I have new respect for how difficult Rob/Jon's job is.

[lightning1]

That's not true. They're 1/3 committed to winning : Win. Graduate. Do It Right.

Exactly. I'm......not........interested. At any price above the local high school ticket prices. $5 a game. Free parking. First come, first serve on the seats.

 

[earlkoppelman]

That's not true. They're 1/3 committed to winning : Win. Graduate. Do It Right.

How about the BAGS WITH GOLD BARS?

 

[earlkoppelman]

Actions speak louder than words. Look the the Iowa Athletic Dept's record over the last 15 years!

ACTIONS NOT WORDS huh? Nuff said....Bosses need to watch Treasure of Sierra Madre.Gold scream waay loud.Fans are blinded by gold.Again BOSSES watch Teasure of Sierra Madre closely pleese.

 

[Hawkfnntn]

This is just asinine.

How so?

 

[CJHawkeye]

How so?

Because you disagree with his opinion, therefore instead of providing a well thought out counterpoint he just dismisses you.

 

[revkev73]

There is enough to cover salaries and raises...what's the gripe?

 

[HuckFinn]

What has Iowa's attendance been this year in hoops? I saw for last yr the avg was 12,500. No way they are at that this year are they? I think they've had games of less then 9 maybe even 8 this year haven't they? Football hasn't been selling out every game either but a lot closer to it. Seems like they sell out about half of them with a few of them being around 10k or so short of it.
Iowa is getting like 50-60 million just from the BIG network aren't they? That's quite the head start on their athletic budget for the year...

Your math suffers from the lack of consideration for season ticket holders. They may, or may not, attend the game, but their attendance counts. FYI, the row to the right of my aisle seat is virtually empty, except on rare occasions. A lot of the problem is connected to week night games that really leave season ticket holders in a bad spot. I am not attacking your post. CHA is well below the announced attendance in most cases. But, as in life, its never as simple as one variable.

 

[Hawkfnntn]

Your math suffers from the lack of consideration for season ticket holders. They may, or may not, attend the game, but their attendance counts. FYI, the row to the right of my aisle seat is virtually empty, except on rare occasions. A lot of the problem is connected to week night games that really leave season ticket holders in a bad spot. I am not attacking your post. CHA is well below the announced attendance in most cases. But, as in life, its never as simple as one variable.

I looked up the actual attendance figures it was just over 12,500 for last yr/game. I understand that many more seats are paid for as you mention which isn't the bottom line either. What's the avg attendee spend on drinks, food gear etc while they attend? I'd love to know that #. Some spend hundreds. Some very little. Granted the same folks aren't spending 100 bucks on gear every time they go. But enough of them are for it to matter. Again it's the average that they care about and the less people that are there it affects that big time.

 

[Hawkfnntn]

Because you disagree with his opinion, therefore instead of providing a well thought out counterpoint he just dismisses you.

I hope that's not the case. He and I have agreed on a lot of things probably more than we disagree on. I'm interested in knowing what his 2 cents are

 

[lightning1]

I looked up the actual attendance figures it was just over 12,500 for last yr/game. I understand that many more seats are paid for as you mention which isn't the bottom line either. What's the avg attendee spend on drinks, food gear etc while they attend? I'd love to know that #. Some spend hundreds. Some very little. Granted the same folks aren't spending 100 bucks on gear every time they go. But enough of them are for it to matter. Again it's the average that they care about and the less people that are there it affects that big time.

That 12,500 is the paid attendance. Not actual. The NCAA gets paid attendance numbers, I believe.

 

[DDThompson]

What does Iowa sucking at sports have to do with the energy business?

It’s taking all the energy out of him...?

 

[RobHowe]

I like my job. (Here's where some smartass says it's because I don't ask hard questions for fear of losing my press pass).

These seasons are tough because you see how hard the players are working and not enjoying much success. The last season of Lickliter was difficult. '99, '07 and '12 in football were depressing.

Win or lose, it's a story, though.

 

[Hawk5656]

I like my job. (Here's where some smartass says it's because I don't ask hard questions for fear of losing my press pass).

These seasons are tough because you see how hard the players are working and not enjoying much success. The last season of Lickliter was difficult. '99, '07 and '12 in football were depressing.

Win or lose, it's a story, though.

Maybe they work hard in practice but it doesn't always appear they are working hard on the court in games. Lazy close outs, poor rotations and the worst is after a turnover when they don't even bother to get back on defense.

 

[RobHowe]

I disagree. I think, for the most part, the guys play hard. And, I know they work hard. It's just not a good team. It's deficient in too many areas to be a good team. And, yes, that's the coach's responsibility.

 

[Fryowa]

I see this statement repeated often and it's flat out not close to true. The AD cannot afford to have CHA half empty. They cannot afford to have Kinnick stadium 15% empty. Do the math. Half empty CHA puts the athletic department in the red, for the year! Just CHA for men's basketball. If Gutless Gary gets 8000 avg in men's basketball and 63,000 in football - he's in full panic mode.

I agree with most of your stuff, but this is simply not true. At all.

Income from the B1G alone is over $35,000,000, Learfield Sports is almost $8,000,000, and contributions from donors (which as we’ve seen won’t change) are around $15,000,000 a year. None of that is pulled out of my ass, the budgets are public knowledge every year.

Ticket sales or lack there of are not going to put a dent in anything financially. Public opinion, maybe. But not finances.

 

[Hawk5656]

I disagree. I think, for the most part, the guys play hard. And, I know they work hard. It's just not a good team. It's deficient in too many areas to be a good team. And, yes, that's the coach's responsibility.

You can't ignore the fact that there has been multiple times someone on this team has turned it over and then just slumped their shoulders or pouted instead of getting back on defense.

 

[lightning1]

I agree with most of your stuff, but this is simply not true. At all.

Income from the B1G alone is over $35,000,000, Learfield Sports is almost $8,000,000, and contributions from donors (which as we’ve seen won’t change) are around $15,000,000 a year. None of that is pulled out of my ass, the budgets are public knowledge every year.

Ticket sales or lack there of are not going to put a dent in anything financially. Public opinion, maybe. But not finances.

The AD spent $113,249,020 million in 2015-16 alone. And now that donations to the AD are no longer tax deductible, I expect the number of donations to fall. Considerably.

 

[EstronHawkKing]

When the University Administration and AD don't care about winning, your job has got to be brutal. I do not envy your position.

and for fear of writing something that might rub Barta or a head coach the wrong way and could easily have their media credentials taken from them.

 

[Fryowa]

The AD spent $113,249,020 million in 2015-16 alone. And now that donations to the AD are no longer tax deductible, I expect the number of donations to fall. Considerably.

Look...

Football ticket revenue in 2017 was $24.1million

Basketball ticket revenue was $3.7 million.

These are numbers from the athletics operating budget, published by the BOR. They're not made up guesses by me.

You told us that if Kinnick Stadium were 15% emptier and CHA were half empty it'd put the athletic department upside down.

Using your numbers that'd decrease revenue by $5.5 million (I'm not spelling the math out but feel free to correct me), and that's assuming Kinninck and CHA are full every game right now which they most definitely are not. If you think a decrease in revenue of $5.5 million is going to impact the AD in any meaningful way you are fucking high. In addition, revenue from the Big Ten in 2018 jumps from $36 million to over $50 million. As far as your statement on donations, the BOR has already budgeted a 6.9% decrease in 2018 for the reason you mentioned, and 2018 is still balanced to the dollar. There's no "in the red" that's going to happen to Iowa sports from ticket sales or donations any time soon.

I get your sentiment and I think Barta should be run out of town on the Hawkeye Express, but use facts, man. It would sure look bad if the stadiums were empty and Barta would face heat for it, but it isn't going to affect operations in any way.

 

[Fryowa]

The AD spent $113,249,020 million in 2015-16 alone. And now that donations to the AD are no longer tax deductible, I expect the number of donations to fall. Considerably.

I'll also add to my above post that the BOR and President (Barta's bosses) don't give two shits how much the athletic department makes or spends as long as it breaks even and isn't involved in any scandals. Any decrease in revenue will be met by a matching decrease in expenses.

It's not like the hospital or law school will have to start limiting electricity or fixing broken toilets instead of ordering new ones because sports money has no (direct financial) bearing on the U and it's not paid for with taxes. The athletic department is small, small potatoes in the grand scheme of things.