AD Patter$son Facing Heat

Discussion in 'In The Stands' started by Godz40acres, Jun 18, 2015.

  1. Godz40acres

    Godz40acres Happy Feller

    A very long article at HD concerning the increasingly concerning $teve Patter$on. Some portions below...

    Sally Lehr, one of 158 members of Texas’ class of 1964 back on campus for their 50th reunion last September, asked athletic director Steve Patterson why he wanted to charge them $25 per person to go stand on the football field at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium.

    Just to relive some memories.

    “He said it was expensive to allow people on the field. They had to turn on the lights. They had to have people leading the tour and a groundskeeper,” Lehr recalled. “He said if athletics had to pay for all of that, they might have to cut the donation they made to the UT library.

    “I was stunned by his arrogance and avarice,” added Lehr, whose stepfather was Jones Ramsey, Texas’ sports information director from 1961-83.

    “I was raised in a household where you did everything you could to promote the Longhorns any way that you could. I was dumbfounded he thought that was a good public relations move - to charge $25 for people to step on the football field.

    “He has turned the Horns ‘brand’ into a commodity to be sold.”

    Lehr said she and her classmates, even former football players, were initially told it would be $15 per person before it was upped to $25. They never made it onto the football field at DKR that weekend.

    Before Patterson took over as athletic director in November 2013, reunion classes were taken through UT’s football stadium free of charge as part of their weekend by the Texas Exes (UT’s alumni association).

    More than 18 months after Patterson’s hire to replace 32-year Texas athletic director DeLoss Dodds, Patterson is credited with making solid hires in football coach Charlie Strong and basketball coach Shaka Smart.

    But more and more inside the Longhorn community are fed up with what they say is an athletic director who can’t or won’t relate to people and who puts making money or saving money above everything – even Texas student-athletes and coaches, who have seen cuts by Patterson impact them directly.

    After more than three dozen interviews with those connected to Texas athletics, Patterson, who spent most of his career in the front offices of pro teams (Houston’s Rockets, Texans and Aeros as well as president and GM of the Portland Trail Blazers), is being blamed for misleading football season ticket holders, being disingenuous about funding for a new tennis facility (leading to a coach’s resignation), alienating longtime donors as well as faculty and staff, running off UT’s band director, defying former school president Bill Powers, planting a vicious press leak targeting former basketball coach Rick Barnes and of being more loyal to Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott than to those at Texas or the Big 12.

    Matt Herring, who owns a commercial real estate company in Dallas and ranks in the top 8 percent of Patterson’s new Loyalty Points program that ranks donors, said Patterson is hurting the very coaches he’s credited with hiring.

    “There is a total disconnect between this AD and the rest of the university,” said Herring, a former president of the Dallas Longhorn Club and an eight-time member of the advisory council to the Longhorn Foundation, UT athletics’ fund-raising arm.

    “At a time when the football program needs all the support it can get, the program is receiving the opposite – all because of the athletic director.”

    ***

    Herring said he thinks Patterson’s pro sports background, including owning a company called Pro Sports Consulting, LLC (still listed as active on Patterson’s Linked In profile), has contributed to a cold, distant approach that has turned UT faithful into “mere customers” and negatively impacted coaches, student-athletes and the morale in and around Longhorns’ athletics.

    “Once you start alienating the very coaches you’re praised for hiring, it’s unacceptable,” Herring said.

    “Obviously, when 10,000 season ticket holders do not renew, when most of them are probably excited about the football coach and recruiting, there is a problem.

    “And it is much more than just raising ticket prices. It’s talking down to the fans and faculty about not reselling tickets. It’s not being honest about numbers. It’s about not settling a lawsuit (filed by Oklahoma State against Texas assistant Joe Wickline) that puts your football coach in a compromised position.”

    ***

    On March 9, Texas athletics announced its 2015 football season ticket renewal package, including this line: “To help shoulder the increased costs of recent changes in NCAA policy, seat prices across the stadium have increased by an average of six percent.”

    According to numbers obtained by HornsDigest.com through an open records request, football season ticket holders were being handed a cost increase in 2015 by an average of 21.5 percent – with the Longhorns coming off a 6-7 season and a 5-year record of 36-28...

    ... Of the 57,233 season ticket holders in 2014, 59 percent (33,695) experienced a season ticket cost increase for 2015 of between 25 percent and 50 percent, records show.

    ***

    While there have been tens of thousands of dollars spent by Patterson on fact-finding trips to places such as Shanghai, China, and Dubai to increase UT’s marketing profile, there has been broad cost-cutting within the department that has directly impacted student-athletes and coaches.

    [The article continues with many more sections. Headings include:
    • LIST OF COMPLAINTS GROWING
    • FLEXING TO FLEX?
    • FACULTY AND STAFF BLINDSIDED
    • PATTERSON ALIENATES POWERS
    • COACHES SUFFERING UNDER PATTERSON?
    • WHERE’S THE $15 MILLION?
    • CAN PATTERSON RAISE MONEY?
    It concludes with the following]

    Sally Lehr, whose 50th Texas reunion last year included a confrontation with Patterson, said UT’s athletic director doesn’t act like a graduate of Texas.

    “Longhorns don’t treat other Longhorns the way he does,” she said. “But I’m not sure he sees himself as part of the university. I think he sees himself as superior to the university.”
     
    • Like Like x 3
  2. Dionysus

    Dionysus Idoit Admin

    These are legitimate and troubling comments. The department needs to address this with a meaningful response and a change in tone towards the fanbase, imo. Yes, athletics fans are “customers” in the practical sense, but loyalty and passion can run cold if not handled properly.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  3. FWHORN

    FWHORN 10,000+ Posts

    Patterson was a terrible hire and his decision making thus far has been staggeringly stupid. The sooner that error is corrected, the better.
     
  4. Brad Austin

    Brad Austin 2,500+ Posts

    It's making its way to the national news level now...

    There's gotta be something we can do to urge the university to remove this imposter. I'd imagine a petition would be signed overwhelmingly by donors at least. Someone with the ability needs to help the Longhorn faithful. We are getting mauled and proud traditions are being dissolved by this corporate consultant clown. Our financial loyalty is still being severely challenged and it's incredibly disturbing for us. Patterson is hell bent on turning "We're Texas" into "We Were Texas".
     
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2015
  5. NBHorn7

    NBHorn7 Pimp Daddy

    This was inevitable that sooner or later, someone with some clout, would voice the concerns that Longhorn fans and alumni had been talking about.

    It's becoming clear that Luck would have been a much better hire. Patterson may be a UT alum, but that doesn't always mean he is the best hire. It will take a concerted effort by united Texas fans and alumni to get anything done about Patterson in the short term.

    There should be a demand for a rollback of the policies of Patterson that have and will hurt the UT athletic experience as we know it. Patterson has become a cancer and his terrible new policies are spreading across the Texas sports scene at an alarming rate. It's reaching into areas that we are not even aware of yet, such as the one mentioned above.

    We have new leadership at the top of UT's administration, they could go a long way to make a strong start in their tenures, by addressing this AD problem in a timely manner. If not there is going to be an alienation of fans and alumni at UT that will deeply hurt this "brand" that Patterson likes to go on and on about.
     
  6. Dionysus

    Dionysus Idoit Admin

    From the article @Brad Austin posted above:

    According to the report, multiple people have become frustrated with Patterson, who has reportedly done such things as limit the number of visits a coach can make to the athletic dining hall. After 30 visits, a coach must pay $10 to enter the dining hall.

    W.T.F.
     
  7. Htown77

    Htown77 5,000+ Posts

    As far as I am concerned, Powers hired Patterson and therefore Powers has to own Patterson, alienation or not. Based on the fact powers last email as president ended with "make a gift" and his first email to the law school a couple of days later began with "make a gift", I fail to see how Patterson alienated him.
     
  8. Brad Austin

    Brad Austin 2,500+ Posts

    Don't want our freeloading coaches eating us out of house and home. We can take that whopping savings and apply it to 1/3 of the travel costs for a Dubai PR trip. :rolleyes1:
     
  9. Crockett

    Crockett 5,000+ Posts

    Exploitation of loyalty has great short term financial benefits. But if every time I buy a ticket I feel screwed over, then it takes a lot of the fun out of it for me.

    I can take my wife, son and a friend to a UNT game with good seats and parking, enjoy first class refreshments (Rudy's barbeque sandwiches are the best concession stand food I ever had) and get home having spent less than $150 bucks. The spectacle and drama fall far short of a UT game, but my wife is a UNT alum and I've bought a Mean Green t-shirt and cheer like crazy. I'll catch UT games on TV.
     
  10. Driver 8

    Driver 8 Amor Fati

    Are online petitions very effective? I think it might generate a lot of support, it's so easy to do.
     
  11. WorsterMan

    WorsterMan SEC here we come!!

    Wow, I had no idea things had gotten this bad. All this information is quite eye-opening, distressing and disgusting. Stay tuned, I think a big train wreck may be coming one day...
     
  12. mb227

    mb227 de Plorable

    If that is accurate, then how long will it be before we see pay toilets on campus?
     
  13. Driver 8

    Driver 8 Amor Fati

    Right? They can monetize your poo and sell it to fertilizer or gardening companies, collecting on both ends of the process.
     
  14. NBHorn7

    NBHorn7 Pimp Daddy

    • Like Like x 1
  15. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    77,

    That is why I have been so rough on Bill Powers. Bill botched the hiring of Luck, a done deal, that he totally ****** up. Oliver was ready to accept the job Saturday morning and Bill changed the deal. He then hired Patterson that afternoon after Oliver walked out on him. So, yes, it is on Powers, who should have known better and should have fixed it before he left. I told Powers that he better grab the first opening at Berzerkley because he wouldn't work at Texas come Jan 1. I was wrong - he made it to June. I used to consider him a friend and was pleased when he was named President, but as I stated them, it will take The University twenty years to recovery from Powers mistake.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  16. Horn6721

    Horn6721 10,000+ Posts

    Sabre
    I was going to "like" your post but the thought of watching Texas go down as it is under stevie P and looking at a 20 year recovery ( I know if we don't do something it could be that long) I too depressing.
    Knowing stevie ha a 5 year contract is even more depressing.
    Too early to drink
    what can we do?
     
  17. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    6721,

    Not really. Red McCombs was absolutely correct in his assessment of the situation and was crucified for it. I don't dislike Strong, but Red was right. Red's health is not the best, so I don't see any help coming from Bexar County. Rowling is firmly in Powers camp, so no help there. The really deep pockets are for the most part dying off. If this gets really nasty, I think it benefits "our side" because discovery would be so much fun for some of the people I hold in lowest regard. Who is going to file the lawsuit and on what grounds to get access to the necessary records? I fear that the large money is about to join that ever growing national club known as "Too Cool To Care".
     
  18. BevoJoe

    BevoJoe 10,000+ Posts

    Bombard the office of the President. Get the BOR involved except there are a bunch that are not UT grads thanks to our former Governor Ol' Pointy Boots. Demonstrations on game day maybe.
     
  19. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    77,

    Wallace Hall is a Rick Perry puppet. Check and see his level of donations and where he would be on the "priority list" without his regent appointment.

    Millions to Governor Rickie, none to The University Athletic Department. Don't confuse him with his father.
     
  20. WorsterMan

    WorsterMan SEC here we come!!

    Sabre, your posts tonight have sobered me up a great deal about Patterson and our future prospects... I appreciate your insight, candor and honesty.
     
  21. Htown77

    Htown77 5,000+ Posts

    Sabre, i disagree on hall BUT I deleted my post because i've had this argument a million times and with powers and perry gone, there isnt much point to it anymore.

    I mostly thought it was dumb a year ago when they tried to oust powers, and people were talking about perry cronies when perry wouldnt be there for the next legislative session and with perry being far more concerned with his presidential fantasies than allegedly trying to destory UT.

    Also, perry must have terrible puppets because there was never a majority of the board willing to fire powers over the period he was supposedly in danger.
     
    Last edited: Jun 18, 2015
  22. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    Fair enough.
     
  23. Godz40acres

    Godz40acres Happy Feller

  24. Brad Austin

    Brad Austin 2,500+ Posts

    Patterson owns that website. He knows how many people want his removal, so he's enticing them to enter his profit scheme. When the site gets enough traffic he's gonna sell advertising and get PAID. :smile1:
     
    • Like Like x 2
  25. marley

    marley 500+ Posts

    Brad,

    I don't think petitions among the peons will do the trick. It's going to take some heavy hitters to have conversations with McRaven and Fenves and/or maybe some other members of the Board of Regents. Right now, because Red McCombs has a prior relationship with Patterson, he's not going to make waves. He'll let others do it. It may take Jamail, or Denius (I imagine McRaven would be especially open to a meeting with Mr. Denius due to his being one of the most decorated veterans in WWII), Mike Meyers, or Robert Rowling (who owns Omni Hotels -- or used to).

    The problem is that Fenves, when asked what he was going to do differently from Powers, said, "Nothing will change." Fenves is a disciple of Powers, so he's not likely to embarrass Bill by replacing the AD that Bill just hired.

    Powers has to know by now, especially with Patterson defying him during Bill's last year as president, that he screwed up unbelievably royally by not hiring Oliver Luck. Patterson bragging that he could negotiate a really good deal for UT with the City of Austin, and that idiotic thing about "internationalizing the brand" were likely the two things that wowed Powers. Bill should done his homework and referenced-checked the SOB much better than he did. Powers is clearly a lawyer (staff) and not a manager. Otherwise, he wouldn't have hired a bull in a china shop that is destroying all the credibility with donors that DeLoss built up over the years.
     
    • Like Like x 1
    Last edited: Jun 19, 2015
  26. 56 Bells

    56 Bells 500+ Posts

    It's a bit hard for me to grasp all of the disdain and fear of Patterson this early in his tenure. If nothing positive is being achieved, and every decision Steve Patterson makes negatively impacts the athletic programs, particularly the athletes, our University of Texas is in dire straits. Personally, I plan on riding with him for awhile. If I'm not enjoying the rodeo after 2.5-3 yrs., I'll rope me a steer and put him in the clown's barrel.

    IF Charlie Strong has UT in a BCS Bowl in 2 years, and IF Skaka Smart can turn the Erwin Center into "The Land of The Living," we will be more than happy with our Athletic Director.

    If his emphasis is to totally change the entire culture of the "athletic experience and great traditions" at UT, he's going to become quickly expendable. But this is 2015....not 1970. The University has changed significantly. The city of Austin has changed significantly. And so, too, has athletics, in general. Let's take a deep breath, give the man a chance, and see if he molds the Athletic Department in a way that , albeit different from how it was, will become, once again, the finest brand in the country.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  27. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    56,

    In 2-3 years, all that will be left of your "rodeo" will be a dried up old bull and a couple of lame roping calves. The good news for you is your rodeo promoter will still have a handful of people too damn blind to recognize that the rodeo is not only not PRCA, it isn't even county fair quality, but they'll still be paying NFR prices.
     
  28. marley

    marley 500+ Posts

    SabreHorn,

    With 25 posts, that's got to be Plonsky or Patterson or his wife. Otherwise, he didn't read the article.

    How could somebody read about all those acts of callowness and sheer treachery of this AD toward long-loyal fans and come away thinking it's about how well Strong or Shaka do?

    It's about a guy who will do anything to achieve that $100,000 bonus (or however much it is) if he reaches $200 million in revenue or hits a certain net profit in any one year. It's all about an incredibly tone-deaf sociopath.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  29. SabreHorn

    SabreHorn 10,000+ Posts

    Marley,

    His father is a really fine man, very strong Born Again Christian. If they didn't look so much alike, I'd think Steve was adopted because he possesses none of his father's traits.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  30. Htown77

    Htown77 5,000+ Posts

    My position on Patterson is very clear from numerous posts.

    That said, the article was written by Chip Brown. I take anything Chip Brown says with a grain of salt. The man only lives to smear and take down Texas athletic figures. He will eventually try to do the same to both Smart and Strong because he is a blood sucking leach that only cares about his personal gain. Just because Patterson might actually not be the best fit at athletic director (I know that's an understatement but Im trying to go old school hornfans, not go overboard on bashing of Texas employees and honestly I feel I've gone over my Patterson bashing limit), does not change the fact that Brown has and will go after everyone just to get clicks. As DKR once said, a blind hog finds an acorn every now and then.

    ^ Short summary: I completely understand any poster that chooses not to believe or read anything Chip Brown writes.
     

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