Comments on: Drawing up Nero's game plan

By: GW18

GW18 — Thu, 21 Jun 2012 16:32:55 +0000

Campus Rec doesn’t make any money for the school or athletic debt while all of the athletic teams do. Varsity athletics garners a lot of fundraising from donors and alumni. Nero is focusing on this department because it will make the most impact on gaining funding for everything else.

By: Hugo Scheckter

Hugo Scheckter — Wed, 20 Jun 2012 07:42:20 +0000

Campus Recreation are part of the Athletic Department – Andre Julian heads up that department and he reports directly to Mr Nero.

As for cutting staff and hours – good! About time a department and GW starting cutting costs, and as they did it at the times that the gym was least used (they can track these things as everyone swipes in) I don’t see the issue here. Mr Nero has transformed GW athletics in one year, and I’m excited to see what will happen in the coming years. It’s a great time to be a colonial!

By: Steve B

Steve B — Wed, 13 Jun 2012 14:57:35 +0000

A-10 seems the perfect place for GW. It’s competitive and gaining added respect with Butler and Virginia Commonwealth having joined. On the other hand, it’s not such a meatgrinder conference that teams like GW would forever be relegated to the bottom third.

Having watched Nero at America East (and Lonergan at Vermont), I look forward to the future of GW Athletics.

By: 20-year slum

20-year slum — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 17:07:06 +0000

No football means no better conference than A-10. That’s just the facts.

By: Class of 09

Class of 09 — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 16:31:10 +0000

With the addition of Butler and VCU, two of the top 4 mid-major programs of recent years (along with Gonzaga and Xavier), the A-10 is easily the best non-BCS conference out there and is really a top 5 or 6 basketball conference. This is the perfect conference for GW, with a great national competition and a focus on basketball. Getting in with a bunch of football schools wouldn’t help anything.

As for Aaron’s comment about the Health and Wellness center – that is part of Campus Recreation, not the Athletic Department, and so the building and it’s staff are not under the control of the Athletic Director. You’ll have to take up any issues with Campus Rec.

By: CJ

CJ — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 15:52:30 +0000

BACCAS92: you mean like the conference the A-10′s become with the addition of Butler and VCU? The conference sent four teams to the tournament and four to the NIT. For something like the A-10, that’s great. Also, and no disrespect to the teams and the players, but GW’s not yet ready to compete in a bigger conference (not to mention our lack of a football program, the driving force behind most realignments). I want to see our athletics program succeed as much as you do, but I think the A-10 is exactly where we need to be.
Other than that, great article. I liked the hire last year and I’m really liking the direction Nero’s taking the athletics program in.

By: BACCAS92

BACCAS92 — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 15:07:03 +0000

Alumni from 1992 here. We need to get in a major conference. We are in DC and a top 50 academic school. That should be appealing to some major conference that is not the ACC or the Big East. We will never get in those two because of Maryland and Georgetown respectively but with Temple gone, A-10 is depending on Xavier, Dayton, etc—mid west teams. They will all leave one day for bigger conferences. We need to get into some conference. That will solve recruiting issues. It is a catch 22 right now (unless you find another Alexander Koul or Yinka Dare)…you need to win to recruit but you need to recruit to win. The way you solve it is go to a better conference.

By: Alfredo Pumariega

Alfredo Pumariega — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 14:40:22 +0000

Mr.Patrick Nero is the best thing that could have happened to an athletic department that had no direction.His knowledge, enthusiasm and commitment to excellence is evident.Just as important is the rapport that he establishes with student athletes. I am 100% sold on Patrick and am sure that the program will climb to unprecedented heights under his leadership.

By: Aaron

Aaron — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 13:45:00 +0000

I think Nero should be judged on both what he is doing for the athletes and the regular students.

Under Nero’s watch school facilities like the Lerner Health and Wellness Center have signifigantly cut hours and staff members. It is a shame that this article never addressed issues like that!