A Bum Deal... HOT

[Triple B]

Another example of how we are not ready for the Big Time just yet, through no fault of the University. We're just out growing our resources at this time.

RT is right, money, for the most part, needs to go the actual sports first but it's hard to imagine some of the stuff Mutt has as being on the endangered list not being able to be funded from somewhere .....

[sdgukhsdgl]

I'm not saying that the band should be done away with, but if there is a choice between athletics and the band, i'm going with athletics every time.  

[Jewbull]

How much money are we looking at for new uniforms??

All sports is about the atmosphere, people are not fans of a particular team attend games because they enjoy watching the sport and the atmosphere. College football and the band go hand-in-hand. This is ridiculous to hear about the band. $10 grand to the band would mean alot, $10 grand to football would barely buy Leavitt and new leather chair for his office.

Something must be done and be done soon. As previously mentioned if we want to be recognized with the big boys along with winning the band is going to play a part in that.

[sdgukhsdgl]

if we want to be recognized with the big boys along with winning the band is going to play a part in that.

TCU, Fresno St., Boise St, etc were all seen as smaller schools and are all nationally known... and it has nothing to do with their band

UCONN has really blossomed as a program and it had nothing to do with their flute player

Louisville has blown up recently and it was not because they got a new cymbal

i think you get the point, if we win, people will recognize/respect the program no matter if HOT continues to play Bohemian Rhapsody or Elton John

[Brad]

How much money are we looking at for new uniforms??

All sports is about the atmosphere, people are not fans of a particular team attend games because they enjoy watching the sport and the atmosphere. College football and the band go hand-in-hand. This is ridiculous to hear about the band. $10 grand to the band would mean alot, $10 grand to football would barely buy Leavitt and new leather chair for his office.

Something must be done and be done soon. As previously mentioned if we want to be recognized with the big boys along with winning the band is going to play a part in that.

Moneybags speaks again.  I sure hope you are putting money where your mouth is JB.  

Rockytop and TripleB are on the right page as far as I am concerned.  We have an underfunded football program that is just 10 years old.  IT gave birth to the band, which has even fewer years in age.  Until our donors are "big-time" we'll have these growing pains.  We just have to live with it as things continue to grow.

[ucfknights04]

FAU, FIU and UCF all support marching bands.

All 3 share the burdens that USF has of every home game being an "away" game (off campus stadium = buses and providing lunch for 250 people).

A BCS program should be able to keep up.

[USFMikeB]

Perhaps more facts to your assertions would provide more weight...

[Kyle]

I think the band situation is ridiculous. No, I dont have the money to give them, but i find it hard to believe that the budgets are so tight that they cant afford uniforms with the proper logos on them. It was not their fault the logo was changed, i think the administration should help them out.

Also, i think a real pep band at the basketball games would greatly improve the atmosphere. No offense to any of the kids in the pep band that may be here, but they were borderline pathetic last season...mainly because there were only like 15 of them at any given time.

[USF03]

Strange to see this topic come up again... but I guess I am glad Mutt is looking out for us.  The band has always been underfunded, to a degree.  The first few years the administration really did back up the program, but since then they have been trying to get Student Government (you know those A&S fees you pay us) to pay for it, or just tell the band to hold a bake sale.  SG doesn't have the current funds to pay for uniforms or anything like that (half of the fee funds go directly into the Marshall Center operations and upkeep) -- and a bake sale or whatever the band can do to raise funds right now just can't support something in the range of... lets say a $150,000 bill for new uniforms.

If anyone wants the numbers... I have them all.  

Projected HOT Budget: 06-07 = $530,641

Projected HOT Uniforms: $150,000

Who pays what?

USF Admin - $302,000 (projected to decrease each year)

USF Foundation - $20,000 (all gone in 07-08!)

Corp Sponsor - $41,000 (never seen, maybe none)

Aux Funds - $20,000 (band fundraise - trying to increase ea yr - like cd sales, etc)

SG or extra fee for ALL students - $55,000 (SG=no $ / students don't want another fee!)

Athletics - $92,000 (post season travel, etc)

*All budget information can be obtianed from the University (Provost's Office) under Sunshine Law, open to the public.*

Notice that no one gives "gift in kinds" (Corp Sponsor) to the band.  We don't have an aged Alumni base to do so yet.  The band is working the best they can to get internal fundraising (ie: CD's!) up and running.  Sorry to say, the bake sale doesn't cut it with these numbers... it didn't cut it when I was in high school ($60,000 total budget) so it really won't now.  

What we need are two things...

1) some smart planing (ie: REAL support/funding)

2) alumni/gifts in kind (start now, build over time)

I'll check back... I'm sure Rockytop will try to kill me with another one liner...

[Joe]

I agree with RT and Trip, however, it just kinda stinks. Imagine Tennessee without a band there playing Rocky Top 45 times a game (RT this isn't aimed at you I actually think the song is the ultimate in colleg football)