Ryan Bamford Fired?

[Jack]

^ Wasn’t Frank the AD that hired Calipari?

correct.

[dennisdent]

Used to sit next to Frank in the Chancellor's booth at UMass games as youngster as my friend's parent was a big wig at UMass (won't say who) who would give their game passes to us. Two kids hanging out with all the UMass leadership during the games was definitely a learning experience.

[pk77]

it's really a quite simple question to answer...... no other school in the country wants him as an AD because he is not very good at his job, Look at the stats that was provided earlier in this chat and please don't tell me that we need to include woman's basketball into the equation. A woman's basketball program does not bring revenue or much benefit to the school unless it's a top 20 team every year. Plus look at the state of the woman's team currently and how long do you think its going to be until they have another good team ? And we only have Bamford to blame for the current state of the team.

Football program is just not bad it's an embarrassement to our university and alumni.

[bunkerhill87]

im in st bona territory and there was a recent golf outing there where Frank and some Umass peeps showed. one was a very energetic man affilated w/ Umass Basketball. He through the AD and marketing peeps under the bus. essentially stating they were lethargic and lacked any sort of energy. state employees cashing a check. Sounds like the the entire athletic department needs a massive overhaul.

Frank threw them under the bus? The department has been horrific, IMO. Student attendance has dropped across the board. Virtually no one in the local area seems to know when or what athletic events are happening at UMass. I work in Amherst. All of the advertising is social media. It is all passive. No dormstorming. They post things and hope they will work/connect. My understanding is Bamford has jettisoned many and ostracized those that are left in the department.

not Frank one of the younger peeps in his group. Was frustrated w/ the marketing department etc. very lethargic etc. i would think this would be a crucial area etc. who knows . sounds like we need a complete overhaul

[eldonabe]

it's really a quite simple question to answer...... no other school in the country wants him as an AD because he is not very good at his job, Look at the stats that was provided earlier in this chat and please don't tell me that we need to include woman's basketball into the equation. A woman's basketball program does not bring revenue or much benefit to the school unless it's a top 20 team every year. Plus look at the state of the woman's team currently and how long do you think its going to be until they have another good team ? And we only have Bamford to blame for the current state of the team.

Football program is just not bad it's an embarrassment to our university and alumni.

First Point - correct, nobody cares about Womens''s basketball that much outside of the 8 or 10 regularly dominant schools (and the state of Connecticut). That said, making a couple of NITs and 1 tourney is an accomplishment of sorts. Any team that has a good season is a point of pride for students and alums, but nobody gives much of a shit outside of that single week they make their final and win something. Nationally Speaking, unless it is Men's Basketball or Football the other sports do not rate... Sorry Ladies Hoops. It will be interesting to see how quickly the Women's B-Ball "mania" leaves Iowa as they return to mediocrity in the women's game next season.... I see a parallel with Post Cal... hopes were high, they got reputation Ranked and then slid backwards. By Bru's third season, they were just another program. I suspect that Iowa will follow a similar path but more quickly... cuz Women's basketball.


Second Point - I will give the administration credit for trying to hire an up and coming young guy for the AD job. But the credit stops there. Again 10 years, and outside of Hockey, the rest of the Athletics has been mediocre at best. The Administration is confusing Loyalty and Failure. A young guy like Bamford should be long gone by now because he did a good enough job to move on to a bigger situation. Unfortunately, he is not gone because he is not doing a good job and the Administration has not held him accountable by moving in a different direction.


Third Point - The Northeast is just not a college football geographic, it never has been. Sure there have been brief moments here and there (like Flutie), but "Big-Boy Football" is just not a thing in New England (or New York really). Then you double down on the apathy with a school out in the sticks with no relevant TV Market and you have what we see in Amherst. Then you Triple Down with the school being outright cheap in how they went about getting this up and running and you have what we see in Amherst.


We have people who honestly think UMass can and should be in a P4 conference right now - that is laughable at best. As much as I absolutely hate UConn, they are light years ahead of UMass and they still cannot get into a P4 - Why? Their football really really sucks, and the do not have a desirable media market.... They are NOT a NY media market.

Everyone was falling all over themselves talking about BC for 2 weeks (not realizing that Fla State is pretty bad, so that win was not that impressive). They lose to Missouri last week (in a competitive reasonable fashion) and it is already crickets again. WEEI was talking about BC football almost as much as they do about the shitty Red Sox and Patriots - This Monday AM - they mentioned the loss last weekend and I have not heard them mentioned again.... This team can still get to 10 wins and play in a bowl Game played AFTER December 26th for the first time in years and still, nobody around here gives a shit.

[ZooMass84]

it's really a quite simple question to answer...... no other school in the country wants him as an AD because he is not very good at his job, Look at the stats that was provided earlier in this chat and please don't tell me that we need to include woman's basketball into the equation. A woman's basketball program does not bring revenue or much benefit to the school unless it's a top 20 team every year. Plus look at the state of the woman's team currently and how long do you think its going to be until they have another good team ? And we only have Bamford to blame for the current state of the team.

Football program is just not bad it's an embarrassment to our university and alumni.

First Point - correct, nobody cares about Womens''s basketball that much outside of the 8 or 10 regularly dominant schools (and the state of Connecticut). That said, making a couple of NITs and 1 tourney is an accomplishment of sorts. Any team that has a good season is a point of pride for students and alums, but nobody gives much of a shit outside of that single week they make their final and win something. Nationally Speaking, unless it is Men's Basketball or Football the other sports do not rate... Sorry Ladies Hoops. It will be interesting to see how quickly the Women's B-Ball "mania" leaves Iowa as they return to mediocrity in the women's game next season.... I see a parallel with Post Cal... hopes were high, they got reputation Ranked and then slid backwards. By Bru's third season, they were just another program. I suspect that Iowa will follow a similar path but more quickly... cuz Women's basketball.


Second Point - I will give the administration credit for trying to hire an up and coming young guy for the AD job. But the credit stops there. Again 10 years, and outside of Hockey, the rest of the Athletics has been mediocre at best. The Administration is confusing Loyalty and Failure. A young guy like Bamford should be long gone by now because he did a good enough job to move on to a bigger situation. Unfortunately, he is not gone because he is not doing a good job and the Administration has not held him accountable by moving in a different direction.


Third Point - The Northeast is just not a college football geographic, it never has been. Sure there have been brief moments here and there (like Flutie), but "Big-Boy Football" is just not a thing in New England (or New York really). Then you double down on the apathy with a school out in the sticks with no relevant TV Market and you have what we see in Amherst. Then you Triple Down with the school being outright cheap in how they went about getting this up and running and you have what we see in Amherst.


We have people who honestly think UMass can and should be in a P4 conference right now - that is laughable at best. As much as I absolutely hate UConn, they are light years ahead of UMass and they still cannot get into a P4 - Why? Their football really really sucks, and the do not have a desirable media market.... They are NOT a NY media market.

Everyone was falling all over themselves talking about BC for 2 weeks (not realizing that Fla State is pretty bad, so that win was not that impressive). They lose to Missouri last week (in a competitive reasonable fashion) and it is already crickets again. WEEI was talking about BC football almost as much as they do about the shitty Red Sox and Patriots - This Monday AM - they mentioned the loss last weekend and I have not heard them mentioned again.... This team can still get to 10 wins and play in a bowl Game played AFTER December 26th for the first time in years and still, nobody around here gives a shit.

very true Eldon. UConn is an elite basketball program and if they can't get into a P conference then that really says something. my office is down the street from BC and their indoor football facility is top notch. Look, we are in the MAC in a few months. Why are we all bent out of shape. Better days are ahead.

[Quann]

^^^
Bent out of shape is what we do best here at UMasshoops.com To use the now overused matrix pill analogies, there are way to many black pilled people when it comes to this football program. Basically resigned to doom and gloom and that nothing will ever get better.

[umiejoe]

What the hell do you expect after 12 YEARS OF EMBARRASSMENT? (acutally more in the last few years of FCS)? Are we supposed to be cheering as we watch week after week of this shit?

[RagingCager]

Alot of thoughts, feelings, and opinions have been expressed here for years, not merely about the struggles of the Football program, but the other major front porch sport not played on ice. Let’s just look at the facts…. the football program has struggled for 12 years, including embarrassing performances in 2 of the first 3 games this season to start 0-3, all against MAC teams that they will join next year after revamping the entire athletic dept. Opening Day at home saw a sizable, energetic crowd to help usher in another new beginning for this long struggling program; one would think, that under the circumstances this was a critical time to make a good impression and encourage people to come back…. I left at halftime… that’s how poor the product on the field was. After some signs of improvement vs Toledo, another terrible 2 steps backwards showing vs Buffalo…. a familiar pattern over the past 12 yrs

Those of us that follow the other major program not played on skates, were encouraged when a higher profile coach was brought in to a tune approaching 2 million $$/ season. Yes there were some signs of encouragement, but the end result the past 2 seasons has been an embarrassing early round exit from the A 10 tournament, followed by a mass exodus of many key players. The average attendance at home was probably around 3500, and the athletic dept still seems at a loss when it comes to filling the void in the far end of the arena when the students are away on break…. a key factor when opposing teams are shooting free throws in crunch time of tight games.

Looking back at the previous coaching regimes in both of these sports, things were even worse and crippled the programs for years. Rather than pointing the finger at any one person, I think it’s beyond high time for the upper leadership of the university to get involved and communicate a mission statement of expectation with a timetable of accountability. UMass is a very highly rated flagship university in so many respects, deserving of a higher standard of results and attendance at these 2 major front porch sports programs…. and it should be clear by now that the coaches and players need and deserve the help and effective oversight of the athletic dept and upper leadership of the university, as well as the realization that, whether we like it or not, NIL $$ is the driving force in today’s recruiting wars for high level players

[eldonabe]

Looking back at the previous coaching regimes in both of these sports, things were even worse and crippled the programs for years. Rather than pointing the finger at any one person, I think it’s beyond high time for the upper leadership of the university to get involved and communicate a mission statement of expectation with a timetable of accountability.

You were not clear as to who the accountability should be placed on - I assume that is Bamford. Are you suggesting that this starts NOW? as in he gets more time?

If that is the case - I say NO, NOW WAY. RB has had 10 years to do something. It is time for a new direction and a new director to take the department there.

[RagingCager]

I agree that time has run out as far as the current situation is concerned…. upper leadership needs to step in now to establish a new and improved course of action; the rest of the university is passing them by with a higher standard in most other areas; major front porch sports are an important reflection of a flagship, and in this case have not been complimentary…. more to the contrary

[jjmc85]

The biggest hurtle and first step to fixing this mess was getting football into a stable conference. That was just secured-what- 6 months ago? The team hasn’t even officially joined the conference yet or had a recruiting cycle while a member of the conference.

While the biggest hurtle is finally cleared, that does not mean the other hurtles are small or insignificant. They aren’t. If anyone was expecting this season to be any different than others as an independent then I question on what basis. Hell- if anyone is expecting next season to be much different that I also question on what basis. Being in a conference is a huge advantage over being independent. UMass is all of a sudden gonna leapfrog over the 12 other teams who have enjoyed that advantage for the past decade that they haven’t? That’s not realistic to think unfortunately.

I don’t know what another person would have done differently with respect to football if they had been the AD the past decade as an independent. Not hire Bell? I guess but there was an interview or Twitter space or something with NEFBJ where Bell said towards the end of his tenure here that he was here because no one else wanted the job and unfortunately I believe that. Not hire Brown? Maybe-but that decision was well received at the time iirc. Join a conference sooner? Sure-but you need an invite. I don’t understand why UMass would fire Bamford now in light of getting the program into a conference so recently.

[Juice Stand]

^ I'm with you JJ. What else was Bamford supposed to do with this football program? I don't love the move to the MAC as a basketball-first fan, but the fact that he got it done is a massive win for the football community.

Here's how I view things as they stand currently:
- Football: SUCKS, but you just made the jump to the MAC, and he deserves credit for that.
- Men's Basketball: hired Frank Martin, who has shown that he's still got it and is improving the hoops program. That was a huge hire, and instead of bolting when they announced the MAC move, he signed an extension.
- Hockey, national title and Cale Makar. 'Nuff said.
- Women's hoops: They're rebuilding now, but went on probably the best run in program history under Verdi. I'm no women's basketball historian, but that was a special few years.

He made some bad moves early on with Bell, McCall, the Kelsey embarrassment, and how he let DK go. He wasn't fired then, so I'm giving him credit for how he's improved and made better hires since, and the bold move of leaving the A10. Again, I don't love the MAC, but he made the call and got it done.

[eldonabe]

^ I'm with you JJ. What else was Bamford supposed to do with this football program? I don't love the move to the MAC as a basketball-first fan, but the fact that he got it done is a massive win for the football community.

Here's how I view things as they stand currently:
- Football: SUCKS, but you just made the jump to the MAC, and he deserves credit for that.
- Men's Basketball: hired Frank Martin, who has shown that he's still got it and is improving the hoops program. That was a huge hire, and instead of bolting when they announced the MAC move, he signed an extension.
- Hockey, national title and Cale Makar. 'Nuff said.
- Women's hoops: They're rebuilding now, but went on probably the best run in program history under Verdi. I'm no women's basketball historian, but that was a special few years.

He made some bad moves early on with Bell, McCall, the Kelsey embarrassment, and how he let DK go. He wasn't fired then, so I'm giving him credit for how he's improved and made better hires since, and the bold move of leaving the A10. Again, I don't love the MAC, but he made the call and got it done.

What is the exact reason we were without a conference for so long? That answer is gonna suck no matter what it is, but I would really love to know why?

- Afraid to leave A-10?
- Nobody was knocking - again why?
- Nobody was returning RB's calls - again why?

I am sure it is some combo of all those things but they all go back to the same common denominator.

UMass admin said all the right things out loud, but never backed up their words with the actual needed commitment to make this work.

- Properly fix or Demo McGuirk. Not this lipstick and duct tape bullshit
- Move all sports to a football conference from the beginning


RB had his chance - IDGAF if he tried and was given the run around by his own administration; he could not and did not get the job done in 9 fucking years. I am genuinely happy they got into a football conference FINALLY, but it all went down as a "hold your nose, last resort" desperation thing.


In the words (sort of) of John Blutarski - 13 years of FBS down the fucking drain.

[DanaDingle3]

^^ Agree with the above two posts, prior to Eldon. McCall and Bell was perhaps the worst BB/football tandem hire in the history of D1 athletics, but he's made up for it with hiring (and extending) Frank and finding a home for football. Things are trending in the right direction. As FightMA mentioned in his most recent blog post, UMass will have to overspend for football coaches moving forward to dig out of this hole. If he's able to secure the funds for a splashy new football hire, he'll be earning his paycheck. Only qualms would be the football gameday experience needs considerable upgrade. It's kinda pathetic. Also, last two women's BB hires, white guy, white guy. Women's soccer, white guy. I don't really wanna be on any DEI crusade, but he needs to improve the diversity in his hiring.