Sell the kids for Dots
Weather changes moods
- At the midpoint of the season, Christian Caple looks at the good and bad of Washington’s 5-1 start. He points out that the record shows clear progress over last year’s ~.500 team, but there remains plenty of room for growth. From my point of view, Jedd Fisch has the program on a clear upward trajectory. There are still personnel issues to sort out defensively over the next couple of years, but if there is some stability, the Huskies should be in the mix behind Ohio State to compete with anyone in the Big 10. The giant caveat is that there is no guarantee of even moderate stability. Every coach and every player can move on at any point, so we might as well enjoy the good times while they are here.
- Speaking of long-term unknowns, the Seattle Times examines the Big 10’s private equity deal and what it could mean for UW and the conference at large. Outside investment means that people with deep pockets believe there is money to be made off the Big 10. If the conference leadership wants to sell off the rights to that profit or revenue, it means they don’t think they can realize it without outside help. If the ADs and Presidents’ jobs are to maximize profit or revenue for the Athletic Departments and there are outside investors who are better at doing so than they are, why don’t the schools hire better businesspeople to be ADs?
- Well, maybe that’s what UW is trying to do. This week, they named Scott Coil the Sr. Associate AD for Finance. Coil has an MBA from UW and a history in financial management across different parts of UW.
- Closer to the football field, Ryan Walters spoke to the media yesterday. He weighed in on Jacob Manu’s eligibility. Manu is currently playing his fourth year and would be out of eligibility if he plays more than four games plus a bowl. He is also involved in active litigation to get a fifth year of eligibility, though he didn’t spend any of that time at a junior college, so there isn’t an obvious precedent in his favor. Not surprisingly, Walters feels Manu should have more eligibility and would love to have him back next season.
- Huskies Women’s Soccer continues to pile up awards. Defender Kolo Suliafu won the Big 10 Defender of the Week for the second time this season. She took the honor on the back of road wins against Penn St and #22 Ohio St.