UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

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MadMartin8
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Re: UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

Post by MadMartin8 »

Greg S wrote:
MadMartin8 wrote:I don't think I've ever seen such fatalism from an Alumni base. Wait and see before you burn the place to the ground for the insurance money, jesus.
I think it has to do with years and years of mismanagement. UNO had a bad run of AD's between Leahy and Alberts and Nancy Belck as Chancellor was a fiasco too. They've made some strides. I do think this latest issue with finances has some thinking it will never get completely fixed.

Greg
I suppose it depends on what constitutes "fixed" ('depends on what you definition of 'is' is? hah). If folks are expecting the athletic department to rake in cash year over year...probably not exactly going to happen most years. If you're expecting at least mostly sustainability, it's definitely possible if UNO starts to connect better with a donor base and continues at least maintaining a winning trend in sports (well, Hockey at least). Also, I don't how losing this particular chancellor automatically means the next chancellor will trigger said doomsday scenario listed above by '79.

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuttttttttttttttt, if you (not meaning you specifically here Greg) think the sky is falling, then it'll fall. I'll get the popcorn.
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omaha79
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Re: UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

Post by omaha79 »

MadMartin8 wrote:
Greg S wrote:
MadMartin8 wrote:I don't think I've ever seen such fatalism from an Alumni base. Wait and see before you burn the place to the ground for the insurance money, jesus.
I think it has to do with years and years of mismanagement. UNO had a bad run of AD's between Leahy and Alberts and Nancy Belck as Chancellor was a fiasco too. They've made some strides. I do think this latest issue with finances has some thinking it will never get completely fixed.

Greg
I suppose it depends on what constitutes "fixed" ('depends on what you definition of 'is' is? hah). If folks are expecting the athletic department to rake in cash year over year...probably not exactly going to happen most years. If you're expecting at least mostly sustainability, it's definitely possible if UNO starts to connect better with a donor base and continues at least maintaining a winning trend in sports (well, Hockey at least). Also, I don't how losing this particular chancellor automatically means the next chancellor will trigger said doomsday scenario listed above by '79.

Buuuuuuuuuuuuuttttttttttttttt, if you (not meaning you specifically here Greg) think the sky is falling, then it'll fall. I'll get the popcorn.
Losing this chancellor doesn't trigger said doomsday scenario. The fear is this scenario is already in motion and has been for a while, starting with the firing of the arena general manager, the firing of Bob Herold, the baseball facility being put on hold, the announcement of the huge losses for both the arena and athletic department, the announcement of no full cost of attendance scholarships, and cutting $600k from the budget this year, culminating, so far, with Blais questioning the direction of the athletic department overall.

For those that have been paying attention, dominoes have been falling for a while. The new chancellor simply adds further uncertainty to a situation teetering on the brink.
bigredmed
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Re: UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

Post by bigredmed »

Their retiring Chancellor is leaving due to retirement. Athletic departments in most D1 programs lose money. The degree of hemorrhage is still unacceptable at $600k, but by cutting football and wrestling, they took a zero off the loss.

The Athletic Department needs to focus on making the experience of the game and the interaction with the AD itself better. We were Hockey STHs for more than a decade. We gave money to the Blue Line Club. The One Fund was set up as the only game in town and the BLC support was ignored. Baxter meant the end of our on the glass seats. The corporate donors got the good seats and STHs were used to disguise the empty corp. seats in the lower bowl.

UNMC Family Ned's Sports Medicine did all their work for free. Our buddy Trent wanted his friend in orthopedics to take over, but at a substantial cost.

Many other stories of UNO's AD's BS could be told, but sum it to say, they have brought this and continue to bring this on themselves. May they stew in their own juices.
omaha79
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Re: UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

Post by omaha79 »

bigredmed wrote:Their retiring Chancellor is leaving due to retirement. Athletic departments in most D1 programs lose money. The degree of hemorrhage is still unacceptable at $600k, but by cutting football and wrestling, they took a zero off the loss.

The Athletic Department needs to focus on making the experience of the game and the interaction with the AD itself better. We were Hockey STHs for more than a decade. We gave money to the Blue Line Club. The One Fund was set up as the only game in town and the BLC support was ignored. Baxter meant the end of our on the glass seats. The corporate donors got the good seats and STHs were used to disguise the empty corp. seats in the lower bowl.

UNMC Family Ned's Sports Medicine did all their work for free. Our buddy Trent wanted his friend in orthopedics to take over, but at a substantial cost.

Many other stories of UNO's AD's BS could be told, but sum it to say, they have brought this and continue to bring this on themselves. May they stew in their own juices.
I don't get what you're saying about "the degree of hemorrhage is still unacceptable at $600k, but by cutting football and wrestling, they took a zero off the loss."

The OWH expose indicated that the athletic department lost $1.5 million last year and the arena lost $1.6 million. All told, that equates to over $3 million in losses from athletics and athletic facilities. $600k was only the amount that Trev Alberts committed to cutting from the athletic budget to try to mitigate the amount that the University of Nebraska system would have to dip into reserve funds. When football and wrestling were cut, it was noted that football was losing over a million a year and wrestling was losing $250k a year. So, I would contend that the current situation is every bit as bad in 2016 as it was in 2011, if not worse.

You'll get no argument from me about UNO needing to do a better job with engaging ticket holders and alumni. I absolutely agree and have made this point on other forums. The only thing that matters at this point is One Fund donations. That's the only thing that moves the needle in the athletic department. Ticket holders receive no perks or engagement simply from holding tickets anymore. I used to get some extra freebies from basketball, but not anymore. UNO should be sending offers for other sports, having ticket holder events, discounts on merchandise, etc. Most of the time, the only correspondence I get from UNO is a renewal letter each year telling me when they need my money. UNO could learn a thing or two from how Martie Cordaro and the Storm Chasers have engaged their ticket holders. They could also look at how Creighton built their fanbase in basketball and soccer in the early to mid 00's for reference.

Bottom line: UNO still operates with D-II mentality when it comes to ticket sales, fan/alumni engagement, and marketing. That can't continue with the commitment they've made to athletics with Baxter Arena. There is too much riding on this now.
bigredmed
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Re: UNO's Baxter Arena running huge losses...

Post by bigredmed »

I see your point. I have long held that UNO is a D1 program in a D2 body.

We quit getting hockey tickets this year.
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