It was a G-day on Friday so I did not have any class periods to work on the project. However I did get a good amount of work done on sunday. I read two more chapters of "The System," which gave interesting insight to what it takes to take over a struggling program (given through the eyes of BYU's Bronco Medenhall), as well as a chapter on program "boosters." The boosters article was particularly interesting because it specifically talked about how much money it takes for a program to be successful and chronicled the donation practices of Oklahoma State's biggest booster, T. Boone Pickens (who now has a stadium named after him). Also over the weekend, I created some questions for Wofford's athletic department as they requested I email them questions instead of doing an actual interview.
Reading Notes
-In the 1980's SMU received a one year ban from competition due to improper giving by boosters
-The book classifies boosters into four category (Power Brokers, Jock Sniffers, Builders, and Turbo Boosters)
-T. Boone Pickens is an example of a "Turbo Booster"
-Pickens realized "The best facilities get the best talent"
- OSU football was very bad until Pickens started donating; they then proceeded to the top of the conference
-Pickens was largely responsible for the hiring of OSU athletic director Mike Holder who was formally the golf coach at OSU
-student enrollment jumped 44% in the four years following OSU's new stadium being built
-One OSU dean said he believed that if giving to athletics increases than giving to academics will increase as well
-After Pickens made his record $165 million donation, many others started giving to OSU athletics as well
Notes are helpful.......I like how this is shaping up.
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