Billboard on Campus

[Uncle Rico]

I don't know how to say this without sounding sh!tty, so I'm just gonna say it.

Wojo is the coach of a big time sports team.  When he signed on the dotted line, he knew what he was getting into.  I think its unfortunate that he's in the position of having to shield his family from the fallout of his doing a crappy job, but as Don Draper said, "That's what the money's for."  If you factor in his former salary as a Duke assistant, Wojo has probably made around $20 million coaching college basketball.  His children's grandchildren are set for life.  He's also a very, very minor celebrity.  If he stepped down today and moved out of Milwaukee, neither he nor his family would ever even hear the word "Marquette" again.

Is he a human being?  Yes.  But this is the life he's chosen.  What you wrote is true of any famous coach, actor, politician, whatever.  It's unfortunate, but it comes with the territory.

And what they wrote wasn't personal.  It was well-thought out and supported by fact.  Emotion partly lead to the writing, but it never became personal.  There was no Skip Bayless hot takes and no anonymous message board personal attacks against Wojo.  Had it included any of that, it would have been easy to dismiss.  I applaud the work they did.  They took off the Rose-colored glasses of fandom and laid out a damning indictment of where the program is and why it's there.

[connie]

Hawk you're getting a lot of crap for this, and I don't agree with everything you say, and I do want Wojo fired, but I appreciate the point you are bringing up. Wojo has done a poor job and deserves to be fired. But that doesn't change the fact that he is a human being and a father to two young boys. I don't necessarily "feel" for Wojo as $2 million a year can soften a lot of blows. But I do feel for his family who have to endure all the vitriol that is thrown his way. That can't be easy. I couldn't imagine having a public figure for a father and having to listen to people boo him, call for him to lose his job, cuss him out, and probably a lot worse than what gets posted on this board. I'm sure they do their best to shield them from the worst of it but it has to be impossible to keep all of it out.

Maybe I'm missing it, or maybe I'm just not easily offended, but I can't see the "malice" or "vitriol."  I think Wojo is a nice guy.  I respect that he runs a clean program that is apparently responsive to the needs of (most) of his players.  I am very, very sad that he has performed as poorly as he has, but the facts are the facts, and pointing out those facts, even going so far as to express your opinion on on a billboard, is not malicious. Saying it is time for a change and explaining why may not be pleasant for him or his family to hear, but it is the life he has chosen.

[D'Lo Brown]

Agree with much of what hawk had to say.

My feelings on it are mixed. It seems everyone in the world today must come down on one side of an extreme or the other from the beginning, & then only concern themselves with only the things that validate that stance. Those that were determined to be against Wojo have beat their chest from day 1 at any inkling of failure. Worse, because so many of them also seem to have their own mental state wrapped up around the success of the team, & also that the internet is so impersonal, the natural progression is to make it personal about Wojo & dehumanize. But, all of those themes have accelerated across all sports teams & pretty much everything in society at this point. I am right, I was the first person to be right, & everything that happens is evidence I'm right (& I don't have to pay attention or listen to anyone with other evidence). It's nowhere near unique to MU.

That said, we were promised over the years that this hire was about upside & development, that he might be a bit rough the first few years but would grow into the role of a high major head coach. Objectively, I just don't see that has happened; coach is about as elite of a recruiter as he was when we first got him. His teaching ability, in-game, & analytical/troubleshooting skills have not substantially developed. I'm also not convinced that he's advanced enough in assuring the right mix of player abilities. It was a funny novelty during the Rowsey/Markus times but, things like that keep cropping up.

I give coach a ton of credit for keeping his teams together, in spite of the late-season troubles & disappointing results. I do believe the players genuinely like him & identify with him. I don't blame the late season slides on Wojo as a person, that he doesn't work hard enough (he clearly does), or that the players "didn't buy in" or he "lost the team". That isn't what we've seen at all. It has almost entirely to do with the fine tuning ability, game adjustments, & growth needed as the season goes along, once other teams "figure you out". IMO.

Wojo is a great representative of the school. It's time for him to move on. The celebration that Wojo personally be shamed is a disgrace & merely representative of those individuals' anger & perspective of the world.

[#UnleashSean]

Did I miss the part where people were going to his house to berate his family?  Attack them? Shame them in public? Where is all of this?

Baron Trump was publicly shamed and embarrassed because of his father.

I have seen zero evidence of wojos family getting any unkind treatment. Oh his dad got bood at a game? Let's be real.

[Pakuni]

Wojo is a great representative of the school. It's time for him to move on. The celebration that Wojo personally be shamed is a disgrace &
merely representative of those individuals' anger & perspective of the world.

Yeah, this.
It's best for everyone at this point that Wojo moves on.
But the personal invective, hoping he gets booed,  and stunts like this billboard are the kind of low-class behavior I'd expect from Big Blue Nation, not Marquette.  Dukiet and Deane were treated far better on their way out the door, and the latter in particular was a much worse representative for Marquette.
Of course, given that a loud segment of Scoop seems to believe Quick Rick is the answer, maybe I'm giving the fanbase too much credit.

[Pakuni]

Did I miss the part where people were going to his house to berate his family?  Attack them? Shame them in public? Where is all of this?

Baron Trump was publicly shamed and embarrassed because of his father.

I have seen zero evidence of wojos family getting any unkind treatment. Oh his dad got bood at a game? Let's be real.

Well, as long as his children aren't being beaten on the playground and Mrs. Wojo isn'tbeing harassed at the grocery store, everything is OK.

[MuggsyB]

I don't think the Billboard was neccessary but as far as fans being malicious towards Wojo personally?  And that this impacts his family?   I can't imagine he would come to that conclusion.  He has the most lucrative job at Marquette University and our reactions are consistent with any fanbase. 

It is what it is, results matter in all professions.  The pressure is intense and he's a public figure.  Fans by their nature, myself included, can go over the top.  But I haven't read anything malicious or personal, including the "billboard".  If he thinks MU fans have been malicious and unreasonable?  He will not find anything different from 50 other fanbases in major college hoops.  Wojo is a quality guy and will be just fine. Unfortunately, things have not gone well for him as the HC of MU Men's Basketball.  He's fully aware of his current situation and he's not being treated unfairly. 



o

Agree with much of what hawk had to say.

My feelings on it are mixed. It seems everyone in the world today must come down on one side of an extreme or the other from the beginning, & then only concern themselves with only the things that validate that stance. Those that were determined to be against Wojo have beat their chest from day 1 at any inkling of failure. Worse, because so many of them also seem to have their own mental state wrapped up around the success of the team, & also that the internet is so impersonal, the natural progression is to make it personal about Wojo & dehumanize. But, all of those themes have accelerated across all sports teams & pretty much everything in society at this point. I am right, I was the first person to be right, & everything that happens is evidence I'm right (& I don't have to pay attention or listen to anyone with other evidence). It's nowhere near unique to MU.

That said, we were promised over the years that this hire was about upside & development, that he might be a bit rough the first few years but would grow into the role of a high major head coach. Objectively, I just don't see that has happened; coach is about as elite of a recruiter as he was when we first got him. His teaching ability, in-game, & analytical/troubleshooting skills have not substantially developed. I'm also not convinced that he's advanced enough in assuring the right mix of player abilities. It was a funny novelty during the Rowsey/Markus times but, things like that keep cropping up.

I give coach a ton of credit for keeping his teams together, in spite of the late-season troubles & disappointing results. I do believe the players genuinely like him & identify with him. I don't blame the late season slides on Wojo as a person, that he doesn't work hard enough (he clearly does), or that the players "didn't buy in" or he "lost the team". That isn't what we've seen at all. It has almost entirely to do with the fine tuning ability, game adjustments, & growth needed as the season goes along, once other teams "figure you out". IMO.

Wojo is a great representative of the school. It's time for him to move on. The celebration that Wojo personally be shamed is a disgrace & merely representative of those individuals' anger & perspective of the world.

[#UnleashSean]

Well, as long as his children aren't being beaten on the playground and Mrs. Wojo isn'tbeing harassed at the grocery store, everything is OK.

Again, has anything malicious happened?

Posting a billboard and booing are not malicious.

[Hards Alumni]

I have been an MU fan for over 50 years.  I have been a season ticket holder and I am a graduate of Marquette.  Never have I been so ashamed of alleged MU basketball fans.  The anger  and malice directed toward coach wojo is beyond any sense of proportion.  I remember The Dukiet years and there is no comparison between then and now.  While coach wojo has been something of a disappointment,  he certainly does not deserve the lack of respect and indignity shown him in these posts.

You should be embarrassed by your self-serving, egotistical and entitled response to this situation.  No doubt you are not embarrassed as you are so solidly wrapped in you self-righteousness.   Compassion,understanding and respect used to be hall marks of Catholic education and foundational to the Marquette tradition.  I guess that is not so much the case now.  That is not a failure of the basketball program but the failure of the educational system.  Coach wojo has a family, how hurtful your antics mus be to them.  I apologize on your behalf.

If you are successful in your endeavor of unseating coach wojo and your champion should prove no better remember what you have done and fess up to it.  As for coach K exppect he will go somewhere else make some more coin and be successful much like Majerus was.  Good work boys and girls.

Oh get bent, this is a multi million dollar program that has been fading towards irrelevance for years.  How in the hell can you clutch your pearls and defend this dumpster fire?   Wojo has a duty to put together a successful basketball program.  Period.  His family, and ego can take a back seat.  He signed up for this pressure 7 years ago.  Wojo has gotten the lions share of compassion, understanding, and respect that he deserves.

Nearly everyone here acknowledges that Wojo seems like a fine person and a stand up guy.  But he was hired to be a successful basketball coach.  And he isn't.

[Hards Alumni]

Yeah, this.
It's best for everyone at this point that Wojo moves on.
But the personal invective, hoping he gets booed,  and stunts like this billboard are the kind of low-class behavior I'd expect from Big Blue Nation, not Marquette.  Dukiet and Deane were treated far better on their way out the door, and the latter in particular was a much worse representative for Marquette.
Of course, given that a loud segment of Scoop seems to believe Quick Rick is the answer, maybe I'm giving the fanbase too much credit.

If the internet was around for the Dukiet and Deane years, we'd probably have a different story on our hands.

[Pakuni]

Again, has anything malicious happened?

Posting a billboard and booing are not malicious.

I suspect that if someone drove an electronic billboard around your workplace today featuring unflattering images of you and flashing "Fire UnleashWojo'sbouyout," you'd feel it was fairly malicious.

[Pakuni]

If the internet was around for the Dukiet and Deane years, we'd probably have a different story on our hands.

The internet was around for the Deane years. And Chico's was Deane's biggest cheerleader (no lie).

[Hards Alumni]

I suspect that if someone drove an electronic billboard around your workplace today featuring unflattering images of you and flashing "Fire UnleashWojo'sbouyout," you'd feel it was fairly malicious.

You saw that thing, right?  Personally, I'd think it was hilarious if that was the best they could come up with. 

[Hards Alumni]

The internet was around for the Deane years. And Chico's was Deane's biggest cheerleader (no lie).

While that doesn't surprise me at all... the internet was still a fairly new concept and there probably weren't forums like this one that were frequented by the local degenerates we all are.

[real chili 83]

So this is what college kids do with their stimulus checks.

[Pakuni]

While that doesn't surprise me at all... the internet was still a fairly new concept and there probably weren't forums like this one that were frequented by the local degenerates we all are.

No, there definitely was an active Marquette board back then called Ringoutahoya.com. I was there! It later became part of the Rivals network and eventually merged with Dodds.
Here's the history:

https://wiki.muscoop.com/doku.php/marquette_internet_forum_history

[Hards Alumni]

No, there definitely was an active Marquette board back then called Ringoutahoya.com. I was there! It later became part of the Rivals network and eventually merged with Dodds.
Here's the history:

https://wiki.muscoop.com/doku.php/marquette_internet_forum_history

oooooo geocities... I can just picture the layout!

edit: oh, that was pre-ringoutahoya.com... that's too bad.

[IrwinFletcher]

Yeah, this.
It's best for everyone at this point that Wojo moves on.
But the personal invective, hoping he gets booed,  and stunts like this billboard are the kind of low-class behavior I'd expect from Big Blue Nation, not Marquette.  Dukiet and Deane were treated far better on their way out the door, and the latter in particular was a much worse representative for Marquette.
Of course, given that a loud segment of Scoop seems to believe Quick Rick is the answer, maybe I'm giving the fanbase too much credit.

Agreed.  Just goes to show that we are as bad as those other fan bases out there that we like to judge as being over the top and single minded in their goals.

[The Sultan]

Fluff, what year did you graduate?

I was Class of 1990.

Ditto.

[GooooMarquette]

I agree. The money these coaches/athletes make has nothing to do with how they should be treated as humans. They should be held accountable for their own actions as well.  Pretty hypocritical to say we should treat all people with respect, except if they make 2 million per year, then they are dirt.

Agree. The billboard reflects more on the people who funded it than it does on Wojo.

[The Sultan]

Agree. The billboard reflects more on the people who funded it than it does on Wojo.

Yep.  If he won more, Wojo would be a perfect coach for Marquette.  Checks all the boxes except the big one that matters most.  There is zero reason to denigrate him as a person.

[panda]

Agree. The billboard reflects more on the people who funded it than it does on Wojo.

Saying "Fire Wojo" on a billboard is pretty tame no?

[muwarrior69]

My eyesight is not what it use to be, but what was so vitriolic toward Wojo on the billboard?

[zcg2013]

https://twitter.com/Csgkam/status/1372796589698248708

Regardless of all this, I appreciate seeing Kam respond in support of his future coach.

[muwarrior69]

Yep.  If he won more, Wojo would be a perfect coach for Marquette.  Checks all the boxes except the big one that matters most.  There is zero reason to denigrate him as a person.

I guess Crean and Buzz are not people.