UMassHoops.com

MikeUMA wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 3:38 pm

m626t wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 3:18 pm a slightly different perspective
https://www.golocalprov.com/sports/uri- ... -for-umass

Is there a controversial take in there? I didn't see it.

Their point about Rhody MBB is entirely valid. Their falloff after Hurley is well known by us, as we fell off after Calipari. They were both coaches on the ascent and there was almost nowhere to go but down after they left.

Controversial, no; I just thought it interesting how the author pointed out some less than stellar results for URI athletics during Thorr's tenure, likely an attempt to make the URIne faithful feel less angst at Thorr leaving.

Why not just fire bamford and hire Thorr? Am I missing something?? Either way this is some positive news that he is back at UMass.

inthescoop wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 2:26 pm Okay we hired someone to "fix" the football team, but Bamford is still here. Seems to me that our administration is slapping a band-aid on an issue rather than actually being serious with change.

We clearly brought him on because we're desperate. Desperate enough to bring on a guy and pay him big money, with ZERO FBS experience.

100% scoop. Administration are too big of pussies to just fire bamford outright so they go halfway keep him and hire a guy that is supposed to fix a football program that is a mess while the guy that made the mess is still here? Feels like the half measures the patriots have made since firing Belichick. Hopefully we get the announcement that bamford has been given a pink slip very soon.

I very very much doubt that Thorr is giving up an AD spot to work for Ryan Bamford. My guess is Bamford is gone within 6 months.

Quann wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 5:22 pm Why not just fire bamford and hire Thorr? Am I missing something?? Either way this is some positive news that he is back at UMass.

Bamford's contract, as I understand it, has an auto-renewal that requires a year notice to not renew, plus a buyout of some sort. So canning him with an immediate end date is probably something the UMass administration isn't/hasn't been keen on doing.

Based on that, and this is just speculating on my part... If there's a mutually agreed upon exit strategy, then the school likely avoids having to keep him on for longer, Ryan would likely get money to leave, but not the full payout a firing would bring, and there would be no talk of a "firing" at all.


You get a transition period in the interim to allow Thorr to get reacclimated with UMass, with an initial and almost sole focus on football.


As I said a few posts ago, you're probably seeing the transition formally announced in early 2026 with it officially happening around the start of the fiscal year.

vanmeter wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 6:28 pm I very very much doubt that Thorr is giving up an AD spot to work for Ryan Bamford. My guess is Bamford is gone within 6 months.

Why wouldn't he?? He gets to work less and be paid more at his alma mater? No brainer for Thorr. Who cares about the title at this point, not much left to prove.. a nice challenge for your old stomping grounds with more $$ involved, I'll take it too. Hell of a gig. And if it doesn't work out then he knows it's not on him, it was already broken in the first place

inthescoop wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 7:07 pm

vanmeter wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 6:28 pm I very very much doubt that Thorr is giving up an AD spot to work for Ryan Bamford. My guess is Bamford is gone within 6 months.

Why wouldn't he?? He gets to work less and be paid more at his alma mater? No brainer for Thorr. Who cares about the title at this point, not much left to prove.. a nice challenge for your old stomping grounds with more $$ involved, I'll take it too. Hell of a gig. And if it doesn't work out then he knows it's not on him, it was already broken in the first place

Plus he already has 15yrs in the state retirement system

https://x.com/MLBergman_/status/1986211 ... KdlvQ&s=19
5 year $395 per year plus cost of living and incentives being reported

mdogt12 wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 7:14 pm https://x.com/MLBergman_/status/1986211 ... KdlvQ&s=19
5 year $395 per year plus cost of living and incentives being reported

"cost of living and incentives" aka a lot more than $395k a year. So, we have "2 AD's" now, being paid a combined ~1.25M. Schools like University of Arizona, Mississippi State pay their ADs that much. University of Michigan pays their AD 1.45M, we're not far off. Only difference is that all of these schools are competitive every single year and compete in the top conferences in the country. They get shit done and they have solutions. At UMass, all I hear are excuses from the administration. Alright, well.. here's your chance, you stuck on a band-aid on the problem, let's see how long it'll stick for.

InnervisionsUMASS wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 6:49 pm

Quann wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 5:22 pm Why not just fire bamford and hire Thorr? Am I missing something?? Either way this is some positive news that he is back at UMass.

Bamford's contract, as I understand it, has an auto-renewal that requires a year notice to not renew, plus a buyout of some sort. So canning him with an immediate end date is probably something the UMass administration isn't/hasn't been keen on doing.

Based on that, and this is just speculating on my part... If there's a mutually agreed upon exit strategy, then the school likely avoids having to keep him on for longer, Ryan would likely get money to leave, but not the full payout a firing would bring, and there would be no talk of a "firing" at all.


You get a transition period in the interim to allow Thorr to get reacclimated with UMass, with an initial and almost sole focus on football.


As I said a few posts ago, you're probably seeing the transition formally announced in early 2026 with it officially happening around the start of the fiscal year.

Thank you sir. Bummer about the Turtle Tavern and those living above it. Just glad it sounds like everyone got out safe.

InnervisionsUMASS wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 4:55 pm My take on this, which is based on reading the tea leaves and no insider info:

There is an exit strategy in place for Ryan, and hiring Thorr is the first step. We'll likely hear sometime in early 2026 (I predicted 2/15/26, get your guesses in) that Ryan will be leaving and Thorr taking over, with Ryan's exit in June. Thorr will take over as AD probably effective July 1st.



I don't think Thorr leaves URI to take a lower titled role, and he already has ~15 years as a MA employee so it's not a pension attaining situation. I also think the University and Ryan have likely come to a mutually agreed upon exit strategy and timing/buyout agreement, likely being a win-win for both him and the school. CHS said on his Twitter Spaces earlier today that he was flat out told this was a succession plan, and I trust him when he says that.


Could be wrong, of course, but not sure what else makes sense here. The pressure was well beyond mounting on Ryan, would it really be a surprise to find out there were talks to figure out moving on?

100% Agree... I think Ryan is well liked as a decent guy. Have a feeling 6 months from now he will step away to "pursue other interests". Thorr will be named interim, then permanent.

I go on the URI basketball forum and almost 100% of those post positive mentions about Thorr. What would (will) those on this board say if Bamford is gone,

^

Hit the Road Jack
Ray Charles · 1960

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8Tiz6INF7I

Please tell me this is a joke. We think the AD from URI is the answer. he is the AD of a subdivision football program for the past 15 years. Their football program has gone no where under his control. Why do you think he has been only at two schools in his 30 years in the business, its because nobody else sees him as a leader in bring change to a program.

i remember him at Umass when he directed the change in the season ticket program. Here is some background of what he did to the season ticket program that fell on its face and was a total disaster.
Calapari had turned the basketball program around and all of a sudden their was a high demand for basketball season tickets. Thorr Bjorn who was in charge of ticketing, came up with the brillant idea of, awarding season tickets for basketball based on a point system, where the more money you had donated to the school the more points you were given and even if you were a past season ticket holder ( i.e. the previous year prior to his new point system who supported the basketball team in previous years) you lost the rights to your ticket. For example i was a season ticket holder for two years prior to his point system and I lost my tickets.
What happened, is that the team got good under Calapari and companies came in and made donations and grabbed a lot of the tickets. so I lost my season tickets ! Have you ever heard of a team that took away a past season ticket holders tickets ? Well they did ! I was so pissed !!

Couple of years go by and Calapari leaves and the team goes down hill and now no one wants any season tickets. But the story gets better, so nobody is renewing their season ticket, because the team is losing. The ticket department calls me up and ask me if I am interested in buying season tickets.

Mr Bjorn was responsible for this change and the point system no longer exists!! Great job Mr Bjorn !!

Our program needs help and new direction, bringing in old blood and someone who has experience only from just Umass and URI is not the leadership we need. for example What experience does he have with managing NIL money , certainly not with a school like URI!
Please tell me why you think he can help turn the program around ?

URI kicked our ass a few years ago.. and they would kick our ass this year. They are ranked 14th in FCS. He also secured a massive 50+ million-dollar stadium upgrade to said FCS stadium. As for NIL, they do have a D1 BBall team. Will it work??? Who knows. But something has to change.