WaPost - DeGioia Leading New Conference Effort

[Jack]

Apologies if people prefer to lump Liz Clarke's piece in with the larger M7 thread, but I think it is significant enough to note it separately. Not so much for the news it breaks (confirms 10 teams likely expanding to 12, looking for schools with similar priorities within a geographic footprint), but for the more personal aspects about the relationship between Pops and DeGioia.

I cannot ever recall John Thompson Jr. being so effusive in his praise of anyone, much less a Georgetown administrator. I feel like this type of very public support gives Jack great credibility with network execs and other important parties in shaping this league. I also am very encouraged by the signal it sends that the Thompson family is completely on board with the direction GU is taking. We may have suspected JT3 and his dad were helping to shape the new conference behind the scenes, but this is confirmation that they support what Georgetown is doing, and hopefully means they intend to see it through and keep building a unique "Georgetown of Georgetown" even in a challenging athletic landscape.

[DanMcQ]

Link: www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-takes-lead-in-preserving-basketball-tradition-of-catholic-7/2013/02/21/40193304-7c2d-11e2-82e8-61a46c2cde3d_story.html

Outstanding article by Liz Clarke that shows exactly how much credence to give that fanciful piece by Feinstein recently. To those who continually knock DeGioia here, perhaps you should be more considered in your criticism.

[GPHoya]

To me, this article shatters the notion that the move to the C/B 7 is part of a conspiracy to bring about the de-emphasis of Georgetown basketball.

While people of good faith can continue to debate the wisdom of the move, it is hard to question motives given the endorsement from JT, Jr and the statements from President DeGioia that affirm that he gets and shares the values of most of us about the continuing importance of basketball to the experience at Georgetown.

We are navigating through difficult waters, but it is more than just encouraging to know that with President DeGioia at the helm we have someone whose true north is the same as ours and the same as the Thompson family.

[Cambridge]

Amazing article.

[Dhall]

Sorry, but from a basketball perspective the article is empty. Nice insight about who the Georgetown President is and his view of athletics, but this belonged in the Style Section, not Sports.

I had to laugh when he says that a criterion for joining the conference is "exceptional basketball" - so why are Providence, Seton Hall and DePaul joining? They satisfied the criterion he didn't mention: we needed their votes in order to leave the Big East on acceptable terms.

[CWS]

Great article.

Saw the print edition. The article is front page Sports section, above the fold. Impressive:

thewashingtonpost.newspaperdirect.com/epaper/viewer.aspx

[rosslynhoya]

Feb 22, 2013 8:40:26 GMT -5 Cambridge said:

Amazing article.

Indeed. For possibly the first time in its existence, Georgetown really laid on the full-court press for pro-active messaging in support of its interests. I really hope this article makes the rounds because it has great tone, although as noted, other than the TV rights deal, there's little substantive content.

On a side note, I'd be willing to bet that the overwhelming majority of this was originally drafted by Porterfield and handed off to Liz Clarke.

[strummer8526]

Feb 22, 2013 8:09:31 GMT -5 DanMcQ said:

Link: www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-takes-lead-in-preserving-basketball-tradition-of-catholic-7/2013/02/21/40193304-7c2d-11e2-82e8-61a46c2cde3d_story.html

Outstanding article by Liz Clarke that shows exactly how much credence to give that fanciful piece by Feinstein recently. To those who continually knock DeGioia here, perhaps you should be more considered in your criticism.

Very good article, and it makes me even more optimistic about our current course. One paragraph that stood out to me:

“I am not a good person to ask about Jack because I am too emotionally attached to him. I’ve had a chance to hear him talk off the ball. Everybody acts great on the ball — in the spotlight, you know what I mean? Jack is great and strong off the ball. I would come close to jumping in front of a bus for him.”

I've only had two experiences where I've seen DeG talk "off the ball," where it wasn't a prepared, canned, often repetitive speech that hits on all the University's talking points of the day—and one of those experiences was several years after I graduated. They were excellent, candid, refreshingly genuine talks that I enjoyed quite a bit and thought showed a different, much more engaging side of DeG. My biggest criticism of DeG has always been that the vast majority of undergrads never get the sense that he's there, on campus—sometimes "off the ball"—overseeing and participating in the day-to-day affairs of the University. More undergrads should get a glimpse of the DeG that JT Jr would jump in front of a bus for, rather than it being a surprise when they see him in Red Square.

[hoyainspirit]

We should send it to all our recruiting targets.

[HoyasAreHungry]

Most significant to me, aside from feeling alot better about Gtowns basketball as a priority at the school. is the revelation that they want to lock everyone in by binding their media rights to the league for at least the tenure of the first contract. Seems to me that they're fully committed to this league and wouldn't bolt to the ACC for example if something were to go down.

[Jack]

Feb 22, 2013 9:23:11 GMT -5 rosslynhoya said:

Feb 22, 2013 8:40:26 GMT -5 Cambridge said:

Amazing article.

Indeed. For possibly the first time in its existence, Georgetown really laid on the full-court press for pro-active messaging in support of its interests. I really hope this article makes the rounds because it has great tone, although as noted, other than the TV rights deal, there's little substantive content.

On a side note, I'd be willing to bet that the overwhelming majority of this was originally drafted by Porterfield and handed off to Liz Clarke.

So true regarding the messaging. And I don't know whether Dan actually wrote the copy, but it is fantastic to know that he is out there as a potential successor to Jack whenever he moves on. I hope he does great work at F&M, and I do worry that Georgetown's leadership can be a bit insular at times, but I want to see Dr. Porterfield back on campus when the time is right.

[daymondmyles]

Wait. She actually interviewed people for the story instead of making things up? That make Feinstein very angry!

[nychoya3]

Wonderful article. We are lucky to have Jack and the Thompson family associated with Georgetown.

Liz Clark isn't always my favorite, but she knocked it out of the park on this one.

[Locker]

The big news here is that the Fox TV money is predicated on a long-term grant of media rights. That helps explain why the dollars thrown around are so rich. It also means that we are forever giving up whatever slight chance there might have been that we would join the B7 and then later bolt for the ACC after it gets decimated.

[hoyajmw]

The best part about this article was DeGoia's statement -- on this Syracuse game's eve -- of the criteria for the new conference, and the order in which he put them. While I doubt it was meant to be a pointed reference, there could not be a better way to artfully say "This is why we are Georgetown, and Syracuse is not . . ."

"As for the essential criteria of the schools that will be added, DeGioia, a member of the reform-minded Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, cites three: Schools that put the student-athletes’ interests first, both in the classroom and on the playing fields; school whose athletic departments are conducted with integrity; and schools that play exceptional basketball."

[RusskyHoya]

Feb 22, 2013 10:26:12 GMT -5 Locker said:

The big news here is that the Fox TV money is predicated on a long-term grant of media rights. That helps explain why the dollars thrown around are so rich. It also means that we are forever giving up whatever slight chance there might have been that we would join the B7 and then later bolt for the ACC after it gets decimated.

The Fox money is also so high because Fox needs winter programming in a way ESPN and others don't.

This article is a bit too speculative/conspiracy-ish for my tastes, but it does lay out the case from Fox's POV pretty well.

[FrazierFanatic]

Feb 22, 2013 8:09:31 GMT -5 DanMcQ said:

Link: www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-takes-lead-in-preserving-basketball-tradition-of-catholic-7/2013/02/21/40193304-7c2d-11e2-82e8-61a46c2cde3d_story.html

To those who continually knock DeGioia here, perhaps you should be more considered in your criticism.

How long have you been an administrator on this board??? "considerd criticism" is an oxymoron here. ;D

[AustinHoya03]

Feb 22, 2013 10:38:41 GMT -5 hoyajmw said:

The best part about this article was DeGoia's statement -- on this Syracuse game's eve -- of the criteria for the new conference, and the order in which he put them. While I doubt it was meant to be a pointed reference, there could not be a better way to artfully say "This is why we are Georgetown, and Syracuse is not . . ."

"As for the essential criteria of the schools that will be added, DeGioia, a member of the reform-minded Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, cites three: Schools that put the student-athletes’ interests first, both in the classroom and on the playing fields; school whose athletic departments are conducted with integrity; and schools that play exceptional basketball."

I noticed this as well, but I read it as a reference to UConn, from which we have voluntarily separated ourselves. I think that the turmoil in Storrs over the past few years contributed significantly to our decision to leave the Big East.

Good article, by the way. I hadn't heard the FCA story before and thought it was cool.

[DanMcQ]

Feb 22, 2013 10:48:17 GMT -5 FrazierFanatic said:

Feb 22, 2013 8:09:31 GMT -5 DanMcQ said:

Link: www.washingtonpost.com/sports/colleges/georgetown-takes-lead-in-preserving-basketball-tradition-of-catholic-7/2013/02/21/40193304-7c2d-11e2-82e8-61a46c2cde3d_story.html

To those who continually knock DeGioia here, perhaps you should be more considered in your criticism.

How long have you been an administrator on this board??? "considerd criticism" is an oxymoron here. ;D

LOL. All I ask is that people's posts have more grounding in fact than the usual Feinstein fable published as insider truth.

[xudash]

As a fan of a prospective new member school, I loved the article. It is a wonderful reflection on Georgetown.

I also believe the powers-that-be are setting this thing up for long-term success. Fox will have a vested interest in making the media deal work. If our programs continue to succeed, especially in the NCAA Tournament, this whole endeavor should spin-up nicely.

I particularly like the way they're going about it:

But that’s what has unfolded behind closed doors, where the so-called “Catholic 7” presidents — DeGioia, Seton Hall’s A. Gabriel Esteban (a mathematician) and five clergy members — have huddled with former CBS Sports president Neal Pilson, their consultant on broadcast issues, and legal strategist Joseph M. Leccese, co-chairman of New York-based Proskauer Rose’s Sports Law Group.

The presidents have divided themselves into small working groups tasked with such topics as media rights, new members and governance. DeGioia has the most experience in sports among them, having supervised Georgetown athletics while dean of student affairs (1985-92) and represented his predecessor, Rev. Leo J. O’Donovan, at Big East meetings while Georgetown’s associate vice president (1992-95).