Manchurian candidate of UL athletics

[CockyCajun]

Who is the Manchurian candidate for UL athletics? Someone pulling the strings does not want the fanbase to grow.

[cajun_lannister]

Who is the Manchurian candidate for UL athletics? Someone pulling the strings does not want the fanbase to grow.

Whoever decided to buy a giant R1 banner instead of SBC football championship one.

[Million$Mullet]

Who is the Manchurian candidate for UL athletics? Someone pulling the strings does not want the fanbase to grow.

Fott Scarmer

[Swamp]

Whoever decided to buy a giant R1 banner instead of SBC football championship one.

Maybe the '20 and '21 FTBL Championship banners are hanging in MH

[RaginScotsman]

Whoever decided to buy a giant R1 banner instead of SBC football championship one.

Haha.

[RaginScotsman]

Maybe the '20 and '21 FTBL Championship banners are hanging in MH

I love the banner banter. The lack of answers on the football banner and the lack of a mascot are just such bad optics. This is the low hanging fruit that it would be so easy to come out and at least address. Nope. Can’t freaking do it.

I’m not a letter writer, but I would also like to know who these people are. I know the Greek oppressor in Heidi. Not sure who else.

[Ragin9221]

Who is the Manchurian candidate for UL athletics? Someone pulling the strings does not want the fanbase to grow.

I hate to demonize someone or something, but i will have to say this. I dont think they are trying to ruin athletics.

I will say this though i think part of the problem is T-Joe main focus is academics and managing the school as it should be, so first he has mis-manage athletics by making sure he doesnt go over budget.

The rest come from big time Universities with a big time mentality. Where fan support is not a problem where things are done differently.

Maggard for example came from Missouri where at Missouri they focus on the big money and never had to worry about the little guy, and probably everyone around him has the same mindset.

Well that can only take you so far.

He needs to learn that South Louisiana is different then Missouri.

Plus he has a certain way of doing things and knows what works, but he is facing a different challenge here because those tactics may work at Missouri but not here.

He has to realize that mentality here creates apathy, also average fan feels like they do not matter which in turn is leading down a road where attendance and average donations has dwindled and in turn is running into the ground.

Here in South Louisiana once you lose those fans it is hard to get them back. Like really hard.

Once they lost faith and feel like they dont matter they are not showing back up without some major changes.

I believe he is hitting that wall because he has been here 6 yrs or however long he has been here, and those changes have been made, and now with those changes came dwindling fan support.

Now it has become a crisis.

[Clutch0364]

They are either trying to destroy the fan base or they are completely incompetent.

BUT it’s just the fans fault. We don’t understand how good we have it.

[CajunNation]

One thing people need to realize is that when we talk about "Martin Hall", we aren't necessarily talking about the president. We could be, but there are more than a few people over there that are disconnected from the fan base and the parents of Acadiana.

It's cultural, and it's ideological.

[Swamp]

The banners and Hells Bell in the SEZ simply don’t make since.

[Duckster]

Its bizarre at least a temporary SBC football championship banner wasn't displayed by the time the 2022 Homecoming game occurred. Maybe something is planned for new stadium to highlight the 2021 championship but another missed opportunity to celebrate.

As for fundraising, the athletic department/RCAF is missing the boat by not targeting small donors. The ground game in political fundraising today is cultivating thousands of small dollar donors which adds up to millions of dollars. No need to reinvent the wheel. Apply a model that's working.

[Esqueleto]

The ground game in political fundraising today is cultivating thousands of small dollar donors which adds up to millions of dollars. No need to reinvent the wheel. Apply a model that's working.

IDK, that seems like a lot of work.

[ZoomZoom]

Rant time…pull your toes in.

Other than FB, BB, MBB and SBL, what’s the fan base approach here with other sports? It’s absolutely a mindset of meh, don’t care. It’s a freaking cancer is what it is.

Look at other programs. Look at LSU. Look even at McLeast. Fans might not even attend those sports, but you know what? Their people care if they look bad. Here, we break off into little cliques. “Well, at least my sport is ok”. It’s not.

The hot topic first…the #1 “not my sport”.

We have “outrage” when MBB been actually dying on the vine for decades.
RR has been promoting doing something. But a legacy as a solution isn’t change; it’s going back to USLing. Change IS needed simply because it’s been sliding for years. MH tried hiring GC, ended up with last minute Lee was as a life ring and hired local support. And what happened, significant decline in attendance and performance. I expect “oh there were penalties” mantra, but then USL bounced back quickly after having NO team. Why give a pass here? CBM happens to be coach when it finally reached critical mass. MH is backed in a corner financially, so no fix is coming for a few years unless he retires. But the writing is on the wall, more is coming.

FB is in deep trouble. All money will flow here. The same infectious behaviors. And what’s happening? Nothing, until the stadium is done. But with the reseating plan coming out, many will take the “I’m not frying like an egg” approach and maybe come back in 3 years. You want a reason for a FOIA request? How many actual RCAF members are there? Access to that number went away. But alas, the university kept RCAF from being autonomous, they know. I promise many of you will want to know that number months before you’re assigned your RCAF reseating number. And the number after the reshuffle.

Baseball was getting meh in Robe’s last few years but it got turned around. Few whispered it or casually posted it here, but it was real. Deggs is Maggard’s second best hire after Napier. Keeps it afloat for now.

Softball, it’s coming. Softball is MH’s favorite sport, loved the little girls playing and Mr. Lamson covered the bills. Those days are slowly ending, the core fan base is aging out. The tail is starting to wag the dog. CGG was a great hire. But times are changing and the hires are becoming USL hires and not the best hires. Like Des, what program would have hired JR, especially a perennially ranked program? Think about it, CGG, with all his connections, hires a coach with zero paid NCAA softball coaching history?

T&F, gosh, once a great program. Today, a great athlete passes thru every few years.

WSOC, WBB, MTEN, WTEN and golf exist just for numbers. First, last, nobody cares.

The administration always been gun shy with success since MBB got busted. The cancer is flat out fan apathy.

And that allows MH to lord over athletics like a nun with a ruler. You “older” fans know exactly what that means.

They f’ed over the Greek system, athletics is next. Working on private money research, going to surpass LSU. Nice, but that same model can’t apply to athletics they will sadly learn.

Hell, nobody connected the dots for the east side of CF other than “state money”. LSU needed 100 mil for the PMAC. UL got their money, ULM getting their arena fixed, McNeese tons of hurricane related money and it goes on. Follow the money when it comes to getting votes. Nice move, not fan driven. And note, same period the lack of the use of “Louisiana” was a topic. We fought for Louisiana now jam it every freaking time down their throats. Get on the same page starting with freshmen orientation.

In the end, who is the Manchurian candidate of UL athletics?

It’s not a single person, it is the system we’ve allowed to permeate UL. RCAF isn’t large enough to break away, and history says, with MH, “that’s ok”. And for a long time, the fans said “that’s ok” too.

MH will have a very hard decision coming up. Either get creative fundraising, go max in state funding or chunk it in. I’d recommend option 1. The day is quickly approaching where that 3% will get cut. The state is broke, won’t go any further with that. But a day of reckoning is coming. Option 3 will result in more “outrage” but no results.

To paraphrase some phantom person on Twitter a few years back, a lazy one block search for money isn’t going to cut it.

I’ve attended UL sporting events for most of the last half century. I’m tired, and ready not to GAF.

But it’s bigger than a person, and designed and working as Huey wanted it.

[RaginScotsman]

Softball, it’s coming. Softball is MH’s favorite sport, loved the little girls playing and Mr. Lamson covered the bills. Those days are slowly ending, the core fan base is aging out. The tail is starting to wag the dog. CGG was a great hire. But times are changing and the hires are becoming USL hires and not the best hires. Like Des, what program would have hired JR, especially a perennially ranked program? Think about it, CGG, with all his connections, hires a coach with zero paid NCAA softball coaching history?

Lots of good points, but I will correct you on the JR comment. On the surface, it may seem like a similar hire to Des. We respect and root of both guys, of course. JR has done well in a short period of time. Not sure if it's been talked about and I won't go into too much detail because it's secondhand info, but we nearly lost him to one of the "big boys" or girls in the offseason. Got a promotion out of it and I think it was a good thing.

They just need to figure out their chemistry. Softball is still recruiting at a top level. They will as long as Glasco is there and we stay relevant. Even with one down season, history says you won't keep them down for long.

[HelmutVII]

Rant time…pull your toes in.

Other than FB, BB, MBB and SBL, what’s the fan base approach here with other sports? It’s absolutely a mindset of meh, don’t care. It’s a freaking cancer is what it is.

Look at other programs. Look at LSU. Look even at McLeast. Fans might not even attend those sports, but you know what? Their people care if they look bad. Here, we break off into little cliques. “Well, at least my sport is ok”. It’s not.

The hot topic first…the #1 “not my sport”.

We have “outrage” when MBB been actually dying on the vine for decades.
RR has been promoting doing something. But a legacy as a solution isn’t change; it’s going back to USLing. Change IS needed simply because it’s been sliding for years. MH tried hiring GC, ended up with last minute Lee was as a life ring and hired local support. And what happened, significant decline in attendance and performance. I expect “oh there were penalties” mantra, but then USL bounced back quickly after having NO team. Why give a pass here? CBM happens to be coach when it finally reached critical mass. MH is backed in a corner financially, so no fix is coming for a few years unless he retires. But the writing is on the wall, more is coming.

FB is in deep trouble. All money will flow here. The same infectious behaviors. And what’s happening? Nothing, until the stadium is done. But with the reseating plan coming out, many will take the “I’m not frying like an egg” approach and maybe come back in 3 years. You want a reason for a FOIA request? How many actual RCAF members are there? Access to that number went away. But alas, the university kept RCAF from being autonomous, they know. I promise many of you will want to know that number months before you’re assigned your RCAF reseating number. And the number after the reshuffle.

Baseball was getting meh in Robe’s last few years but it got turned around. Few whispered it or casually posted it here, but it was real. Deggs is Maggard’s second best hire after Napier. Keeps it afloat for now.

Softball, it’s coming. Softball is MH’s favorite sport, loved the little girls playing and Mr. Lamson covered the bills. Those days are slowly ending, the core fan base is aging out. The tail is starting to wag the dog. CGG was a great hire. But times are changing and the hires are becoming USL hires and not the best hires. Like Des, what program would have hired JR, especially a perennially ranked program? Think about it, CGG, with all his connections, hires a coach with zero paid NCAA softball coaching history?

T&F, gosh, once a great program. Today, a great athlete passes thru every few years.

WSOC, WBB, MTEN, WTEN and golf exist just for numbers. First, last, nobody cares.

The administration always been gun shy with success since MBB got busted. The cancer is flat out fan apathy.

And that allows MH to lord over athletics like a nun with a ruler. You “older” fans know exactly what that means.

They f’ed over the Greek system, athletics is next. Working on private money research, going to surpass LSU. Nice, but that same model can’t apply to athletics they will sadly learn.

Hell, nobody connected the dots for the east side of CF other than “state money”. LSU needed 100 mil for the PMAC. UL got their money, ULM getting their arena fixed, McNeese tons of hurricane related money and it goes on. Follow the money when it comes to getting votes. Nice move, not fan driven. And note, same period the lack of the use of “Louisiana” was a topic. We fought for Louisiana now jam it every freaking time down their throats. Get on the same page starting with freshmen orientation.

In the end, who is the Manchurian candidate of UL athletics?

It’s not a single person, it is the system we’ve allowed to permeate UL. RCAF isn’t large enough to break away, and history says, with MH, “that’s ok”. And for a long time, the fans said “that’s ok” too.

MH will have a very hard decision coming up. Either get creative fundraising, go max in state funding or chunk it in. I’d recommend option 1. The day is quickly approaching where that 3% will get cut. The state is broke, won’t go any further with that. But a day of reckoning is coming. Option 3 will result in more “outrage” but no results.

To paraphrase some phantom person on Twitter a few years back, a lazy one block search for money isn’t going to cut it.

I’ve attended UL sporting events for most of the last half century. I’m tired, and ready not to GAF.

But it’s bigger than a person, and designed and working as Huey wanted it.

What he said. I'm done.