Update on construction....

[MidTennMtneer]

Yeah heaven forbid a program has their logo and banners all over the place. Even the principals in Middle TN realize how big a deal an indoor facility is, but not McPhee. I'd take any of them over the current administration

Oh, I'm not against that. Sorry if it came across that way. Not knocking Oakland at all.

I just meant from an outside perspective for videos posted online by MT. It looks bad to show indoor videos and it be obvious it isn't our facility. I felt the same way when you'd see clips of pro day. I just meant Seigel looks more generic on film and presents a better view to the general public.

 

[MTFAN61]

No doubt the Murphy Center will look beautiful once the upper section of bleachers are removed, & a handful of privacy suites are put in their place. No disagreement.
But let's not fool ourselves, with or without the bleachers in place the lower bowl of the Center hasn't been fully occupied outside of the Rutherford County school day game or graduation ceremonies in years. Even Kermit's top teams had trouble filling the lower bowl.
A revamped Murphy Center will not magically put 8,500-9,000 fans in the seats until the product on the floor is revamped as well.
Being said, meant no disrespect to the ladies program. They're doing everything they can to get fans in the seats. In fact wouldn't be surprised to see us pushing 5,000 fans in some games this year. But if memory serves right the lower bowl seats 6,000-7,000 anyway.
Money would have been better served ripping out the bleachers 1st, & just making due with the lower bowl for a couple years. From that point build the IPF. Then lastly come back & finish fine tuning the Murphy Center.

 

[MidTennFootball]

Oh, I'm not against that. Sorry if it came across that way. Not knocking Oakland at all.

I just meant from an outside perspective for videos posted online by MT. It looks bad to show indoor videos and it be obvious it isn't our facility. I felt the same way when you'd see clips of pro day. I just meant Seigel looks more generic on film and presents a better view to the general public.

I'd be more embarrassed by having to use the facilities of a high school period. It's shameful to be a FBS program for 25 years and still run it like we're in the OVC

 

[JohnDavidBlue]

Call me old fashioned but, to me, get more butts in seats and we get a IPF.

First order of business was to remove our old football coach. Hopefully DM can increase attendance.

Next is basketball.

Girls basketball carrying the big programs on their backs at the moment.

 

[ewglenn]

I’m in the same boat, I think both are desperately needed. I’m just glad they are working to address our issues from a facility standpoint. The SAPC is huge, the Murphy Center and IPF are also big.

They’ve done quite a bit in a short amount of time to really try and make things better. New windows and court for the Murphy center. Working on the SAPC and the video board for Floyd, new tennis courts. That’s a really good run and hopefully they keep up the momentum without a gap between phase one and two and eventually phase three.

 

[MTFAN61]

I’m in the same boat, I think both are desperately needed. I’m just glad they are working to address our issues from a facility standpoint. The SAPC is huge, the Murphy Center and IPF are also big.

They’ve done quite a bit in a short amount of time to really try and make things better. New windows and court for the Murphy center. Working on the SAPC and the video board for Floyd, new tennis courts. That’s a really good run and hopefully they keep up the momentum without a gap between phase one and two and eventually phase three.

The administration as a whole had been so negative about facility upgrades for the past 15-20 years. What do you feel caused the about face by McPhee & company to finally get on board with Build Blue?
Despite the delay I am glad to see things developing as they are, but I do wonder why the change from total apathy to the "let's get this done" approach now. I could be wrong, but IMO never felt the president had a reason to fear for his job concerning the athletic department succeeding or failing.

 

[MidTennMtneer]

The administration as a whole had been so negative about facility upgrades for the past 15-20 years. What do you feel caused the about face by McPhee & company to finally get on board with Build Blue?
Despite the delay I am glad to see things developing as they are, but I do wonder why the change from total apathy to the "let's get this done" approach now. I could be wrong, but IMO never felt the president had a reason to fear for his job concerning the athletic department succeeding or failing.

I don't think he's ever felt for his job.

I honestly think realignment did it. We made the jump to CUSA (debatable if it was a "jump" but at the time perception wise it was) with no real upgrades. From things McP has said it seems he assumed we could continue to do that.

Once the great exodus happened with 9 schools leaving, it happened for him. He mentioned at the SAPC announcement that he didn't realize facilities mattered, and I believe him. He is an academic and I've seen zero from him that shows he understood if you grow athletics, you grow the university. He wanted us to grow on academic merit, which is great, but why not have both?

I've said before I think that is why we kept Stock so long. McP saw we weren't losing and going to bowls and thought it was hunky dory. I think CM finally was able to show him the apathy combined with realignment that multiple changes needed to happen. Budget differences, ticket sales, facilities, fundraising, etc compared to our peers. Hiring Lee and him being in CM's corner and proving what a good fundraising person can do probably helped as well.

That's all just my absolutely could be wrong opinion though.

 

[Brew_Raider]

The fully functional Holiday Inn on campus at Memphis is also the Kemmons Wilson School of Hospitality and Resort Management.

MT desperately needed new science building for years before we got it. When I was in school, there was a recommendation to the old state board of reagents that MT gets funding for it. Somehow the new MT science building wasn’t funded that year, but money went to the UM hospitality school and that hotel deal. We were told the UM hotel and hospitality school was not supposed to be fully funded to start building that year.
So ignore the recommendation for MT, but give to UM something early.

That hotel is a reminder of that screw job.

 

[Brew_Raider]

I don't think he's ever felt for his job.

I honestly think realignment did it. We made the jump to CUSA (debatable if it was a "jump" but at the time perception wise it was) with no real upgrades. From things McP has said it seems he assumed we could continue to do that.

Once the great exodus happened with 9 schools leaving, it happened for him. He mentioned at the SAPC announcement that he didn't realize facilities mattered, and I believe him. He is an academic and I've seen zero from him that shows he understood if you grow athletics, you grow the university. He wanted us to grow on academic merit, which is great, but why not have both?

I've said before I think that is why we kept Stock so long. McP saw we weren't losing and going to bowls and thought it was hunky dory. I think CM finally was able to show him the apathy combined with realignment that multiple changes needed to happen. Budget differences, ticket sales, facilities, fundraising, etc compared to our peers. Hiring Lee and him being in CM's corner and proving what a good fundraising person can do probably helped as well.

That's all just my absolutely could be wrong opinion though.

I think you are probably closer to the truth.

Look at the resume of UTK’s president versus McPhee.

Provost can handle the academic side. The president at a school like ours needs business sense, vision, dynamic leadership and hopefully is excellent at politics and fundraising.

I don’t see any of that in McPhee. He’s an academic and administrative bureaucrat. Then he stayed entirely too long. Add in the Seven wood fiasco and you have someone that doesn’t have the correct drive or priorities.

 

[MidTennFootball]

I don't think he's ever felt for his job.

I honestly think realignment did it. We made the jump to CUSA (debatable if it was a "jump" but at the time perception wise it was) with no real upgrades. From things McP has said it seems he assumed we could continue to do that.

Once the great exodus happened with 9 schools leaving, it happened for him. He mentioned at the SAPC announcement that he didn't realize facilities mattered, and I believe him. He is an academic and I've seen zero from him that shows he understood if you grow athletics, you grow the university. He wanted us to grow on academic merit, which is great, but why not have both?

I've said before I think that is why we kept Stock so long. McP saw we weren't losing and going to bowls and thought it was hunky dory. I think CM finally was able to show him the apathy combined with realignment that multiple changes needed to happen. Budget differences, ticket sales, facilities, fundraising, etc compared to our peers. Hiring Lee and him being in CM's corner and proving what a good fundraising person can do probably helped as well.

That's all just my absolutely could be wrong opinion though.

I just don't believe he was that clueless about the role of the athletic department as it pertains to growing a university. They are plenty of academic types like him running universities that understand the quickest way to grow an institution is through its athletic department, which is essentially the public face of the university.

McPhee has been on enough NCAA committee's that he'd have to bury his head in the sand not to understand it's importance, hes just chose not to until people started asking why Middle is left holding the bag when several universities were able to improve their situation, both in perception and money

 

[ewglenn]

Nathan Wallach on LinkedIn: Floyd Stadium Videoboard update! The foot print has grown to it’s new size…

Floyd Stadium Videoboard update! The foot print has grown to it’s new size with the addition of our camera platform and audio enclosure on the top. We made the…

www.linkedin.com

 

[MTLynn]

I just don't believe he was that clueless about the role of the athletic department as it pertains to growing a university.

7 wood is not in Murfreesboro to improve the university. He's here to turn MTSU into tsu-Murfreesboro.

 

[BlueraiderSC]

7 wood is not in Murfreesboro to improve the university. He's here to turn MTSU into tsu-Murfreesboro.

You’re an idiot

 

[blueraiderJT]

Nathan Wallach on LinkedIn: Floyd Stadium Videoboard update! The foot print has grown to it’s new size…

Floyd Stadium Videoboard update! The foot print has grown to it’s new size with the addition of our camera platform and audio enclosure on the top. We made the…

www.linkedin.com

32' x 60' is a sizable upgrade. That's pretty awesome. I also saw that the concrete guys are pouring and working on the SAPC. We are moving forward and it feels great!

 

[blueraider315]

32' x 60' is a sizable upgrade. That's pretty awesome. I also saw that the concrete guys are pouring and working on the SAPC. We are moving forward and it feels great!

Yep. It seems to be about the same size as the old one, but this will be all LED! One day we need one on the other side of the stadium.

 

[ewglenn]

32' x 60' is a sizable upgrade. That's pretty awesome. I also saw that the concrete guys are pouring and working on the SAPC. We are moving forward and it feels great!

Yeah it will make a major difference for the fans. I could never actually see the replays on the old one (which they need to do more of in big play situations imo). I did find this part of the post interesting and a good call.

“We made the decision to move high endzone cameras to the new videoboard so that we didn’t have to have a camera platform on the roof of the new endzone facility.”

 

[MTLynn]

You’re an idiot

Given that 7 wood should have been fired for sexual harassment 20 years ago, why do you think the state has continued to give him raises and extensions for more than 20 years?

 

[blueraider315]

Out east...

 

[MidTennMtneer]

Out east...

View embedded media

The spoils of winning that national champ.

 

[mtfblue]

The spoils of winning that national champ.

I read that state gave them 800 million for the Neyland and the baseball stadium if so did state give MT any money?

 

[BRaiderDave]

I read that state gave them 800 million for the Neyland and the baseball stadium if so did state give MT any money?

$800.00

 

[mtfblue]

my bad it was 500 million.

Seeing green in Big Orange country as state pumps money into University of Tennessee stadiums • Tennessee Lookout

The State Building Commission has approved $500 million of improvements to University of Tennessee Knoxville athletic facilities in 10 years.

tennesseelookout.com

 

[MidTennMtneer]

That's a heck of a view from that fancy new suite will have.

 

[SpaceRaider]

Summer Construction brings projects from paper to life for MTSU Athletics - Middle Tennessee State University Athletics

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Anyone who's driven by the northwest corner of Middle Tennessee State University lately will have seen the progress being made on many facets

goblueraiders.com

 

[SigmaNuBlue]

7 wood is not in Murfreesboro to improve the university. He's here to turn MTSU into tsu-Murfreesboro.

I'm not a fan of McPhee either, but what does this even mean?

 

[MTLynn]

I'm not a fan of McPhee either, but what does this even mean?

Undergraduates at tsu attend classes to hang out. This has been the case for decades. MT and tsu became sister schools in the 1980s, IMO, because the state wants to eliminate tsu-Nashville undergrad classes.