The unofficial online home for fans of the Kent State University Golden Flashes. Part of Collegiate Sports Nation (CSN).

You now have had your AD for 2.5 years. What's your thoughts on the job he's doing? I am from South Dakota and just curious.

Our fundraising is at an all-time high...our football attendance has reached a consistent level never before seen...the in-game elements at our football games are as hands-on as they've been in school history with an indoor tailgating zone...relationships with notable alums which had long since been given up on have been rebuilt and cultivated...our baseball team went to the College World Series...our golf team beat Florida State in a playoff and finished fifth in the country...we earned our first national champion since Richard Nixon was in the White House...many of our teams' APRs are off the charts...we've won the Excellence in Management Cup...we are ranked first in the MAC in most - if not all - critical budget and performance categories...unprecedented facility changes are planned...a once-thought impossible link between the university and city is on the verge of being connected...undergraduate enrollment has never been higher.

Not offering up an opinion, just presenting some facts.

The AD was involved with the situation with the city? the rest I knew bout but the city situation I did not know about as I figured that was being cultivated by another part of the university such as perhaps the President.

Still overall it seems that he is doing well thus far and at the very least is continuing the winning ways of the previous AD with perhaps less basketball success (jury is still out on that one) and more football success (more than just in winning games too). Still fairly early to tell in some areas though.

I'd give JL a B from a hard grader.

In addition to what JimJoyce posted, I'd add:
- Made some tough decisions on coaches. Does what he thinks is right vs. popular.
- In my opinion, the coaches JL has hired appear to be upgrades from their predecessors. Time will tell.
- Has retained some very talented people and brought in some very talented people. Dave Carducci is an example of a recent wise hire.
- Gets the changing landscape of college sports and media. Heard him think out loud last year, wondering if social media opportunities give college sports unprecedented opportunity to control their own coverage. Notice the upgrades in KSU video production, blogs and twitter to see he means it.

Here's what he could have done to get an A:
- The majority of his focus has been on fixing football and fund raising. To posters who comment that's what he does, those are the priorities he was hired to accomplish. So, I understand the overwhelming focus. But, I believe Men's basketball has slipped competitively on his watch. I know it's coming. I know the plans are on the books. But we STILL don't have a renovated MACC. A renovated MACC, at least in progress, would have upped my grade.
- Stand up for himself and his department more forcefully. In my opinion, two stories last year were sensationalized due to a personal agenda of a student reporter. Report the news, fine. Make up innuendoes and report them as news, not so good. JN believes most people see through the smoke and mirrors, so doesn't want to fuel the mis informed. If it were me, I'd hold a press conference, lay out the facts and bury the story. I know as a University executive, JN is not inclined to embarrass a student reporter on the University paper. I think that part of this reporter's education was understanding the difference between reporting news and opinion. Standing up to ill informed stories, especially when they imply people on his staff did something wrong when they absolutely did not, would have boosted my grade.

Bottom line is that KSU is lucky to replace a great AD with a soon to be great AD. JN was a good hire.

Agreed, JN has done a lot of good things thus far....

With the upgrades coming to the baseball facility in the winter/spring, the focus now has to become on rennovating the MACC and getting a separate practice facility.

The following facilities have been upgraded or are good for a while:

Womens Soccer
Womens Field Hockey
Softball
Baseball
Mens & Womens Golf
Fieldhouse Weight Room (in process with donation from James Harrison)
Wrestling Locker Rooms

Hopefully now the donation or donations to get the MACC upgraded as well as a new practice facility can be had.