There is a group of people not officially associated with Clemson Univ. but who wield more power over Clemson's football destiny than the actual fans and season ticket holders. They are the politically correct, academic bureaucrats who according to their own whims or perceptions *subjectively* rank universities in the popularity/beauty contest (i.e.,subjective non-hard metric phase) part of the US News and World Report rating process. Several years ago analysts informed Barker that it was practically impossible for CU to make it into the Top 20 by significantly improving on CU's hard-metric numbers - e.g., professor:student ratio, size of financial endowment, alumni contributions, etc, etc. Therefore, the only way for Clemson to ever likely break into the Top 20 was for an unexpectedly huge upward shift in the number of academic bureaucrats rating CU very high in the subjective phase of the ranking process. And what do such bureaucrats value above all else? - mealy-mouthed political correctness and an over-reliance on speaking in bureaucrat-ese, of course. These are the people who are foremost in Barker's thoughts and whom he is most eager to please, cajole and prostrate himself before when he is out on the academic cocktail party circuit. And the last thing Barker wants to hear when he is out on the academic cocktail party circuit seeking votes and humbling himself before these hand-wringing academics is the phrase "football school" applied to Clemson.
James Barker would gladly settle for a thousand years of football mediocrity if that would contribute in some way to helping him by hook or by crook manipulate a ranking vote that would see Clemson nip into the Top 20 and in his own mind provide him a dubious legacy he could look back on after he is finally shown the door. Terry Don Phillips is merely Barker's toady and accomplice in making sure Clemson football is never dominant enough for him to ever hear us called a football school when he is enjoying wine and cheese on the academic cocktail party circuit. Do you think for one second that a private sector executive could give a new long term contract with a huge increase in buy out to an employee (as TDP did with Bowden) and then before a year is out find himself having to pay that buy out and then NOT be fired, unless it was with the approval of - if not on the outright orders of - the organization's president? No, this mediocrity is the result of a team effort between Barker and TDP, which is why individually neither will have to accept responsibility for the debacle that is Clemson athletics. The incompetence of Clemson's athletic and academic administrations is what you get when hand-wringing politically correct bureaucrats get in positions of power. Just look what has happened to our country since people of this ilk gained control. The remedy is the same for both - turn'em out!
Not sure why all the wining. They was favored to beat us by a td and didnt do it. by all counts we had that game won exept they're kicker had a howister for a leg.
I'm AALL IN with Dabo, but the guy running the offense gotta go. Dabo bleeds for this team more than any of the pensil necks who always wining.
We beat Wake and the chickens easy. Dont be scared, Florida is awful. I think we'l were the chickens out bad.
I agree...be positive since this team has some guts and talent, but just haven't put it together in wins. I can't forgive their lack of play at UNC or BC, but their games at Auburn & FSU were winnable with any luck.
To anonymous regarding Barker. If the choice is between improved academics for 15,000+ students at Clemson and a dominant football program, I will take academics every time. When I first moved to ACC country 30 years ago, Clemson was only known as a football school that was in serious trouble for breaking the rules. There were jokes about orange jumpsuits like convicts wear and what IPTAY stood for. It was embarrassing. Barker's peers consist of some of the best academic institutions in the nation - Wake Forest, Duke, UVA, UNC, Georgia Tech, BC. Can Clemson with their tiny $400 million endowment, strive to compete when some of those peer institutions have 5x to 20x more funds to work with? If Clemson can attract the best and brightest and they go on to be successful, they will give money back to the school. How many of the rabid Clemson football fans even went to school there? Do they give money to Clemson or just Clemson athletics? The problem with athletics at Clemson is related to Terry Don Phillips. He has not run a good athletic department. If Barker makes some mistakes in athletics, he is succeeding in most other parts of his Clemson duties. Let's first try a new AD.
"Do you think for one second that a private sector executive could give a new long term contract with a huge increase in buy out to an employee (as TDP did with Bowden) and then before a year is out find himself having to pay that buy out and then NOT be fired, unless it was with the approval of - if not on the outright orders of - the organization's president?"
Little story here, my uncle used to work for an insurance giant, worked for them for 35 years. One day in the early 00s, they give him a raise during his annual performance review. A few SHORT weeks later, if not days, they downsize him. Not to the level of incompetence of TDP/Bowden/buyout but this is incompetence nonetheless. Moral of the story - never underestimate the incompetence and stupidity of those in power.
@Kenny, are you really trying to justify Clemson's loss by saying they didn't lose by as much as predicted? Really? Have you been reduced to actually quantifying and qualifying losses now? Here's reality - it's always worse to be picked to lose than to be picked to win then lose. Because in the latter, the predictors have a level of confidence in you. In the former they have none, and that's always worse. And when no one has any confidence in you, you're done. At least Bowden's teams got picked to win. Are you the type that defines success by easily stepping over a intentionally lowered bar?
I'm a Clemson engineering grad. I'll start paying into IPTAY and other programs once Clemson represents 'success' on the field. Being satisfied with 'success' in academics, but not in your primary source of national exposure (football) isn't enough. I'm tired of being embarrassed.
You know it's funny: winning an ACC title is the annual expectation but losing is a weekly one. Weird. I should write about this paradox.
ReplyDeleteThere is a group of people not officially associated with Clemson Univ. but who wield more power over Clemson's football destiny than the actual fans and season ticket holders. They are the politically correct, academic bureaucrats who according to their own whims or perceptions *subjectively* rank universities in the popularity/beauty contest (i.e.,subjective non-hard metric phase) part of the US News and World Report rating process. Several years ago analysts informed Barker that it was practically impossible for CU to make it into the Top 20 by significantly improving on CU's hard-metric numbers - e.g., professor:student ratio, size of financial endowment, alumni contributions, etc, etc. Therefore, the only way for Clemson to ever likely break into the Top 20 was for an unexpectedly huge upward shift in the number of academic bureaucrats rating CU very high in the subjective phase of the ranking process. And what do such bureaucrats value above all else? - mealy-mouthed political correctness and an over-reliance on speaking in bureaucrat-ese, of course. These are the people who are foremost in Barker's thoughts and whom he is most eager to please, cajole and prostrate himself before when he is out on the academic cocktail party circuit. And the last thing Barker wants to hear when he is out on the academic cocktail party circuit seeking votes and humbling himself before these hand-wringing academics is the phrase "football school" applied to Clemson.
ReplyDeleteJames Barker would gladly settle for a thousand years of football mediocrity if that would contribute in some way to helping him by hook or by crook manipulate a ranking vote that would see Clemson nip into the Top 20 and in his own mind provide him a dubious legacy he could look back on after he is finally shown the door. Terry Don Phillips is merely Barker's toady and accomplice in making sure Clemson football is never dominant enough for him to ever hear us called a football school when he is enjoying wine and cheese on the academic cocktail party circuit. Do you think for one second that a private sector executive could give a new long term contract with a huge increase in buy out to an employee (as TDP did with Bowden) and then before a year is out find himself having to pay that buy out and then NOT be fired, unless it was with the approval of - if not on the outright orders of - the organization's president? No, this mediocrity is the result of a team effort between Barker and TDP, which is why individually neither will have to accept responsibility for the debacle that is Clemson athletics. The incompetence of Clemson's athletic and academic administrations is what you get when hand-wringing politically correct bureaucrats get in positions of power. Just look what has happened to our country since people of this ilk gained control. The remedy is the same for both - turn'em out!
Not sure why all the wining. They was favored to beat us by a td and didnt do it. by all counts we had that game won exept they're kicker had a howister for a leg.
ReplyDeleteI'm AALL IN with Dabo, but the guy running the offense gotta go. Dabo bleeds for this team more than any of the pensil necks who always wining.
We beat Wake and the chickens easy. Dont be scared, Florida is awful. I think we'l were the chickens out bad.
ALL IN and keep feeding nummer 8 the rock!
Kenny, Dabo calls the plays.
ReplyDeleteI agree...be positive since this team has some guts and talent, but just haven't put it together in wins. I can't forgive their lack of play at UNC or BC, but their games at Auburn & FSU were winnable with any luck.
ReplyDeleteTo anonymous regarding Barker. If the choice is between improved academics for 15,000+ students at Clemson and a dominant football program, I will take academics every time.
ReplyDeleteWhen I first moved to ACC country 30 years ago, Clemson was only known as a football school that was in serious trouble for breaking the rules. There were jokes about orange jumpsuits like convicts wear and what IPTAY stood for. It was embarrassing.
Barker's peers consist of some of the best academic institutions in the nation - Wake Forest, Duke, UVA, UNC, Georgia Tech, BC. Can Clemson with their tiny $400 million endowment, strive to compete when some of those peer institutions have 5x to 20x more funds to work with? If Clemson can attract the best and brightest and they go on to be successful, they will give money back to the school. How many of the rabid Clemson football fans even went to school there? Do they give money to Clemson or just Clemson athletics?
The problem with athletics at Clemson is related to Terry Don Phillips. He has not run a good athletic department. If Barker makes some mistakes in athletics, he is succeeding in most other parts of his Clemson duties. Let's first try a new AD.
@Anon 11:45...
ReplyDelete"Do you think for one second that a private sector executive could give a new long term contract with a huge increase in buy out to an employee (as TDP did with Bowden) and then before a year is out find himself having to pay that buy out and then NOT be fired, unless it was with the approval of - if not on the outright orders of - the organization's president?"
Little story here, my uncle used to work for an insurance giant, worked for them for 35 years. One day in the early 00s, they give him a raise during his annual performance review. A few SHORT weeks later, if not days, they downsize him. Not to the level of incompetence of TDP/Bowden/buyout but this is incompetence nonetheless. Moral of the story - never underestimate the incompetence and stupidity of those in power.
@Kenny, are you really trying to justify Clemson's loss by saying they didn't lose by as much as predicted? Really? Have you been reduced to actually quantifying and qualifying losses now? Here's reality - it's always worse to be picked to lose than to be picked to win then lose. Because in the latter, the predictors have a level of confidence in you. In the former they have none, and that's always worse. And when no one has any confidence in you, you're done. At least Bowden's teams got picked to win. Are you the type that defines success by easily stepping over a intentionally lowered bar?
I'm a Clemson engineering grad. I'll start paying into IPTAY and other programs once Clemson represents 'success' on the field. Being satisfied with 'success' in academics, but not in your primary source of national exposure (football) isn't enough. I'm tired of being embarrassed.
ReplyDeleteYou guys who like Dabo must have gone to USC.
ReplyDeleteDabo is out coached by every coach in the ACC.
Their performance yesterday was pathetic.
Clemson.. get a real coach.. not a left over good ol boy.