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Post by lion1979 on Jun 16, 2022 10:19:15 GMT -6
Anything around $100,000 in Florence, Alabama is a lot of money. If it’s not even close to that.. there’s a problem. If it IS around that sum, we’ll find somebody that can coach.
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Post by unafied on Jun 16, 2022 11:15:32 GMT -6
I'd say there's more to it than just the head coach's salary. He'll also be wondering how much money will be available for his assistants. More money = better assistants.
Then there's facilities. Anybody interviewing for the job that has done their research will know the idea of a new stadium has been floated out there. So... will UNA commit to doing that, or not? It might be a make or break issue for a few guys. They know they can't recruit if they have one of the worst stadiums in the league.
The problem here is that a football stadium is the #1 priority for the athletic department, by a wide stretch over anything else. But it's also way more expensive than literally anything else. And to satisfy the desire to build it on campus, you almost have to move the baseball field, because where else could it even go? So now you have to commit money to building two new stadiums, all while paying the baseball coach a salary that a new stadium justifies. You can't build a new stadium for a program you don't expect to ever compete, because that would be a terrible financial decision.
The truth is we probably don't have the money to do all of this stuff. You can debate as to why that is, or whether we should be in D1 if we can't, or whatever. But I suspect it's reality.
I will gladly eat crow if I'm wrong, and heck, I hope I am. But we needed a football stadium 10 years ago and we're still waiting. I'm not expecting baseball to be funded anything beyond the bare minimum at this point. Hopefully we strike gold with a young assistant who's willing to do the job for the cheap, and he wins, brings excitement to the program, and it starts the ball rolling on more funding.
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Post by firstandtenn on Jun 16, 2022 11:42:43 GMT -6
I'd say there's more to it than just the head coach's salary. He'll also be wondering how much money will be available for his assistants. More money = better assistants. Then there's facilities. Anybody interviewing for the job that has done their research will know the idea of a new stadium has been floated out there. So... will UNA commit to doing that, or not? It might be a make or break issue for a few guys. They know they can't recruit if they have one of the worst stadiums in the league. The problem here is that a football stadium is the #1 priority for the athletic department, by a wide stretch over anything else. But it's also way more expensive than literally anything else. And to satisfy the desire to build it on campus, you almost have to move the baseball field, because where else could it even go? So now you have to commit money to building two new stadiums, all while paying the baseball coach a salary that a new stadium justifies. You can't build a new stadium for a program you don't expect to ever compete, because that would be a terrible financial decision. The truth is we probably don't have the money to do all of this stuff. You can debate as to why that is, or whether we should be in D1 if we can't, or whatever. But I suspect it's reality. I will gladly eat crow if I'm wrong, and heck, I hope I am. But we needed a football stadium 10 years ago and we're still waiting. I'm not expecting baseball to be funded anything beyond the bare minimum at this point. Hopefully we strike gold with a young assistant who's willing to do the job for the cheap, and he wins, brings excitement to the program, and it starts the ball rolling on more funding. The other thing regarding facilities is the field itself. No coach wants to be a groundskeeper these days, but without a turf infield or a willingness to hire a grounds crew that’s what will be expected here. That could actually be a much bigger issue than most realize.
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Post by unalions on Jun 16, 2022 12:06:01 GMT -6
The other thing regarding facilities is the field itself. No coach wants to be a groundskeeper these days, but without a turf infield or a willingness to hire a grounds crew that’s what will be expected here. That could actually be a much bigger issue than most realize. Those turf infields look horrible. Reminds me of putt putt golf for some reason.
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Post by unalions on Jun 16, 2022 12:11:19 GMT -6
The elephant in the room here is that baseball is pretty far down the list of sports that most UNA fans support. Football, basketball, softball, etc. I’d even put soccer ahead of UNA baseball as far as excitement and fan support is involved. The new coach will have a lot to work on when they arrive.
But for some coaches, they just want the chance to be HC in D1. And yes, 100k goes a lot further in Florence than it does in the Atlanta area like ASUN champs Kennesaw State.
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Post by unafied on Jun 16, 2022 13:47:22 GMT -6
The elephant in the room here is that baseball is pretty far down the list of sports that most UNA fans support. Football, basketball, softball, etc. I’d even put soccer ahead of UNA baseball as far as excitement and fan support is involved. The new coach will have a lot to work on when they arrive. But for some coaches, they just want the chance to be HC in D1. And yes, 100k goes a lot further in Florence than it does in the Atlanta area like ASUN champs Kennesaw State. The lack of support is definitely true. I tend to think if they built an awesome new facility that some fans WOULD come. Offer beer and let it be more like a minor league experience. Of course, if the team continues to stink, that will make it a non-starter for a lot of people. Nobody really wants to go watch a losing team. But I understand that it's a Catch-22. You don't want to invest in facilities (or even coaching) when fan support is so bad, but fan support will likely never improve with subpar facilities and coaching.
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Post by tuna85 on Jun 16, 2022 13:53:45 GMT -6
Has anyone on this site been asked to help raise or contribute money for a baseball and/or football stadium? Has anyone seen any effort to organize such an movement?
If wishes were horses we'd all have a ride. That's all.
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Post by unafied on Jun 16, 2022 15:35:34 GMT -6
Has anyone on this site been asked to help raise or contribute money for a baseball and/or football stadium? Has anyone seen any effort to organize such an movement? If wishes were horses we'd all have a ride. That's all. In fairness, they did do that for the football locker room. We’re 3 years now since the renderings of the football stadium were released, and no further along on that since we were back then. That’s the story of UNA athletics… talking for years how we MIGHT do something or SHOULD do something. Sure, covid was an issue, but it didn’t stop that school a few hours to our southeast from announcing a stadium expansion and then leaving us in the dust by moving up once again. I’m pretty tired of them being proactive and us just watching.
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Post by northalaspectator on Jun 16, 2022 16:14:54 GMT -6
I’m expecting to hear an announcement on the football stadium before the end of the year. Probably making sure that all of the legal ramifications are in place first. Hopefully when the board meets in September.
Then they will seek donations other than the main stakeholders.
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Post by tuna85 on Jun 17, 2022 9:04:19 GMT -6
I’m expecting to hear an announcement on the football stadium before the end of the year. Probably making sure that all of the legal ramifications are in place first. Hopefully when the board meets in September. Then they will seek donations other than the main stakeholders. Are not all UNA alumni, students, and fans the main stakeholders? Shouldn't this be the goal?
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Post by firstandtenn on Jun 17, 2022 12:55:48 GMT -6
A few weeks ago there were 30 D1 openings. Now down to 11. Maybe we’re waiting until all the others are filled, so we can find somebody who’s desperate!
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Post by brandon on Jun 17, 2022 21:44:26 GMT -6
A few weeks ago there were 30 D1 openings. Now down to 11. Maybe we’re waiting until all the others are filled, so we can find somebody who’s desperate! Patience... We took a little while for basketball too.
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Post by northalaspectator on Jun 17, 2022 22:43:16 GMT -6
A few weeks ago there were 30 D1 openings. Now down to 11. Maybe we’re waiting until all the others are filled, so we can find somebody who’s desperate! Patience... We took a little while for basketball too. Absolutely) It is possible that the decision has already been made and accepted. If it is an assistant coach or a head coach of one of the teams that are still playing maybe that person doesn’t want an announcement to be made out of respect for their current team.
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Post by unalions on Jun 18, 2022 9:52:42 GMT -6
A few weeks ago there were 30 D1 openings. Now down to 11. Maybe we’re waiting until all the others are filled, so we can find somebody who’s desperate! Patience... We took a little while for basketball too. I’m still not sure how that worked out yet. He has a lot to prove this season.
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Post by unabalch on Jun 18, 2022 22:12:28 GMT -6
Hahahha The fact that it was brought up that we might be waiting on a coach that is still playing in the World Series is comical. The reason all of those other schools has hired a coach already is because their AD had a short list of potential candidates unfortunately that is not the case with our current opening is being handled as interviews continued this past week.
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