Just watch what you say over at ISD....Mostly if your a little heated after a loss.... You have been permanently banned from this board. Please contact the Board Administrator for more information. Reason given for ban: being rude Why pay for a site too when it just gets put out on free message boards shortly after.
Bill, Oh hell, with our crazy fan base that damned near qualifies you as an athletic director. Although folks on the outside might not realize it, the difference between say... Krebs and I on this issue is so small that you couldn't slide a piece of paper between the two points. In an earlier post I took a big poke at the ND fan base and I do mean it. We have an the best of the best here on the skybox. I really don't mean to paint them in with the rest of the jackassery that is going on because each and every one of the guys here on this board is top shelf. The same can't be said for other boards though. Still, it's a bit unfair to the boys here. What I am trying to get a handle on is.. What is acceptable for this season? Our schedule at first glance was thought to be garbage. We're a third of the way in and now it turns out our schedule just might wind up being fine.. perhaps even good.. So initially while '10-2 was the absolute minimum'.. that's a standard that was set when people though Michigan, and a few others would be cellar dwellers. The reality is that they aren't.. so does that adjust the goal? I always appreciate the outside input, and not only when it agrees with me
Corey, I don't think I want to be an athletic director, you have to put up with those crazy fans. :cry: :cry: Hey, it's not just the Notre Dame boards that get crazy. The Gator ones do the same, it reaches a point even when you are winning that it's not by enough. Would you believe there are a lot of so called Gator fans down on Billy Donovan? The only two NCAA Championships the Gators have ever won, most of the visits we have ever had to the Big Dance and because we've been in the NIT the last two years, while averaging about 25 wins per season, he is becoming a failure. Some people just can't be pleased and I think all fan bases have some of them, a real vocal minority.
So true Bill. The ND AD got a letter from me this week suggesting we either play Big Ten teams with non involved conference refs or just not renew our contracts when they're up. Enough is enough.
Geez Corey you are up late a lot of nights. Hey gipper as a candidate for AD at Notre Dame if this one can't take it anymore you should have sent me the letter!!
I don't understand why gipper didn't include the PAC10 in that letter, we've been royally screwed just as much by blatantly biased calls in games with PAC10 teams.
Amen, Bill. The availability of internet bulletin boards and chat rooms has empowered an element of society that normally would be ranting to an audience of one.....the face in the mirror.
Doc we've had success against PAC teams except SC in the past years. And I don't attribute our losses to SC to anything but a talent gap. In the event that you're even a little serious I think it's time for non aligned refs doing all our games. If we can get the BT to agree then it's a precedent to negotiating with the PAC. If they don't agree and we schedule elsewhere it's also a statement of our commitment to fair officiating. Do I think my letter means anything? No. But if they get a thousand or more, it might be of some impact.
Well I do think we should put an end to using B10 refs at all the B10 games. If UM won't allow us to bring "neutral" refs to Ann Arbor then fine terminate the contract. But across college football the standard for non-conference games seems to be visitors bring their refs, the exception are those "buy" games that everybody does, I assume that when Coastal Carolina goes to Gainesville that they don't bring their guys they get SEC refs or else they don't get to come. So I'm not sure why ND would be the only major school who would dictate the refs at both home and on the road. Besides who would those refs be? Refs from other BCS conferences theoretically would have reason to screw ND, since we are competitors with their conference (which ever one they belong) for BCS games and other bowl games as well. I think you suggested MAC refs, I'm not sure why MAC officals would be better, in fact it to me since they sort of officiate in the high minors they would not be ready for the big leagues. As far as telling the B10 to hit the road if they won't agree to "neutral" refs at all games, given how we are not doing so well filling our schedule as it is, I think 3 more holes in the schedule will just make it worse. Besides refs are bad everywhere, you were at that Ole Miss game. I don't know how it looked from the stands but on TV those guys were comical or sad with the way they tossed the flag around. And don't get me started on how B12 refs let Texas Tech Lineman hold in pass protection.
I guess my 1.5 cents' worth is to say that we need to play at a level that does not let the refs determine the outcome. I know it's easier said than done, but I still recall the "glory" years of my adult life when Ara was the coach. Back then we played consistently at a level that eliminated the refs as factors in our games. That's what I hope to see again. -sigh-
I think that is the goal at every level of play and really the only way to approach it. I watched the Texans last week get hosed by an offensive pass interference call on a TD in the endzone. But they had plenty of time to overcome it, instead they fumbled the next play and sucked on offense the rest of the game. What is esp troubling though in college football is that replay which was supposed to help seems to at times to be confused, with the replay refs not knowing what the heck was the call. On the Floyd play in the endzone where he got hurt they thought they were reviewing a catch and confirmed the ruling on the field, except the ruling on the field was no catch. Then there was the robbery of IU in the UM game last week by the replay officals who apparently didn't even know the proper rule to apply to the dual possession or that they play was over once the player hit the ground. You see this all over. One thing I think fans would like is for the league/conference to admit when their refs make bad calls and to suspend more refs when they are really bad calls. We all made fun of JoePa a few years ago when he chased those refs down and made a stink over favoritism towards UM by B10 refs in conference games, but maybe he was right. JoePa for Commissioner of the REFS!!
Bill, You have no idea. Life stress stuff combined with trying to repair/come up with new marketing plans for some of our new clients is making for long days and nights.
That would be fine if we had "our" refs, but we don't. What do you think the reaction would be if we hired a group of referees to work all our road games? "ND has their own refs....etc., etc. etc." I can see some coach saying to his refs, "you know we got hosed last year when we played Noncon Tech. I hope you call the same type of game when we go to their house this year." We don't have that luxury. All we can ask for is the APPEARNCE of impartiality. You just know that that will be too much to ask for some programs.
I see that Ben Turk, the freshman, will do the punting this week in place of Eric Maust. I wonder when the last time was, if ever, that we had a freshman place kicker and punter.