Rob Sand Wants Barta Out

Fryowa said:
Not as long as Kirk’s in charge. He’d pay the settlement out of his own pocket before he’d let Gary go.
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Man, someone has to take charge and be the adult in the room over there. Someone with balls to stand up to Kirk.

I know wishful thinking...it would be nice.
 
Hawkfnntn said:
Who's those 2 on the board? The politics that must be in play for something like this must be off the charts. Some large swinging dicked donor(s) must be flexing. Nothing else makes much sense. So Barta has on his resume having to pay out lawsuits for gender discrimination and racial discrimination totaling over 10 million bucks and has the balls to ask that tax dollars be used to pay some of it and GETS IT DONE. Hell he'll probably get a raise when he renegotiates his contract I think it's up after next yr.
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The Iowa Attorney General's Office represents the state in a lawsuit like this and they reached the settlement. There is a three person appeal board that has to approve the settlement. That is Rob Sand, the state auditor; Kraig Paulson, the Department of Management Director; and Roby Smith, the State Treasurer. Paulson and Smith both voted to approve the settlement so Sands opposition was overridden.
 
PCHawk said:
A settlement like this will open the floodgates probably. It's one thing if a gay coach gets fired and sues because there are way less gay coaches that have been fired that can follow suit. How many black players will he licking their chops now? I'd be racking my brain thinking of any time a coach said something even remotely off to me.
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Not many. Suing isn't really that easy. Nor is it about some small isolated remark. Attorneys can lose their ability to practice. They vet this out. That the settlement was higher than 40, per person does speak.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Fine. Then fire him if this is all accurate. But, you don't fire him as a pretext for this lawsuit when he had little do with the claims. Fire him because he sucks, but don't pretend this suit is on him. Or, if you are going to fire Barta for this lawsuit you god damn well have to fire KF too. He is the one who did the alleged deeds! This is certainly not KF's first sin in terms of performance and scandal. If Mr. Sand or anyone else is so F'ing outraged by this settlement that you are affronted beyond measure, then follow your principles and hand KF his pink slip. If you aren't willing to fire KF over this, you aint all that offended. You just hate Gary Barta.
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It's really hard to tell your position. It does fall on Barta as he was responsible for KF officially and his responsibility to make sure trainings were done and protocols followed. That he had to protect himself from KF doesn't matter. Separate issue.

You can't misunderstand University required trainings. If Barta did not document things, it's on him, not KF when it comes to Barta culpability.

In my opinion, the case had enough merit to warrant settling, though the merit wasn't slam dunk. It was a good amount (high amount) considering.
 
NorthKCHawk said:
Gents, some perspective is needed. Gary Barta has overseen the athletic department for a long time. With its revenue, employees, endowment and facilaties, Iowa athletics is the equivalent of a billion dollar company. That is not hyperbole. Any NFL franchise is worth a couple bill. That is for just one football team. While a college athletic department is not able to be sold (yet LOL), that does not change the nature of the business being a massive and lucrative entity. Barta is the equivalent of the CEO of a massive company.

Companies the size of Iowa, that have money and are high profile, draw law suits and claims on a regular basis. In legal venacular, lawsuits are the cost of doing business. Companies settle bullshit lawsuits for way too much money every day. I have seen it in my practice more times that I can count. It just is what it is. Indeed, this may not even be Barta's call to make. Iowa has lawyers, adjusters, general counsel and lot's of folks making this call. Barta is doing what the experts around him recommend. That is what good CEO's do.

If you are a board of directors, and your CEO has run your company profitably for over a decade, and consistently grown its revenue and value far above other industries or market expectations, you don't fire him because of a couple lawsuits or a couple of scandals. You look at the totality of the circumstances and decide if he is doing his job well or not. Of course, that includes considering that all Big 10 schools are rising with TV revenue, so he should not get credit for all of the department's success, but he should get some. The captain of the ship gets more praise and blame than is actually deserved for sure.

I am Barta neutral. I don't think he is awesome, but I don't think he sucks simply because he hitched his wagon to a legendary football coach and is not rocking that boat. If you want to fire him for cause, with respect, settling a 20 million dollar case for 4 million dollars to put a high profile lawsuit to bed is not the dumbest thing a CEO has ever approved of. Not by a long shot.
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Right there with you on this post. I would challenge any HN poster to challenge the logic.
 
Fryowa said:
The biggest liability of GB being employed is that he serves at the behest of Kirk instead of the other way around. That has allowed personnel decisions that have had a huge negative effect on company performance, i.e. hiring and retaining his kid who has no business in that position to start with, let alone for multiple years.

There is no, "Brian reports to me, not Kirk."

Farta reports to Kirk Ferentz and his donor army. An AD who's at arm's length to the football coach would've stopped Brian from being retained, if not hired, in the first place.
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Sorry, Fry, but your argument has almost nothing to do with North’s analysis. Your assumptions are just that. Opinions. That is fine. I agree in part with your comments. But these two posts are distant cousins.
 
HuckFinn said:
Sorry, Fry, but your argument has almost nothing to do with North’s analysis. Your assumptions are just that. Opinions. That is fine. I agree in part with your comments. But these two posts are distant cousins.
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No, it really isn't. Kirk is the de facto CEO. Barta is the de facto COO. What fact tells us this? Pull up Iowa's offensive statistics the past two seasons. Now go through all the other schools and find me a P5 school with such a horrible unit that keeps its coordinator. It just doesn't happen.
 
Hawkfnntn said:
Who's those 2 on the board? The politics that must be in play for something like this must be off the charts. Some large swinging dicked donor(s) must be flexing. Nothing else makes much sense. So Barta has on his resume having to pay out lawsuits for gender discrimination and racial discrimination totaling over 10 million bucks and has the balls to ask that tax dollars be used to pay some of it and GETS IT DONE. Hell he'll probably get a raise when he renegotiates his contract I think it's up after next yr.
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Before I get all fired up about the taxpayer thing, why are we chiming in without any knowledge of the rationale? I can’t tell you how many clowns I have had to show that tax $$ don’t pay the bills for athletics at Iowa.
 
I still find it interesting that almost all of these guys had disapointing football careers. Funny when things don't work out for them.

Twelve former players signed the settlement agreement Feb. 23:
  • Akrum Wadley
  • Jonathan Parker (2013-16)
  • Marcel Joly (2014-17)
  • Aaron Mends (2014-18)
  • Maurice Fleming (2012-15)
  • Reggie Spearman (2013) this one jumps out to me... I thought he left due to problems at home.
  • Kevonte Martin-Manley (2010-14)
  • Darian Cooper (2011-16)
  • Laron Taylor (2012-14)
  • Brandon Simon (2016-19)
  • Javon Foy (2019-20), and
  • Terrence Harris (2014-16).
 
NCHawker said:
I still find it interesting that almost all of these guys had disapointing football careers. Funny when things don't work out for them.

Twelve former players signed the settlement agreement Feb. 23:
  • Akrum Wadley
  • Jonathan Parker (2013-16)
  • Marcel Joly (2014-17)
  • Aaron Mends (2014-18)
  • Maurice Fleming (2012-15)
  • Reggie Spearman (2013) this one jumps out to me... I thought he left due to problems at home.
  • Kevonte Martin-Manley (2010-14)
  • Darian Cooper (2011-16)
  • Laron Taylor (2012-14)
  • Brandon Simon (2016-19)
  • Javon Foy (2019-20), and
  • Terrence Harris (2014-16).
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Man would it be awesome to be a fly on the wall for all of the incidents in question. They probably range from "geez dude grow a pair" to "come on man it's 2020s you can't say that shit anymore".
 
NCHawker said:
I still find it interesting that almost all of these guys had disapointing football careers. Funny when things don't work out for them.

Twelve former players signed the settlement agreement Feb. 23:
  • Akrum Wadley
  • Jonathan Parker (2013-16)
  • Marcel Joly (2014-17)
  • Aaron Mends (2014-18)
  • Maurice Fleming (2012-15)
  • Reggie Spearman (2013) this one jumps out to me... I thought he left due to problems at home.
  • Kevonte Martin-Manley (2010-14)
  • Darian Cooper (2011-16)
  • Laron Taylor (2012-14)
  • Brandon Simon (2016-19)
  • Javon Foy (2019-20), and
  • Terrence Harris (2014-16).
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Yes but that doesn't negate the possibility of liability. Discrimination is about being harmed, not offended.
 
HuckFinn said:
Right there with you on this post. I would challenge any HN poster to challenge the logic.
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I challenge this. Universities are not corps and under a different set of rules. Like a real estate brokerage has different rules than a home owner renting out the house. Universities are not being coy, but an athletic department is tax exempt. Not for profit.
 
Despite all:

The key settlement details include:

  • The state of Iowa will pay $2 million to the plaintiffs, with the Iowa athletics department being responsible for the remaining $2.175 million.
  • About 45.5% of the settlement will go toward attorney's fees of $1,878,750. Another $35,837.41 will go toward unspecified costs. The firm of Tulsa-based civil rights attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons, who was lead counsel for the former players, will be paid the full settlement amount.

  • Akrum Wadley (a former star running back who played at Iowa from 2013-17)
  • Jonathan Parker (2013-16)
  • Marcel Joly (2014-17)
  • Aaron Mends (2014-18)
  • Maurice Fleming (2012-15)
  • Reggie Spearman (2013)
  • Kevonte Martin-Manley (2010-14)
  • Darian Cooper (2011-16)
  • Laron Taylor (2012-14)
  • Brandon Simon (2016-19)
  • Javon Foy (2019-20), and
  • Terrence Harris (2014-16).
Those 12 players would share the remaining $2,210,412.59 — which amounts to roughly $184,201.05 per player.
 
thedukeofearl said:
Despite all:

The key settlement details include:

  • The state of Iowa will pay $2 million to the plaintiffs, with the Iowa athletics department being responsible for the remaining $2.175 million.
  • About 45.5% of the settlement will go toward attorney's fees of $1,878,750. Another $35,837.41 will go toward unspecified costs. The firm of Tulsa-based civil rights attorney Damario Solomon-Simmons, who was lead counsel for the former players, will be paid the full settlement amount.

  • Akrum Wadley (a former star running back who played at Iowa from 2013-17)
  • Jonathan Parker (2013-16)
  • Marcel Joly (2014-17)
  • Aaron Mends (2014-18)
  • Maurice Fleming (2012-15)
  • Reggie Spearman (2013)
  • Kevonte Martin-Manley (2010-14)
  • Darian Cooper (2011-16)
  • Laron Taylor (2012-14)
  • Brandon Simon (2016-19)
  • Javon Foy (2019-20), and
  • Terrence Harris (2014-16).
Those 12 players would share the remaining $2,210,412.59 — which amounts to roughly $184,201.05 per player.
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Lol at dumping a bunch of tax money to lawyers just to get a few guys 184k.
 
PCHawk said:
Oops I didn't mean to offend. I didn't realize you were an ambulance chasing lawyer.
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I really don't think you understand (OK I know its a joke) how hard it is to win lawsuits, especially discrimination lawsuits. It's not a matter of being guilty or not, but figuring out how much you were damaged monetarily.

Proving loss of NFL income would be very difficult. That these college students didn't have NIL money, the income is limited and I doubt they lost scholarships. That they got as much as they did including the attny fees was actually noteworthy. That KF is indignant about a settlement also means little. Discrimination is very hard to prove.

Iowa didn't want this out at all. I doubt they players actually recanted as much as what they had to say had to be accurate and provable. So the change doesn't mean much and KF shoulda kept his mouth shut. I'd be surprised if he and the players don't have duct tape over their mouths from the settlement.

His comments actually show arrogance....my opinion. Go head...sue me kind of thing knowing he has deeper pockets.
 
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Hawkfnntn said:
Who's those 2 on the board? The politics that must be in play for something like this must be off the charts. Some large swinging dicked donor(s) must be flexing. Nothing else makes much sense. So Barta has on his resume having to pay out lawsuits for gender discrimination and racial discrimination totaling over 10 million bucks and has the balls to ask that tax dollars be used to pay some of it and GETS IT DONE. Hell he'll probably get a raise when he renegotiates his contract I think it's up after next yr.
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Well, you're kind of correct on the 'politics' angle. Although the Iowa A.G. office negotiated the final terms, the 2 Republicans on the Appeal Board who approved the settlement were taking their direction at least partly from the Board of Regents, the vast majority of whom Gov. Reynolds has appointed.
 
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