"Indoor Facility ... #1 priority" ... AD Larry Lyons

[GhostofMBA]

@Bender :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
We already have academic fraud, (Players from Florida State cannot read past the third grade level) this will only make it worse. And then what happens if the money is tied to graduating and the player does not?

@Fourthandshort :lol: , think about what your wrote: "So 99% of all college athletes are getting a pretty good deal already at 25-40k per year tax free .... and a degree to help them get a real job .. if they bothered to focus on academics while in college."

Hence why I am in favor of doing away with sports associated with tax payer funded institutions at all levels. College athletics has lost its way and we have people who either do not really want to go to a college or are not built for college attending colleges for reasons other than the focus on academics.

I agree with Calibird, pay 'em all and let it burn.

StarTrucking is just waiting to get back into the saddle of paying BU players for their NILs :lol: (Didn't StarTrucking go out of business? - been too long, don't care)

 

[fourthandshort]

@Bender :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
We already have academic fraud, (Players from Florida State cannot read past the third grade level) this will only make it worse. And then what happens if the money is tied to graduating and the player does not?

@Fourthandshort :lol: , think about what your wrote: "So 99% of all college athletes are getting a pretty good deal already at 25-40k per year tax free .... and a degree to help them get a real job .. if they bothered to focus on academics while in college."

Hence why I am in favor of doing away with sports associated with tax payer funded institutions at all levels. College athletics has lost its way and we have people who either do not really want to go to a college or are not built for college attending colleges for reasons other than the focus on academics.

I agree with Calibird, pay 'em all and let it burn.

StarTrucking is just waiting to get back into the saddle of paying BU players for their NILs :lol: (Didn't StarTrucking go out of business? - been too long, don't care)

it was meant more as a backhanded reference to an aspect of college sports that would deteriorate if more money were involved. So i didnt word it right for the point I was trying to make. It was more to say ... imagine how much more distracted student athletes would be by their sport if they were more worried about how their game performance and playing time would impact their next marketing deal. I mean seriously think about that .. what wouldn't they do to make more money, as opposed to studying harder for their next exam .. doing just enough to stay eligible would be the main goal academically.

 

[isuquinndog]

Remember, it's not the schools paying this money so much as the companies using the likeness of the player. Jersey sales, for instance. Whatever company wants to make a Brady Davis jersey would have to pay him for that. Or if they ever created a college football video game again, Sony or whoever would have to pay them.

I'm not really for it, but the schools aren't going to be doling out huge pay checks. The companies that make the products will.

 

[Virginia Redbird]

Remember, it's not the schools paying this money so much as the companies using the likeness of the player. Jersey sales, for instance. Whatever company wants to make a Brady Davis jersey would have to pay him for that. Or if they ever created a college football video game again, Sony or whoever would have to pay them.

I'm not really for it, but the schools aren't going to be doling out huge pay checks. The companies that make the products will.

I really don't know that much about all this but I would think this will impact the big boys more than the Group of 5, FCS or Div II and III. The real money is in the Power 5. The real stars are in the Power 5. The Redbird Official Store does not even offer a football jersey at this current time. I don't see any company running out to issue a Brady Davis jersey and that is not a comment on his playing ability. How many Brady Davis jerseys are you really going to sell? If you want to sell a Tua jersey...yeah, big money. I don't like players sitting out bowl games or the season because they may get injured and miss out on big NFL money but I don't blame them a bit. Is a company going to make a video game of Division III schools? I don't think so. I don't like what huge money has done to sports in general but it is where it is. It is not going to change. Currently, the big schools are pocketing millions if not billions on young people playing sports. Yes, they build the stadiums and have built the traditions and programs but I also think it is wrong when the football coach is the highest-paid state employee. I don't like it but it is not changing and it will just get worse. The California law will cause some serious damage overall and some individual players will make some money.
I will disagree with some talking about minor league football drawing interest. How many failed leagues have we seen just in recent years or last year? Another XFL starting in 2020 and almost certainly will fail as well They had a minor pro league with a team in Norfolk a couple of years ago coached by Marty Schottenheimer. It won the championship. Few people showed up and the league folded in one year. Why do people keep dumping money into these leagues?

 

[fourthandshort]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

 

[MadBird]

Not to wind this topic up again, but saw this interesting article on Twin Cities Minneapolis Star Tribune, about having TOO MANY DOMES around the Twin Cities, many of them at HIGH SCHOOLS!!! This article may be behind a pay wall, I used "private viewing" to see it. I'll paste in some excerpts.

http://www.startribune.com/despite-...unities-keep-building-sports-domes/566407672/

The Twin Cities is in the midst of a sports dome building boom, with more than a dozen of the structures — largely publicly funded — sprinkled across the metro area, and four new ones in the works for 2020.

In a northern climate, domes are “almost a price of admission for relevancy in the sports world these days,” said Todd Johnson, executive director of the National Sports Center in Blaine. Many sports groups and city officials say they’re a valuable amenity, providing space for local athletes and drawing new families to a community.

The National Sports Center is one of three places in the metro area that will see a new dome in the coming year. The others are Brooklyn Park and Lakeville, where turf fields will be constructed at both high schools by fall and the domes will likely come later.

Most domes are financed with taxpayer dollars through cities, school districts or some combination. That’s the case in Brooklyn Park, where the city and the Osseo Area Schools are sharing the costs of building a $5.5 million dome. It will be primarily used for school athletics and gym classes, but the city will rent out space on evenings and weekends.

The double dose of domes in fast-growing Lakeville is being funded through a partnership, with $6 million from a recently approved school district levy going toward turf fields and a private group paying $4.5 million for the actual dome structures.

The athletic center for the Eastern Carver County Schools opened in Chaska in 2017 to hold middle-school gym classes. School sports teams have priority, followed by community teams. The dome features batting cages, a full-size track and three fields.

Domes for middle school and HS teams. Geez.

 

[redbirdfan04]

Renting your facilities is not always so great. Many issues happen with rentals. A school district up here in the northwest suburbs of Chicago built a field house through a referendum. They sold the community saying they would be able to use it and it would also be rented out. Yeah, neither happened. I am shocked atc the prices to build them. I was under the impression they are closer to $20 million

 

[TIMMY]

Cost depends on the infrastructure you are building it on. For example would be cheaper to put it up seasonally on the Hancock field than it would to put one up from scratch somewhere.

 

[ISUBU]

Renting your facilities is not always so great. Many issues happen with rentals. A school district up here in the northwest suburbs of Chicago built a field house through a referendum. They sold the community saying they would be able to use it and it would also be rented out. Yeah, neither happened. I am shocked atc the prices to build them. I was under the impression they are closer to $20 million

In my experience this all depends upon the community. In the community where I live, there is excellent cooperation between the schools and other groups including the community based parks and recreation programs. Community programs happen in the schools throughout the year, and at least one school team's official field is not owned by the school. Residents benefit from available resources that are shared to get greater use - that's good stewardship of community tax dollars. I think this is the ideal, but it requires the different entities to trust each other and to follow through on their commitments, and leadership through creative collaboration rather than control. It's too bad that the school you referenced hasn't followed through.

This isn't unique to my community. It was a very similar situation in another community where I lived more than a decade. If you keep your eyes open you'll see many churches using school facilities on Sundays. Sharing IS going on.

When YSU built their indoor facility, they opened it at limited times to the public. Nearly ten years later it continues to be open to high schools and community members for walking and running during the winter. I recognize YSU's strong community of fans that didn't attend the school. That both helps this to happen and reinforces it when it does.

I don't have personal experience with either senior government officials in B-N or senior leadership at ISU. But I have seen things over decades that have harmed trust locally. Everything from Bloomington's reneging on an economic development partnership with Normal to ISU's need for apartment construction followed by announcements of new residence halls. It takes time to build trust, and it can be torn apart easily by a short sighted administrator or board.

 

[Birdland]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

 

[fourthandshort]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

The point would be .. what if he reneges on his commitment again ?

 

[ricohill]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

Thanks, Larry

 

[ricohill]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

The point would be .. what if he reneges on his commitment again ?

Would you mind sharing the e-mail? I didn't get anything so not sure what was even sent out.

 

[fourthandshort]

here is the body of the email from Chris Highland:

Mr. & Mrs Fourthandshort = )

THANK YOU for your support of the Illinois State football program and all you do to allow us to continue to provide resources necessary to compete in the MVFC and nationally.

As we get ready to face off against the Bison of North Dakota State, our mission as a department becomes even more clear. An indoor practice facility is the top priority for our fundraising efforts and building this facility will be monumental for every ISU team. This facility will enhance our recruiting efforts while allowing our student-athletes to train at the highest level year-round. As we look at the landscape of our competitors, getting this project complete elevates Illinois State to another echelon of athletics.

For more information on the impact of this project CLICK HERE: https://giving.illinoisstate.edu/fund/indoor-practice-facility-fund/

NOW is the time to make a gift and help this project become a reality. As we near the end of 2019, your December gift to the IPF will be 100% tax-deductible. You can make a one-time gift or set up a gift over numerous years. Your gift can be cash or appreciated securities and we can customize payment any way to make this possible. If you are interested in learning more about the project or how you can help this become a reality at Illinois State University, please contact Sean Johnson at 438-1506 or Chris Highland at 438-7429.

 

[ricohill]

here is the body of the email from Chris Highland:

Mr. & Mrs Fourthandshort = )

THANK YOU for your support of the Illinois State football program and all you do to allow us to continue to provide resources necessary to compete in the MVFC and nationally.

As we get ready to face off against the Bison of North Dakota State, our mission as a department becomes even more clear. An indoor practice facility is the top priority for our fundraising efforts and building this facility will be monumental for every ISU team. This facility will enhance our recruiting efforts while allowing our student-athletes to train at the highest level year-round. As we look at the landscape of our competitors, getting this project complete elevates Illinois State to another echelon of athletics.

For more information on the impact of this project CLICK HERE: https://giving.illinoisstate.edu/fund/indoor-practice-facility-fund/

NOW is the time to make a gift and help this project become a reality. As we near the end of 2019, your December gift to the IPF will be 100% tax-deductible. You can make a one-time gift or set up a gift over numerous years. Your gift can be cash or appreciated securities and we can customize payment any way to make this possible. If you are interested in learning more about the project or how you can help this become a reality at Illinois State University, please contact Sean Johnson at 438-1506 or Chris Highland at 438-7429.

Thank you for sharing!

Good email and I like them actually doing something.

I think it will be hard to get many donations without a plan laid out. I don’t know if the money I donate will actually go to it or what type of facility will it be? If I donate now, 5 years go by, and there isn’t a indoor facility what happens to the money (that’s what has happened to a lot of us so far)?

 

[Virginia Redbird]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

The point would be .. what if he reneges on his commitment again ?

I contributed to Redbird Rising...I will not spend one penny now. It is apparent that Larry Lyons blatantly lied to all of Redbird Nation. He has zero integrity in my opinion and not a single penny will be donated based on anything he says. He can not be trusted. He is a proven liar. Not a good thing in an AD. Just my opinion but if you are asking for money and people donate, then you need to spend it on what you said you would spend it on. He did not. Simple as that. Not a single penny.

 

[ricohill]

Give what you can. If it’s so important to you, then give.

The point would be .. what if he reneges on his commitment again ?

I contributed to Redbird Rising...I will not spend one penny now. It is apparent that Larry Lyons blatantly lied to all of Redbird Nation. He has zero integrity in my opinion and not a single penny will be donated based on anything he says. He can not be trusted. He is a proven liar. Not a good thing in an AD. Just my opinion but if you are asking for money and people donate, then you need to spend it on what you said you would spend it on. He did not. Simple as that. Not a single penny.

As someone that lives and dies with ISU basketball and football, what shocks me more is there is a perception they lied and Larry never set the record straight. It’s almost as if they were hoping people would forget they donated. I know the athletic department reads the board and Larry knows people are upset they got their money taken, so why has he not said in public what is going on? I’d want to know where my money is going before I donate or talk with someone about donating again.

 

[fourthandshort]

though I might wind of donating anyway, I agree with VA RB and Rico ... trust has been compromised from the original promotional video when Lyons made it clear that the #1 sports initiative under his Redbird Rising Campaign was the IPF. Then it just quietly never happened even though they reached the 150m.

AD Lyons needs to say something that adequately explain why ... and it can't just be because attendance went down. He talked about how important the IPF was for all sports and the future of ISU athletics. How could an attendance drop in one football season cause the IPF to suddenly become unimportant to the future of ISU athletics.

He was clear and unequivacle in the video (see link on page 1 of this thread), and it was not parsed or conditioned on anything. He needs to explain and do something to earn back the trust of donors.

Say something credible about what happened with your previous commitment.

 

[TIMMY]

This is bigger than Good Old Uncle Lar! (I just dated myself. Anyone catch that?) The University needs a comprehensive plan with everything spelled out on it's own website. They need one of those little thermometers with how much has been raised (the truth) and how far they need to go. They need to find some big shooters who will match donations. They need to describe what they're building and where they're going to build it. In detail with artist renderings. Not a BS depiction of YSU's.

What's so fricken hard about this? Want to know why I'm so hesitant? Cause until they show some competence in asking, I have no faith they have the wherewithal to ever get this done. Hell they haven't shown the gumption to add a shithouse to the tennis "complex".

I truly believe an IPF will never happen. And a bubble? Mmmm not that either really.

They need to change my mind and apparently other minds as well.

I really miss Al. He'd have had this done by now. Anyone here ever talk to the Lar's about football? Al knows football. Zengler knows athletics. They got it. I'll never trust Lyons. Sorry I can't. It all goes back to nepotism for me.

 

[Total Red]

[*]

Just got an email solicitation from Chris Highland for help finding for IPF. In the email he has quote from AD Larry Lyons explaining how important an IPF is to the future of our sports teams year round training efforts. I'm thinking I've heard this before somewhere... just can't quite place it .... oh wait .. it was the nearly the exact same thing he said in the Redbird Rising promotional video when he he said it was the #1 sports initiative once they reached the 150m ... which they did.

So what am I to think now about contributing ??????

How much of the 150 million plus that was contributed to the Redbirds Rising campaign was directed towards the IPF?