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Is UGA’s athletics program too focused on football?
System
Posts: 7,416 admin
Is UGA’s athletics program too focused on football?
There’s no denying football pays the bills for UGA athletics, but it’s also the chief beneficiary of the school’s sports spending.
Comments
Track, softball, all a big deal. Please support.
Something tells me that there is more to the track coach situation that is currently known.
Wasn’t most of the money spent on the football team from Alumni and fan donations that was earmarked for the football team?
The formula is very simple. We have seen "competitive" football during the Mark Richt era. We have seen that plateau. SUCCESSFUL football is the biggest revenue generator and supports numerous other sports. To be successful a program has to attract the young men that are elite players. To recruit the players that will make you successful UGA needs competitive facilities. They NOW have competitive facilities. UGA's facilities are NOT tops in the country. They are NOT even tops in the SEC. They are the average facilities of a top program trying to be successful. Not all sports are created equal.
I’m a Dawgs fan in every sport. I’m not one of these crazy people that only pull for Georgia in football and some Tobacco Road team in basketball. The athletic department should be more supportive of ALL sports. That’s why it’s called the athletic department, not the football department. Brooks said he wanted all sports to compete for championships but he won’t at least tell the most successful track coach in UGA history that an indoor track facility will be done sometime in the future. I’m sure there are some very rich Georgia alumni that are willing to help with that if they’d only ask. Go Dawgs!! In ALL sports.
" There’s no denying football pays the bills for UGA athletics, but it’s also the chief beneficiary of the school’s sports spending."
Bill, I think you kind of answered your own question. Football is the main if not ONLY sport that brings in REAL revenue. The other sports offer pennies in comparison (or loses money), and that's just the nature of college athletics at most Power 5 schools (and many FBS and Div-II schools). Football is the only sport that can afford these great facilities and perks. Basketball brings in pretty big money at a few select Power 5 schools but in most - not all - cases it still pales in comparison to football revenue. We've got some excellent college teams already at Georgia and a history of very competitive teams (think gymnastics, swimming & diving). But even those sports don't bring in serious revenue.
I don't know what else to say other than it's the nature of the beast!
Please, are we really getting worked up about track? Not only does it not make money, it doesn't get any television or press coverage to speak of. Where would they even put an indoor track in Athens? Nowhere close to campus, that's for sure. Sorry to see the track coach go, but the university can't be making promises to him that they can't keep.
As for Basketball, I am willing to give Crean more time to try to figure this out. It's not like we are going to get someone that much better anyway. He didn't create this mess he inherited it, but he seems to earnestly want to make GA into a basketball school. I know he is a good coach, the issue is - can get some good players? It ain't easy, that's for sure.
I know they have tried hard to improve the Steg, but let's face it, it has never been a great facility. But because of its location on campus, the students will come out to support the team. If he can create a spark, the place will catch fire. In this new world of the transfer portal, I think we are better to have an experienced head coach like Crean to head the program.