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Post by hccape on May 15, 2019 11:09:51 GMT -5
Nice to hear mentoring coaches and giving them the tools to succeed. Ranked #1 in APR is a big deal. I was impressed with him and the things he said. Competing and winning are also part of the formula and he recognized it and said as much. He has a summer to gear up. Nice job HC.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 15, 2019 11:23:02 GMT -5
Chu, it would seem that this press conference was a Rorschach test for everyone. Yes, many viewers seem to have heard what they wanted to hear. Short on specifics, but he did say he wanted to improve the game-day experience for football. No follow-up as to what that might mean in terms of tailgating. Also, try to get students more engaged, and start filling more of the seats.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 15, 2019 11:27:33 GMT -5
Here's one way to look at this: Realistically, like Pine before him, this is a stepping-stone job for Blossom. And that's not a bad thing.... if he has a five-year run of meaningful accomplishments that he can turn into another gig, and leave HC's athletic department better than he found it, so be it. But the question is: over the next five years, what are those meaningful accomplishments? W-L records aside, you can see what Pine had to pitch on his resume to AFA: construction of Luth, dramatic expansion of Crusader Athletic Fund, signficant investment/modernization in marketing, operations, etc. He probably (not totally unreasonably) hand-waved the W-L issues, saying that it takes longer to turn a battleship, the infrastructure upgrades are just starting to bear fruit, etc. (Again, you can debate whether that's all spin or not, but this is the pitch Pine would make to AFA. And obviously, AFA bought it.) So, back to Blossom: with Pine's infrastructure work already baked in, five years from now what is Blossom's pitch to his potential next boss? It kind of has to be a dramatic improvement in on-field success/conference championships, right? There isn't likely to be a new capital project even announced in that time frame. Sure, he can keep advancing in the fund-raising area, but that's just expected.... not transformational. His path to having a transformative impact on HC is to change a campus-wide culture of losing to one of winning. If he does that, and he's gone in five years to go try and do the same thing, at, say, Northwestern or Rutgers or Maryland or UConn or BC or whatever... I think we'd all take that, right? I think this is a very astute assessment. NP had to shake the money tree, albeit knowing beforehand that the money was on the tree. DR was unable or incapable of shaking the tree, so he was gone.
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Post by bringbackcaro on May 15, 2019 11:40:41 GMT -5
.... His path to having a transformative impact on HC is to change a campus-wide culture of losing to one of winning. If he does that, and he's gone in five years to go try and do the same thing, at, say, Northwestern or Rutgers or Maryland or UConn or BC or whatever... I think we'd all take that, right? If that was the case, I'd take it in a heartbeat. I'm all for hiring up-and-coming talent who will use HC as a stepping stone, IF they are actually going to be spending their time at Holy Cross making us better and not just focusing on enhancing their personal brand with cosmetic changes. Rising talent who is "all in" for HC during however long his time is on The Hill: YES Carpet bagger solely focused on his own brand: NO Here's to hoping Blossom is the former. It would be a welcomed change.
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 15, 2019 12:20:23 GMT -5
The search committee was headed by John Mahoney, former chair of the BoT. He is no longer on the BoT, nor is he a a member of the advisory committee to the BoT. ____________________________ ........................... If John Mahoney is the same fellow who used to sit near me at the Hart, I don't think GL could be disrespected in any way during this process. I posted earlier that GL and Ronnie the younger would be strong choices and if not them I would prefer an AD at a D-2 or D-3 school who had been in charge while the Athletics program turned completely around as opposed to a D-1 Ass. AD who was ready for his own gig. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, John J. Mahoney, Jr., class of 1973. Former CFO and vice-chair of Staples, Inc. The co-founder of Staples was the late Tom Stemberg, who was a member of the Cornerstone Society at HC, and who endowed Tommy Amaker's head coaching position at Harvard. Stemberg, and several others, were instrumental in bringing Amaker to Harvard, .... and keeping him there. I would say Mahoney knows a bit about interviewing, selection criteria, and candidate qualifications and credentials.
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Post by crusader12 on May 15, 2019 12:25:09 GMT -5
Chu, it would seem that this press conference was a Rorschach test for everyone. Yes, many viewers seem to have heard what they wanted to hear. Short on specifics, but he did say he wanted to improve the game-day experience for football. No follow-up as to what that might mean in terms of tailgating. Also, try to get students more engaged, and start filling more of the seats. First order of business to improve football tailgating. FIRE RSIG!
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Post by gks on May 15, 2019 12:32:12 GMT -5
Yes, many viewers seem to have heard what they wanted to hear. Short on specifics, but he did say he wanted to improve the game-day experience for football. No follow-up as to what that might mean in terms of tailgating. Also, try to get students more engaged, and start filling more of the seats. First order of business to improve football tailgating. FIRE RSIG! And sell beer at Fitton and the Hart.
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Post by KY Crusader 75 on May 15, 2019 12:48:11 GMT -5
Clearly, this press conference told us everything we need to know
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Post by bigfan on May 15, 2019 13:00:42 GMT -5
I am willing to give the new AD time to improve the sports at HC. I would have asked him what his feeling is about joining Hockey East.
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Post by rgs318 on May 15, 2019 13:25:05 GMT -5
Sad to see such apathetic press there. They are asked for ANY questions and there wa time for more...but no more were asked. That apathy among "professional" re[orters is truly unfortunate and imight be seen as one more part of a losing culture...for now.
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Post by longsuffering on May 15, 2019 14:47:38 GMT -5
Here's one way to look at this: Realistically, like Pine before him, this is a stepping-stone job for Blossom. And that's not a bad thing.... if he has a five-year run of meaningful accomplishments that he can turn into another gig, and leave HC's athletic department better than he found it, so be it. But the question is: over the next five years, what are those meaningful accomplishments? W-L records aside, you can see what Pine had to pitch on his resume to AFA: construction of Luth, dramatic expansion of Crusader Athletic Fund, signficant investment/modernization in marketing, operations, etc. He probably (not totally unreasonably) hand-waved the W-L issues, saying that it takes longer to turn a battleship, the infrastructure upgrades are just starting to bear fruit, etc. (Again, you can debate whether that's all spin or not, but this is the pitch Pine would make to AFA. And obviously, AFA bought it.) So, back to Blossom: with Pine's infrastructure work already baked in, five years from now what is Blossom's pitch to his potential next boss? It kind of has to be a dramatic improvement in on-field success/conference championships, right? There isn't likely to be a new capital project even announced in that time frame. Sure, he can keep advancing in the fund-raising area, but that's just expected.... not transformational. His path to having a transformative impact on HC is to change a campus-wide culture of losing to one of winning. If he does that, and he's gone in five years to go try and do the same thing, at, say, Northwestern or Rutgers or Maryland or UConn or BC or whatever... I think we'd all take that, right? I think this is a very astute assessment. NP had to shake the money tree, albeit knowing beforehand that the money was on the tree. DR was unable or incapable of shaking the tree, so he was gone. That's the first time I've thought of that shake the money tree concept PP as I was not a regular on Crossports during DR's tenure. It makes sense though because if DR wasn't hired with that emphasis (no CAF when DR hired) it would be harder to ramp that up than someone hired with that background, skill set and mandate. Obviously DR's management skills were satisfactory because he was asked to stay on for months after he "resigned" instead of appointing an interim. Unfortunately as your research shows, money is still the mother's milk of D-1 sports so I hope ADMB has fundraising skills and background along with his other skills because with a small enrollment the contribution from tuition and fees is less than other D-1 schools with larger enrollments.
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Post by CHC8485 on May 15, 2019 15:20:07 GMT -5
Was at the press conference and I do not know how it played on the internet - truncated or not - but here are a few quick impressions/observatiopns
- ADMB came across as quite humble, comfortable, and relaxed.
- Room was packed - standing room - with HC staff (athletic & otherwise), alums, student athletes. A good turn-out even with today being the last day of finals and seniors either at or on the way to the Cape.
- ADMB had what I presume were prepared note/remarks while at the podium, but did not appear to be reading them directly. He'd glance at them and then address the audience. So he either had them pretty well memorized or he was speaking slightly extemporaneously from bullet points. I liked that and contributed to the comfortable/relaxed vibe.
- His kids were adorable and quite well behaved. Barely a reaction (certainly nothing audible) when he told the Disney World story.
- Not an impression so much, but a cool fact that Fr. B highlighted - ADMB went to Northeastern on an academic scholarship and was a walk-on for the basketball team. After Fr. B rattled off the basketball accolades he received at Northeastern, added a nice touch by quipping - quite a walk-on.
- Pretty standard in athletic press conferences nowadays, particularly for an administrator/GM type hire, but his answer to the first question - basically I'm going to take the first six months and figure out what needs to be done to achieve the vision he articulated in his prepared remarks - kind of short circuited any further specific questions like what about Hockey East or the women's basketball coach. So honestly I'm not sure what more could have been asked that would not have drawn a non-response answer.
- Gordie Lockbaum was there, spoke to many folks including ADMB after the introduction, so if he wanted the job, he does not appear to harbor any ill-will that they did not choose him.
All in all a good start capped off by ADMB's recognition that the work starts now, "I think you made the right decision, but it's up to me to prove that you're right."
As to what to work on first ... pardon me while I change into my grouchy old man hat ...
The Gray #19 football jersey used for the photo ops is a place to start.
The College's color is Royal Purple.
I'm all for alternate jerseys and accent colors, particularly if it get's the kids excited. But for publicity photos, standard uniforms, and traveling gear, can we PLEASE start using our college's awesome and distinctive ROYAL PURPLE as a center piece of the brand???
PLEASE.
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Post by Sons of Vaval on May 15, 2019 15:33:18 GMT -5
Surprised Fr. B knows what a โwalk-onโ is.
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Post by sader1970 on May 15, 2019 16:04:59 GMT -5
8485, thanks for the summary and observations as I couldn't get the actual video until 5-7 minutes after 10:00 am despite being logged into the site. Then after about 2 minutes into Q&A, lost it and was unable to recover it, so missed much of what you wrote. Again, thanks.
Agree, purple is the color not gray, black or any other. I hope ADMB "gets" that and going forward we see no more faux pas by whoever chose the non-purple today.
I am cautiously optimistic.
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Post by Crucis#1 on May 15, 2019 16:54:13 GMT -5
The replay is available on Stadium.
Allowing for the excess time at the beginning of the video, the replay runs without any problems from the start of the press conference to the end. The camera did not pan the auditorium, so I did not have a sense of the number in attendance.
Thank you for the in person account.
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Post by possum on May 15, 2019 17:04:32 GMT -5
Good luck to AD Blossom, happy to see his basketball background hope he's a big fan of rebounding and defense.
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Post by rgs318 on May 15, 2019 17:28:31 GMT -5
8485, thanks for the summary and observations as I couldn't get the actual video until 5-7 minutes after 10:00 am despite being logged into the site. Then after about 2 minutes into Q&A, lost it and was unable to recover it, so missed much of what you wrote. Again, thanks. Agree, purple is the color not gray, black or any other. I hope ADMB "gets" that and going forward we see no more faux pas by whoever chose the non-purple today. I am cautiously optimistic. ADMBs bold PURPLE tie made a nice statement. Not sure about the checkered pocket handkerchief.
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Post by HC13 on May 15, 2019 17:56:33 GMT -5
Here's one way to look at this: Realistically, like Pine before him, this is a stepping-stone job for Blossom. And that's not a bad thing.... if he has a five-year run of meaningful accomplishments that he can turn into another gig, and leave HC's athletic department better than he found it, so be it. But the question is: over the next five years, what are those meaningful accomplishments? W-L records aside, you can see what Pine had to pitch on his resume to AFA: construction of Luth, dramatic expansion of Crusader Athletic Fund, signficant investment/modernization in marketing, operations, etc. He probably (not totally unreasonably) hand-waved the W-L issues, saying that it takes longer to turn a battleship, the infrastructure upgrades are just starting to bear fruit, etc. (Again, you can debate whether that's all spin or not, but this is the pitch Pine would make to AFA. And obviously, AFA bought it.) So, back to Blossom: with Pine's infrastructure work already baked in, five years from now what is Blossom's pitch to his potential next boss? It kind of has to be a dramatic improvement in on-field success/conference championships, right? There isn't likely to be a new capital project even announced in that time frame. Sure, he can keep advancing in the fund-raising area, but that's just expected.... not transformational. His path to having a transformative impact on HC is to change a campus-wide culture of losing to one of winning. If he does that, and he's gone in five years to go try and do the same thing, at, say, Northwestern or Rutgers or Maryland or UConn or BC or whatever... I think we'd all take that, right? I think this is a very astute assessment. NP had to shake the money tree, albeit knowing beforehand that the money was on the tree. DR was unable or incapable of shaking the tree, so he was gone. How odd, don't know who was shaking the tree, DR or someone else but I believe that over 80% of the money for the Luth was in the bank before Nate was on campus
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 15, 2019 19:23:26 GMT -5
I think this is a very astute assessment. NP had to shake the money tree, albeit knowing beforehand that the money was on the tree. DR was unable or incapable of shaking the tree, so he was gone. How odd, don't know who was shaking the tree, DR or someone else but I believe that over 80% of the money for the Luth was in the bank before Nate was on campus I was told by several of TPTB at GU while Fr. B was still there, that they were told that much of the money for what would become Luth / Hart was promised. GU was envious (my characterization) because they were struggling, at that time, to finance what would become the John Thompson basketball practice center. This was, for HC, a large, expensive project, and I surmised that benefactors wanted someone at the helm who had experience in large capital projects. I would have to go back and look whether the CEO of Skanska had joined the BoT at about that time. A period when the then AD couldn't get the Hart sound system right, and HC was negotiating with the Dept of Education on a Title IX complaint, much of which centered on the poor condition of the softball field. ________________________ NP redesigned the new field house, and Skanska oversaw the general construction, with Bond being the general contractor. Skanska has also been involved in the Center for the Arts and Creativity.. .
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Post by matunuck on May 15, 2019 21:25:07 GMT -5
We can dump on DR all we want but he was the one who penned a detailed report to the BOT that our facilities were pathetic and they needed to act.
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Post by td128 on May 16, 2019 4:46:27 GMT -5
I had the pleasure of attending the press conference yesterday. I had the greater pleasure of meeting and greeting our new AD Marcus Blossom and his wife after the presser. I came away very impressed. Some adjectives I would use based on my initial impression: humble, personable, grounded, motivated, faith-filled, smart.
A staff member at HC who met ADMB in the interviewing process informed me that Marcus is the youngest of 8 children from a family raised on the south side of Chicago. When I met him personally, I told him his parents should be very proud as they clearly raised a fine man. I also made a point of telling his wife Karli how much we welcomed supporting her husband and his and our collective success.
Half a lifetime ago while in his college years at Northeastern, this commentary was written in the Chicago Tribune about our new AD:
EX-RICH SOUTH STAR WORKING BOTH SIDES OF THE HYPHEN
(https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1999-03-28-9903280346-story.html) Barry Temkin CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Marcus Blossom is not your average college basketball star.
Your average college basketball star is not going to school virtually for free even though he has never received an athletic scholarship.
Blossom, however, is on a full academic scholarship at Northeastern University in Boston. The former Rich South standout really is a student-athlete rather than the other way around, and he has the numbers--a 3.5 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale--to prove it.
His numbers on the court aren't bad either. The sophomore guard led Northeastern in scoring at 16.3 points a game and was an America East all-conference third-team pick.
It all adds up to a spot on the five-man District I academic All-American team.
"It really is a fabulous story of kind of overcoming the odds," Rich South coach Fred Jacobeit said. "Not just making the team as a walk-on, but being the leading scorer and one of the top players in the conference."
Jacobeit never could understand why the odds were stacked against Blossom in the first place, not after he averaged 20 points a game as a senior for a Sweet 16 team and was an all-area selection.
"I felt he was as good as anyone I ever had," said Jacobeit, who as a Rich Central assistant coached Kendall Gill. "I felt certain he was a legitimate (NCAA) Division I player."
But recruiters all but ignored Blossom. Perhaps all they saw was just another 6-foot-2-inch guard who lacked highlight-film athleticism.
Too bad they couldn't peer inside Blossom and see the drive to succeed that burned in his psyche. Too bad they couldn't measure his work ethic the way you could his vertical leap.
The inattention surprised Blossom, who figured if you worked hard in class and the gym you'd be OK.
"I thought everyone got a scholarship if they played and were decent," he said with a laugh. "I didn't know how hard it was."
Or how frustrating. Blossom never got much more than form letters from recruiters and relatively few phone calls. His lone official visit was to Wagner College in New York, whose coaches offered him an athletic scholarship.
Many players would have grabbed that offer, happy to play Division I ball anywhere they could. But Blossom's dream included more than Division I competition; it also included a top-notch business school.
He was the rare student-athlete who wouldn't compromise either side of that hyphen. He was also the rare student-athlete who didn't have to.
That's because Blossom's straight-A average meant not only acceptance to a good school but a hefty academic scholarship package as well.
He enrolled at Northeastern because it was solid academically and would pay all his expenses except books, and also because coach Rudy Keeling promised a fair shot at playing time.
Blossom already had been accepted at the school when Jacobeit told Keeling he was probably getting an unexpected bonus. Once practice started, Keeling saw that for himself.
"As we scrimmaged, I knew he belonged," Keeling said. "A lot of times, walk-ons fill out a roster, but Marcus was a guy who would demand playing time."
Blossom worked his way into the playing rotation immediately, settling in as Keeling's top reserve and scoring 6.6 points a game.
Last summer Blossom worked a full shift in outdoor maintenance at Rich South, then lifted weights and shot baskets in the gym. He returned to Boston and became the only Northeastern player to start every game this season.
Some young athletes have the unfortunate notion that succeeding in class somehow reduces one's chances to succeed in sports. Blossom, however, is proof that starring in one area helps you star in the other.
"He's a young guy who has never sacrificed academics for athletics, and his hard work in the classroom just translated into making it easy for him to do the extra hard work on the court," Keeling said.
"He's a wonder. When we're on a bus or plane, he has his books out and he's studying, and when we get to a place to practice, he's the first one on the court."
Blossom is driven not only by his innate desire to succeed but also by a need to prove he can play Division I basketball at a high level. He has made that point already but refuses either to gloat or coast.
"It makes me feel all right, but I still have a lot to prove," said Blossom, who wants to be his conference's player of the year, lead his team--which was 10-18 this season--to the NCAA tournament and perhaps even play pro basketball.
And if he can't play pro ball, perhaps the finance major will one day just buy a team. Jacobeit, for one, wouldn't rule it out.
"Marcus is going to be a tremendous success whatever he does," Jacobeit said. "He has the ability to persevere through all types of adversity. When he sets his mind to something, he's the type of person who will pursue that goal until he sees it through to fruition."
Welcome to Holy Cross, Marcus!!
LET'S WIN!!
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Post by Non Alum Dave on May 16, 2019 5:50:40 GMT -5
Welcome, Marcus, we all hope you are a giant success at HC! Just a couple of requests from this humble non-alum, if you wouldn't mind prioritizing: 1. Bring back Iggy 2. Get Jay's stand back in the Hart 3. Reach out to cfrivals and get a Rocco's Donuts satellite stand upstairs at the Hart 4. Oh, and above all - organize a posse, go find Super Fan Ronnie, apologize on behalf of the powers that be that made him unwelcome at the Hart, and get him back! No coincidence that wins at the Hart have been much harder to come by since he left!!
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Post by Pakachoag Phreek on May 16, 2019 6:00:53 GMT -5
We can dump on DR all we want but he was the one who penned a detailed report to the BOT that our facilities were pathetic and they needed to act. Its not that DR did nothing, because Fr. K field, swimming pool renovation, the replacement outdoor track and field hockey field were all done during his watch. But the new field house was to be like this: Middlebury's new field house, designed by Sasaki (who designed Luth) ______________________________________ JT's article in the T&G.www.telegram.com/news/20190515/holy-cross-hopes-for-growth-under-new-athletic-director-marcus-blossom
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Post by sader1970 on May 16, 2019 6:25:32 GMT -5
NAD, you have your priorities straight! ๐๐
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Post by alum on May 16, 2019 6:44:25 GMT -5
Welcome, Marcus, we all hope you are a giant success at HC! Just a couple of requests from this humble non-alum, if you wouldn't mind prioritizing: 1. Bring back Iggy 2. Get Jay's stand back in the Hart 3. Reach out to cfrivals and get a Rocco's Donuts satellite stand upstairs at the Hart 4. Oh, and above all - organize a posse, go find Super Fan Ronnie, apologize on behalf of the powers that be that made him unwelcome at the Hart, and get him back! No coincidence that wins at the Hart have been much harder to come by since he left!! I don't even know what a couple of these references are about, but Dave does get it. College sports are supposed to be fun for the athletes, their fellow students, alumni, and fans. Winning and a great game day experience will help with that. Good luck to our new AD and his coaching and administrative staff.
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