Wanted to comment a little on this post. Forewarning, I had my wisdom teeth out today, so preapologies if this isn't the most coherent thing I've ever posted.
I'm not a huge fan of the "would you rather the old guy?" mindset when examining the success of a current leader. There's a reason the previous guy isn't here anymore, and that shouldn't be the benchmark for measuring Maggard's success. Similar to the way saying, "would you rather Robert Lee or Jerry Baldwin?" wouldn't be a solid defense of our basketball and football programs. I have been unimpressed with how we've handled the new era of college athletics. Started it off with the hire of Des (no national coaching search), and we're woefully behind in the NIL game. I understand not competing with the upper echelon of the P5. Getting blown out of the water by programs like McNeese is concerning. Maybe we are on the verge of turning the corner in that regard. I haven't seen anything to make me truly believe that's the case.
Your list of pros and cons seems to be a little reductive of the cons and generous to the pros. For example, I've heard countless times over the past few months about how we are finally fully staffed in sales and RCAF. I'm not seeing anything tangible coming out of that yet. Some of our fans, myself included, are still hearing more from a program like Rice where we attended one event than our hometown team that we support year round, year in and year out. To me at least, the chasm is not just between fan podcasts and the administration. It's between them and our fanbase at large, and the podcasts are just one of the primary venues the admin could use to bridge that gap. You've got folks like me who are are distruPleasel of our admin at this point. A large part of that comes from how closely we seem to be guarding our messaging. The only transparency we offer is in the most controlled of controlled environments (the pod you mentioned for example). We seem more concerned with how we distribute our narrative than the actual content of the message or if it will ring true to the people we are telling it to.
I joked about it earlier, but our vocal fanbase members are not a group of vindictive, saboteurs hellbent on ruining this program. We are working class people giving our honest reactions to the things we see and experience. To see an admin unwilling to meet us in the spaces we visit and to have our voices written off as destructive and "too negative" and being told, "why do you all need to know so much," is unbelievably discouraging. Especially considering we are consistently referred to as the investors of the program.
I think you make some valid points. I hope my post comes off as intended, a case for the things I disagree with, not a dismissal of your viewpoint. I am aware that I am sour grapes at this point, and I am laying a lot at the feet of Bryan Maggard who is not necessarily responsible for every area we are coming up short currently. I expect to see a guy in his position controlling what he can and being as big of an advocate as possible for his "investors" in areas where his control is not direct. I haven't seen that from him in some time and want to see a resurgence of that dimension in his leadership.
Re: Basketball transfer portal
Originally Posted by GMG
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