Troop's Takes: OU hires new athletic director, but old problems remain
By Caleb Troop
Athens NEWS Sports Columnist
April 10, 2008
On Monday afternoon, Ohio University President Roderick McDavis announced the hiring of Wichita State’s Jim Schaus as the new director of athletics at Ohio. But after the cavalcade of coaches, administrators and media members concluded their meet and greet shortly after the press conference, one thing had not changed.
The problems in OU’s Department of Intercollegiate Athletics haven’t gone away.
So while the hire of Schaus is encouraging and worthy of praise, I’m only cautiously optimistic about the future of Bobcat athletics.
Too many fans and student-athletes have been fooled before.
Schaus’ record as a fundraiser, winner, change-maker and communicator speaks for itself. I for one am glad the search committee chose a more experienced candidate, rather than a young up-and-comer like Hocutt.
In a mid-February column in The Athens NEWS, I challenged Ohio officials, stating that those in charge “should hire an older, more experienced man or woman who has seen his or her professional highs or lows already. The athletics department needs a leader that bleeds green and white and is in it for the long haul.”
With the hire of Schaus, 47, they may have done just that.
Schaus has been a leader before. He has been the AD at Wichita State since 1999. And as good a job as the one he was hired here to do, it’s not a stepping-stone type of job. Simply put, Schaus does appear to be committed to that long haul.
But once the dust settles over this impressive hire, the fact is that Ohio still faces ominous financial problems, including a hefty deficit. After all the hoopla over this new hire, the athletics department budget remains in a cavernous hole.
I realize that all Schaus can do right now is talk about the future. And boy, is he good at that. In an interview Tuesday night on “The SportsFan” radio show, Schaus’ average response was roughly two and a half minutes per question.
That’s not to say that inspiring talk is bad. On the contrary, it’s necessary to spark interest locally. At the very least, the hiring creates a buzz and a sense of hope around the Bobcat community that many haven’t seen in a long time.
For now, though, we’ll just have to settle for talk from Schaus. Soon, however, the words will not be enough because ’Cats fans have already heard it all.
Fortunately, I get the impression Schaus has a good grasp of the task at hand. He understands there are issues financially and that a shift to a budget surplus won’t happen overnight. He understands the importance of a strong working relationship with the news media. He understands that winning on the playing fields the right way will alleviate a lot of woes.
And fortunately, the feeling that I’ve received this week from Schaus is that he will not accept the ordinary anymore — not on the field, not in the classroom, and not in the community. Those who have gotten by with a run-of-the-mill attitude at Ohio ought to be listening.
In Schaus’s mind, the days of being average at Ohio are over.
Once he can implement a change in the mediocre mindset in the folks in and around the athletics department, maybe we will see a transformation. My only wish is that those hopes and promises are backed up with substance. But for now, Bobcat fans are left in a wait-and-see mode.
That’s only temporary, though, and soon the harsh reality will set in that there’s a lot of hard work to do.
Caleb Troop is the sports columnist for The Athens NEWS and can be reached at ctroop@TroopSports.com. He co-hosts “The SportsFan” weeknights from 6-7 on 970 WATH-AM in Athens.
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