Another 1.5 million donated

[SgtHulka]

Redbird Athletics Receives $1.5 Million In Commitments To Honor Aaron Leetch - Illinois State University Athletics

Illinois State University has received $1.5 million in combined gift commitments for the Indoor Practice Facility from an anonymous pair of donors, with the intent

goredbirds.com

 

[Birdland]

This is great news! Aaron was an exceptional leader. I will never forget his impact.

 

[jamminjamarsmiley]

Kyle is getting the job done. Kudos to Brennan. Too bad we didn’t bring him in several years sooner!

 

[Reggie1857]

Kyle is getting the job done. Kudos to Brennan. Too bad we didn’t bring him in several years sooner!

It's amazing the difference a competent fundraiser can make. Illinois State has never had one in the athletic dept before.

 

[Total Red]

It's amazing the difference a competent fundraiser can make. Illinois State has never had one in the athletic dept before.

Sheahon Zenger worked hard at fundraising and he went about it the right way.

Three separate major gifts have been announced for the IPF. That's amazing. Was there a 4th major gift? Did Kyle get one to buy out Dan's contract? We may never know.

And I hate to be one to piss in the punchbowl, but I'm probably not the only one thinking this so might as well say it. How long will Kyle be here? He's quickly making a name for himself and a P5 job could easily triple his salary.

 

[jamminjamarsmiley]

Sheahon Zenger worked hard at fundraising and he went about it the right way.

Three separate major gifts have been announced for the IPF. That's amazing. Was there a 4th major gift? Did Kyle get one to buy out Dan's contract? We may never know.

And I hate to be one to piss in the punchbowl, but I'm probably not the only one thinking this so might as well say it. How long will Kyle be here? He's quickly making a name for himself and a P5 job could easily triple his salary.

I also wonder about the muller buyout. I would think a donor provided a gift to cover much of that, but like you said, we may never know.

I expect Kyle is very much working towards bigger and better things. Yes, he could be gone in a year 2 or 3. But, at ISU, I think we should be okay with that. We had Lyons who was an ISU lifer and he showed little motivation to really move the athletic department forward. I am of the beleif it’s a good thing to have young aggressive hard working ADs and coaches here with a desire to move on. It may mean a lot of churn, but could really boost ISU athletics.

 

[Reggie1857]

Sheahon Zenger worked hard at fundraising and he went about it the right way.

Working hard and achieving results are too different things

And I hate to be one to piss in the punchbowl, but I'm probably not the only one thinking this so might as well say it. How long will Kyle be here? He's quickly making a name for himself and a P5 job could easily triple his salary.

I wouldn't term it "pissing in the punchbowl", it's just simply the reality of the situation. A guy that has gotten done what Kyle has, especially at a place with a history of incompetence in the athletic department, is going to make a very attractive candidate for a P5 school. The key is that when that day comes, you hire another Kyle Brennan and not another Rick Greenspan, Sheahon Zenger or Perk Weisenburger. The reason a P5 school can pay triple what ISU can, is because ISU has not built it's brand/revenues to anywhere close to its potential, because they've been hiring the likes of Rick Greenspan, Sheahon Zenger and Perk Weisenburger.

 

[fourthandshort]

 

[fourthandshort]

Sheahon Zenger worked hard at fundraising and he went about it the right way.

Three separate major gifts have been announced for the IPF. That's amazing. Was there a 4th major gift? Did Kyle get one to buy out Dan's contract? We may never know.

And I hate to be one to piss in the punchbowl, but I'm a d-ck for even thinking this ... so I'm not gonna even say it.

FIFY

 

[Total Red]

Working hard and achieving results are too different things

I wouldn't term it "pissing in the punchbowl", it's just simply the reality of the situation. A guy that has gotten done what Kyle has, especially at a place with a history of incompetence in the athletic department, is going to make a very attractive candidate for a P5 school. The key is that when that day comes, you hire another Kyle Brennan and not another Rick Greenspan, Sheahon Zenger or Perk Weisenburger. The reason a P5 school can pay triple what ISU can, is because ISU has not built it's brand/revenues to anywhere close to its potential, because they've been hiring the likes of Rick Greenspan, Sheahon Zenger and Perk Weisenburger.

You're making some strong statements. I'll respond to them later but I'm curious if you really have a basic understanding of Illinois State University Athletics/Football. If you do then you should be able to answer a simple question.

What is the name of the NCAA Division in which Illinois State University football currently competes?

 

[fourthandshort]

Sheahon Zenger worked hard at fundraising and he went about it the right way.

Three separate major gifts have been announced for the IPF. That's amazing. Was there a 4th major gift? Did Kyle get one to buy out Dan's contract? We may never know.

And I hate to be one to piss in the punchbowl, but I'm probably not the only one thinking this so might as well say it. How long will Kyle be here? He's quickly making a name for himself and a P5 job could easily triple his salary.

How about we get Doug Collins to help buy out Mullers contract ... its his basketball school that's been ruined.

 

[cubird]

Know many were glad to see Lyons go, but some gifts may have been in the pipeline when Kyle arrived and he sealed the deal. Also,. COVID probably slowed the timing of announcing some commitments. Hopefully, his next two hires will be successful in VB and BB. Turning around the BB program will definitely be what defines his success at ISU.

 

[Birdswin]

Know many were glad to see Lyons go, but some gifts may have been in the pipeline when Kyle arrived and he sealed the deal. Also,. COVID probably slowed the timing of announcing some commitments. Hopefully, his next two hires will be successful in VB and BB. Turning around the BB program will definitely be what defines his success at ISU.

Wishful thinking - there were no significant donations in the pipeline and COVID did not stop anything from a Donations standpoint.

 

[FriscoBird90]

If memory serves, the ISU AD position used to be thought of as an attractive stepping stone to up and coming AD talent, and our athletic department was well regarded for a so-called "mid major" and for punching above its weight in some regards. IMHO, that reputation seems to have been tarnished a bit in recent years, but I would be fine with Brennan eventually moving on to something "bigger and better" if it meant he had polished up the department's reputation in the process and were to leave it in better standing than how he found it. His fundraising abilities are certainly looking good; now we shall see how good he is at evaluating and attracting coaching talent.

 

[Total Red]

Wishful thinking - there were no significant donations in the pipeline and COVID did not stop anything from a Donations standpoint.

Keep in mind that the entire Athletic Dept. did not turn over when Lyons retired. Athletic Dept. personnel could have initiated efforts under one AD and then completed them under another. That was dramatically true for the Hancock renovation. The ball got rolling behind the efforts of President Bowman and AD Zenger but President Flanagan and AD Friedman were there for the unveiling.

 

[cubird]

That what I tried to say

---

 

[SgtHulka]

Keep in mind that the entire Athletic Dept. did not turn over when Lyons retired. Athletic Dept. personnel could have initiated efforts under one AD and then completed them under another. That was dramatically true for the Hancock renovation. The ball got rolling behind the efforts of President Bowman and AD Zenger but President Flanagan and AD Friedman were there for the unveiling.

I'm still waiting patiently for the renaming of the turf as Flanagan Field. I understand there's an issue with the landscaping crew slowing things down.
.

 

[fourthandshort]

Know many were glad to see Lyons go, but some gifts may have been in the pipeline when Kyle arrived and he sealed the deal. Also,. COVID probably slowed the timing of announcing some commitments. Hopefully, his next two hires will be successful in VB and BB. Turning around the BB program will definitely be what defines his success at ISU.

Sounds like what my wife says every time she hands me some jar open, and i open it immediately ... thanks honey, glad i could loosen it for you.

 

[BirdGrad2011]

Half the problem was getting Matt Lyons to move on. He pissed off more people than anything. Larry was never supposed to be AD as long as he wound up.

 

[Total Red]

Working hard and achieving results are too different things
The reason a P5 school can pay triple what ISU can, is because ISU has not built it's brand/revenues to anywhere close to its potential, because they've been hiring the likes of Rick Greenspan, Sheahon Zenger and Perk Weisenburger.

You're making some strong statements. I'll respond to them later but I'm curious if you really have a basic understanding of Illinois State University Athletics/Football. If you do then you should be able to answer a simple question.

What is the name of the NCAA Division in which Illinois State University football currently competes?

I had a hunch that you wouldn’t respond and I was right. You won’t dare answer because it would force you to face up to reality after you’ve been in denial for last 16 years. Stay up a tree, that’s fine. When you write your posts bashing Illinois State administrations you’ll have to work around it. It’s interesting to watch.