Reality with AD Greene

[CrazyPaco]

Yea, a significant portion of the fan base is delivering a message to the university. You just have misinterpreted the message which is: “ until you demonstrate that you have a clue on running a successful athletics department, we’re not investing in YOU because for 40 years all you have given us is incompetence and indifference, as reflected in the quality of the university’s major sports teams, which continues to be the case until this very moment.”

You are right, that is not how it is going to be interpreted by an administration which has no one that was there 40, 30, 20 years ago. Because at other athletic departments, the support will come regardless. See Nebraska. So the only way it is going to be interpreted is that the small, uninvested, and uninterested fan base isn't worth plowing the $45 million from university general revenue fund to subsidize the athletic department's $121 m in annual operating expenses (FY24 #s...that places Pitt in the top 30-40 of athletic departments in expenditures).

 

[forbesfield]

Unless Pitt is going to build an academic building or a dorm a parking lot is the only thing that can be built on that hillside.

What else is there for a college campus?

 

[Richard A]

What else is there for a college campus?

I can think of a lot of things to build but I might get in trouble! 😄.

 

[DaveTrout]

I had always heard that baseball was a thinking man’s game.

Baseball is a sleepy man's game.

 

[jivecat]

Baseball is a sleepy man's game.

I can't believe no one wants to sit for 3 hours at Cost field in March to watch a baseball game. I would watch any other sport before I was forced to go to a PITT baseball/softball game and the attendance figure agrees with me.

 

[BigChungus90210]

I can't believe no one wants to sit for 3 hours at Cost field in March to watch a baseball game. I would watch any other sport before I was forced to go to a PITT baseball/softball game and the attendance figure agrees with me.

Baseball games are enjoyable when the team is competitive. That's just not something anyone around here is used to seeing at any level, unless you're old.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I can't believe no one wants to sit for 3 hours at Cost field in March to watch a baseball game. I would watch any other sport before I was forced to go to a PITT baseball/softball game and the attendance figure agrees with me.

There have been games I planned on going to and then it's like 38 degrees that day so nope.

 

[ThePanthers]

My family and I love going to the Pitt baseball and softball games. Just not in march

 

[joefromlancaster]

I enjoy Pitt baseball games, just not in March.
Mid April games are .very nice.

 

[Panther Parrothead]

Universities shouldn't be supporting professional sports. If I had a billion dollars, I could think of a billion reasons for donating elsewhere.

In the SEC, they can think of a billion reasons to give a 5 star QB money instead of real charities.

I don’t think it’s a random thing that many of the SEC schools “just happen to be located” in the so-called “welfare states” - those states that live off of the federal teat - taking more money from the federal government via contracts, programs, and subsidies than they pay back in taxes.

 

[jtownknowitall]

I attend UPJ games occasionally. The pace is much better than MLB.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I enjoy Pitt baseball games, just not in March.
Mid April games are .very nice.

Got the email today that baseball and softball are now free to attend. Kind of shows you the demand. I wonder if this is the first step in justifying getting rid of these sports as we may have to slim down if we have to pay all athletes. But wait, you say, the NCAA says we need X amount of sports. The courts have decided the NCAA cannot make uphold any rules.

 

[bobfree]

Elon Musk called Josh Shapiro during the election and promised to invest heavily in Western Pa. That's our lifeline!

 

[bobfree]

Says the person who just posted that they'd be ok with Pitt moving to the Patriot League. Quitting doesn't have a time limit. You finish the race or you do not. Which is it?

Yes, I choose to keep supporting Pitt, when they were good, when they were god awful in the 1990s, through all sorts of frustrating mediocrity that followed, regardless if the transient people running it made decisions that I agreed with or not. I'm not alone on that, not by any stretch. I will continue to do what I can, and give what I can, as many others are according to their circumstance because they understand the necessity of collectively pulling on the same end of the rope. And you betcha, I think that is superior to people bragging on a public fan message board about quitting with their support and being okay with the university quitting.

This holier than thou attitude doesn't work.

It hasn't worked for Pitt it didn't work for my Dems in the fall.

Your suggestion is to guilt people in continuing to waste money on a losing proposition?

Instead, the athletics program should compel and inspire while nurturing the people who donate to want to give more, not shaming them.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

My family and I love going to the Pitt baseball and softball games. Just not in march

If the NCAA is ever serious about making baseball a full, national sport they need to get with MLB and come to some agreements on the schedule. And since MLB has gotten rid of a bunch of minor league teams and word is that they are thinking about making even more cuts, MLB may very well be amenable to that.

Push the whole calendar back by two to three weeks. Start the season the first weekend of March. Then the northern schools can do just what they do now, spend the first three or four weeks playing non-conference games in the South. Conference schedule starts the first week of April. Conference tournaments would be in early/mid-June. The NCAA championship end in early July, sometime around the 4th. The MLB draft stays when it is now, mid-July. Or if the teams want a little more time between the end of the NCAA season and the draft, move the draft back to the end of July. At this point most of the drafted players are only playing complex league games in the year they get drafted anyway.

But the southern schools have no interest in a calendar like that, because they know the current system gives them an advantage and they don't want to give any of that up.

 

[PittPharm2002]

This holier than thou attitude doesn't work.

It hasn't worked for Pitt it didn't work for my Dems in the fall.

Your suggestion is to guilt people in continuing to waste money on a losing proposition?

Instead, the athletics program should compel and inspire while nurturing the people who donate to want to give more, not shaming them.

I have cut all my donations to athletics to the very minimum.
I’m not seeing any value to donating more

 

[pittdan77]

Your suggestion is to guilt people in continuing to waste money on a losing proposition?

I think that at a minimum, people need to keep contributing at the same level to maintain the current level of results. More if they want things to improve.

I think Paco's point is, what do we get if everyone quits donating? What incentive does the leadership of the school have to invest anything in athletics if the fan base does even less to support programs that may be limited in returns given the current environment?

 

[CrazyPaco]

I think that at a minimum, people need to keep contributing at the same level to maintain the current level of results. More if they want things to improve.

I think Paco's point is, what do we get if everyone quits donating? What incentive does the leadership of the school have to invest anything in athletics if the fan base does even less to support programs that may be limited in returns given the current environment?

Yes, that is exactly my point.

It is self defeating.

 

[pittchagg]

If the NCAA is ever serious about making baseball a full, national sport they need to get with MLB and come to some agreements on the schedule. And since MLB has gotten rid of a bunch of minor league teams and word is that they are thinking about making even more cuts, MLB may very well be amenable to that.

Push the whole calendar back by two to three weeks. Start the season the first weekend of March. Then the northern schools can do just what they do now, spend the first three or four weeks playing non-conference games in the South. Conference schedule starts the first week of April. Conference tournaments would be in early/mid-June. The NCAA championship end in early July, sometime around the 4th. The MLB draft stays when it is now, mid-July. Or if the teams want a little more time between the end of the NCAA season and the draft, move the draft back to the end of July. At this point most of the drafted players are only playing complex league games in the year they get drafted anyway.

But the southern schools have no interest in a calendar like that, because they know the current system gives them an advantage and they don't want to give any of that up.

Almost feels like mid-late July is the CWS sweet spot. Absolutely nothing on the calendar in a non-Olympic year, and even in the Olympic years you could fit it in between the major events like the British Open and the MLB all star game and when the Olympics start in really late July/early August.

 

[bobfree]

Says the person who just posted that they'd be ok with Pitt moving to the Patriot League. Quitting doesn't have a time limit. You finish the race or you do not. Which is it?

Yes, I choose to keep supporting Pitt, when they were good, when they were god awful in the 1990s, through all sorts of frustrating mediocrity that followed, regardless if the transient people running it made decisions that I agreed with or not. I'm not alone on that, not by any stretch. I will continue to do what I can, and give what I can, as many others are according to their circumstance because they understand the necessity of collectively pulling on the same end of the rope. And you betcha, I think that is superior to people bragging on a public fan message board about quitting with their support and being okay with the university quitting.

Yes, that is exactly my point.

It is self defeating.

So if a company makes shit products I should keep buying them to help them get it right? lol.

University pays a lot of people a lot of money let them do their job. Don't shame people on a message board.

Also one of the deputy ads was let go Monday. I expect more heads to roll

 

[pittdan77]

So if a company makes shit products I should keep buying them to help them get it right? lol.

University pays a lot of people a lot of money let them do their job. Don't shame people on a message board.

Also one of the deputy ads was let go Monday. I expect more heads to roll

If you want to compare this to a company that is making a bad product then you're still going to spend that money on a good product, right? Will you be a Nitter or Domer until Pitt meets your expectations? Think of it more like supporting the local little league team. If they suck, do you just pull your sponsorship and tell them to come back when they're better? Of course, you are more than welcome to pull your support. It's your money. Just might want to temper your expectations.

 

[Las Panteras]

Almost feels like mid-late July is the CWS sweet spot. Absolutely nothing on the calendar in a non-Olympic year, and even in the Olympic years you could fit it in between the major events like the British Open and the MLB all star game and when the Olympics start in really late July/early August.

This has been mentioned and I believe Joe has brought up the draft.

I agree. In a perfect world the CWS falls the week after the British Open, after the All Star game and right before NFL camp.

Re configuring the baseball draft is the primary roadblock, I think

 

[ThePanthers]

So if a company makes shit products I should keep buying them to help them get it right? lol.

University pays a lot of people a lot of money let them do their job. Don't shame people on a message board.

Also one of the deputy ads was let go Monday. I expect more heads to roll

That’s your issue. You keep comparing college athletics to a retail business. They are not the same industry.

It’s fine, don’t donate. This is why Pitt will never get over the hump though.

 

[Las Panteras]

If you want to compare this to a company that is making a bad product then you're still going to spend that money on a good product, right? Will you be a Nitter or Domer until Pitt meets your expectations? Think of it more like supporting the local little league team. If they suck, do you just pull your sponsorship and tell them to come back when they're better? Of course, you are more than welcome to pull your support. It's your money. Just might want to temper your expectations.

I feel like Stringer Bell....going to business class to figure out how to keep his product rolling in the West side Towers......

 

[bobfree]

That’s your issue. You keep comparing college athletics to a retail business. They are not the same industry.

It’s fine, don’t donate. This is why Pitt will never get over the hump though.

I donate. And I just met with JMI today about extending my partnership with them.

Don't worry about me. Worry about the other people who don't donate. And instead of getting them to do it through guilt find a new way. Because that way doesn't work.

 

[bobfree]

If you want to compare this to a company that is making a bad product then you're still going to spend that money on a good product, right? Will you be a Nitter or Domer until Pitt meets your expectations? Think of it more like supporting the local little league team. If they suck, do you just pull your sponsorship and tell them to come back when they're better? Of course, you are more than welcome to pull your support. It's your money. Just might want to temper your expectations.

You guys keep doing the same thing....

"Temper my expectations ". Where have I given any?

I'm not asking for money or wins or anything. Pitts asking. And they do a shit job of it. Presently, traditionally, consistently.

 

[bobfree]

The local little league team doesn't generate revenue to support other programs and certainly doesn't make money for the township as a marketing arm.

 

[Richard A]

I feel like Stringer Bell....going to business class to figure out how to keep his product rolling in the West side

 

[Richard A]

Keep the product rolling with Avon and WeeBay…. and of course Bubs

 

[CrazyPaco]

I donate. And I just met with JMI today about extending my partnership with them.

Don't worry about me. Worry about the other people who don't donate. And instead of getting them to do it through guilt find a new way. Because that way doesn't work.

When you care about something, you don't need other people to convince you to do anything.

It's the hypocrisy of people publicly proclaiming they care, but clearly not demonstrating it, but exponentially worse, when they take it to the next level by campaigning for others to follow their lead in resisting any such endeavor. That I refuse to abide. And I have no compunction for calling that out.

 

[bobfree]

When you care about something, you don't need other people to convince you to do anything.

It's the hypocrisy of people publicly proclaiming they care, but clearly not demonstrating it, but exponentially worse, when they take it to the next level by campaigning for others to follow their lead in resisting any such endeavor. That I refuse to abide. And I have no compunction for calling that out.

Keep doing what you're doing, and what Pitt is doing, it's clearly working.

 

[CrazyPaco]

Keep doing what you're doing, and what Pitt is doing, it's clearly working.

I will keep doing what I'm doing, because I continue to care. I don't control what Pitt does, clearly.

 

[bobfree]

Recently I had our organization do a food drive.

As the organizer, I went shopping and spent $200 buying items. We ran it for a month and we ended up donating 285 pounds of food. Honestly - when I took it over, it was a car load, I was disappointed (with the amount we gathered) When I met the CFO she explained their mission and I said I was just trying to do a small part and help with their bigger mission. She corrected me immediately and said it's no small part and I was now part of their family. I wasn't disappointed with what we gave anymore, I felt like I was making a difference and it made me want to give more, time money etc.

We went on a tour they went out of their way to make me not feel transactional.

That's how you fundraise. You don't take people for granted or tell them keep donating or we will suck worse.

And you can care all you want. The people that care don't need to be swayed. It's the people who don't we got to try and get

 

[ThePanthers]

Recently I had our organization do a food drive.

As the organizer, I went shopping and spent $200 buying items. We ran it for a month and we ended up donating 285 pounds of food. Honestly - when I took it over, it was a car load, I was disappointed. When I met the CFO she explained their mission and I said I was just trying to do a small part and help with their bigger mission. She corrected me immediately and said it's no small part and I was now part of their family.

We went on a tour they went out of their way to make me not feel transactional.

That's how you fundraise. You don't take people for granted or tell them keep donating or we will suck worse.

And you can care all you want. The people that care don't need to be swayed. It's the people who don't we got to try and get

I care about feeding people. Those people didn’t reach out to me. They suck!

Or, I don’t need to be cuddled to the max when I do a small part. I do it because I care. I don’t need anything in return.

 

[ThePanthers]

Ps. I donate what I can. I support the program. I’m definitely not a whale, far from it. But I get my thank you letters, reach out for tailgates and meet n greets. My phone call from a student athlete. My panther club discounts.

I don’t know. Maybe others want more. But that is more than enough for me.

 

[bobfree]

I care about feeding people. Those people didn’t reach out to me. They suck!

Or, I don’t need to be cuddled to the max when I do a small part. I do it because I care. I don’t need anything in return.

wtf are you even talking about?

 

[bobfree]

wtf are you even talking about?

Maybe I wasn't clear. I was disappointed with the amount we collected.

 

[ThePanthers]

wtf are you even talking about?

The first line was mimicking people on this board that never give or support and say they don’t because Pitt doesn’t reach out to them (because they don’t know they exist).

Nothing toward you.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

This has been mentioned and I believe Joe has brought up the draft.

I agree. In a perfect world the CWS falls the week after the British Open, after the All Star game and right before NFL camp.

Re configuring the baseball draft is the primary roadblock, I think

Yeah, the NCAA would have to work with MLB. But as I said, with all the cuts they've already made to the minor leagues and apparently they are at least talking about cutting more, now would be the time for the NCAA to go to MLB and say hey, let's work something out here that can work better for both of us. You can cut more minor league teams and save more money, and we can have a schedule that allows more teams to compete in a better way, which benefits you because you'll have more schools helping to develop guys who will eventually be in your organizations.

 

[Franb]

Yeah, the NCAA would have to work with MLB. But as I said, with all the cuts they've already made to the minor leagues and apparently they are at least talking about cutting more, now would be the time for the NCAA to go to MLB and say hey, let's work something out here that can work better for both of us. You can cut more minor league teams and save more money, and we can have a schedule that allows more teams to compete in a better way, which benefits you because you'll have more schools helping to develop guys who will eventually be in your organizations.

Stop making sense. Has the NCAA done anything, ever, that might be considered creative?