jdub27

What peer universities are you referring to? Glancing at the policies for SDSU, USD, Wyoming, UNI, Montana, Montana State*, Iowa State, UofM**, Nebraska just to name a few, I don't see any of these exceptions you are talking about laid out. Can you point out what schools have this policy and where it is stated? *Any variation must include a written explanation **Any variation must be approved by someone at least one level senior

Let's make clear what is not speculation: NDSU athletics went to the students in 2014 and asked for an increase in fees that they stated would cover the next 5 years and it was granted. Less than 2 years later, they are back asking for over double the amount that NDSU students currently pay in fees citing increase in travel, equipment, supplies to the tune of $1.5 million/year or around 7-8% of NDSU's entire athletic budget. We are continuously told how NDSU's athletic department is flush with cash and making money left and right, yet they are apparently looking at a huge hole that needs to be covered from outside sources. The only details the athletic department was able to provide was that currently there is $1.4 million allocated for travel, equipment/supplies. For 2016-2019, that number is projected to skyrocket to $3.62-3.95 million (!!!), which is an absolutely absurd increase. Coincidentally, the only major expense that anyone can find that has changed in the last 2 years is that NDSU announced full cost of attendance just a few months ago, stating that it would be covered by private donations. Or maybe the athletic department saw the NDSU president flies business class everywhere so they feel it is OK for everyone in the athletic department to do the same? (But that part is just speculation on my end.....)

If they used the funds as you initially described (future projects/infrastructure) it very well could be illegal. What's so hard to understand about that?

Well, half of FCOA is supposedly taken care of for the first three years, not all of it. They don't have all of the the money in place for the rest. And if you're correct that they are looking for funding for future projects and infrastructure out of student fees, that is completely different than the excuse the athletic representatives gave when they were stumbling through in their answers to students not to mention possibly illegal so I'll chalk it up to you not actually having a clue what they really need the money for. If NDSU is so forward looking, how did they not see this coming 2 years ago when they asked for and received an increase in student fees that they said was going to cover everything needed from the students for the next 5 years? They somehow missed the need for an extra $1.5 million dollars a year at the time? That's 7-8% of NDSU's total athletic budget, seems like kind of a big deal. I'm not sure how you claim in one breath that peer institutions go to the well too often and don't have effective fund raising while defending NDSU from doing the exact same thing? I actually have no angst in what NDSU is doing, its the spin and half-truths being used to defend it that people are mocking, especially after hearing how NDSU is so flush with cash.

So athletics is coming back to the students two years into what was understood as a five year agreement to ask for money "just because"? What other schools do literally has nothing to do with the apparent $1.5 million hole in FargoU's athletic budget that no one saw coming or can explain.

What funding inequality is that? The legislature just redid the funding formula and DB supported it. Seems like an odd and irrelevant thing to bring up. If not FCOA, what else randomly caused NDSU's athletic budget to have a 7-8% hole in it? What are all these travel costs, equipment and supplies that are predicted to suddenly skyrocket in price? Just 2 years after requesting an increase that was supposed to cover the subsequent 5 years, the athletic department is back asking for more with very little in terms of specific answers. Does the athletic department not know how to do budgets and projections? Or maybe there is all of the sudden a little less money available to be allocated for those expenses because there is a new, large expense to account for? I wonder what that could be... I would say that raising student activity fees to compare with peers isn't something to strive for. But at least that soapbox is gone now.

So are you saying NDSU athletics doesn't understand how to make budgets/projections or that those bills magically went up $1.5 million/year and no one saw it coming?

Well, 2 years ago they stated the increase at that time was sufficient for the next 5 years. Now all of the sudden they need more money. What else has changed in that time frame?

At this point, UND's students subsidize a larger percentage of the athletic budget than NDSU's students (13.2% vs. 5.5% or 6.6% depending on what numbers you use). This increase would put NDSU's subsidy at a slightly higher level (~14% using current budget numbers). While I partially agree that student fees are helping subsidize sports that most don't necessarily care about, it isn't as simple as just shutting down those sports, most (but not all) of them are required by either the NCAA (Title IX) or the conference. The amusing part is that NDSU came out a few months ago and stated that FCOA was going to be fully covered through private donations. Now all of the sudden their athletic department is requesting an additional $1.5 million from student fees and citing that travel/equipment/supply costs are suddenly going to skyrocket even though they just requested an increase 2 years ago that they stated would be sufficient for the next 5 years. Strange coincidence.

Care to make any revisions on your prediction?

Winning isn't going to hurt. Team seems to be playing better the last week or two, hoping things are on an upward trend and stay that way.

Typo on my part. Montana closed as a 4 point favorite. As for the second part, he had some really interesting passes and a couple drives he just lost control. I couldn't watch the second half so I had to rely on the sweet sounds of Paul Ralston. He was absolutely befuddled by one of Geno's passes that was apparently to no one in particular.

11-4-1 based off closing lines. Losses were FGU, Youngstown, UNI and Idaho. Montana was a push. UND has been favored in 4 games this year (Youngstown, Montana St., @NAU, @SUU), including 3 of the last 4. One game was a pick 'em (@ISU).

And it's stretched to 20. McBuckets 2.0 with back to back threes.

Of course, safety first!

Criticism is fine (when it has substance) but as usual, at the first sign of adversity the fanbase immediately reaches for the pitchforks and torches and over the top comments come flying out. I didn't have a chance to hand out any treats afterwards, I was busy picking up the players who were forced to walk home (half in skates, half with no shoes) on the advice Berry took straight from this thread.

Well at least this thread didn't disappoint. Some of the comments made and bi-polarness shown are off the charts and not in a good way.

The policy actually states that all approvals must be filed in the President's Office. So there should be a paper trail.

Mixed stories but I had heard rumblings she was looking at leaving before or very early in the season. I think Walseth is trying to get "her girls" in place. They currently only have 9 (!!!) players listed on their roster and only 7 really play. One senior on the team and bringing in 7 I believe. So I guess if everyone on the roster and everyone coming in is a a scholarship player, then they wouldn't have anything available.

From what sources?

That was fun. They should do that more often.

You know things are going right when Drick is hitting free throws. Yanku is good. Also appreciate NAU having a good feed (as always) and I forgot how entertaining their announcer is. Benton sighting!

Night and day difference from the beginning of the year. The nice thing is, there is still a lot of room for improvement. Not to say there aren't still going to be some headscratching moments and they aren't going to struggle with teams with good post players, but they are looking the best they have in years. Not to mention no seniors are contributing.

I'm aware, but feel free past the first sentence for my thoughts on the matter.

You are right. Brescaini not following a policy that lists his own office the source of said policy is pretty embarrassing. It isn't necessarily the fact that he did it and it could be defended as legitimate, it is the fact that it is against the policy and it isn't a one-time deal. There is a continuous pattern of being tone-deaf to how things like this appear to the tax-paying public, especially when he's claiming that his University is underfunded and/or broke.