Allevia Q&A in my History of Collegiate Sports Class

friedriches

Umm... yes. Will update this thread as I get more answers.

"I want us to win championships, in everything."

1. New scoreboard: Feasability study of South Endzone expansion, but most likely new scoreboard in South Endzone in next two years.

2. Facilities: Some of our facilities our the best, some are the worst. Tiger Stadium is nice, but is awful- new bathrooms, windows outside. Pedestrian area outside north endzone needs to be a showcase of LSU, about to embark on "buy a window campaign"
- Football operations and academic is best he's ever seen
- Softball is very good
- PMAC needs a lot of work. Will not build a new one, too expensive
- Gymnastics team's practice facility is by far worst in SEC
- Indoor tennis courts to attract more talent
- Trying to work out deal with BREC or even a casino to share the costs and usage (because in South LA don't need an indoor facility every year)
- Renovating UClub, will help golf team- much more difficult
- Track and Field teams don't have locker rooms- no one else in SEC has this (dress in own dorms)
- surfaces of fields are 35 years old
- To be the best, you have to pay market value. Would like to get the best coaches for the money.
- Improve what we have before replace ANYTHING.
- No priority other than Tiger Stadium and N. Stadium Drive (embarassment to our university), just based on what he can get donors for.

3. Gustav: Fought with Govenor to have the scheduled game played. Eventually agreed to 10 AM kickoff.

4. Public Institution: It's so much harder to get anything done at public school. (Natatorium and field house don't have roofs still)
- trying to add bleachers to outfield of Alex Box- everything in place but Board of Regents neglected to add to monthly meeting agenda TODAY- postponing this approval another month. Might not be done for first baseball game
- students coaches and faculty are the same across the board.

5. "Arms Race": If you want to win, you have to spend.

6. Soccer: despite growth of soccer... Title XI. End of story.
- Other than SC and Vandy, no other school has a men's team.
- Same with wrestling.
- Not a proponent of Title XI. Everyone should have an equal chance.
- I don't care what other countries are doing, we'd have to cut another men's sport and add another women's sport.
- And we're in SE US... soccer isn't a big deal here.

7. Vice-Chancellorship: Not the first, but fairly novel blending academics and athletics
- 6 million $ a year back to school
- one of 3-4 in country who do that w/o collecting student fees
- Gives him a seat at the table and his opinion gets heard in overall university running.
- Need to be able to tie education and overall interest in athletics together

8. URec: terrible for the number of students we have
- Not over it here like he was at Duke
- But for 35,000 it's really awful.
- Will be addressed sooner or later
- SEC avg is 9 sq. ft. per student, we're at 4-5 sq. ft.

9. Finances
- Annual budget $85 million - $6 million to school
- 16 million $ from ESPN contract
- Each ACC school got 7.5 mil $ from TV
- Exposure is huge
- 5 year projections w/ 4-5% inflation, consistent returns to University, no ticket price increases- -$40 million
- So either raise ticket prices or find other revenue sources... TADAAAA! Country Music Festival (which brings beer sales into the stadium, which will be huge)

10. Basketball: Loves that stereotype of "Basketball AD". Thinks it's ironic. Sure Coach K is my best friend, but basketball is just one sport.
- Basketball isn't generating enough money right now... we need a better product.
- We want people to think "I want my kid to play for that coach."

11. Suites: Not ONE suite has been turned over since their first purchasing since they've opened.
- 1/2 are businesses
- 1/2 are joint purchases
- All are fans, regardless of reason for purchase
- Club seats are the highest-revenue (if more seats were built in south endzone, they would likely be mostly these)

12. Alcohol
- The LAST straw.
- Won't do it unless we absolutely have to.
- NCAA doesn't allow it at championships, SEC leaves it to the institutions in CONTROLLED areas (hence, clubs)

13. Media (my question)
- The internet changes everything- so fast.
- Student-athletes much more in-focus than before.
- Changed even since he started at LSU.

14. Fans (my question, of course)
- LSU fans don't make sense, but that's ok!
- Could care less what fans think- paid to determine if the coach is successful. His opinion is what matters.

15. Opposing fans seating in TS:
- Each year we are slicing seats out of lower bowl down to the minimum of 1500 (set by SEC), at 2700 right now (including band) required total of 7000.
- Prime seating for our fans, not theirs.

16. Old Alex Box
- Pumps Alex Box Auctions
- Once demolished, will be temporary parking lot.
- University wants to eventually build a building there. Not housing, graduate housing nearby will be completely redone soon so there's no reason
- Building may be a parking garage- would be nice for games, etc.

17. Ticket Prices
- Our state is not rich, major concern in raising prices is alienating fans
- Many people have 10-40 tickets. We want to get a handle on that- most of them go to eBay
- Policy will change.
- Student prices won't change for the forseeable future

18. New South Endzone
- Want smaller supply and big demand
- No one shows up for the small games anyways- likely won't happen until this changes.

19. LSU-Onelane cancellation
- Financial reason.
- $3 million difference playing there than here
- They didn't want to come here, we weren't going to the dome for a non-bowl game anymore
- Taddaaaaaa

20. Rent-a-win strategy
- One good game, then three rent-a-wins should be good for us.
- See U-Dub, UNC, WVU
- Trying to get game in new Cowboys Stadium against Big XIII opponent (YES PLEASE!)
- Southern is a very highly potential opponent

21. Baseball attendance
- SMOKED the 2nd place team in total attendance this year.
- We OWNED it.

22. 700,000mil$ to $1 million per non-com opponent
- EACH cop gets $40 an hour. How many cops are on campus?!
- Many positions in the stadium get $10/hr
- Bag checkers $15/hr
- Very fortunate- campus cleanup done by prisoners, done for a McDonald's lunch

23. $1 million band, literally, out of athletic budget alone
- Music department contributes too
- So we're the $1 million+ band.
- SUCK IT, BAMA.

24. BCS/Playoff
- BCS isn't perfect, but makes every game important.
- Every game is a playoff.
- Take upcoming Bama game- we're in the hunt for the title, or we're out. Just like a playoff.
- Playoff difficulties:
- 26 bowl games right now, 52 teams are happy with bowl
- Playoff: only the teams that make it will be happy
- fans would be FURIOUS if we went to indy bowl and not playoff
- How many teams would you have? hard to answer
- Predetermine sites? Logistics, you have 6 days to get all your fans and supplies from one site to the next. Got to sell tickets to EACH game- but not in advance, not guaranteed
- Players go through so many more games- still kids!
- Take the BCS bowls, form committee to seed those teams. 8 is better than 10 teams, 10 is lousy number. 8 may be too many, plus one is most feasable- if ever happens.
- Use current bowl system to play those games- IF we had a playoff.
- Bowl system is TOO GOOD to the communities, charities, to get rid of.
- No matter what, someone's going to be pissed. Get used to it!

25. When are we gonna play USC?
- It's a two-way street, a lot of people don't want to play us. (No direct statements here. He dodged this question.)

26. Student bleachers replaced in PMAC for this season.
- Rest of bleachers replaced for 2010-2011 season
- Students moved to behind basket for 10-11 season too, disrupts the players more (suuurreee)

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www.friedriches.com

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LSUtiger327

oh what the absolute living eff!!!???


they never had that when i was in college.

if they have a "video game class" or a "hey here's some good songs to download" class or some kind of "beer tasting 101" class i'm going to go absolutely bezerk.

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friedriches

I'm also taking "Graphic Novel Studies" this semester.

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friedriches

Anyone have any questions?

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wjray

They had that when I was at in the early/mid 80s It was called Around the World at the Chimes.

OkieTigerTK

yes, higher prices will alienate the average fan.

10 tickets seems reasonable. i know people that the whole family gets their tickets together. mom, dad, kids, and kids spouses. however, 40? those are scalped. no doubt about it. i think if they cut it under 10 they will cut out a lot of families.

i agree, YES PLEASE!!!

southern? umm... no thank you. too much a cupcake.


couldnt have said it better myself!

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locoguano

Hell.. even UL blew out Southern... LSU? That would be a joke... Plus the campus would be too crowded. Southern easily brings 15k to tailgate alone...

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QBLuke

Right, like we've never hosted 15k visiting fans before. I don't see what the big deal is with playing Southern. If you have to go the FCS route, it's better than playing a team like Appalachain State IMO.

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LSUtiger327

that would have been the question i asked.

i like that he's cutting down on this. seems like he's moving in the right direction.

also when it comes to playoffs i am not an advocate of a more than 8 team playoff and it CAN be done within the current bowl system.

he might be right though about fans being pissed. i guess what would you rather have 1) a first rd loss in a playoff OR 2) something like a cap one bowl victory over michigan?

they seem the same to me if anything, there is something to be said about ending your season with a win.


edit: btw, thanks for the info fried, i know you coulda just gone to class and thought nothing of sharing this info with your TF brothers and sisters. i liked the insight.

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And the Valley Shook

Charlie: (In Boston accent) Oh, I bet you read a lotta Gordon Wood, huh? You read your Gordon Wood and you regurgitate it from a textbook and you think you're wicked awesome doin' that, And how 'bout 'dem apples? And all that Gordon Wood business.

LSUtiger327

IF and i repeat IF we have to schedule a div 1 aa school, i'd like to play SU one year. i think it would make for some kick ass tailgating. i want to challenge some SU tailgaters to a cookoff/danceoff/drinkoff.

i'd only feel confident about one of those.

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Bleacher Report Profile

And the Valley Shook

Charlie: (In Boston accent) Oh, I bet you read a lotta Gordon Wood, huh? You read your Gordon Wood and you regurgitate it from a textbook and you think you're wicked awesome doin' that, And how 'bout 'dem apples? And all that Gordon Wood business.

UPTTiger

ISDS 3101 was by far the biggest joke of a class.

The 10-40 ticket thing is crazy, more so the 40. I can understand the 10 ticket family purchase, but 40... come on! Someone should be able to purchase 40 tickets, but simple due diligence would figure out who the scaplers are.

Sidenote: Fans trying to sell tickets... dont sell your tickets to some stinky bum with no teeth. Of course you dont want to get stuck with extras, but there are always legitiamate fans looking for tickets all over campus.

friedriches

We're playing McNeese, to begin with. Southern is not any different, if not better to play a cross-town school. It would be a great atmosphere, I believe.

Allevia made this point, speaking of Appy State: McNeese played UNC last year, Appy State came here- that makes no sense!! We're paying all this money and a lot of it is for travel expenses. Let's bring the McNeeses and Southerns in- great for the state, great for the schools, great for families and fans.

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www.friedriches.com

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OkieTigerTK

sorry, i dont buy it. it does nothing for the sos. even usl and tulane would be better than southern for that.

you hit what it is about. money. if they can get a cheaper cupcake, sos and quality of game doesnt matter i guess.

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LSUsupaFan

Please tell me everything about this class.

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I will now be called "el stupendo fanatico"

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StadiumSalute

Are you referring to the Microsoft Office class? If so, it's ISDS 1100 (or was when I was there).

Wow, history of collegiate sports. If they had it I'd take it, but it's probably right up there with ISDS 1100 as one of the easiest classes.

I took sports law one semester. I also took golf my last semester of MBA. Golf didn't count towards anything, but it was 1 extra hour.

I like the buy a window campaign idea. Hopefully not too expensive to get one.

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PodKATT

Youre thinking of the wrong kind of "graphic" Supa

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cajun_tiger

what is this class under? i only need 3 clsses next semester to graduate so i need a bull**** class to make me full time next semester.

eL eS shU

Best Class at LSU.

I also have heard a lot about the beautification of Tiger Stadium and North Stadium Drive. Word is North Stadium Drive is gonna be removed, making a big Pedestrian area (kinda like a Tiger Walk).

Also, one of my friends works for the athletic dpt. and Joe sent him out about a month ago to count all of the windows on the stadium.

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VICTORY

friedriches

His 4197

Graphic Novels Studies textbooks include Watchmen, Maus (a Pulitzer Prize winner and one of the best books I've ever read) and Frank Miller's The Dark Knight Returns (yep, a Batman book as a textbook).

As for Strength of Schedule (and Okie):
Allevia is the man in charge of the schedule, and he said, verbatim, he wants one good game (he didn't say challenging, he said good) and three "rent-a-wins". Verbatim. Therefore, we have Southern. I'd rather them than Northern Iowa!

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www.friedriches.com

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Bayou Tiger

If it comes down to McNeese, Southern, Tulane or USL in seeking SOS we're screwed already- in any of those. They're all non factors in determining SOS.