Goodbye Baraka Okojie

[Earl the Squirrel]

Very sorry to hear about Okojie leaving. Thought he was going to be a big piece of the rebuild. And I agree with the bitter sentiment about the direction that college basketball (well, all college sports), is heading. Can't see how this can work long term and we are probably watching the beginning of the death spiral of college sports. Consider this, one day we could see HS and colleges drop sports and just teach. All sports will be run as professional leagues starting at age 13. Instead of only being able to choose between a classic education, and a trade school as kids do now, there will be a third option - pro sports (assuming you are good enough at 13).

Of course this is tongue in cheek stuff, but what benefit are sports going to be to schools that can't afford NIL in the future?

This is the model in Europe.

 

[Patriot Lawdog]

Rules prevent the university from doing that. An NIL collective has to operate off to the side. So if we don’t have a Tyson chicken executive type alum in terms of success who is willing to push us to the top of the A10, isn’t it on normal fans to try to do it?

If that's the solution then we are cooked and will be languishing at the bottom of the A-10.

 

[jruby]

We had one but had a coach that played him out of position, he left to become a Big East player of the year.

You make a valid point. Thus why he was fired and well yeah....

 

[jruby]

If that's the solution then we are cooked and will be languishing at the bottom of the A-10.

vcu may be on the way out as well. Seeing as how their numbers aren't that much better than Mason's. Their alumni can't possibly have very much money. I think the thing about vcu is they used Students to fund the basketball team.

 

[gmujim92]

If that's the solution then we are cooked and will be languishing at the bottom of the A-10.

Mason has some big-money alumni who could certainly support a competitive NIL program at the A-10 level. The problem is those folks typically haven’t been donors to athletics and the university has never made a concerted effort to change that.

It’s honestly pretty remarkable how much Mason was able to generate for NIL in 23-24 on a small core of very passionate fans and the rest of us donating whatever we can.

Given the number of alumni we produce annually, many of whom reside in the most affluent county in the United States, there’s no reason we can’t do better if the collective will is there to do so.

 

[Patriotsince81]

There is a big difference between a multi-billion dollar multinational corporation giving an NIL deal and asking random people making 50-100k to come up with unlimited amounts of money to pay for athletes. I couldn’t care less if Tyson’s wanted to pay 500k to an athlete to wear a chicken suit once during a post-game presser. I take issue with asking normal fans to pony up salary for these players.

This!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[jruby]

Mason has some big-money alumni who could certainly support a competitive NIL program at the A-10 level. The problem is those folks typically haven’t been donors to athletics and the university has never made a concerted effort to change that.

It’s honestly pretty remarkable how much Mason was able to generate for NIL in 23-24 on a small core of very passionate fans and the rest of us donating whatever we can.

Given the number of alumni we produce annually, many of whom reside in the most affluent county in the United States, there’s no reason we can’t do better if the collective will is there to do so.

I agree this is actually where Mason could close the gap between say a vcu. They only raised 200k more with a fan base as large as theirs? Mason could very well exceed vcu very soon if Tony can win. Mason has been rock bottom for a decade where as vcu was as high as they will ever go. Mason Alumni have a lot more money than they do.

It's only a question of how to get more fans involved, not is the money there....

 

[2011WinOverVillanova]

There is a big difference between a multi-billion dollar multinational corporation giving an NIL deal and asking random people making 50-100k to come up with unlimited amounts of money to pay for athletes. I couldn’t care less if Tyson’s wanted to pay 500k to an athlete to wear a chicken suit once during a post-game presser. I take issue with asking normal fans to pony up salary for these players. The university should be doing that if that’s where we are going.

A, we can’t. It’s not sustainable (Holmes was making 500k-600k last year at Dayton. You think we could do that on our own without corporate money?)

B, no. Players should not be asking fans for money.

C, that’s not entirely true. There is “the true cost of going to college” rule out there now. These players already get several thousand from the university as a stipend on top of their scholarship. Also true, the university would probably have to increase that stipend by 20x to make a real difference here, but if grad students at Columbia can bargain for 50k, the student athletes should be able to bargain for similar amounts.

United fronts win and build on their success. Divided houses fall.

 

[mkaufman1]

I applaud the folks who say that the NIL should have plenty of money and that more is needed to compete.

However, you can read the responses in this forum alone and see very mixed feelings towards NIL. There are fans who don't wish to donate to NIL to help which is their own choice. It doesn't help our cause though.

Considering the small fan base we have, getting more money for NIL is going to be even harder without the University looking to ramp up their own support to get money in NIL. Fans alone will not be able to fund it.

 

[Patriotsince81]

Let's do some simple math. If you need $200,000 to get ONE player and IF you are asking fans to pay.... you need 2,000 fans to pony up $100 or 200 fans to pay $1,000 on top of season ticket costs and/or Green and Gold Room passes. Hell, we don't have that many fans. Factor in 5 new players every year for the foreseeable future and you've got one sh&t serious show on your hands.

I donate to the Schar Cancer Center (saved my sorry a**), Saint Jude, and FCPS yearly. Far more important causes IMO. I've gone on record and I will once more, it will be a cold day in Hell before I give money to NIL to support a snot nosed, spoiled brat who thinks he's a gift to society because he can shoot a damn basketball.

The more I think about it the closer I am to just moving on to other winter pursuits. I know I'm in the minority here and that's okay. Different strokes for different folks.

 

[Old Man]

If that's the solution then we are cooked and will be languishing at the bottom of the A-10.

There is a solution for this ...

The Patriot Club should solicit, hard, donations from these well-to-do alumni for the Patriot Club and Mason athletics, and in the process, send them all the appropriate literature regarding Mason athletics. Soon, they will be exposed to ALL (wink wink) things Mason.

Invariably, as interest grows in Mason athletics, and college athletics and the NIL situation in general, soon, they will be talking to GMUBrian, hopefully.

 

[Falco]

Give Eagle Bank a naming rights discount with the understanding that they will offer lucrative NIL deals to the players. Seems easy to me.

 

[mkaufman1]

Let's do some simple math. If you need $200,000 to get ONE player and IF you are asking fans to pay.... you need 2,000 fans to pony up $100 or 200 fans to pay $1,000 on top of season ticket costs and/or Green and Gold Room passes. Hell, we don't have that many fans. Factor in 5 new players every year for the foreseeable future and you've got one sh&t serious show on your hands.

I donate to the Schar Cancer Center (saved my sorry a**), Saint Jude, and FCPS yearly. Far more important causes IMO. I've gone on record and I will once more, it will be a cold day in Hell before I give money to NIL to support a snot nosed, spoiled brat who thinks he's a gift to society because he can shoot a damn basketball.

The more I think about it the closer I am to just moving on to other winter pursuits. I know I'm in the minority here and that's okay. Different strokes for different folks.

Completely respect your point here, and hope you continue to attend games and give directly to friends of Mason Basketball.

To your point, you're correct, we don't have the quantity of fans willing and able to give for NIL which means they need to pivot to other sources to help fund appropriately. Fans will need to be supplemental through giving days and events with main sources being through other means.

 

[gmujim92]

Let's do some simple math. If you need $200,000 to get ONE player and IF you are asking fans to pay.... you need 2,000 fans to pony up $100 or 200 fans to pay $1,000 on top of season ticket costs and/or Green and Gold Room passes. Hell, we don't have that many fans. Factor in 5 new players every year for the foreseeable future and you've got one sh&t serious show on your hands.

I donate to the Schar Cancer Center (saved my sorry a**), Saint Jude, and FCPS yearly. Far more important causes IMO. I've gone on record and I will once more, it will be a cold day in Hell before I give money to NIL to support a snot nosed, spoiled brat who thinks he's a gift to society because he can shoot a damn basketball.

The more I think about it the closer I am to just moving on to other winter pursuits. I know I'm in the minority here and that's okay. Different strokes for different folks.

I understand completely and agree that in a perfect world, none of the responsibility for funding NIL would fall onto the rank-and-file fans.

Unfortunately in the total free agency world we now live in, unless Mason figures out how to more robustly fund its NIL collective, there will quickly become a point where it won’t make sense to buy season tickets or donate to the program because we will not be able to compete in the A-10.

As @mkaufman1 and I have concluded, Mason needs to decide if it’s all-in or all-out. Continuing with half-measures that inevitably leave us stuck in the limbo of an 8th-place finish and no meaningful postseason games seems like a waste of everyone’s time.

 

[Patriotsince81]

Completely respect your point here, and hope you continue to attend games and give directly to friends of Mason Basketball.

To your point, you're correct, we don't have the quantity of fans willing and able to give for NIL which means they need to pivot to other sources to help fund appropriately. Fans will need to be supplemental through giving days and events with main sources being through other means.

I'm thinking a Mason brothel. The motto could be "Give us your green and we'll make sure you're treated like gold." Thoughts?

Giving up after 50+ years as a fan would not be easy to do given the great times with you and others before games and in the Gold Room but damn, my patience is running thin with greed in athletics.

 

[mkaufman1]

I'm thinking a Mason brothel. Thoughts? Giving up after 50+ years as a fan would not be easy to do given the great times with you and others before games and in the Gold Room but damn, my patience is running thin with greed in athletics.

I understand. A brothel, LOL. Its also easy to be down in April, but my hope is once the ball tips in November, we're all back to being Mason fans and yelling at one another (or the refs lol)

 

[Patriotsince81]

I understand. A brothel, LOL. Its also easy to be down in April, but my hope is once the ball tips in November, we're all back to being Mason fans and yelling at one another (or the refs lol)

Mad respect to the likes of you and @gmujim92. I respect your points of view as well. Nice to see people being civil despite differences in opinion.

 

[Old Man]

I understand. A brothel, LOL. Its also easy to be down in April, but my hope is once the ball tips in November, we're all back to being Mason fans and yelling at one another (or the refs lol)

Where was this idea a few years ago when we needed it? Could've made the Mason Inn both profitable and fun.

 

[Patriot Lawdog]

Mad respect to the likes of you and @gmujim92. I respect your points of view as well. Nice to see people being civil despite differences in opinion.

I think everyone here is actually pretty even keeled about this. My view, and it seems like others here, is that the goal will never be achieved through asking us "mom and pop" donors to pitch in our meager amounts. I also don't believe that is successful for schools with much bigger fan bases. It's really all about going after the big fish. That's how a real difference is made....TBH, it makes me feel better that this whole nonsense can't continue when I'm seeing that a team like USF is being completed gutted or even moreso that Arizona is probably going to lose their best player to a bigger NIL deal. It's total madness and when teams like Arizona are losing guys, I just can't see it being allowed to continue for the long term.

 

[mkaufman1]

I think everyone here is actually pretty even keeled about this. My view, and it seems like others here, is that the goal will never be achieved through asking us "mom and pop" donors to pitch in our meager amounts. I also don't believe that is successful for schools with much bigger fan bases. It's really all about going after the big fish. That's how a real difference is made....TBH, it makes me feel better that this whole nonsense can't continue when I'm seeing that a team like USF is being completed gutted or even moreso that Arizona is probably going to lose their best player to a bigger NIL deal. It's total madness and when teams like Arizona are losing guys, I just can't see it being allowed to continue for the long term.

Agreed- the mom and pop donors will be supplements, but the main sources have to come from big sources of donations (companies, rich people etc)