The "real" reaction in Maryalnd to the Terps to the B1G

[edowd26]

http://www.leedg.com/

The company Blair Lee owns. This family definitley has some sawg.

 

[Townie72]

Maryland sold out for the money. Can anyone blame them? It is part of the reason SU is leaving the Big East for the ACC. If Debbie Yow didn't destroy the Maryland AD office with her horrible moves and the ACC contract was close enough to the B1G's Maryland would never go anywhere. They are going to a more stable conference and will be handsomely paid to be part of that conference.

Actually, someone is blaming them ... it's Blair Lee that's doing it.

I know they needed the money. I know that Debbie Yow ran them into the ditch. Blair Lee acknowledges both of these. But there are more shoes to fall on this if people like Blair Lee are raising a stink.

 

[shandeezy7]

http://www.leedg.com/

The company Blair Lee owns. This family definitley has some sawg.

Crabcakes and football

 

[Townie72]

As long as the ACC remains a relatively-intact, viable conference for SU I couldn't care less what becomes of Maryland.

Oh, I agree.

I just added this so people might see "the rest of the story".

And "not caring about Maryland" is part of the age old Terp problem. They have had to struggle to stay relevant in the ACC. It'll get worse in the B1G.

But that's their problem.

 

[rrlbees]

Actually, someone is blaming them ... it's Blair Lee that's doing it.

I know they needed the money. I know that Debbie Yow ran them into the ditch. Blair Lee acknowledges both of these. But there are more shoes to fall on this if people like Blair Lee are raising a stink.

How do you know she ran them into the ditch?

 

[Townie72]

Thanks for sharing that Townie.

BTW, the Blair name means something in Maryland also. Am I correct in guessing that Mr. Lee is a descendant of the Blair family that features prominently in Doris Kearns Goodwin's Team of Rivals?

Maxwell ... see attached. These people have been senators, governors, etc., etc. for generations.

It's sort of like the Rockefellers and Cuomos and Roosevelts were all wrapped up in one NY family.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blair_Lee_III

 

[Townie72]

How do you know she ran them into the ditch?

That's what Blair Lee maintains in the article ... not me.

But the point is that they were "in the ditch" and she was the AD.

 

[Townie72]

sounds like a bunch of belly aching.

It truly is "bellyaching".

I insisted Maryland wouldn't and couldn't leave the ACC because of the role the Terrapin Club plays in funding Maryland Athletics. I was wrong on that one, obviously.

But here are more feet to fall on this one. Anderson and Loh are going to wish that they had taken more time and included more people.

 

[sutomcat]

When Maryland announced it was going to the B1G there was a flurry of statements from the school and people like Gary Williams --- who serves as a $400K/yr consultant --- about how great this was going to be.

Now we are getting the actual reaction of the populace. The first I have read is a piece by Blair Lee in the Montgomery County Gazette (attached)

http://www.gazette.net/article/2012...14/-blair-lee-terps-for-sale&template=gazette

You might think that Blair Lee is some hack journalist writing a small time column for a local rag. That would be a mistake. Blair Lee is a member and heir of of one of Maryland's powerful families. He's writing this column as a hobby and not as a source of income. Everybody of note knows who Blair Lee is and what the Lee family has been in Maryland for generations. Few know that Kevin Anderson is the MD AD or that this guy Loh is the new president.

His criticism of Maryland's move is stinging.

The decision can't be reversed. But Loh and Anderson are now really out on a limb.

I don't really care about Maryland, their conference and money problems or their inferiority complex. That is something for the B1G to worry about now.

I think it is interesting though that Blair Lee's name is so close to the name of Clair Bee, the famous LIU basketball coach for whom the college basketball coach of the year award is named.

JB won it in 1999-00. Recently vanquished Arkansas HC Mike Anderson won it coaching at Missouri in 2008-09. Steve Donahue won it coaching Cornell in 2009-10. He could beat Harvard coaching the Big Red but can't coaching Boston College. Must be something in the water in Chestnut Hill.

Clair Bee Award

 

[KaiserUEO]

How do you know she ran them into the ditch?

woman driver, so...playing the odds???


hey now......

couchburn

Oh Lord

 

[rrlbees]

Maxwell ... see attached. These people have been senators, governors, etc., etc. for generations.

It's sort of like the Rockefellers and Cuomos and Roosevelts were all wrapped up in one NY family.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blair_Lee_III

So some rich family stomping their feet because they didn't get their way.

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[TexanMark]

By the way, how do i get a job as a "special consultant" to SU for $400,000. Nice gig for Gary Williams.

Buzz Shaw is sitting in your seat.

 

[Arizona Knight]

So some rich family stomping their feet because they didn't get their way.

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I disagree with your position, rrlbees. You can clearly see the passion Blair Lee IV has for the University of Maryland and why not, I'm sure he comes from a long line of Lee's which attended the ol' State U.

 

[javadoc]

So some rich family stomping their feet because they didn't get their way.

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I'm sure the Lees can attend any games they want to, regardless of distance. That seems to be the only gripe that is directly related to fans' ability to "get their way." Maybe the home schedule also, if fans don't care about seeing Michigan and Ohio State and the other rusted factories as much as they did North Carolina and Virginia and Georgia Tech. The article is generally an objective criticism of the AD's perceived future, regardless of "what one family wants."

 

[Townie72]

So some rich family stomping their feet because they didn't get their way.

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Hardly the case. It may be you gotta understand Maryland to get the importance of this. This isn't New York. Its more like Virginia or Georgia.

Because the State of Maryland doesn't allow General Funds to be used to fund athletics, the Athletic Department must fund itself through ticket sales, conference bucks and Terrapin Club donations (8,000 members).

More Big Ten Dollars help, but they just get Maryland back to the break-even point. They still have to have a lot of Terrapin Club money. My guess is that Blair Lee is typical of the big bucks donors that have always powered Maryland Athletics and that others are going to listen to him. This isn't a small beer operation like the Orange Pack.

 

[dollarbill44]

Maxwell ... see attached. These people have been senators, governors, etc., etc. for generations.

It's sort of like the Rockefellers and Cuomos and Roosevelts were all wrapped up in one NY family.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blair_Lee_III

Zoinks! That family is a who's who in American political families if ever I saw one. Direct descendant of not one, but TWO signers of the Declaration of Independence! Also, the Blair family, as in the Blair House right across the street from the White House.

 

[billsin01]

Yes you can blame them. Money doesn't equal success, as evidence by the number of bad programs in the big 10. money also doesn't mean their AD will be managed better.
their immediate money grab was very short sighted and the fanbase will pay the price.

not to mention, who can say where everything will be in 15 years. tv contracts and current money won't stay the same. the acc 'could' end up on top if some of their football programs get back to championship levels.

But this entire realignment process is a short-sighted money grab. I don't get why MD left the ACC but I do understand why they grabbed the money -- it's become the culture of big-time college athletics and only the programs who are too big to fail (pardon the tired cliche) are immune. It's a sad state of affairs, especially as a cuse fan in DC when I won't be able to see them play for all intents and purposes. Unreal and thoroughly depressing.

 

[billsin01]

MD fans have belly ached forever that they wanted out of the ACC because of the "Carolina mafia". They have always felt they got screwed. They'll probably still get screwed in the B10 though.

This is the ironic thing about the move -- they left a conference where they felt like something of an outsider and felt victims of more powerful schools. Then they joined a conference in which they are a complete afterthought. That's the funny part, which I would laugh about if it didn't mean that I will never see a cuse game unless I drive to f-ing charlottesville.

 

[rrlbees]

I disagree with your position, rrlbees. You can clearly see the passion Blair Lee IV has for the University of Maryland and why not, I'm sure he comes from a long line of Lee's which attended the ol' State U.

What does passion have to do with it? There are passionate fans that screamed to get out for years. They just don't have the money that allows them to be heard. I still find a ton of positive stuff about this guys fall lady.

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[Alsacs]

Actually, someone is blaming them ... it's Blair Lee that's doing it.

I know they needed the money. I know that Debbie Yow ran them into the ditch. Blair Lee acknowledges both of these. But there are more shoes to fall on this if people like Blair Lee are raising a stink.

I understand you have a better read on the Maryland situation than most , but Mr. Lee isn't paying the bills at Maryland. Simply put because Maryland couldn't Rutgers method of subsidizing their Athletic Department thru the general fund. UMD needed more money because Debbie Yow used up their rainy day funds. The B1G is going to pay them 35 million a year while the ACC at most will pay 20-25 a year. That extra 10 million goes a long way in that AD office. Maryland is trading Florida St and Clemson for Penn State and Ohio State. The ACC didn't give Maryland basketball a protected rivalry with Duke. You know this when Maryland plays Duke in basketball on UMD-CP campus they have a HATE/BEAT DUKE week and the fact Wake Forest did had to burn the Terps. I get the Lee's of the world are against this move, but they didn't stop the move so there is nothing MD can do now unless ND joins the ACC and MD wanted to come back which is not likely to happen. All this MD move tells me is that if the Big East football schools had split from the Catholic schools in 2003 and tried to form an all Eastern football conference Maryland could have possibly been poached for the right $$$$.

 

[PhatOrange]

But this entire realignment process is a short-sighted money grab. I don't get why MD left the ACC but I do understand why they grabbed the money -- it's become the culture of big-time college athletics and only the programs who are too big to fail (pardon the tired cliche) are immune. It's a sad state of affairs, especially as a cuse fan in DC when I won't be able to see them play for all intents and purposes. Unreal and thoroughly depressing.

I don't think the entire realignment process is short sighted. I think for some schools it's a great move if you're staying within your alumni and geographic footprint.

 

[Arizona Knight]

What does passion have to do with it? There are passionate fans that screamed to get out for years. They just don't have the money that allows them to be heard. I still find a ton of positive stuff about this guys fall lady.

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It was sarcasm. Thurston Howell III is probably as passionate about Maryland athletics as I am.

 

[Scooch]

I don't think the entire realignment process is short sighted. I think for some schools it's a great move if you're staying within your alumni and geographic footprint.

Yep, you have to evaluate things on a case by case basis.

Its hard to argue that Colorado, Utah, TCU, Nebraska and Louisville haven't made extremely beneficial moves for the long-term. They are now in conferences that are within an appropriate geographic footprint and have elevated the resources of their athletic departments. The proverbial win-win.

There is more debate to be had regarding Mizzou, Texas A&M, Syracuse and Pitt. All gave up long-standing rivalries and a certain amount of geographic fit. Although in the case of the latter two, we're re-uniting with four former conference mates and aligning with new schools that are substantially more in-tune with our athletic mission than most of the schools we're leaving behind. I'll give you that aTm was suffering from a hellacious case of little brother syndrome and Mizzou was just a desperate whore.

 

[FAL]

Hardly the case. It may be you gotta understand Maryland to get the importance of this. This isn't New York. Its more like Virginia or Georgia.

Because the State of Maryland doesn't allow General Funds to be used to fund athletics, the Athletic Department must fund itself through ticket sales, conference bucks and Terrapin Club donations (8,000 members).

More Big Ten Dollars help, but they just get Maryland back to the break-even point. They still have to have a lot of Terrapin Club money. My guess is that Blair Lee is typical of the big bucks donors that have always powered Maryland Athletics and that others are going to listen to him. This isn't a small beer operation like the Orange Pack.

Maybe like the Blair Witch Project?

 

[JoeSU]

Maryland sold out for the money. Can anyone blame them? It is part of the reason SU is leaving the Big East for the ACC. If Debbie Yow didn't destroy the Maryland AD office with her horrible moves and the ACC contract was close enough to the B1G's Maryland would never go anywhere. They are going to a more stable conference and will be handsomely paid to be part of that conference.

Granted, there is a financial incentive behind the move. But the BE was disintegrating around us, morphing into an unappetizing smorgasbord of lower-tier, distant schools - it's not like we bolted a stable situation in a respected conference composed of long-time rivals.