Here is a direct quote from an article in today's Tennesseean newspaper.''Vanderbilt cannot be a passive observer of athletic reform on the national scene — we simply must be an active participant,'' Gee said. ''And the only way we do that is to have a full-time, constant presence at the highest levels. Todd is a forceful and respected advocate for the highest ideals of college sports.'' On one hand we have Tulane's President trying to lead some national reorganization/redistribution of the Bowl money in some socialistic fashion. On the other hand, we now have a President of an SEC school, Vanderbilt, who is out campaigning for the rest of the country and the SEC to do away with their athletic directors and athletic departments just as Vandy did two whole days ago. I guess he thinks that his system has had enough time to prove itself. This move by Vanderbilt will certainly isolate Vandy from the rest of the SEC as I can't see how any other SEC Athletic Director will embrace this idiots idea of eliminating their jobs. The most hypocritical thing about this action by Vandy is that they criticize the current way athletics are run by the major schools in the country yet are more than happy to take their "welfare check" from the SEC every year to prop up their failing athletic department. Basicly, Vanderbilt can't keep up in the SEC and everyone knows it. Apparently, Vanderbilt is now going to try to run an SEC type athletic department on a shoestring budget and put their former athletic department personnel (the one's who are left) under the same administration as their INTRAMURAL SPORTS. If this isn't deemphasizing athletics at Vandy and an admission that they just can't keep up then I don't know what you call it. How much more non-competitive can Vandy become? If they fall off much more, I don't see any alternative but to send vanderbilt down the road and look for a replacement. It's one thing for Vanderbilt to be a perrenial doormat but if their President wants to attempt to restructure the SEC in Vandy's model (which is based on The Ivy League from where he came) then Vanderbilt just may be too out of touch with the SEC to continue. After all the SEC is not a debate team, it is an ATHLETIC CONFERENCE. That's right, not ACADEMIC but ATHLETIC CONFERENCE.
What a coincedence that the 2 schools pushing for "reform" are the 2 biggest losers on the field. If they were einners they wouldn't be throwing these tantrums.:cry: :cry: :cry:
