What we know so far about the Brad matter

[cheeseman]

Despite all the gnashing of teeth and the sky is falling talk from some and the local media, lets take a deep breath and look at this objectively: 1, Frank C's comment about the state of recruiting for the 2008 is very telling. 2. Biondi finally saw that Brad was not going to get it done on the recruiting scene. 3. A big donor - who knows who at this time, could be Chavitz, probably stepped up and said that he/she would provide the $ to pay Brad off and to get a good hire. 4. Did Biondi have a name in mind - who knows but what we do know is that when he met with Brad that Brad probably did not have good news for him on the recruiting front and that is what broke the camel's back. 5. At this point the spring recruiting was finished anyway so nothing is lost - hopefully the new coach can talk Relphorde and Mitchell in not asking for their releases. 6. More information will be forth coming in the next few days - Biondi is not talking because they may be in negotiations as we talk with a candidate(s). 7. I know CL probably thought the timing was terrible and probably did not recommend Brad being let go but she would not be the first person who advised their boss not to do something and the boss went and did it anyway - she might be upset but she will get over it.

I was open to give Brad another year and have said so before based on that his recruiting improved however, if things were going south as Frank C suggested then time to move on.

[billiken_roy]

cheese said,

"5. At this point the spring recruiting was finished anyway so nothing is lost - hopefully the new coach can talk Relphorde and Mitchell in not asking for their releases."

if we were meeting a new coach today or tomorrow i would agree. apparently we hired a search firm to find a coach. the longer it drags out the more likely that people are in the players' ears.

[moytoy12]

1. I didn't hear frank's comments.

2. Do we know this?

3. Seems more true than not that a donor stepped up, but we can't pretend to know the reasons.

4. Who knows.

5. We're sure spring recruiting was finished?

6. I'm not so sure info is coming in the next few days.

7. Agreed, bosses are jerks.

[Billikan]

I have now talked to several highly placed "insiders" and it appears that Father Biondi just felt we needed a new coach. But no one knew it was coming like it did and no one who was personally involved in the firing is talking about it to anyone. I am now sanguine with the decision to replace Brad if that is what was felt was necessary, although I personally thought Brad should have been given at least this year, but the whole firing process has reflected badly on SLU and that still bothers me a lot. No one can understand why someone has not talked to the press. I assume that will happen soon.

[kmbilliken]

Did Brad meet with Boindi? I thought Cheryl delivered the message.

[AJ]

Cheeseman:

You may be right. In one of the earlier threads I suggested two alternative theories: (1) Biondi finally caves in to major booster pressure and the timing was designed to prevent any more signings, particularly of high-level recruits like ALexander, an event that would have made the firing difficult if not impossible; (2) Under booster pressure Biondi went to CL and/or Brad in March and issued an 5-6 week deadline to sign the 3-4 major recruits that Brad has been talking about since February. Assuming that SLU found out Monday PM that Alexander wasn't signing and that Brad's Monday PM home visit to Pedigrew failed to produce either a LOI or a solid verbal, then the camel's back was broken and CL was forced to fire Brad in an effort to possibly salvage teh spring recruiting period with a new coach. May be true although I am convinced Brad didn't know he was gone until late Monday or early Tuesday.

This latter senario isn't a great explanation, but it makes SLU sound better than they do now - at least they gave Brad "one last chance." Unfortunately, there's only two people who know and they are hidding under their desks, which gives credence to (1). One thing is certain in my mind, the timing had some connection to the Alexander situation.

[tdog]

I think Cheeseman and AJ have just solved the mystery....

[Billikan]

I beleive that Cheryl met with Brad but that Father Biondi made the decision.

[satrap]

>Under pressure Biondi went to CL and/or Brad in March and issued

>an 5-6 week deadline to sign the 3-4 major recruits that

>Brad has been talking about since February. Assuming that

>SLU found out Monday PM that Alexander wasn't signing and

>that Brad's Monday PM home visit to Pedigrew failed to

>produce either a LOI or a solid verbal, then the camel's

>back was broken and CL was forced to fire Brad in an effort

>to possibly salvage teh spring recruiting period with a new

>coach. May be true although I am convinced Brad didn't know

>he was gone until late Monday or early Tuesday.

>

I like this theory as it certainly is consistent with what we have just seen. Still, I simply don't understand why they couldn't have just waited for the signing period to play out. Relphorde and Mitchell are studs, and with a couple more the class is certainly good for depth. Whatever..

[Cowboy]

I like this theory as it certainly is consistent with what we have just seen. Still, I simply don't understand why they couldn't have just waited for the signing period to play out.

then you are in May and probably can't put together a schedule that doesn't suck

[TDELL]

I called Cheryl Tuesday night,and she returned my call Wednesday morning.I was surprised that she called me back so fast.I never met or talked with her before,she's a very nice person,she told me what happend,I cant talk about it.Frank C. is as close as it gets to the truth.Tommie and Kevin had a meeting with Cheryl yesterday at 3:30.I will post the outcome..

[SluSignGuy]

Okay, someone very slowly re-tell what Frank Cusamano said...

[jjray]

.. bump

[cheeseman]

What I heard Frank say was the following: Brad was loosing the recruiting battle with the 2008 class - parent told Frank that once SLU offered the schollies that they seldom ever heard from the SLU again. Brad had some issues with CL and now it seems apparently with Biondi. If Frank said anymore then I did not hear it.

[slu72]

This scenario of giving him one last shot to sign some quality talent makes a lot of sense. I think we have a tendency to believe that Biondi really doesn't know or care what's going on with the hoops program other than how he's going to pay for the arena. He, and CL, had to be just as aware as fans and boosters that UB's last 3 recruiting periods were duds, and this spring fling was his last shot. No one he was going after that could have helped us next year was giving out signals they were coming. I think Alexander choosing Illinois was the last straw probably for both CL and Biondi. The fact the AD was not at the school's major sports banquet shouts out that she knew he was gone after RA made his choice, and she knew his choice wasn't going to be SLU.

[jjray]

>What I heard Frank say was the following: Brad was loosing

>the recruiting battle with the 2008 class - parent told

>Frank that once SLU offered the schollies that they seldom

>ever heard from the SLU again. Brad had some issues with CL

>and now it seems apparently with Biondi. If Frank said

>anymore then I did not hear it.

That explanation is no fun cheese. We need conspiracies or lone gunmen. Colonel Mustard Chefitz with the dagger in West Pine. Seriously, if this is true, why the press release from the Bush Administration school of communication with no followup? Somebody needed to step forward and say the reason we pulled the plug now was that we lost faith in Brad's ability to recruit. We gave him one last bite at the apple and he came up with too many blanks in the spring signing period. It would have put out the wild fire of speculation about the Colonel Chefitz hit job.

[cheeseman]

I read the press release yesterday since I had been out of town - at least the one on the official SLU AD website - I think it did say just that. They had decided that Brad was not the person who could take the school where they wanted to go with the BB program. They are not going to come out and say he was a lousy recruiter. Now contrary to some, I would not rule out the role of a booster(s) in this matter. While someone might not have said he has to go or I won't give or I will give a big money if he goes - I do think that Biondi talked to several boosters who he was hoping would give big money and they probably said something like we would rather take a wait and see approach before committing. As in the press release while not saying it frankly it is was said never-the-less.

[3star_recruit]

Maybe this is the plausible lie they concocted to cover up the real reason for the firing. If this were the real reason there would be no need for the cloak and dagger act.

[3star_recruit]

The press release may have been intentionally open-ended so they could fill in the reason for the firing later.

[jjray]

>>I read the press release yesterday since I had been out of town - at least the one on the official SLU AD website - I think it did say just that. They had decided that Brad was not the person who could take the school where they wanted to go with the BB program. They are not going to come out and say he was a lousy recruiter.<<

Sure, you don't say it in the press release "Sodie sucked as a recruiter" ... but the school absolutely needs to get the word to the media "why" Sodie was let go at a very stupid time. Just saying we lost faith that in Brad as the guy to lead us to the promised land is not the answer. An "unnamed source" in the SLU athletic department is authorized to call Timmerman and give him the reason--we gave Sodie one last shot out of loyalty to the man but he came up short in the Spring signing period. The school has to say "why" to protect it's image. Don't they understand the necessity of this???

[jjray]

One more point. TDell said below, "I talked to Cheryl personally yesterday and got the reason but I can't talk about it." What's so aweful about the reason that they are going CIA on this? Gotta believe there is something more to it. But nobody every said SLU understood the art of public communication. Could be just be bad PR.

[slufanskip]

No they don't. They said all that is needed, which is probably why there was no press conference. Why can't we just take this at face value.

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[tdog]

If SLU is in negotiations with a new coach, they absolutely shouldn't talk about it. That would explain the cloak and dagger approach we are seeing now.

[slu72]

My bet what CL told Tdell is that recruitment of the '08 class wasn't going well either.

[jjray]

>If SLU is in negotiations with a new coach, they absolutely

>shouldn't talk about it. That would explain the cloak and

>dagger approach we are seeing now.

Very much disagree with you TDog. Article 1 of the crisis management bible is to get the facts out as quickly as possible. I'm not saying you have to do a hit job on Sodie but either (a) face the media and explain the decision like big boys and girls or ( leak the explanation. How hard is it to step up to the microphone and say "we gave Brad 6 weeks after the conclusion of the season to fill the five open scholarships and his efforts in this regard did not meet our expectations" (period)? Worst of all worlds is to sit on your hands while taking wild shots from the media as is now happening (see Bernie and even speculation from national media). That said, if we land Majerus, all sins will be forgiven.