WT's Athletic Director Taking Position at Stephen F. Austin

[MooseLodge]

https://walterwendler.com/page/2/

Hey WT this is our president! This is the most bizarre rant against athletics, against disadvantaged students I have ever read. He doubled down on the go to Junior College but while adding a rant against “ athletes.” Is this 1950?

Bizarre rant? Sounds pretty much spot-on to me.

And don't label me as anti-college sports. I am a season ticket holder to a P5 program and have been for many years. I have a kid who was a recent college athlete and it all sounds pretty darn accurate. College athletes, particularly "stars", are held to a completely different standard than the general student population. Coaches and administrators will go to great (or not so great) lengths to hide, protect, and shield their ballers from being good citizens, much less passing their classes. Tail wagging the dog. This is why many prestigious universities are non-scholarship. If you are D1 and want to be nationally competitive, you are forced to sell your academic soul to win some ball games.

Athletics programs intended to serve student populations have become corporate circuses. Star athletes are given a wide berth to beat people up and down, act out sexually, wantonly consume alcohol and drugs, pilfer, con, misuse their star power, and all the while will be excused. “He is an honest kid; he has his heart in the right place…,” is a frequent refrain. The malfeasance isn’t quarantined to student-athletes, coaches and athletic directors as university leadership of every stripe overlook crimes, major and minor, because they want to win at all costs. As will be borne out at the University of Michigan, leadership is willing to sacrifice student safety on the altar of “success.” This is not sports; it’s stupidity.

[Buffalo/Islander Alum]

Interesting article on the WT AD search on texasfootball.com.

Candidates to be West Texas A&M AD (texasfootball.com)

[MooseLodge]

Interesting article on the WT AD search on texasfootball.com.

Candidates to be West Texas A&M AD (texasfootball.com)

Good find. Looks like a really good slate of candidates. I would be happy with any of the external candidates named, particularly the AD at UTPB. To have a current AD from a peer school interested, really says a lot about the quality of the job at WT. There is a whole lot to like about West Texas A&M.

[MooseLodge]

Another interesting read here on McBroom at SFA. I guess he's not married to D2 afterall.

New athletic director to evaluate conference affiliation, facilities | Sports | dailysentinel.com

[Buffalo/Islander Alum]

Another interesting read here on McBroom at SFA. I guess he's not married to D2 afterall.

New athletic director to evaluate conference affiliation, facilities | Sports | dailysentinel.com

He's definitely said some things at SFA that I didnt hear him say at WT.

He sounds way more upbeat and positive about the athletics at SFA and is hinting about SFA coming back to the Southland.

His last few interviews at WT he sounded like a person that was beat down and had to force say positive things in spite of Wendler's vision.

[MooseLodge]

He's definitely said some things at SFA that I didnt hear him say at WT.

He sounds way more upbeat and positive about the athletics at SFA and is hinting about SFA coming back to the Southland.

His last few interviews at WT he sounded like a person that was beat down and had to force say positive things in spite of Wendler's vision.

Yes, one thing I noticed right away is, he is wanting to get with every athlete to ensure them that they have a chance to win a conference championship. Nothing about national championships because it isn't possible. The Southland Conference title is likely your ceiling.

[Buffalo/Islander Alum]

Yes, one thing I noticed right away is, he is wanting to get with every athlete to ensure them that they have a chance to win a conference championship. Nothing about national championships because it isn't possible. The Southland Conference title is likely your ceiling.

National football championships are possible in FCS.

Sam Houston State will no longer have the opportunity at Football National Championships.

Incarnate Word proved that getting close a couple of years ago and its wide open now that North Dakota State no longer has a monopoly on things.

The WAC championships are wide open as well with Grand Canyon leaving but the travel and rivalries are here in Texas.

If you can somehow get a stud pitcher and/or hitter overlooked by Power 5 programs or buy one off NIL they could carry you to the College World Series.

Before anyone scoffs at that comment feel free to look up the 2016 Coastal Carolina baseball team.

[Rockofwesties]

Before anyone scoffs at that comment feel free to look up the 2016 Coastal Carolina baseball team.

That was before NIL and transfer portal. Now if a FCS gets overlooked good players they only have them one year and they will transfer. Heck even Texas Tech is having a hard time keeping their good baseball players from transferring.

[Buffalo/Islander Alum]

That was before NIL and transfer portal. Now if a FCS gets overlooked good players they only have them one year and they will transfer. Heck even Texas Tech is having a hard time keeping their good baseball players from transferring.

My argument is NIL makes it way more possible now.

If I have 5 million lying around and BuffaloChip has 5 million lying around, We each could throw that 5 million to the top 2 pitchers in Texas and WT would instantly be a threat to win the southland and a regional/super regional just based on those 2 pitchers if WT were division 1.

Even East Carolina the last several years were in the super regionals on the brink of a world series with that strategy.

Only thing that stopped them was Vanderbilt throwing Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker (Texas Rangers 2021 and 2022 top first round draft choices) in the super regional.

[Techster88]

That was before NIL and transfer portal. Now if a FCS gets overlooked good players they only have them one year and they will transfer. Heck even Texas Tech is having a hard time keeping their good baseball players from transferring.

That has been a problem for some time now. Really ever since Tadlock came aboard. He has a great eye for discovering and developing talent. There is NO LOYALTY anymore. Its every man for himself.

Kinda like the last days of the Roman Empire.

[Rockofwesties]

My argument is NIL makes it way more possible now.

If I have 5 million lying around and BuffaloChip has 5 million lying around, We each could throw that 5 million to the top 2 pitchers in Texas and WT would instantly be a threat to win the southland and a regional/super regional just based on those 2 pitchers if WT were division 1.

Even East Carolina the last several years were in the super regionals on the brink of a world series with that strategy.

Only thing that stopped them was Vanderbilt throwing Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker (Texas Rangers 2021 and 2022 top first round draft choices) in the super regional.

Buffalochip has 5 Million laying around? I need to be nicer to my good friend Ole Buffalochip.

[BuffaloChip]

Buffalochip has 5 Million laying around? I need to be nicer to my good friend Ole Buffalochip.

Good. I thought I was going to be on the hook for all 10M.

[WT_TKW]

Interesting article on the WT AD search on texasfootball.com.

Candidates to be West Texas A&M AD (texasfootball.com)

I would not want to see Amanda get the job. I want someone totally new, not a McBroom disciple. I mentioned early on that I hope the UTPB AD is considered. He seems to care a lot about football, unlike McBroom.

[MooseLodge]

I would not want to see Amanda get the job. I want someone totally new, not a McBroom disciple. I mentioned early on that I hope the UTPB AD is considered. He seems to care a lot about football, unlike McBroom.

So anyone that worked for McBroom doesn't care about football?

[Rockofwesties]

Any word on how the search is going?