Its Kevin White

[laxbluedevil]

Duke has $8.2 billion in endowment and assets managed by its investment company DUMAC as of Feb 2008, which is about $7 billion more than it had a decade ago. Duke's investment returns routinely lead the nation, earning over 25% in one year. How is it possible that Duke still funds the fewest scholarships in the ACC with 250 or so? Duke could endow 350 scholarships like Stanford today if it wanted to but where's the rush and what's the point? Recruits don't care if Stanford has 350 endowed scholarships or Duke gives out 350 unendowed scholarships.

Funding 100 extra scholarships per year would cost $5 million, or one half of one percent of the at least $1 billion Duke makes in investment returns every year. That money isn't going anywhere or doing anything, it's just sitting in the bank growing. Duke had none of that just 10 years ago but Duke is still acting like a pauper instead of the multibillionaire it is.

Stanford had already endowed all 350 or so of its scholarships a decade ago and was winning every Sears Cup when it may have been worth $8 billion or so. In fact they might have done it 15-20 years ago when they were worth far less than Duke has now. So what's the excuse for Duke not doing the same or even coming close to that?

Just add sports and scholarships and top coaches. Right now Duke has so much cash it wouldn't know what the hell to do with it all after endowing all scholarships and funding everything imaginable. Imagine what it will be in 10 years. At a minimum Duke could fund 100 extra scholarships per year now. Later when it has a few spare trillions lying around it can endow them all, whatever. Harvard has at least $35 billion and terrible sports. If Duke keeps holding back on adding sports like softball and insisting on having the fewest scholarships in the ACC, the commitment to athletics really has to be questioned.

Maybe Kevin White can get Duke its own basketball contract like ND had its own NBC football deal. No way Duke should be giving Clemson as much basketball TV revenue as it gets from ESPN, while Clemson and the football schools get to keep their stadium revenues away from Duke. The ACC is a trainwreck with 12 schools anyway, they can be 11 without Duke. That's one good thing that might come from the Kevin White hiring.

[Bluedawg]

Comments on Kevin White [http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/story/1092171.html]

"That is why [we] are so fond of him and why we will really miss him," Brey said. "I think Duke feels they have a good one in Kevin, but they don't have any idea yet of just how good of a guy they are getting."

ACC commissioner John Swofford has worked with White on the Bowl Championship Series committee and called the hire "not just a home run, but a grand slam home run for Duke."

Meet Kevin White: Press Conference http://www.wral.com/sports/video/2970917/

Everyone wanted someone who understood the academic side of Duke as well as the athletic side. I think we got a good guy!

[Duvall]

Just add sports and scholarships and top coaches. Right now Duke has so much cash it wouldn't know what the hell to do with it all after endowing all scholarships and funding everything imaginable. Imagine what it will be in 10 years. At a minimum Duke could fund 100 extra scholarships per year now. Later when it has a few spare trillions lying around it can endow them all, whatever. Harvard has at least $35 billion and terrible sports. If Duke keeps holding back on adding sports like softball and insisting on having the fewest scholarships in the ACC, the commitment to athletics really has to be questioned.

Oddly enough, there are some people that think that a major research institution has higher priorities than fielding a softball team.

I'd rather go back to talking about John Riek.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

At the risk of being overly simplistic:

Coach K is happy with the hire. Who here knows more about it than him?

Coach Cut coached White's kid, and no doubt was consulted on the search. Given the commitment Duke is showing to him and his staff, one would assume that he is happy. Who knows more about it than him?

Mike Brey gives big kudos. Mike is the best of the Duke coaching tree so far.



Not to discount all of the naysayers here, but I'll take those three's opinions over mine or anyone here.

I agree with what you've said! Your comments are concise and put this hire into a realistic context.

[Inonehand]

At the risk of being overly simplistic:

Coach K is happy with the hire. Who here knows more about it than him?

Coach Cut coached White's kid, and no doubt was consulted on the search. Given the commitment Duke is showing to him and his staff, one would assume that he is happy. Who knows more about it than him?

Mike Brey gives big kudos. Mike is the best of the Duke coaching tree so far.



Not to discount all of the naysayers here, but I'll take those three's opinions over mine or anyone here.

White's kid did not play football.

[Inonehand]

Regardless of whether or not White was a good hire, the way you're describing Mike Cragg is the complete opposite of my impression. Arrogant is the last word I'd think of to describe him. And in a world of arrogant people, that's a nice change of pace.

Exactly what I was thinking. Obviously this guy doesn't know Mike OR the insiders and media people that I do.

[roywhite]

To laxbluedevil's points on Duke's funding:

Good news that the endowment is growing significantly; Duke has played catch-up against older top academic institutions such as the Ivys and is now reaching the approx. level of Columbia, Cornell, and Penn. The most recent figures I see are an endowment of approx. $6 Bil for Duke in 2007, with Stanford at $17.2 Bil, Yale at $22.9 Bil, and Harvard at $34.9 Bil.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...s_by_endowment

I'm not clear as to Stanford's endowment of athletic scholarships; my understanding was that they were financed through donations outside of the general endowment. Is that correct?

I would certainly like to see Duke have more endowed athletic scholarships, but it's no small task with an annual full scholarship cost approaching $50k. I expect this is a priority for new AD Kevin White. Do we seriously consider using general endowment funds to do this?

[sagegrouse]

Duke has $8.2 billion in endowment and assets managed by its investment company DUMAC as of Feb 2008, which is about $7 billion more than it had a decade ago. Duke's investment returns routinely lead the nation, earning over 25% in one year. How is it possible that Duke still funds the fewest scholarships in the ACC with 250 or so?

The University has other (higher?) priorities than more athletic scholarships. As you may know, Brodhead's top priority is endowment funds to support need-based scholarships.

I think you will find that, as at Duke, the Stanford endowed athletic scholarships were given by individual donors for that specific purpose. It isn't too surprising that Stanford alums and supporters, at the epicenter of Silicon Valley, have provided untold millions for almost every conceivable need.

The Iron Dukes is a top-flight organization that has the mission to raise funds to support athletics. Kevin White will also be asked to provide personal leadership to the effort.

I agree with you BTW that universities like Duke are being neither creative nor aggressive in applying their huge endowments to fulfill their missions.

sagegrouse

[OZZIE4DUKE]

First, welcome to the boards, and keep posting.

From your name, are you a current or former lax player at Duke? Perhaps a graduating senior?

Your first post in this thread was your first post on the boards, and now you're up to 8 as I write this. Your tone indicates to me that you have an ax to grind, and I'd like to know why? Is it because your are/were a lax player and are you, shall we say, ticked off at Joe? At Brodhead? At the administration as a whole? If so, I can understand that and knowing that will put your posts into context. If not, what's up?

Wellman at Wake would certainly have been a great hire for Duke, maybe Yow as well (but I think less so). But ACC conference teams generally don't go after other conference teams' employees, be they head coach or AD. Assistant coaches, who would be getting a promotion (or were fired) are fair game.

[arnie]

First, welcome to the boards, and keep posting.

From your name, are you a current or former lax player at Duke? Perhaps a graduating senior?

Your first post in this thread was your first post on the boards, and now you're up to 8 as I write this. Your tone indicates to me that you have an ax to grind, and I'd like to know why? Is it because your are/were a lax player and are you, shall we say, ticked off at Joe? At Brodhead? At the administration as a whole? If so, I can understand that and knowing that will put your posts into context. If not, what's up?

Wellman at Wake would certainly have been a great hire for Duke, maybe Yow as well (but I think less so). But ACC conference teams generally don't go after other conference teams' employees, be they head coach or AD. Assistant coaches, who would be getting a promotion (or were fired) are fair game.

Despite what many may think of White's football hires or the concern that he may have left Notre Dame rather than be fired in 1-2 years, he appears 100 times more qualified than his predecessor. I think Duke has sent a message to all that we will try to take all sports seriously.

I also believe a women's softball team will be in place soon - far too much exposure for the sport to simply ignore it.

[Surfsideron]

Personally I like the hire.

This will prove to be a mistake. His track record at Notre Dame is adequate at best and tragic at worst.

They needed a football man....not some Ivy League wannabe. Duke will be going only as far as Cut can take them in football. Thankfully the basketball program is insulated from any outside influences.

[Jarhead]

Isn't that what people said about Alleva, that he had no real power and was there to take the blame for coaching failures? Alleva was said to be shut out of the hiring of the latest football and baseball coaches. If that's the case does it matter who Duke's AD is? I just hope whoever hires coaches for Duke hires the best in the country. There have been too many that were never head coaches before Duke, or never won much if they were. Duke's athletes and fans are the best and deserve nothing but the best coaches and administrators.

I just don't get your comment about "bad form" to go after Yow or Wellman. DBR recommended Wellman right off the bat, so did most everyone else who wanted a proven AD. Bad form? Should Duke only go after coaches or ADs who are unemployed or looking to escape places they're not wanted like Alleva or White and maybe McCallie? Seems like the truly great coaches or ADs are ones Duke has to go after instead of the other way around, like Paul Johnson or Wellman. Who was interviewed?

I can't think of a single better opportunity than Duke for an AD or coach for that matter. Duke is like Stanford before it became a perennial #1 juggernaut, with easier admissions. Only things left is for Duke to get serious about hiring proven coaches. And not have the fewest athletic scholarships in the ACC after explaining why that was ever the case.

Starting a softball program with a top coach is just a first step. Duke should be top 2 in NACDA Cup rankings every year. Stanford's never been challenged for the thing despite making some poor hires. It's not because of CA recruiting or "endowed" scholarships. Duke is within driving distance of half the US population, has lower standards, and if SU has enough cash to endow all their scholarships, Duke has enough to fund a decent number without endowing them until it can afford to.

Some seem to be advocating NO new scholarships (or bathrooms at Wade), until only after HUNDREDS of MILLIONS are spent first to endow the few schollies Duke already has at $1 million each. To stay with the fewest scholarships in the ACC for decades, whose brilliant idea is that? No wonder Duke has little money for coaches, facilities, or more scholarships.

Let's just give out 300-400 schollies per year like every other school, get the best coaches who want the top recruits lining up for a Duke degree, and win everything. Then worry about endowing scholarships later if ever, really don't see the point. Does Duke foresee athletic revenue and overall revenue dropping to zero at some point? I don't think recruits care if recruits 100 years from now already have their scholarship paid for.

It was Alleva that made the bad choices at Duke. At Notre Dame, it was the trustees and the president that made the bad choices. Alleva was properly blamed, but Kevin White was not to blame for those choices.

Simply put, I would consider it bad form for Duke to try to hire an AD or a coach from another ACC school. Maybe it's happened before, but I don't recall it. Wellman would be a catch, but I didn't see his name on the list of applicants. I don't know what you see in Yow. Please explain. Just what does having a softball team have to do with the selection of a new AD? How does Stanford's situation have any connection with hiring Kevin White? Are you suggesting that winning the Director's Cup should be a requirement for the new AD? Stanford is a lot richer than Duke, and allocates virtually unlimited funds to its non-revenue sports. They don't do to well in the revenue sports, though, do they?

Just how do the bathrooms at Wade fit in to the selection? Aren't endowed scholarships a good idea just about everywhere, and what does that have to do with the selection of White? Recently the University published a paper on the new directions for DUAA. It is what gave us the funds to go out and get Dave Cutcliffe and his staff. That took a lot of money. A lot more money has been allocated to fix the bathrooms at Wade among other things, but the City of Durham would not give the necessary permits unless Duke took some actions that Duke did not want to do. A sidewalk and removing trees along Basset Drive comes to mind.

Sorry that you are so unhappy with Dr. White. I think that you are way off base on this.

[Jarhead]

This will prove to be a mistake. His track record at Notre Dame is adequate at best and tragic at worst.

They needed a football man....not some Ivy League wannabe. Duke will be going only as far as Cut can take them in football. Thankfully the basketball program is insulated from any outside influences.

I'm with Bluedawg. I like the hire. I don't agree with your assessment if White's track record. I have read everything I could find about him, and my assessment is that he was burdened by the poor judgments of his president and the trustees particularly in football. He did a commendable job at Notre Dame, and I have more faith in what Coach K, Coach Cutcliffe and the search committee have to say about him. If you have something to back up your assessment, please share it with us.

[devilirium]

You're correct about the unwritten rule about coaches moving to other ACC institutions. Off the top of my head, I can think of only a few HC moves:

1) Jim Tatum (Maryland to UNC)
2) Bobby Ross (Maryland to GA Tech)
3) Tom O'Brien (BC to NC State)

Also, I'm not sure what softball has to do with Duke. Just another sport to appease some Title IX dork.

As far as AD's are concerned, I can't think of a single instance. It's just not done in the ACC like it is in the SEC and a few other leagues.

[devildeac]

I'd rather go back to talking about John Riek.

I have been gone for a few days. Are we still recruiting him?

[OldPhiKap]

White's kid did not play football.

I may have misread a prior report, then. A quote (goduke.com) which makes me think Cutcliffe ceratinly knew his kid (and thus must have had some relationship with him):




“I have known Kevin White for quite some time now and I think he and his family are phenomenal people. His son, Michael, was at Ole Miss when I was there. They are great people to add to the Duke Athletics family. Beyond that, we have the chance to embrace the top athletic director in all of college athletics and I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with him.”
- David Cutcliffe, Duke Football Head Coach




This opinion seems to hold some weight as well (same source):

“Kevin White has been a good friend and is one of the most respected people in intercollegiate athletics. He brings a wealth of experience and is someone who people admire in addition to respecting. We are very lucky to have him and I am looking forward to working together with him to make our athletic department the best in the country. This is an exciting day for Duke.”
- Mike Krzyzewski, Duke Men’s Basketball Head Coach

[Faustus]

P.S. And even Bobby Ross was laundered through the NFL for a couple or three years between ACC stints, if I recall correctly.

I like the hire. I think staying inside the family can become detrimental at times. On the surface, this looks like a good fit (and surface is all I know).

[sagegrouse]

P.S. And even Bobby Ross was laundered through the NFL for a couple or three years between ACC stints, if I recall correctly.

I like the hire. I think staying inside the family can become detrimental at times. On the surface, this looks like a good fit (and surface is all I know).

I like the hire too.

FWIW, Bobby Ross went directly from Maryland to Georgia Tech. I remember that he had problems with the facilities in Terpdom and the lack of plans for improvements.

sagegrouse

[Faustus]

Wow, Sagegrouse, I must be becoming truly senile. I'd have bet money he was in the NFL (San Diego???) between college coaching jobs. Thanks. Was Gene Corrigan a lacrosse coach at Duke (or just a player) early on? - went on the UVa as Athletic Director and then... ironically, to ND. It's funny how assistant fb coaches hop around schools within conferences like crazy, but not as head ones when it becomes almost verboten. And then let's not forget Ted Roof from GT asst. to HC... already forgotten? Tom O'Brien was under Welsh at UVa for years, too. Rod Broadway played for UNC but I guess spent more years on the Duke sidelines as an asst. Not nearly so much line-crossing seems to take place in bball.

[Bluedawg]

This will prove to be a mistake. His track record at Notre Dame is adequate at best and tragic at worst.

They needed a football man....not some Ivy League wannabe. Duke will be going only as far as Cut can take them in football. Thankfully the basketball program is insulated from any outside influences.

This was very well put...and worthy of repeating.

It was Alleva that made the bad choices at Duke. At Notre Dame, it was the trustees and the president that made the bad choices. Alleva was properly blamed, but Kevin White was not to blame for those choices.

Nuff said