Stanford Sucks

[savvyandsassier]

I go out of my way to attend the ND games in Palo Alto. I try to watch marquee games, more so when Stanford is doing well. Again, my perception is attendance is better when the Cardinal are doing well.

As discussed, they are pretty bad right now and in a bleak situation as perhaps the best overall school in the world.

This might be their final adventure...I wouldn't be surprised if they capitulate and wind down football. Maybe Ivy? Maybe lower division?

NIL, transfers, even more big $$$? Demands for a really easy degree? There might be limits to what Stanford can commit to here.

No exaggeration, Stanford is a force multiplier for the USA: GDP, defense, health, overall ROI. Not sure if they want to or can do the new football normal.

I want Stanford to do that. It would be a drop in the bucket financially to the google boys, or any other very large number of super wealthy Stanford grads. And the beauty of it is they could target only kids who legit qualify for Stanford, which would be good enough for top ten classes annually or better, and treat it like a fun plaything of the nouveau rich, a validation of the free market that so many libertarian tech bros are so big on. And they would be doing it the right way, following all the academic rules, all the kids are good students, and I suppose of the meritocracy as well that can touch all facets of society. Like it's some salutary thing almost to reward elite HS recruits who are also excellent students with particularly large NIL deals because they represent the limited supply Stanford must cull from to have a powerhouse program, and so they're willing to pay a premium to get them.

The market works!

 

[chaseball]

Hasn't that been the $64,000 QUESTION?

My opinion -- AND I HAVE NO FACT BASE, SO I'M PURELY GUESSING -- is that ND has been seeking to maintain a RESPECTABLE BALANCE.

For me, the three legs of the stool are FINANCIAL STRENGTH, ACADEMIC RANKING AND FOOTBALL RANKING. The last time I looked, ND ranked 11th in endowments, 19th in academics as per US News & World Report, and 11th in this week's AP CFB rankings.

If I'm ND's ADMIN, what part of this picture DON'T I LIKE? Frankly, it all looks GOOD. And the key is -- and this is the BALANCE FACTOR -- it looks good not only vs. other institutions but also on an internally consistent ACROSS THE BOARD BASIS.

THERE'S NO WEAK LINK.

But, of course, if you're a RETURN-TO-GLORY ND football fan, the first two categories are often mindlessly DISMISSED while the ranking in the third -- football -- is viewed as UNACCEPTABLY SECOND-RATE.

Yet, even as I don't see ND moving to TOP FIVE STATUS in endowments or academic ranking, I don't see it doing so in FOOTBALL either. In all three respects, IT HAS A CEILING. It's an elite university without either a) the history or generational resources (broadly defined) of the Ivy League or b) the less academically focused advantages available in places like Tuscaloosa or Columbus.

As it now stands, Alabama has more championships than ND. Michigan, Alabama, Ohio State and Texas (by one) have more victories, and Alabama, Ohio State and Michigan have a higher winning percentage -- with all three tied at .734 percent vs. ND's .730. So, if ND can, OVER TIME, average 10-3 seasons which equates to a .769 winning percentage, it can, in all likelihood, remain within CFB's alll-time TOP-FIVE and certainly within its top 10.

I'm not saying that this IS ND's strategy, but if I were running the place -- ALL OTHER THINGS BEING EQUAL -- it VERY WELL MIGHT BE MINE.

And who knows? Maybe one year, you luck out recruiting the next BO JACKSON or CARSON PALMER and he wins the Heisman and the team takes the championship. Even that I could see.

But is it NC or bust?

DON'T THINK SO.

I'm not convinced that they can't maintain their academic excellence and endowment while ascending to a tier 1 program in football. But you're the first person who's made a compelling argument as to why the ceiling is where it is in the modern era -- and as to what might be playing into it -- so I appreciate the perspective and the food for thought

 

[4-4-3]

I'm not convinced that they can't maintain their academic excellence and endowment while ascending to a tier 1 program in football. But you're the first person who's made a compelling argument as to why the ceiling is where it is in the modern era -- and as to what might be playing into it -- so I appreciate the perspective and the food for thought

Sure, I get that you’re not convinced. And that’s fine. I’m not convinced of anything – not even pig iron under water. Plus, we’re in no way insiders here, so most of what we say is little more than speculation based on assumed probabilities.

So, given that caveat, I’d say, YES, ND "COULD" become a top-tier program. I just don’t see the institutional NEED or APPETITE. If all systems are GO, why mess with the formula?

How would adjusting the football program – and that’s what it would take – make things MATERIALLY better for ND the institution? Because, as I see it, that’s who the ultimate beneficiary would have to be. And, if there’s no DELIVERABLE in that sense, why make the trade?

The argument regarding better recruiting is constantly dredged up. Sure, you can improve on practically anything, but if the SIZE OF THE POOL you’re fishing in turns out to be smaller – whether it’s because of what ND requires or what ND lacks – you’ve got to hit home runs with just about every recruit.

Is that happening? No. Does ND not experience at least one – and sometimes several – DEUCE KNIGHTS a year? Whether ND doesn’t want the kid or vice versa, the result is too often a WHIFF.

And by now, it should be obvious that this is NOT A BUG, BUT A FEATURE. Seriously, does that sound like happenstance to you or PREFERENCE based on POLICY.

Plus, I wonder about ND’s future. If the game goes basically semi-pro, how does ND remain part of it, particularly if it doesn’t join a conference and can’t maintain its STAND ALONE, first-among-equals position?

I’d like to see ND in the Big Ten as that would require it to play a MORE RIGOROUS schedule where at least HALF your opponents in a given season can beat you instead of only two or three.

Which is something that could go a long way to FORCING ND’S HAND as to what football means to it OR NOT.

But if ND did join the Big Ten and all else remained the same institutionally, then I would drop its ability to go 10-3 on a regular basis to no better than 9-4 or even 8-5. Because the Big Ten looks like it will be getting MORE COMPETITIVE, not less.

A lot of balls in the air right now. We’ll see where they land.