I think most of that came from his stubborn support of McDermott where he basically said it was all the kids fault and Greg was not to blame for the disaster he created with our MBB team.
*** A conversation with Jamie Pollard ***
- Thread starter ChrisMWilliams
- Start date
I think most of that came from his stubborn support of McDermott where he basically said it was all the kids fault and Greg was not to blame for the disaster he created with our MBB team.
I think a lot of people thought that Pollard seemed more like a "businessman" than a "sports guy." Well, we are all seeing how much an athletic dept is run like a business and he is the CEO of the company. He might not need to know all of the ins and outs of sports, but he needs to make sure they are stable and set up for success.
When Jamie first came here, I thought ISU was a place holder for him to go back to Wisconsin, when he's ready for the big show. Well, I'm not so sure about that anymore. He seems to really enjoy it here, and it really seems like he's becoming more and more of an "Iowan and ISU guy" and not an Alvarez guy getting his feet wet and then bouncing for Wisconsin down the line. I'm sure it could happen, but it seems like the tide might be in our favor more than ever.
I love that he said that bowlsby is just awesome, makes me feel confident about the leadership in the conference. Also, I think people are already saying that college football was better with the smaller conferences back when it was the big 8. Excited for what's to come
Fascinating interview. Thanks for doing this :yes:
I don't see how anybody can argue that he's been better for the program. A LOT better :smile:
I don't see how anybody can argue that he's been better for the program. A LOT better :smile:
McDermott, Chizik, forcing out Douglas for Sanderson and then not doing anything to stop Sanderson from leaving. Pollard is a great AD, but he made a few mistakes early on.
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I'm not sure i'd call them mistakes though. He played the best hand he could with the GMac\Chizik moves, its just that the right move doesnt always pan out. Though i would say the contract given to GMac that gave ridiculous auto-extensions (that made it extremely expensive to fire him at the time he left) was a mistake.
I agree. As fans we are all emotionally attached to ISU and to the success or failure of the sports that we care about most.
As a fan it was hard to watch MBB, really hard. Not only were we not winning but the kids were leaving at an alarming rate. I think it was clear to everyone (including JP IMO) that GMac was part (if not all) of the problem. The situation that JP was in though was that there is no way that ISU could financially afford to fire GMac, I dont remember the details of his contract at the time but I remember thinking that we were stuck. The result was that to the public JP had to back his coach 100%, he had no choice. I think the casual or even more than casual fan saw JP backing GMac and that support created feelings of animosity.
I have personally come to realize that as a fan I want the best for the school "emotionally" and that emotion that I want is winning. Well that might mean that I "think" that this or that should happen (fire or hire this person or spend the $$ to build or upgrade that etc) when as an AD you have to be emotionally attatched to your school and at the same time be emotionally detached enough to know that it is very important that when your heart is telling you to make a move you need to listen to what your mind says is the best for the department as a whole both near term and long term.
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You mean like JP? It was his concept.
idk if he has changed his mind, or is just facing reality that the cost is prohibitive. But I am pretty sure if we had a lead donor step up with $25 million+, the SEZ would be back on the radar. And wanting to eventually see it done is not idiotic at all.
Wow great interview. Everytime Pollard speaks i come away impressed. He also does a great job of answering the questions that were asked. Gives straight forward inside info.
its easy to call McDermott and Chizik mistakes now. But they were good hires at the time. Chizzle was the assistant of the year. Coordinated some great defenses in B12 and SEC. McDermott had a solid track record at UNI. He made them into the program they are. Both were bad fits but you only know that after the fact.
He had to make a run for Cael. Cael was getting serious interviews and it could have been another Gable situation. Historic wrestler becomes historic coach for another program.
To your last point, he tried to keep Cael. Cael was already one of the highest paid wrestling coaches in NCAA. Cael left for even more money at PSU and more fertile recruiting grounds.
So I don't think Pollard was wrong on any of the above.
Total seat capacity increase is of minimal importance for the SEZ, as Clemson's WEZ clearly demonstrates. The bowl is for asthetics, club seats/restaurant, recruitment/alum welcoming.
The capacity for Clemson Memorial Stadium in 2005 was listed as 77,381 during construction of the WestZone area. The new capacity with the completion of the WestZone in 2006 is 80,301.
I disagree. By that logic Hoiberg was a bad hire because he had no experience, and nobody would say today that Hoiberg wasn't a slam dunk hire. Whether or not a hire was a mistake shouldn't be viewed as whether it seemed like a good idea at the time. It is whether it turned out to be a good hire in the long run. Neither of those guys were capable of being successful at Iowa State. They were unquestionably bad hires at the time, we just didn't know it right away. Not making a mistake would have been hiring somebody else instead.
I'm guessing a chapter title of that book could be "Tom Osborne-*******"
Total seat capacity increase is of minimal importance for the SEZ, as Clemson's WEZ clearly demonstrates. The bowl is for asthetics, club seats/restaurant, recruitment/alum welcoming.The capacity for Clemson Memorial Stadium in 2005 was listed as 77,381 during construction of the WestZone area. The new capacity with the completion of the WestZone in 2006 is 80,301.
So they gained a little under 3,000 seats doing this? Right now we can go up 56,800. Would love to see us do pretty much the same but just a little more and have a capacity of a round 60,000 at JTS.
I totally disagree with your logic, to each their own.
I think they were both "Good" hires at the time. No one can predict the future.
A person who I think would make for an interesting a****iography would be former Big XII commissioner Dan Beebe. Not only has he been through the wringer of conference expansion, but he was also the director of enforcement of the NCAA when SMU received their "Death Penalty." I think that guy has some interesting stories to tell.
