RU or Iowa or Arkansas compete with say Alabama or Notre Dame or Ohio State who might be able to cover the ridiculous contracts of their coaches through endowments and not have to pay them through their actual revenues.

Money is driving this thing and it's not just about shiney new facilities, etc. In fact, one could argue, this is just getting more and more out of control and at some point, this entire thing is going to crumble.

Look those elite programs will always have huge advantages and nothing that we do will change that. But, football is football and VT beat OSU last year and Notre Dame barely beat Rutgers in a bowl game when we had a really down year.

Bama has the deck HEAVILY stacked in their favor but they still lost to a 3rd string QB.

The key for Rutgers however is that we don't want to make it any harder on us than it needs to be, right now due to our FCS like facilities for everything but football we are starting with the deck HEAVILY stacked against us in every sport. Even football has to deal with the monsters in the B1G East. The whole point of this is to give ourselves a fighting chance. Rutgers may not be replacing OSU as the top dog in the Big Ten any time soon but we don't want to be doomed to be only a doormat either!

 

[RUHotTrumpetMonkeyLove]

I was going to donate, but then I got my EZPass bill.

 

[RUforester72]

Rutgers Al is right on. And there is a need to make it easy to donate, like a "DONATE NOW" button on some of the websites that we all follow. Make it easy!

 

[Scarlet_Scourge]

Here is the link to donate on-line: http://support.rutgers.edu/bigten

Very easy.

 

[superfan01]

Why donate if your money is just going to go to reducing the subsidiary. Seems like that is what Rutgers is pushing based on everything Barchi and Julie say and it makes one not want to donate. Just my two cents.

 

[WhiteBus]

If the BOG discusses a plan for new facilities that is entirely dependent on donations than that shows you they don't care about athletics at all.

I agree with the thread as a whole to encourage donations but it's up to the school to step up and find the funding to get this done ASAP. This school has been historically cheap! It is time for them to show it's support in a big way now that Rutgers is in the Big Ten. As many have pointed out Rutgers has some big time catching up to do just to be on par with all members of the Big Ten, not just the elite.

 

[eceres]

Right now they are raising money for "operational expenditures" - what does that mean?

It means your athetlic donations will go to paying the electirc bill at the stadium.
Last time I donated for athetlics specifically it was to the RAC improvement fund before Pernetti went out. I donated expecting the money to go towards a remodeled RAC but instead it went towards a new video board or sound system.

PLEASE PLEASE DO NOT donate to any of the links in this thread.
WHEN they have a dedicated fund with an actionable plan it will go to then send money.
Otherwise you only help the subsidy go down not the teams get better.

NOTE: I am a small time donor but try to give annually to rutgers (not always athletics)

 

[hinson32]

Why donate if your money is just going to go to reducing the subsidiary. Seems like that is what Rutgers is pushing based on everything Barchi and Julie say and it makes one not want to donate. Just my two cents.

You can earmark your donation to the Big Ten Builds fund. Then 100% of your money will go towards new facilities.

 

[eceres]

You can earmark your donation to the Big Ten Builds fund. Then 100% of your money will go towards new facilities.

Or some new turf somewhere that is called a building improvement. I have 0 trust in them doing it right without concrete plans and goal amount.

 

[RUsojo]

Corporate match documents waiting to be filled out tomorrow afternoon..

 

[raritan1]

So, what’s your fair share? Here’s a back of the envelope calculation just to put the problem in perspective. To fully fund athletics – just at the current $70 million level – the average ticket price (with contributions) in the stadium (at 43,000 sellable seats) per game would need to rise to about $235. So basically, as a fan, your share is about $1,645 a year per seat (assuming seven home games).

Basketball tickets, corporate sponsorships, conference revenue, etc. reduce that cost somewhat, but the bulk of the money to fund athletics must come from the seven games held each year at the stadium.

The school has subsidized operations to the tune of more than $200 million over the past decade. Imagine if those funds could have been used for facilities – we’d be on par or better than any of our peers. So, operational funds are critical.

 

[jmc11201]

If the BOG discusses a plan for new facilities that is entirely dependent on donations than that shows you they don't care about athletics at all.

I agree with the thread as a whole to encourage donations but it's up to the school to step up and find the funding to get this done ASAP. This school has been historically cheap! It is time for them to show it's support in a big way now that Rutgers is in the Big Ten. As many have pointed out Rutgers has some big time catching up to do just to be on par with all members of the Big Ten, not just the elite.

The places most schools go to fund the funding are through alumni donations.

To me, the bottom line is that people vote with their pocketbooks. I didn't attend Rutgers, so I don't know, but do people not feel a strong enough connection to the school to want to financially support it after graduation? Why is it that alumni of other schools are much more willing to step up?

 

[WhiteBus]

The places most schools go to fund the funding are through alumni donations.

To me, the bottom line is that people vote with their pocketbooks. I didn't attend Rutgers, so I don't know, but do people not feel a strong enough connection to the school to want to financially support it after graduation? Why is it that alumni of other schools are much more willing to step up?

And that's the BULLSHIP line that will come from Barchi and the BOG. That other schools get their funding extras from donations. The problem with that line is that those other programs have been getting Big Ten shares every year. Rutgers has been getting peanuts for ever and came into the Big Ten with sub standard facilities. They need to get those on part and than let the donor community.
Right now the season ticket money is not helping Athletics but going to pay down the bonds on the Stadium.

 

[raritan1]

I think the income from the the Audi Club seats are the primary source of payment of the bonds, not season tickets. Even so, it is a big number that does not go to operations. Certainly the lack of conference revenues plays a huge role in the deficit. In the end, given our limited ability to generate new revenue from existing facilities and until the Big Ten dollars kick in, the near term need is to raise funds through contributions.

 

[WhiteBus]

I think the income from the the Audi Club seats are the primary source of payment of the bonds, not season tickets. Even so, it is a big number that does not go to operations. Certainly the lack of conference revenues plays a huge role in the deficit. In the end, given our limited ability to generate new revenue from existing facilities and until the Big Ten dollars kick in, the near term need is to raise funds through contributions.

It's actually the other way around. Audi Club goes to Rutgers but you are right that it's a big nut that is paid every year. Many schools carry the debt of facilities under the general budget not against the Athletics Department

 

[RUJMM78]

Strong marketing. Detailed literature why money is being raised and where exactly it will go - why it is being raised and what the outcome will be (national prominence that all Alumni want if they admit it or not)

I'm afraid the only way donations will increase significantly is when Rutgers defeats perceived elite B1G teams on a regular basis.In order for that to happen higher level recruits must be on the Rutgers squad along with better facilities to counter the opposition.Its a tall order which might not happen until Rutgers gets full B1G funding in 2021.

 

[bac2therac]

alot of us small timers can donate sure but that's not who is going to fund upgrades and facilities...until RU finds BIG donors they are going to have trouble funding anything..thats the key in all this, not the average person, sure that helps but its all about the big boys

 

[MikeRU1766]

Strong marketing. Detailed literature why money is being raised and where exactly it will go - why it is being raised and what the outcome will be (national prominence that all Alumni want if they admit it or not)

This is KEY! People wants details of where their money will go

 

[RUBlackout]

RU should come out with a matching program. For every $1 raised the school will contribute $.50 towards facilities. Show some
Commitment from the school that they are serious about this and not JUST counting on donors to get this done. They need to have some skin in the game here but it has to be done on an incentive basis bc we cannot expect them to foot the entire outlay of money either.

We are in this together and something setup like above would get each and everyone of us out there talking to friends to donate. That is the best type of marketing in general!

 

[T2Kplus10]

Here is the link to donate on-line: http://support.rutgers.edu/bigten

Very easy.

Thanks! By the way, what is the "best" fund to donate to? Is the Big Ten Champions fund just a catch-all general fund? Something like that is probably best.

 

[ruready07]

You'd be surprised (or maybe not) how many people make a ton of money through Rutgers all over the state. Doctors, scientists, professors, entrepreneurs who use Rutgers programs and more. There have been some huge, huge companies started at RU - these are the donors that make a difference.
The people who make a killing off of RU need to be tapped into.
Guys like us are just the icing on the cake.