A Few Unsolicited Ideas for the Athletic Department

I've never been a person who likes to complain without giving solutions to a problem.  So here are a few ideas that Mr. Burke and Co. could implement that might invigorate the fan base and create some revenue in the process:

Alumni Paint Crew
Outside of the PC, Mackey is a dead zone to a large extent.  BUT, not all alums want to sit on their hands during games.

Charge $30 more for the basketball season ticket in two upper arena sections.  In these sections, everyone gets a t-shirt similar to the real student sections, and more importantly, people won't get in trouble for standing in this area; it'll actually be encouraged. this won't give the Athletic Department much more revenue, but it might motivate younger alums to be more involved.

JPC 2.0
Giving a couple hundred dollars each year is not something everyone wants to or can do. But, giving $25-$50 is a bit of a no-brainer.

Give it a clever name, actually market the idea, give a sticker for your car and offer special buy one/get drink deals at certain games for members that no one else gets.

Keep the Purdue Kids Club...promote it more
Love this idea...LBD is a member...he loves it too; it's very well done.  Hats off to everyone that's involved.

Make it fun
Have a stage set up away from Slayter that has a band (not a marching band) playing before and after games in Cary Quad, or some place else near by.  Allow this to work with traditions that already exist not against them so old people don't get angry at the new-fangled music.

Near the same area, have a place where kids can have their picture taken with a cutout of J Money or Coach Hazell, try on real equipment and participate in contests that win them promotional products donated by Wendy's, Puccinis, McDonalds, etc.

Stop Eating Your Own
Sites like this are free advertising to the loyal, core fans.  Instead of kicking us in the teeth, work with us to help promote upcoming events that you want people to know about via Twitter, FB, email.

Use What You've Got
Every college has a corps of built-in labor near by; students.  Create an Athletic Department internship office that gives an hour of credit and a resume builder that can help make this stuff a reality. Utilize RHIT, Sophomore business students or *gasp* LA majors like communications to help get the word out and make things happen.

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I'm no marketing guy...but I am a consumer.  Often it seems like the business of Purdue athletics is handled like any other business...but it's not any other business.  Alums, fans and students want to feel connected; don't just want to be consumers or clients, but family.  They especially don't want to feel like adversaries, but I think many of us have felt that way in the last few years.

This summer's alumni game last summer was an event in which the athletic department seemingly got "it"...sure it was blazing hot, but it was fun and had some specialness to it.

We'll all be more apt to part with our money if we feel like we're part of something bigger.

Quick Hit: A Look at Brees' Contract

This is a fun game...let's try to figure out how much Drew Brees $100,000,000 contract is really worth, shall we?

-Alright, let's pretend he'll be taxed 35% as a baseline (just to make it simple)...now my favorite Boiler of all time only starts with $65,000,000 (wah-wah).

-Let's also pretend that he doesn't have a penny to his name (which isn't close to true)...so he's starting out at zero.

-The King of New Orleans is currently 33 years old...and the average life expectancy is 78.2 years (it's less for NFL players, but since he's not a lineman, his life will probably be near the US average).  So, let's say Brees has around 45 years left to live.

-If that's the case, Andrew Christopher Brees can spend $3,348.55, each day for the rest of his life...and still leave $10,000,000 to his wife and two children to help them get by.

This calculation takes into account no investments...so these numbers would come from the J Money form of saving- stuffing it in a couch cushion in your parents' basement and taking it out as needed.

Now, it does sound like it'd be difficult to spend $3,348/day...so I have an idea- A fellow Purdue alum, let's call him "Doilerbowd" recently started a clothing company along with a few friends.  If Purdue's (arguably) greatest football player ever wanted to invest a mere $100,000 in this venture...he'd still have  $3,342.46 to spend per day...and is there any doubt he'd get a return on that investment?  I think not.

Just something to chew on, Drew & Mickey (because I'm sure they regularly visit this site).

Hey, if someone's gonna get paid a boatload of money, I'd prefer it'd be someone who gives back and is easy to cheer for...Brees is both.  I also like seeing guys who are great get what they deserve.  According to the market value, Brees is getting precisely what he deserves.

Congrats to Drew and family.

Every Now and Again, the Good Guys Win

I couldn't say no to those eyes either.

It seems the sports world, and the world in general are both filled with tales of unlikeable people having big success...but Purdue legend, and current Saint, Drew Brees is an exception to that rule.  Everyone knows what he's done on and off the field...as well as the fact that the city of New Orleans embraced him as openly as he embraced them.  Now, the Saints franchise will give him a big ole hug, figuratively speaking.

In the very near future, Brees might become the NFL's richest player ever...edging out Peyton Manning's contract from a few months ago. Click here for more info.

Hopefully the Saints will have more than 6 or 7 defensive players on the field this coming season...Even the wizard of NOLA will have a difficult time winning with that depleted D on the other side of the ball.

ND Paid Chuck Weis Almost As Much As Brian Kelly in 2010-2011

Reader Gregg chimes in with yet another quality find and assessment of it. He sends along this link to a Chicago Tribune story detailing how much Notre Dame is still paying Charlie Weis -- at about $8.7 million and climbing. From July 2010 to June 2011, Weis made over $2 million from ND, while Brian Kelly netted $2.4 million. 

Three more years, suckas!

In addition, it appears that Weis will continue to receive buyout money through December 2015. Amazing, really. But I wish I had such a contract.

Gregg's commentary with the link was as follows:

Basically, Charlie Weis has, ahem, "earned" $8.7 Million dollars since he was fired from Notre Dame, and will continue to get paid through 2015-- note that this figure does not include his ridiculously high salary from his coaching days-- this is merely his buyout so far (after all is said and done, the buyout will reportedly total around $20M). 

Not bad for a guy who went 15-22 in his last 3 years, and a lifetime coaching average of .564-- and even then, this number is inflated because 2 of his "victories" came from NCAA-mandated forfeits of opposing teams (USC and North Carolina were forced to vacate their wins for tainted seasons).  So it really is a .532 average.  UND was that desperate to get rid of this loser-- I have a colleague with a connection to a big shot within the alum association, and trust me, they passed the hat around.  His current salary at Kansas?  $2.5M.  Dude does less with more than anybody I've ever seen in CFB. 

If mediocrity has a price, I guess the going rate at Notre Dame is $20M.

Well-said, Gregg, and thanks for stoking the embers of Weis-hate. They always keep us cozy and warm. 

Big Forehead=Big Contract

IU's Tom Crean has finally been rewarded for the months of hard work he's put it...Crean just signed a contract extension that'll keep him around through 2018. No, I'm not kidding.

IU's decision makers clearly have never been anywhere but in the academic sector...If they have, they were fired from that job because of budget issues. They are looser with their purse strings than any entity I have ever heard of, seriously. If you have other examples of companies, organizations or any other group that spends money like IU, tell me!