lightning1
Well-Known Member
ohhawk ohhawk is offlineSeniorJoin DateFeb 2010Posts668Re: Iowa 11th in BIG conference Director's Cup - winter sportsI doubt his head is on a spike but for a school to continue to drag at or near the bottom of its respective conference year in and year out is worth notice at a minimum. The Cup may not be important to most fans as long as the $ sports are producing which is understandable but Iowa's own formal 5 year Strategic Plan (written for the athletic programs) aims for top half finish in the conference in all sports.......top 35 in the Director's Cup. It is also a part of Barta's comp plan.......not a big part but an incentive piece none the less.If you're going to have these sports available and the goal is to be competitive in all then someone has the responsibility to make that happen.......the AD. Iowa has the 7th largest athletic budget in the BIG so it's not like we don't have some ammo in the battle. To Barta's defense he has done a good job in other areas of his responsibilities (donations, facility upgrades, academic performance). Some would question his leadership in making timely changes regarding hiring and others could question his ability to make good hires for coaches that are heading some of these programs. I think the verdict is still out on the McCaffery hire although I think he will prove to be a good hire. I also think the verdict is still out on the Ferentz contract extension. Ferentz & Co. need to keep last season's momentum growing. Barta's future will rest in the hands of these two coaches and in all likelihood not the standings in the Director's Cup. Will McCaffery prove to be a good hire and will the Ferentz contract extension prove to be a smart move in the long term?The voice of reason.