Fuzzy math
posted by LW, Thursday, June 11, 2009
Last week, we asked Terry Don Phillips for an update on the number and he said 12 percent was about right.
Now, Clemson is saying the number is actually five percent.
I guess it's possible that the athletic department experienced a sudden windfall of renewals in the last week, but that doesn't sound conceivable.
Not trying to make a big deal of this, but what's the deal when two figureheads (TDP and senior associate athletics director Katie Hill) present dramatically different figures to the media over a week-long period?
This is what TDP told us last week:
“(Twelve percent) is about right. We just got a report, and it may not be quite 12 percent. But that’d be about right. ... We’re possibly looking at, at least, a million and-a-half to $2 million. Something like that.”
This is what TDP told Travis Sawchik of the P&C this week:
"I'm hoping it doesn't get beyond five percent. I think our renewals are good, especially talking to other programs. I'm very encouraged where we stand."
Is this a case of creative bookkeeping in an effort to put a positive spin on numbers that were worse than expected?
Just asking.
In The State, Paul Strelow writes about an unkind second day of the draft for the Tigers' baseball team.
The odds appear stacked against the return of Dwyer, whom Major League Baseball believes to be its first draft-eligible college freshman.
A year ago, Dwyer spurned teams interested in drafting him in the fifth round when it became evident his second-round price tag would not be met.
While his financial demands were expected to be higher this year, the Royals didn't shy from selecting Dwyer in the fourth round.
Kansas City set the league draft record for spending on last year's picks (more than $10 million), including giving $1.25 million to its fourth-rounder.
And some insight into Madison Younginer:
The 6-foot-3 fireballer said he plans to pitch on a local travel team this summer and let the chips fall where they may. But it might not be a good sign for the Tigers that Younginer was intrigued by the fact Boston has a Single-A affiliate in nearby Greenville.
Boston's fourth- and fifth-round picks last year netted uncharacteristically high $1 million and $2 million bonuses, respectively.
"I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do," Younginer. "But this just worked out perfectly."
More on the draft in the P&C and Independent-Mail.
Looks like the NCAA is on a vacation spree with the news that Alabama must vacate 10 victories as a result of its players' involvement in violations of a textbook disbursement policy.
The best part about this item is reading some of the reader comments.
From eaglegoof:
Vacate Shula victories? Over who? Florida International and Ole Miss?! LOL. Maybe Ole Miss can hire Orgeron back after all. LOL
From bama0173:
Those seasons sucked anyway. They can have the Independence Bowl Trophy too, if they want it. This is a good day.
From spiragira:
Sounds good to me!
ROLL TIDE!
No, not a lot of crushed souls in the wake of this penalty.
From fuzzy math, to vacated victories, to invented victories ... Courtesy of the Wizard of Odds, here's a bizarre tale of Minnesota coach Tim Brewster vastly inflating his coaching record.
Seems as if Brewster thinks his record as an assistant should be included on his coaching record.
University of Minnesota head football coach Tim Brewster, at http://www.brewcrewreport.com/, is touting his coaching record as 113-61-1, as you see from the Brewcrewreport snippet I snipped from that site:
OK, Coach Brew. Not many head coaches tout their won-lost records as assistants, but that’s your right. Just like it’s mine to point out you’ve been a head coach for all of two years, and have a won-lost record of 8-17 with a current five-game losing streak.
This is the same Brewster, by the way, for whom last season's 55-0 loss to Iowa was scratched out of portions of the 2009 media guide and records book.
Sticking with the spin-cycle theme, Florida AD Jeremy Foley says the Gators' alarming number of arrests isn't an accurate reflection of Urban Meyer's sterling ability to make his players behave.
"It is really easy to focus on negative issues and negative press," Foley said. "This is part of the world we live in, and we understand this. No one here condones our players stepping out of line, and everyone here wants to get better.
"However, Urban Meyer and his staff are the best that I have seen in modifying behavior and, at the end of the day, the majority of the players who come through this program will make us all proud - and not just because they are good football players."
This Gators beat writer offers a blunt take on the situation in Gainesville: Winning football games requires thugs.
Sounds harsh, but it's not altogether illogical.
Let's hear the guy out:
I'm not writing this blog to condone the arrests of Florida's players, but I can write without reservation that my opinion on the matter leans towards that of an apologist. You've got to have thugs to win football games. This ideology is ingrained in football players. Should players be punished for breaking the law? Without question, yes. People -- you, me, everyone -- should be punished for breaking the law. Should coaches and administrators be held accountable when their players break the law. Without question, yes. Jeremy Foley knows better than most that behavior modification is a two-way street. Should newspaper writers demand a cleaner football program from the state's flagship university? Yeah, sure. That's what we think we're supposed to do.
But people should understand that our love of football in its current state helps to fuel this thuggish behavior. It's a byproduct of the game just like coaching salaries, television contracts ... my job as a football writer. There's a reason why Harvard won't be winning a national championship in football anytime soon. Does Harvard even have a football team? I wouldn't know. Its players' names don't show up on arrest reports. Jeremy Foley said it best: "This is part of the world we live in, and we understand this."
On the other hand, I can think of some schools with a high percentage of thugs that haven't won much.
Furman is getting a QB transfer from UCLA, and that's good news. But Furman also might be getting a strange bird, and that might be not so good news.
This kid put out a press release, and here's one of the lines:
Fact: I want to be part of the "Greatness of Fuhman University" academic's.
Yikes!
Here's hoping this kid's first class at "Furhman" is English 101.
Looks like Georgia Tech is playing at Kansas in 2010. The Jayhawks will return the favor by traveling to Atlanta in 2011.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
About a month ago, we heard Clemson's football season-ticket renewals were down about 12 percent.
Last week, we asked Terry Don Phillips for an update on the number and he said 12 percent was about right.
Now, Clemson is saying the number is actually five percent.
I guess it's possible that the athletic department experienced a sudden windfall of renewals in the last week, but that doesn't sound conceivable.
Not trying to make a big deal of this, but what's the deal when two figureheads (TDP and senior associate athletics director Katie Hill) present dramatically different figures to the media over a week-long period?
This is what TDP told us last week:
“(Twelve percent) is about right. We just got a report, and it may not be quite 12 percent. But that’d be about right. ... We’re possibly looking at, at least, a million and-a-half to $2 million. Something like that.”
This is what TDP told Travis Sawchik of the P&C this week:
"I'm hoping it doesn't get beyond five percent. I think our renewals are good, especially talking to other programs. I'm very encouraged where we stand."
Is this a case of creative bookkeeping in an effort to put a positive spin on numbers that were worse than expected?
Just asking.
In The State, Paul Strelow writes about an unkind second day of the draft for the Tigers' baseball team.
The odds appear stacked against the return of Dwyer, whom Major League Baseball believes to be its first draft-eligible college freshman.
A year ago, Dwyer spurned teams interested in drafting him in the fifth round when it became evident his second-round price tag would not be met.
While his financial demands were expected to be higher this year, the Royals didn't shy from selecting Dwyer in the fourth round.
Kansas City set the league draft record for spending on last year's picks (more than $10 million), including giving $1.25 million to its fourth-rounder.
And some insight into Madison Younginer:
The 6-foot-3 fireballer said he plans to pitch on a local travel team this summer and let the chips fall where they may. But it might not be a good sign for the Tigers that Younginer was intrigued by the fact Boston has a Single-A affiliate in nearby Greenville.
Boston's fourth- and fifth-round picks last year netted uncharacteristically high $1 million and $2 million bonuses, respectively.
"I'm not sure yet what I'm going to do," Younginer. "But this just worked out perfectly."
More on the draft in the P&C and Independent-Mail.
Looks like the NCAA is on a vacation spree with the news that Alabama must vacate 10 victories as a result of its players' involvement in violations of a textbook disbursement policy.
The best part about this item is reading some of the reader comments.
From eaglegoof:
Vacate Shula victories? Over who? Florida International and Ole Miss?! LOL. Maybe Ole Miss can hire Orgeron back after all. LOL
From bama0173:
Those seasons sucked anyway. They can have the Independence Bowl Trophy too, if they want it. This is a good day.
From spiragira:
Sounds good to me!
ROLL TIDE!
No, not a lot of crushed souls in the wake of this penalty.
From fuzzy math, to vacated victories, to invented victories ... Courtesy of the Wizard of Odds, here's a bizarre tale of Minnesota coach Tim Brewster vastly inflating his coaching record.
Seems as if Brewster thinks his record as an assistant should be included on his coaching record.
University of Minnesota head football coach Tim Brewster, at http://www.brewcrewreport.com/, is touting his coaching record as 113-61-1, as you see from the Brewcrewreport snippet I snipped from that site:
OK, Coach Brew. Not many head coaches tout their won-lost records as assistants, but that’s your right. Just like it’s mine to point out you’ve been a head coach for all of two years, and have a won-lost record of 8-17 with a current five-game losing streak.
This is the same Brewster, by the way, for whom last season's 55-0 loss to Iowa was scratched out of portions of the 2009 media guide and records book.
Sticking with the spin-cycle theme, Florida AD Jeremy Foley says the Gators' alarming number of arrests isn't an accurate reflection of Urban Meyer's sterling ability to make his players behave.
"It is really easy to focus on negative issues and negative press," Foley said. "This is part of the world we live in, and we understand this. No one here condones our players stepping out of line, and everyone here wants to get better.
"However, Urban Meyer and his staff are the best that I have seen in modifying behavior and, at the end of the day, the majority of the players who come through this program will make us all proud - and not just because they are good football players."
This Gators beat writer offers a blunt take on the situation in Gainesville: Winning football games requires thugs.
Sounds harsh, but it's not altogether illogical.
Let's hear the guy out:
I'm not writing this blog to condone the arrests of Florida's players, but I can write without reservation that my opinion on the matter leans towards that of an apologist. You've got to have thugs to win football games. This ideology is ingrained in football players. Should players be punished for breaking the law? Without question, yes. People -- you, me, everyone -- should be punished for breaking the law. Should coaches and administrators be held accountable when their players break the law. Without question, yes. Jeremy Foley knows better than most that behavior modification is a two-way street. Should newspaper writers demand a cleaner football program from the state's flagship university? Yeah, sure. That's what we think we're supposed to do.
But people should understand that our love of football in its current state helps to fuel this thuggish behavior. It's a byproduct of the game just like coaching salaries, television contracts ... my job as a football writer. There's a reason why Harvard won't be winning a national championship in football anytime soon. Does Harvard even have a football team? I wouldn't know. Its players' names don't show up on arrest reports. Jeremy Foley said it best: "This is part of the world we live in, and we understand this."
On the other hand, I can think of some schools with a high percentage of thugs that haven't won much.
Furman is getting a QB transfer from UCLA, and that's good news. But Furman also might be getting a strange bird, and that might be not so good news.
This kid put out a press release, and here's one of the lines:
Fact: I want to be part of the "Greatness of Fuhman University" academic's.
Yikes!
Here's hoping this kid's first class at "Furhman" is English 101.
Looks like Georgia Tech is playing at Kansas in 2010. The Jayhawks will return the favor by traveling to Atlanta in 2011.
LW
For questions or comments on this blog entry, please visit The West Zone message board.
Link to this entry - Discuss this entry - Return to Blog Home
Donnie Patterson. Donnie Patterson is the founder of Patterson Tax Service, located in Easley, S.C. He has been active in tax preparation since 1970, and offers a full range of tax and bookkeeping services.
Larry Williams. Larry has covered the daily beat at Clemson since 2004. Williams, who worked for the Charleston Post & Courier from 2004-08, joined Tigerillustrated.com in November of 2008. He may be reached by email at ldubya08(at)gmail.com. Replace (at) with @.