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Fundraising, Turning Football Around Among Priorities For New Purdue AD Bobinski

New Purdue AD Mike Bobinski, along with "ramping up" the school's football program, will be "expected to keep donations flowing into athletics," according to Meghan Holden of the Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER. A "major part" of Bobinski's job will be to "appeal to donors to continue funding multimillion-dollar facility projects and support for athletes in order to remain competitive among peer programs." He also "stands in the shadows of to-be predecessor Morgan Burke, who has spent more than 20 years cultivating relationships with donors." Purdue Senior Associate AD Nancy Cross and financial supporters of the program said that Bobinski "will be up for the challenge given his extensive experience" as an AD and fundraiser. Contributions to Purdue athletics "has risen fairly steadily in recent years," from about $11.55M in FY '09 to $17.53M in FY '15. Purdue athletics is a "self-supporting auxiliary enterprise, which means it doesn’t receive money from the university or the state" (Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER, 8/10). Bobinski said that he believes Purdue and Georgia Tech "share some of the same challenges." In Indiana, Nathan Baird in a front-page piece notes neither "is the flagship school in its state," and neither "has the economic resources of some of the power programs in their respective conferences." Bobinski: "It's not sort of 'all comers.' You have to be smart about how you target the right young people. You can't just recruit everybody." Baird notes Bobinski has "drawn criticism in Atlanta for lagging behind on facilities, among other faults" (Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER, 8/10).

LONG ROAD AHEAD: In Indiana, Mike Carmin writes Bobinski is "going to be judged, at least in the short term, on where he takes this football program." The "lack of an identity has been troubling for a number of years." Bobinski plans to "officially start his new duties before the Sept. 3 opener against Eastern Kentucky." Ticket sales "continue to sink, costing the athletic department much-needed revenue," and Bobinski "will see it first-hand." He might be "best served hanging out in the south end zone patio area," which is being turned into a VIP area. Carmin: "This is what six wins -- and only three against FBS programs -- the past three years does to a fan base, which is fractured and eroding" (Lafayette JOURNAL & COURIER, 8/10). 

A REAL RAMBLIN' WRECK? In Atlanta, Jeff Schultz wrote under the header, "Mike Bobinski Won't Be Leaving Georgia Tech In Great Shape." Those who "worked for him didn’t view him as either affable or engaging as his predecessor, Dan Radakovich." Georgia Tech athletics has "gone through quite a bit of turnover of late, whether due to the struggling economics in the department or the relatively detached management style of Bobinski and/or the administrators he hired." Georgia Tech’s administration "needs to understand that the athletic department is not a well-functioning part of the university these days." The current situation "needs to be fixed." One source said that Bobinski's nickname among AD employees was "Sasquatch" because "nobody ever saw him" (AJC.com, 8/9). Also in Atlanta, Mark Bradley wrote Bobinski "went through several publicists ... but it was uncertain whether subsequent hires ever yielded whatever it was Bobinski wanted." Because what Bobinski "wanted wasn’t exactly clear." A Georgia Tech AD "needs to be visible and upbeat." Bradley: "I'm not sure there is a Bobinski legacy. He wasn't around long enough to shape one" (AJC.com, 8/9).

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