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MUCH better than Byrne's Wednesday Weekly!
Posted on 9/20/12 at 1:12 pm
Posted on 9/20/12 at 1:12 pm
AD's Message
Short, sweet, and to the point...but without the condescension that you got from $Bill.
Short, sweet, and to the point...but without the condescension that you got from $Bill.
2
Posted on 9/20/12 at 1:24 pm to CGSC Lobotomy
Enjoyed the extremely positive tone. Breath of fresh air 
Posted on 9/20/12 at 1:28 pm to CGSC Lobotomy
quote:
Short, sweet, and to the point...but without the condescension that you got from $Bill.
but the condescension from Sumlin is alright? $Bill had swagger, and did a LOT for Texas A&M Athletics. Still don't understand the hate.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 1:34 pm to TeLeFaWx
I don't get the BB hate, either. As an AD, he did more than perhaps any of his predecessors in turning our school into a contender in nearly every category. Could his football results have been better and should he have been more prudent in his football contract negotiations? Absolutely. However, judging him from his entire body of work as an AD, I think he was prolific.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 2:05 pm to TbirdSpur2010
BB did an amazing job with our athletic program but that doesnt mean he cant be judged. THe tone that BB carried just rubbed people the wrong way. It was always a backhanded compliment when he gave one. We did great, but.... is what it always sounded like to me.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 2:15 pm to TbirdSpur2010
quote:
As an AD, he did more than perhaps any of his predecessors in turning our school into a contender in nearly every category.
I know most of the younger Ags don't know but this really isn't saying much. We have had a long tradition of football coaches being AD and never made a real effort to be good at other sports (that's not to say we haven't been but that got zero help from our AD)
That I remember, Jackie was the AD/Football coach and then John David Crow took over for him. I'm not sure JDC even knew we had programs besides football. While I was in school Wally Groff took over and I had a leadership class that Tim Cassidy taught and one day he had Wally give us a tour. The guy seemed smart enough but even to a 21 yo student, he seemed way over his head and had zero vision. He was an accountant and it showed.
We've done a lot of good ol boy hiring over the years and love for the university has trumped actual qualifications. Byrne was our first real AD that I'm aware of. I think he was good. But saying he did more than his predecessors is fairly feint praise
Posted on 9/20/12 at 2:20 pm to GatosLocos
Not saying BB shouldn't be judged, just trying to judge him objectively. Hardly a $Bill fanboy, mind you, just giving a little credit where it's due.
And yes, tmc, I realize the bar was low. But I still give him props for coming in and doing what a real AD is supposed to do as opposed to succumbing to the status quo (something that'd be easy to do in Aggieland's tradition-laden environment).
And yes, tmc, I realize the bar was low. But I still give him props for coming in and doing what a real AD is supposed to do as opposed to succumbing to the status quo (something that'd be easy to do in Aggieland's tradition-laden environment).
Posted on 9/20/12 at 3:29 pm to TbirdSpur2010
Bill Byrne was like the mean stepdad who came in and laid down the law, made some changes, wasn't perfect, but pulled the family out of some stupid habits and made it better for the future.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 3:45 pm to Smoke Ring
4 drunk retarded monkeys could have done a better job than Wally Groff, JDC and the predecessors.
Bill was a professional, and did many good things, but he often neglected Football and passed up the chance to renovated Kyle in 2003-2004 when approached about it. He wanted to focus on hiring a Basketball coach and a Track coach.
Bill was a professional, and did many good things, but he often neglected Football and passed up the chance to renovated Kyle in 2003-2004 when approached about it. He wanted to focus on hiring a Basketball coach and a Track coach.
This post was edited on 9/20/12 at 3:46 pm
Posted on 9/20/12 at 4:26 pm to Ball Gravy
We can be thankful he didn't renovate Kyle. He would have done it on the cheap and reduced capacity. Bill would have loved Kyle to be 75k expensive sold out seats. Football was just a cash register for him to fund the other sports.
I have no hate for Bill. He took us a long way and implemented some changes we desperately needed. Can't argue with the minor sports success or the massive improvement in Gameday atmosphere, especially pre game.
That said, it was time for him to go. He wasn't on board with the SEC and he simply didn't care enough about football. His extensions to Fran and Sherman were also unforgivable. I never minded his attitude as I remember how Wally Groff seemed to be happy that DeLoss let him sit in the same room with him. Say what you will about Bill but he wasn't afraid to mix it up with the sips. The Lone Star Showdown trophy took a lot of balls when it was started. It would be like us going to Bama and saying we wanted a rivalry trophy in terms of where the programs were at the time.
I have no hate for Bill. He took us a long way and implemented some changes we desperately needed. Can't argue with the minor sports success or the massive improvement in Gameday atmosphere, especially pre game.
That said, it was time for him to go. He wasn't on board with the SEC and he simply didn't care enough about football. His extensions to Fran and Sherman were also unforgivable. I never minded his attitude as I remember how Wally Groff seemed to be happy that DeLoss let him sit in the same room with him. Say what you will about Bill but he wasn't afraid to mix it up with the sips. The Lone Star Showdown trophy took a lot of balls when it was started. It would be like us going to Bama and saying we wanted a rivalry trophy in terms of where the programs were at the time.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 8:46 pm to aggressor
Blame the idiots that negotiated byrnes contract. They loaded it to benefit everything but football. He looked at it as a means to fund his 75k bonuses for championships in all the other sports. I'm still pissed that he was against the SEC move. It seemed like he had himself in mind the whole time as opposed to the good of the university. Let's face it, football is the single biggest recruitment tool for undergrads a university can have.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 9:28 pm to Greg09Ag
quote:
Blame the idiots that negotiated byrnes contract. They loaded it to benefit everything but football. He looked at it as a means to fund his 75k bonuses for championships in all the other sports. I'm still pissed that he was against the SEC move. It seemed like he had himself in mind the whole time as opposed to the good of the university. Let's face it, football is the single biggest recruitment tool for undergrads a university can have.
No one ever mentions the realationships he formed with boosters that gave us possibly the nicest baseball facility in the country, and the boosters adored him so much they demanded they name part of the building after him. I think he was opposed to the SEC move initially, but once the LHN was underway he knew the benefit and was for it, his personal email that have been posted numerous verified as such.
Football is a great recruitment tool, which is why the football program is the least influenced by the AD of any sport. The ADs don't even hire the head coaches, including Byrne.
Posted on 9/20/12 at 9:51 pm to Greg09Ag
I can't really think of anything I liked about $ Bill. Yes, he built the program, but any monkey with a check book would have been able to do the same.
He was an arrogant, self righteous, condescending piece of shite that would look you in the eye and tell you a bold faced lie, as he did to me once at a banquet. He told me in 2009 that TAMU would never go to the SEC because all the schools cheat and have trashy fans. I also asked him if we would ever renew the LSU series, and he said "we don't want to ever play those low life's again.". Well, $Bill, don't let the door hit your arse on the way out.
Hyman seems to be true class and a breath of fresh air!
He was an arrogant, self righteous, condescending piece of shite that would look you in the eye and tell you a bold faced lie, as he did to me once at a banquet. He told me in 2009 that TAMU would never go to the SEC because all the schools cheat and have trashy fans. I also asked him if we would ever renew the LSU series, and he said "we don't want to ever play those low life's again.". Well, $Bill, don't let the door hit your arse on the way out.
Hyman seems to be true class and a breath of fresh air!
Posted on 9/20/12 at 10:11 pm to The Balinese Club
I feel the same way about BB that I feel about RC Slocum.
He was decent but the fact hes probably the best we ever had is shameful.
He was decent but the fact hes probably the best we ever had is shameful.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 9:05 am to LegacyAggie
Agree on the RC analogy in a way, I respect them both but was glad both of them went. RC certainly didn't build from scratch though, he got the keys to a ferrari and kept it running for a good while. Byrne inherited crap. Sure he had a checkbook but he also had to fight some really tough battles because "things were always done that way". He broke that mentality which was HUGE.
I will say that after a few years on the job I thought RC and Byrne were absolutely fantastic and as good as anyone out there and then they both got complacent, entitled, and resentful and found their way to the curb. I feel very optimistic though that Hyman is no Fran.
I will say that after a few years on the job I thought RC and Byrne were absolutely fantastic and as good as anyone out there and then they both got complacent, entitled, and resentful and found their way to the curb. I feel very optimistic though that Hyman is no Fran.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 9:16 am to aggressor
RC rode Jackie's coattails and benefited from brain farts that came from the Texas and OU coaching searches of the late 80s and 90s.
Once Texas and OU found their saviors, RC was toast. It didn't help that RC didn't have the support needed to compete. Thanks Wally.
Once Texas and OU found their saviors, RC was toast. It didn't help that RC didn't have the support needed to compete. Thanks Wally.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 9:17 am to Ball Gravy
I still think R.C. should have been fired over what he did during the 1996 season. It was very close to what Bobby Petrino did this past offseason.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 10:12 am to Ball Gravy
RC had a cadre of old Ags that absolutely loved him and still do. He was the ultimate "good ole boy". Firing him in '96 was almost impossible when you look at what his record was up to that point, though I agree it would have been for the best. He actually righted the ship but couldn't keep it.
RC's biggest problem was he wouldn't adapt. He absolutely despised the internet and didn't understand it. He wouldn't put out information. He would get Aggies to attack other Aggies if they dared to criticize him. He just didn't get it. Mack OTOH had "Mackbrown.com" and embraced it. The real issue though we he didn't ever win "the big one" and he had way too many inexcusable meltdown losses. In his mind RC was the Joe Pa of A&M (prior to the scandal) and expected to be treated as such. Problem is he never won a New Years Day bowl much less a NC, most of his record was against a SWC that resembled the WAC today, and he inherited a program that was already on top.
He had a very valid point on facilities holding him back but he deserves part of the blame imo. He bitched about it but he didn't get anything changed. For all the bad that Fran did he went out and found new donors to fund his projects. Jackie certainly knew how to go in and get the money folks to listen and drop coin to get Kyle redone and Netum Steed which was the best in the country when it was built by a mile.
RC just said "I need this" and then complained because he couldn't get it. I mean seriously, he let Wally Groff push him around? I don't hate Wally as he is a good man and a good Aggie but a forceful personality he was not. RC needed to sell it. Instead it took until John David took a tour of the new facilities at Texas to get it done but by then it was too late and we were behind. They ended up rushing and going the Bright building half arse and designed it to what donors liked instead of what recruits like. RC just didn't take the ball the way Jackie did or Sumlin is doing now.
This kind of leads to a huge frustration I have that a lot of Aggies have. This perception that somehow Texas and OU are better and have always been better. It just isn't true. We just shite the bed with a series of bad decisions that continued to put us in a hole while Texas and OU simply were rolling 7's and 11's. I remember looking at the paper year after year in the late 80s and early '90s and it was just a given that A&M dominated. The recruiting rankings were all A&M with us getting the pick of whomever we wanted. The All SWC Teams basically had an Aggie at every position just divided between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Teams. Beating Texas was a given, I'll never forget the feeling of shock when we lost the '90 game on that freaking 2 point conversion that they broadcast our play from the huddle. I really remember the '95 game when I couldn't believe we actually let Texas win at Kyle. It's as though the sips line of "oh, they were just cheating" has washed all of that away and far too many Aggies believe it or they were too young to remember it.
A&M can and will dominate the State of Texas again, our biggest enemy is ourselves. The reason I am so optimistic now is for the first time in a LONG time we actually have everyone pushing in the same direction from the BoR, the Administration, the AD, the donors, and the coach. They may not agree on everything but they are all committed to the end goal and winning and doing whatever they need to do to get there. That is why we will succeed and Texas is about to hit "7 years of lean" because they don't have that unity of purpose.
RC's biggest problem was he wouldn't adapt. He absolutely despised the internet and didn't understand it. He wouldn't put out information. He would get Aggies to attack other Aggies if they dared to criticize him. He just didn't get it. Mack OTOH had "Mackbrown.com" and embraced it. The real issue though we he didn't ever win "the big one" and he had way too many inexcusable meltdown losses. In his mind RC was the Joe Pa of A&M (prior to the scandal) and expected to be treated as such. Problem is he never won a New Years Day bowl much less a NC, most of his record was against a SWC that resembled the WAC today, and he inherited a program that was already on top.
He had a very valid point on facilities holding him back but he deserves part of the blame imo. He bitched about it but he didn't get anything changed. For all the bad that Fran did he went out and found new donors to fund his projects. Jackie certainly knew how to go in and get the money folks to listen and drop coin to get Kyle redone and Netum Steed which was the best in the country when it was built by a mile.
RC just said "I need this" and then complained because he couldn't get it. I mean seriously, he let Wally Groff push him around? I don't hate Wally as he is a good man and a good Aggie but a forceful personality he was not. RC needed to sell it. Instead it took until John David took a tour of the new facilities at Texas to get it done but by then it was too late and we were behind. They ended up rushing and going the Bright building half arse and designed it to what donors liked instead of what recruits like. RC just didn't take the ball the way Jackie did or Sumlin is doing now.
This kind of leads to a huge frustration I have that a lot of Aggies have. This perception that somehow Texas and OU are better and have always been better. It just isn't true. We just shite the bed with a series of bad decisions that continued to put us in a hole while Texas and OU simply were rolling 7's and 11's. I remember looking at the paper year after year in the late 80s and early '90s and it was just a given that A&M dominated. The recruiting rankings were all A&M with us getting the pick of whomever we wanted. The All SWC Teams basically had an Aggie at every position just divided between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Teams. Beating Texas was a given, I'll never forget the feeling of shock when we lost the '90 game on that freaking 2 point conversion that they broadcast our play from the huddle. I really remember the '95 game when I couldn't believe we actually let Texas win at Kyle. It's as though the sips line of "oh, they were just cheating" has washed all of that away and far too many Aggies believe it or they were too young to remember it.
A&M can and will dominate the State of Texas again, our biggest enemy is ourselves. The reason I am so optimistic now is for the first time in a LONG time we actually have everyone pushing in the same direction from the BoR, the Administration, the AD, the donors, and the coach. They may not agree on everything but they are all committed to the end goal and winning and doing whatever they need to do to get there. That is why we will succeed and Texas is about to hit "7 years of lean" because they don't have that unity of purpose.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 10:18 am to CGSC Lobotomy
quote:
I still think R.C. should have been fired over what he did during the 1996 season. It was very close to what Bobby Petrino did this past offseason.
Yep, RC wasn't a saint off the field.
Well said on that last paragraph aggressor. I don't feel Sumlin's project is a 5 year project. Three at worst. We are going to have it going in the right direction.
Posted on 9/21/12 at 10:48 am to aggressor
quote:
This kind of leads to a huge frustration I have that a lot of Aggies have. This perception that somehow Texas and OU are better and have always been better. It just isn't true. We just shite the bed with a series of bad decisions that continued to put us in a hole while Texas and OU simply were rolling 7's and 11's. I remember looking at the paper year after year in the late 80s and early '90s and it was just a given that A&M dominated. The recruiting rankings were all A&M with us getting the pick of whomever we wanted. The All SWC Teams basically had an Aggie at every position just divided between 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Teams. Beating Texas was a given, I'll never forget the feeling of shock when we lost the '90 game on that freaking 2 point conversion that they broadcast our play from the huddle. I really remember the '95 game when I couldn't believe we actually let Texas win at Kyle. It's as though the sips line of "oh, they were just cheating" has washed all of that away and far too many Aggies believe it or they were too young to remember it.
This is the most frustrating thing ever. As much as Jason Cook frustrates me, I love that he has a focused effort to constantly market us. People feel this way, and they shouldn't. This is why I love the SEC move more than anything; it gives us a clean slate to erase the last decade and how it marginalized us.
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