You can be the change

[Jimmy Lemke]

Link: Indiana fans were why Crean was fired (http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/columnists/gregg-doyel/2017/03/16/doyel-iu-fans-you-did-tom-crean/99256666/)

[Jimmy Lemke]

Don't you see? It was demanded by the fan base.

[TheDarkHawkReturns]

I am reporting this here (originally posted in the Recruiting in April 2016). It is still as valid today as it was almost a year ago, and as we all know, not one thing on this list is even being discussed. I think this is a reasonable plan, with achievable goals...of course, you need a leader more interested in growing the program than she is her own ego.

The plan for growing the program cannot be simply one of "winning games and recruiting locally". That just makes you the best in a weak conference, and you are still 1 bad game in March away from no NCAA bid.

The plan must be bigger and more far reaching that that. I would suggest the following:

Develop a plan to make continued improvements regarding conference affiliations.

Approach the MVC about moving to it, probably with Valpo. This makes the Valley a 12 team conference that now includes another major metro area (Milwaukee) and another IN program (Valpo)
Be ready to move up from the Valley if the opportunity presents itself, similar to what Butler did moving to the Big East. When an opportunity comes along, you need to be ready to take it. Such a move may no be required though, given the programs that would be in the New Valley.


Immediately add men's and women's hockey. This will quickly become a third revenue generator along with baseball, (see #3) and relieve pressure on the Basketball program to hold up the whole department financially.
Improve the profile of baseball to a level befitting the only D1 program in the state.

Aggressively partner with the Brewers up to and including using Miller Park for spring home games instead of the current month long road trip to start the season
Develop and implement the plan to have a true home field at the Rock
Improve marketing to at least the level of the Lakeshore Chinooks. It should be an embarrassment that we are out marketed by and have lesser facilities than the Chinooks.


All of this needs to be planned and discussed with donors in advance, asking for their input, advice and support long term to see this plan through to fulfillment, rather than following the current approach by the Athletic Department which seems to be "Give me your money and shut your damn mouth. I am smarter than you."

All of which means the very first step....Step Zero if you will....is to fire the complete clown of an Athletic Director we have now, along with her lackeys, and bring in someone that can direct this effort, and will commit to seeing it through in the long term. That begins to put out the Dumpster Fire on Downer (TM) and repair the relationship with the booster community.

[dylanrocks]

I love it! Do you think that Paul Plinske would ever consider coming here after being turned away twice?

This is where I begin to think that we really need a new chancellor.

[Jimmy Lemke]

I love it! Do you think that Paul Plinske would ever consider coming here after being turned away twice?

This is where I begin to think that we really need a new chancellor.

I know the feeling. I'd be willing to settle for a new AD at this point.

[dylanrocks]

Mark Mone may be quite competent in terms of advocating for a stronger partnership between the school and the community and keeping the various departments well-informed of policy, but he's failed miserably when it comes to staying in touch with our flagship athletics program, men's basketball, which must drive all else here.

[TheDarkHawkReturns]

I have all but given up the ghost on this whole mess. The Chancellor doesn't care....he strikes me as another "I hate the jocks" ivory tower type that sees athletics as dirty, filled with and followed by "the stupid people", and beneath an "institution of higher learning". I think he would be just fine with being a nerd factory with no sports at all. Furthermore, the Regents don't care, therefore the Chancellor is under no pressure to do anything, anyway. The AD is therefore a perfect spot for social engineering, and favor granting, since it isn't something Mone gives even one crap about, much less two.

Let's just face facts....we all went to a University that had it's all too brief moment in the sun under Pearl, Bud, and Nancy....and now that is over. Now we are trying to compete with Cal Tech....and Mone would probably be happier if we got our own "Big Bang Theory" style nerd show where the characters all worked at UWM...and the basketball team was about as good as Cal Tech's, too.

I will now light myself on fire.

[dylanrocks]

Wow! How do you like a post on here?!?!

[TheDarkHawkReturns]

Sadly.....the future of the Milwaukee Panthers looks more like this:

http://www.gocaltech.com/sports/mbkb/2016-17/schedule

than this:

http://butlersports.com/schedule.aspx?path=mbball&


Ladies and gentlemen, I am proud to present to you the Mone Vision for UWM Athletics, as implemented by Amanda Braun:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpHjX0OyrX0

[BBF]

In fairness, by all reports Mone stepped in to the last hiring process and drove the decision to hire Jordan. Nothing wrong with that. His failure was in letting it ever get there. His continuing failure is in letting the department be "run" by someone that the Milwaukee athletics/fan/student athlete community can never, ever trust -- for very good reason.

[dylanrocks]

Totally agree!

By the way, was the above footage shot at Engelmann Gym, our future home?

[Jimmy Lemke]

Totally agree!

By the way, was the above footage shot at Engelmann Gym, our future home?

We may wish we had Engelann in the future. It's been converted to an indoor soccer training facility, complete with FieldTurf. Try dribbling on that.

The good news is, that's a huge plus for soccer. The bad news is, the stories my boss has told about all the Bucks, Marquette, UW and MKE players spending hot summer days playing pickup in Engelmann are over. At least until we get that practice facility up.

[dylanrocks]

Serious question (and I suspect an answer for which most of us are pining to know): Will we still be Division 1 before they build a facility for us? After all, the regents have already started to circle.

[Skrapheap]

Serious question (and I suspect an answer for which most of us are pining to know): Will we still be Division 1 before they build a facility for us? After all, the regents have already started to circle.

i don't have the connections to the program or to the department that many of you have or have had.

Has anyone heard any serious proposals that UWM go back to Division II or Division III? Where can i see the comments from the UW System Regents that Dylan is alluding to?

Or is the talk of doing so a prediction of what might happen if the AD continues on her current course?

If the decision were made, does anyone think would Braun stick around?

[dylanrocks]

'Heap, the challenge to the feasibility of continued D-1 athletics at UWM amidst a deficit of $11 million came on June 10 of last year in Madison and was first issued by regent Tim Higgins.

Attendance of "1,300" for the school's flagship sport certainly won't help our case the next time the subject is raised.

[BBF]

1,300? Did someone double count a game? I have very legitimate doubt that we had a single home game all year in which the ACTUAL attendance exceeded 1,000 people -- ushers, janitors, bandsmen, cheerleaders, trainers and players included.

[Jimmy Lemke]

I dunno. In that game that ran up next to the Packers' playoff game, I counted 422 actual people in the crowd. And that was for sure the worst crowd of the year, by all accounts.

I bet there were a couple games that reached that 1,300 threshold.

It's just...it wasn't long ago when that was seen as the bottom threshold for a bad year.