Time to can Orsini?

[Wuba]

With a 15,000 fan attendance for an SMU game, why even get a coach like JJ?

JJ was highered by Orsini to bring back winning but the dynamics and economics of competing in D1A football has changed drastically. You cannot run a winning D1A football program with a 15.000 fan attendance.

You have to compete at the top of the CUSA. Best to compete with the Boises, Utahs. BYUs, Fresnos, etc. Hawaii averages 30,000 to 45,000 per game.

The SMU model will not work. How can a football program like SMU afford a $2 million coach and have only 15,000 fans? The economic model cannot support this in its first year!

Only billion dollar donors can sustain it. So get the free tickets and fill the stadium NOW!

If the only sentence in your post had read: "Bringing in horses to stand in the corner?" you might have had hundreds of replies agreeing with you.

[Dutch]

We have a billion dollar donor. Last name is "Pickens."

Gerry J. Ford too. his name's on the bldg.

($1.27B i believe)

[CalallenStang]

We have a billion dollar donor. Last name is "Pickens."

Gerry J. Ford too. his name's on the bldg.

($1.27B i believe)

Hunt, Cox, etc. etc., but O-S-N's post was making fun of the geldings.

[hawaiisashimi_smu]

We have a billion dollar donor. Last name is "Pickens."

Gerry J. Ford too. his name's on the bldg.

($1.27B i believe)

That is right. I forgot about Gerry J Ford. He was a billionaire that went way back for SMU. But T Boone Pickens came in recently. He even met with JJ.

So Orsini has two billionaires. Lets not forget President Bush's second Pesidential Library. SMU has money bleeding out of its ears!!!

WTF is Orsini doing with those billionaires????

If JJ makes a bowl bid and a 8-4 finish, Orsini better get his act together asap!

[RGV Pony]

I don't think T Boone has or will give SMU a dime. We asked them for the horses, not the other way around.

[CalallenStang]

We have a billion dollar donor. Last name is "Pickens."

Gerry J. Ford too. his name's on the bldg.

($1.27B i believe)

That is right. I forgot about Gerry J Ford. He was a billionaire that went way back for SMU. But T Boone Pickens came in recently. He even met with JJ.

So Orsini has two billionaires. Lets not forget President Bush's second Pesidential Library. SMU has money bleeding out of its ears!!!

WTF is Orsini doing with those billionaires????

If JJ makes a bowl bid and a 8-4 finish, Orsini better get his act together asap!

Many more than 2 billionaires. Ray Hunt, Ed Cox, etc. etc. etc.

[smu diamond m]

Dedman, too. Richest man in golf...

[Bergermeister]

ya'll

Speling Be twoday aftur skool.

[EastStang]

Speaking of Spelling, although he died, we also had Aaron who was a Cheerleader at SMU when he attended.

[peruna81]

I believe Orsisni has not only done his job, but exceeded expectations. He has brought attention to an otherwise moribund program, and brought in two coaches that are at the least on the national radar.

He has not been able to sustain soccer and swimming success ( coaches retained in one case ), but those are not the sports that have the potential to be revenue-producers like FB/BB. The last time SMU had both in the black ( Collins/Bliss era, I believe ?) there had been YEARS of success and buildup ( MustangMania ) to benefit from that kind of promotion.

Our fans are like this FB team in some ways...we are learning how to deal with winning ( ie we now complain about officiating like other 'winning' programs, and fuss about why we didn't finish off Navy and WSU ). This is very much a work in progress...and we ( and Orsini ) are/is making progress. Fans of SMU ( and Dallas ) will return after they see that this is sustained year to year...

My personal plumbline will be whether FB and BB will continue to progress to CHAMPIONSHIPS, rather than just winning seasons.


BTW, glad you are a fan from afar, Hawaiisashimi_smu...hope you will be one of the 15K in the stands at some time in the future.

[SMU 86]

Lets not forget that Orsini had Pickins as in billionaire T. Boone Pickins, and Copeland had nobody. Getting an indoor facility built in three years and getting 25,000 fans attending SMU football fans with billionaire money?

Orsini? JJ is making it happen.

WTF is Orsini doing to get the indoor facility built and more fans in the seat.

JJ raises the bar and it should do the same for Orsini.

You expect JJ to do that by himself?

If so? WTF is Orsini supposed to do?

JJ was hired to produce a CUSA championship team. WTF was Orsini hired to do? Sit back and let JJ build the stadium attendance???? It takes more to make a winning program. Look at the Boise model.
So what do ya'll expect after JJ leaves? Settle for 15,000 attendance?

Seriously, JJ is about building programs. Not just winning. Winning is not enough. Winning will not build only a program. Building a winning program that builds attendance and attracts a winning environment that will bring in better recruits is a legacy that JJ wants to do.

15.000 fans for a winning program? And all that billionaire money? You reallly want to recruit that????

The more JJ produces means the more Orsini needs to produce. What did Orsini do besides hire JJ???

Give me a freakin break.

You are really starting to sound like an SMU fan.

Just getting a proven coach in here is a massive improvement performed by Orsini. Us sitting around talking about 15,000 fans at this point in the season IS an improvement. Chill. Things are on the way up, attendance will be too.

People in Dallas do not bandwagon a 4-4 team like we were heading into Rice. They bandwagon a winner. Just give it some time.

I think Couchem is right.

[Scoops]

SMU is a private school so they can make "adjustments" faster than the State of Hawaii which is one of the reasons why JJ left Hawaii.

Being a newcomer to SMU fandom, I guess you get a free pass here, but I bet you'd be stunned by the insane amount of red tape that goes on on the Hilltop. I know I am.

[High Horse]

Seems like there was a DMN article about a week or two ago that TCU is having trouble filling their stadium. Patterson was making some sort of appeal to get the fans out and support the team. If TCU can't do it how do you expect SMU to coming off the record we've had for 20+ years.

[peruna81]

I would be happy to be facing the challenges that TCU faces at this moment...hate the Toads with a red/blue passion, but I would have SMU to aspire to reach the 'challenge' that they face today.

That said, I don't see the TCU AD bringing in non-alum luminaries ( Aikman, Staubach, T. Boone, Jerry Jones, et al ) to be associated/support the school, even if it is only donating a psuedo mascot sans 'nads ( can you do that to a horned lizard ? ).

It is about buzz as well as butts in the seats...JJ is doing his part, as is the mafia boss.

[fivemon]

i would say orsini was brought in to do one thing and that is the same thing as turner....raise money..that is why we have a top practice facility for basketball and soon for golf...