Baseball Dropped (Updated)

[tim]

From any and all who so vehemently oppose these athletics and other cuts, I would like to read your suggestions of what should have been done instead.
So far, it appears to me that the cuts that are being made are not only very difficult but also fully and definitely necessary.
Prayers for all persons impacted by these decisions, including athletes, coaches and other athletics staff, faculty, all Furman staff, families, alumni, trustees, and all administration including certainly President Davis. Prayers for Furman University.
It is time for us all to support Furman.
If you have criticisms of decisions being made, again, please tell what you would have done instead and why it would have been better.

I don't have access to sufficient financial data to say. But it's interesting that Furman took this step before the hundreds of D-I programs with even fewer financial resources. What are those schools doing to avoid gutting their athletic dept.?

I would be surprised if Furman is the only SoCon school to make cuts. Maybe other schools won’t cut a major sport, but hard to think only Furman is affected. Hoping we were just the first to announce.

Some of you act like this is only a Furman issue. Some schools have already announced cutbacks. Many more are coming. ECU is one that will be announcing soon. Plus, in case you haven’t noticed, businesses are closing or cutting back across this country. All of America is affected by this virus and by politicians closing down the country. https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/art ... 16081.html

Other D-1 schools that have already announced significant cuts include:
Iowa State
Cincinnati
Old Dominion
FIU
Wisconsin - Green Bay.

Akron also cut men's cross country, men's golf and women's tennis...

...and to make matters worse, last year they hired Tom Arth away from Chattanooga as their Head Football Coach, giving him a 5 year contract, and he promptly delivered an 0-12 season for the Zips in 2019.

Yes! I knew there was another one that I was forgetting- Akron. Three teams eliminated by the Zips.

Bowling Green but they may have already been mentioned

[apaladin]

Akron was smart by eliminating 3 sports that few cared about or followed and gave nothing back to the university. Furman not so much. Like I said you will not hear the name Furman mentioned in regards to sports anywhere for 6 months out of the year now. That in itself is a huge negative for the university. That first line from JD that baseball was not on the chopping block until a month ago makes it even more disturbing. I do not believe for one minute that these cuts will save FU 5 million. The vast majority of that is in scholarship money which we could argue all day if that is a real cost or not. The baseball figures that WYFF reported were from the Federal Department of Education which I assume Furman reported those figures so I believe they are correct. No reason not to believe them.

[Roundball]

Listening to Asst. Coach Andrew Cox on 105.5 this morning was heartbreaking. He is first class. Hopefully, he will land somewhere quickly. The interview led to me a confession. I did nothing to keep this from happening. I didn't buy season tickets. I did not support the program with a few dollars or with my butt in the seats. I didn't go to any games at Fluor Field. I didn't even take the time to watch the team play in the SoCon tournament when it was in Greenville. I never sent a note of encouragement to any coach or to any player. I did nothing. Ultimately, if more fans would have supported this team during the season and during the tournament, baseball would have been more financially successful and may not have been cut. Heck, not many Furman fans cared enough to watch this team play against Carolina, or Clemson or in the SoCon tournament at Fluor Field. You can blame this on whoever or whatever you want, but it's on us. It's on me.

[tim]

Good to hear there could be a team again one day, but it is a huge step back to any success baseball could have at Furman to start from zero if that time ever comes. This has been the biggest surprise to me in all of this, just cutting the program without any major fundraising push. I completely understand the analysis given that Furman is sponsoring too many teams given the size and funding of the school. But if I wanted to make a $5 mil donation this year to keep baseball and Lax it sounds like the university would politely refuse and ask me to fund something else.

Well I know in years past, about the time title nine came into play, indoor track was dropped along with wrestling, now It looks as though we have indoor track again? Never say never.

[apaladin]

Good to hear there could be a team again one day, but it is a huge step back to any success baseball could have at Furman to start from zero if that time ever comes. This has been the biggest surprise to me in all of this, just cutting the program without any major fundraising push. I completely understand the analysis given that Furman is sponsoring too many teams given the size and funding of the school. But if I wanted to make a $5 mil donation this year to keep baseball and Lax it sounds like the university would politely refuse and ask me to fund something else.

Well I know in years past, about the time title nine came into play, indoor track was dropped along with wrestling, now It looks as though we have indoor track again? Never say never.

Well, that makes me feel better. The only problem is that a lot of us won’t live long enough to see baseball return if it ever does.

[ksummerlin]

This isn't just about sports, the whole academic community at Furman was cut. FU has lost $100 million in endowment money in 3 months due to the financial downturn. They had to refund $4 million in room and board fees and incur unexpected costs to shift to online classroom instruction for the remainder of the year. The president took a 20% pay reduction, vice-presidents a 10% pay reduction. Football and basketball head coaches took a 10% temporary pay cut. 10 week summer furloughs will begin soon. In addition, estimates are that there will be a 15% decrease in enrollment next year.

As a Furman alumni, I hate this news. I spent countless afternoons across the street from my dorm watching games at the stadium. I don't have to like it, but I understand it and how hard it must have been to come to this decision.
I also think that this is not the last news of its kind that we will hear. Other schools have started cutting programs as well (see Akron, Old Dominion, etc). This will impact private institutions much harder than it will public institutions. I wouldn't be surprised to see some private institutions shutter for good.

God bless these players and coaches -- they must be devastated.

[fufanatic]

Good to hear there could be a team again one day, but it is a huge step back to any success baseball could have at Furman to start from zero if that time ever comes. This has been the biggest surprise to me in all of this, just cutting the program without any major fundraising push. I completely understand the analysis given that Furman is sponsoring too many teams given the size and funding of the school. But if I wanted to make a $5 mil donation this year to keep baseball and Lax it sounds like the university would politely refuse and ask me to fund something else.

Well I know in years past, about the time title nine came into play, indoor track was dropped along with wrestling, now It looks as though we have indoor track again? Never say never.

Yeah, I mean technically we have indoor and outdoor track, but it's my understanding that they mostly invest in the distance events, which means the cross country runners. I think they do have a few other competitors in the other events, but some play primarily other sports (like a football guy throwing the shot put) and a few probably get very little money to come to Furman. Obviously don't have an indoor track, so the sport is probably pretty inexpensive overall.

[apaladin]

There are 22 D1 and D2 colleges in South Carolina. 20 have a baseball team. Furman and SC State do not. Sad.

[youwouldno]

This isn't just about sports, the whole academic community at Furman was cut. FU has lost $100 million in endowment money in 3 months due to the financial downturn. They had to refund $4 million in room and board fees and incur unexpected costs to shift to online classroom instruction for the remainder of the year. The president took a 20% pay reduction, vice-presidents a 10% pay reduction. Football and basketball head coaches took a 10% temporary pay cut. 10 week summer furloughs will begin soon. In addition, estimates are that there will be a 15% decrease in enrollment next year.

As a Furman alumni, I hate this news. I spent countless afternoons across the street from my dorm watching games at the stadium. I don't have to like it, but I understand it and how hard it must have been to come to this decision.
I also think that this is not the last news of its kind that we will hear. Other schools have started cutting programs as well (see Akron, Old Dominion, etc). This will impact private institutions much harder than it will public institutions. I wouldn't be surprised to see some private institutions shutter for good.

God bless these players and coaches -- they must be devastated.

Furman hasn't "lost" endowment money in a meaningful sense, except to the extent they've had to liquidate assets to refund room & board, etc. Obviously it would be an issue if the financial markets take an extremely long time to recover, but otherwise it's a red herring for the most part.

I don't doubt the authenticity of the University's financial concerns though, which I suspect relate primarily to longer-term demographic and higher-educational trends. They don't want to emphasize that because using covid-19 as cover is a good way to deflect criticism.

I actually don't mind that PR strategy, but it was a mistake for Furman to completely gloss over the fact that they are cutting sports that have brought in recent or fairly recent donor investments. I would imagine they are reaching out to individuals to smooth over what they can, but the honest thing would be to acknowledge the University was responsible for poor planning and poor use of donor funds.

JD's comments about investing in football and basketball are completely absent from the actual press release and FAQ (which in fact seems to explicitly contradict that claim). I don't see how they will be able to raise money for capital projects in the near-to-medium term. I can't imagine why they would downplay investments in football and basketball . . . likely because they aren't coming anytime soon.

[FU3]

Furman has a current business model that requires a substantial annual increase in tuition,fees and room and board
(current sticker price is $67,000 per year). A good economy and booming stock market have enabled institutions like Furman to avoid addressing some serious long term issues, those days are over. All of higher education is going to have exist in a very changed environment in how they market and operate. Every college and university in the country is panicked on how many of its students will return in the fall or hang around for perhaps another round of remote education in the spring (SC is cancelling fall break and sending students home for the semester before Thanksgiving in anticipation of another spike). Time will tell if cutting a few sports as the initial way to address this crisis was a prudent move or gave a skittish clientele another reason to question the value of attending or returning. Guess that is why they pay the folks at the top the big $$$.

[MNORM]

From any and all who so vehemently oppose these athletics and other cuts, I would like to read your suggestions of what should have been done instead.
So far, it appears to me that the cuts that are being made are not only very difficult but also fully and definitely necessary.
Prayers for all persons impacted by these decisions, including athletes, coaches and other athletics staff, faculty, all Furman staff, families, alumni, trustees, and all administration including certainly President Davis. Prayers for Furman University.
It is time for us all to support Furman.
If you have criticisms of decisions being made, again, please tell what you would have done instead and why it would have been better.

I don't have access to sufficient financial data to say. But it's interesting that Furman took this step before the hundreds of D-I programs with even fewer financial resources. What are those schools doing to avoid gutting their athletic dept.?

I would be surprised if Furman is the only SoCon school to make cuts. Maybe other schools won’t cut a major sport, but hard to think only Furman is affected. Hoping we were just the first to announce.

Some of you act like this is only a Furman issue. Some schools have already announced cutbacks. Many more are coming. ECU is one that will be announcing soon. Plus, in case you haven’t noticed, businesses are closing or cutting back across this country. All of America is affected by this virus and by politicians closing down the country. https://www.newsobserver.com/sports/art ... 16081.html

Other D-1 schools that have already announced significant cuts include:
Iowa State
Cincinnati
Old Dominion
FIU
Wisconsin - Green Bay.

Akron also cut men's cross country, men's golf and women's tennis...

...and to make matters worse, last year they hired Tom Arth away from Chattanooga as their Head Football Coach, giving him a 5 year contract, and he promptly delivered an 0-12 season for the Zips in 2019.

The financial issues at Akron run much deeper than athletics. They are working on potentially cutting 6 of 11 academic colleges and 80 degree tracks. Things have been a mess since before Proenza stepped down as university President in 2014. You really can't compare Akron and Furman's financial situations...trust me.
Baseball was recently resurrected at Akron, after a four year absence, through alumni support. Chris Sabo is the coach. Just an FYI.....I expect (and hope for) a similar movement at Furman.

[apaladin]

youwouldno pretty much nailed it.

[Affirm]

Furman has a current business model that requires a substantial annual increase in tuition,fees and room and board
(current sticker price is $67,000 per year). A good economy and booming stock market have enabled institutions like Furman to avoid addressing some serious long term issues, those days are over. All of higher education is going to have exist in a very changed environment in how they market and operate. Every college and university in the country is panicked on how many of its students will return in the fall or hang around for perhaps another round of remote education in the spring (SC is cancelling fall break and sending students home for the semester before Thanksgiving in anticipation of another spike). Time will tell if cutting a few sports as the initial way to address this crisis was a prudent move or gave a skittish clientele another reason to question the value of attending or returning. Guess that is why they pay the folks at the top the big $$$.

SC’s move is no big deal. The students will have very few class days after TG anyway, and those few days will be done remotely. SC athletics will not suffer. They are rich.

[Furmanoid]

Furman has a current business model that requires a substantial annual increase in tuition,fees and room and board
(current sticker price is $67,000 per year). A good economy and booming stock market have enabled institutions like Furman to avoid addressing some serious long term issues, those days are over. All of higher education is going to have exist in a very changed environment in how they market and operate. Every college and university in the country is panicked on how many of its students will return in the fall or hang around for perhaps another round of remote education in the spring (SC is cancelling fall break and sending students home for the semester before Thanksgiving in anticipation of another spike). Time will tell if cutting a few sports as the initial way to address this crisis was a prudent move or gave a skittish clientele another reason to question the value of attending or returning. Guess that is why they pay the folks at the top the big $$$.

SC’s move is no big deal. The students will have very few class days after TG anyway, and those few days will be done remotely. SC athletics will not suffer. They are rich.

I think his point is that USC is an example of the widespread panic. I guess we can hope that FU bigwigs are taking a calm, reasoned approach, but I doubt it. I bet they’re freaking out. They have to figure out a way to sound so, so concerned about the pandemic and staying safe at home, and all that stuff on the one hand. But then they have to turn around and convince people that it’s ok to fork out $67k to go stay in dorms in a red state run by virus-loving yahoos instead of staying safe in the basement and getting the same credits for a few grand. I’d be in a panic.

[FUKA61]

Average student at FU pays 28k
Only about 10% pay full amount.