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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Justin Hayes added to this discussion on April 3, 2015
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It's Friday during a "Wrestling Lag Time" so you know what that means...
Topic time for the weekend! : )
We have some savvy thinkers and tacticians represented here.
In light of the CSU Wrestling plight, I was thinking...
If you were incredibly wealthy -a multi-billionaire- who was incredibly passionate about wrestling, what would you use 1 billion dollars to do to:
1) Promote wrestling (any style/age group),
2) Preserve wrestling (any style/age group),
3) Defend against/take out those who willfully/ignorantly declare themselves enemies of wrestling (any style/age group) by their actions/neglect?
Think both long/short term, local/national, think big or succintly...but limit your plan to the U.S.
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Tony Brunetti added to this discussion on April 3, 2015
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I read the site all the time and don't often write. But I'm bored and i'll take the bait on this one.
What I would do in this scenario:
1. Get the rules changed so that they are the simplest for a casual fan. or create casual fans, for that matter. I would push to make rules the same for a 4 year old pee wee all the way up to the olympics. One point for takedown, one point for pushout, 1 point for every back exposure. no tiebreakers, no clinch, wrestle to sudden death. I watched the freestyle us open (if this is the one taylor cradled JB 2x) last year and the action was SOOO much better than college wrestling. it was constant. Guys were getting after each other in all matches
2. I would buy network time on major networks (ala espn) and show matches here and have personal stories to get people attached to the wrestlers.
3. I would create a professional league that would give athletes something to pursue along with olympics post college.
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I think some of these things are happening now. I had friends who know nothing about wrestling tell me how they watched NCAAs on ESPN. Problem is it happens one time a year and loses all momentum in creating casual fan.
Things like Flo premier matches (i think they are called that) or Agon V are great and would be awesome if they had a broader audience. It's cool to be able to root for guys and follow them beyond college.
just my $.02
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Justin Hayes added to this discussion on April 3, 2015
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Quote from Tony Brunetti's post:
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"I read the site all the time and don't often write. But I'm bored and i'll take the bait on this one.
What I would do in this scenario:
1. Get the rules changed so that they are the simplest for a casual fan. or create casual fans, for that matter. I would push to make rules the same for a 4 year old pee wee all the way up to the olympics. One point for takedown, one point for pushout, 1 point for every back exposure. no tiebreakers, no clinch, wrestle to sudden death. I watched the freestyle us open (if this is the one taylor cradled JB 2x) last year and the action was SOOO much better than college wrestling. it was constant. Guys were getting after each other in all matches
2. I would buy network time on major networks (ala espn) and show matches here and have personal stories to get people attached to the wrestlers.
3. I would create a professional league that would give athletes something to pursue along with olympics post college.
---
I think some of these things are happening now. I had friends who know nothing about wrestling tell me how they watched NCAAs on ESPN. Problem is it happens one time a year and loses all momentum in creating casual fan.
Things like Flo premier matches (i think they are called that) or Agon V are great and would be awesome if they had a broader audience. It's cool to be able to root for guys and follow them beyond college.
just my $.02"
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Good stuff; I especially like the network time angle.
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Mark Niemann added to this discussion on April 4, 2015
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Most likely a combination of #1 & #2. That's a lot of money to go after it. The biggest thing would be ensuring every dollar was reaching its goal.
Hopefully, I'll get the chance to try!
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Ben Golden added to this discussion on April 4, 2015
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Casey Talbott added to this discussion on April 6, 2015
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Justin:
(This pertains to the CSU situation.)
Did I inherit my multi-billions, or did I work for it?
Assuming the former, my sense is that I might be a bit looser with the purse-strings; but assuming the latter, I probably didn't get there by throwing good $$ after bad.
And absent reconsideration/renewed commitment from the administration, I would be concerned that that's exactly what I would be doing here.
So before committing even dollar one, I would seek to assemble a critical/core group of potentially influential people (perhaps as they are doing in this instance), seek constructive dialogue with the administrative decision-makers, and then regroup from there.
I would also be mindful/concerned with respect to what happened a couple of decades back, at the University of Notre Dame - that is, and at least to my recollection/understanding, a donor gave significant $$ to the school, purportedly toward endowing/ensuring the existence of its wrestling program (believe he had a son wrestling there); but once he passed away, the school rededicated the $$ toward other sports (mainly women's, toward complying with Title IX), and cut wrestling.
So I would confer with someone much smarter, toward determining whether and to what extent I could place enforceable strings on any $$ "donated" - e.g., perhaps I could put big $$ (e.g., $50 million) into some sort of revocable trust which, assuming the school's continuation of its wrestling program, would be doled-out, say to the tune of $500,000 per year, toward funding the school's lacrosse and/or theatre programs, etc.
So in the event the school drops the wrestling program, the "gift" fails, and no further payments are made.
I say "donated" and "gift" in quotes, because my guess is that the more strings I seek to attach, then the less able I would be to take advantage of tax benefits that might otherwise be available.
But hey, you said I am a multi-billionaire, so whatevs. :-)
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Last edited by Casey Talbott on April 6, 2015; edited 1 time in total
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Mark Niemann added to this discussion on April 6, 2015
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Another thing I would do is get gobs and gobs of gold coins made, dump them in a room, and then swim around in them like Scrooge McDuck did in the opening scenes of Duck Tales. Yeah...that's another thing I'd do.
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Justin Hayes added to this discussion on April 6, 2015
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Quote from Mark Niemann's post:
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"Another thing I would do is get gobs and gobs of gold coins made, dump them in a room, and then swim around in them like Scrooge McDuck did in the opening scenes of Duck Tales. Yeah...that's another thing I'd do."
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Monkeyshine Violation of the spirit and intent of the topic at hand. First Warning. : )
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Justin Hayes added to this discussion on April 6, 2015
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For me, this (like all of life, esoterically) is a stewardship issue; I like the ideas and value the perspective.
Before I reply, there are two "foods for thought" (Hey! "Food For Thought" would make a great title for a Mark Niemann/Hank Kornblut HGTV "reality" show, this one centered around his agricultural endeavors intertwined with raising a young family with a "switch" back to all things "Mr. Brisket". But I digress...):
1) It always seems like we are being extorted to raise the money to keep college wrestling programs going and...
2) It always seems like we get smoked in part because we don't actually support/attend college programs/matches with the consistent "heft" it would take or have a viable strategy to hedge #1...
Come on, now, the dotnet family has been holding back on us.
You have a hypothetical BILLION dollars (!) to work with here. ; )
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Discussion Topic: Wrestling Lag Time Topic: 1 Billion Dollars Toward Wrestling in America
Justin Hayes added to this discussion on April 6, 2015
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Quote from Casey Talbott's post:
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"Justin:
(This pertains to the CSU situation.)
Did I inherit my multi-billions, or did I work for it?
Assuming the former, my sense is that I might be a bit looser with the purse-strings; but assuming the latter, I probably didn't get there by throwing good $$ after bad.
And absent reconsideration/renewed commitment from the administration, I would be concerned that that's exactly what I would be doing here.
So before committing even dollar one, I would seek to assemble a critical/core group of potentially influential people (perhaps as they are doing in this instance), seek constructive dialogue with the administrative decision-makers, and then regroup from there.
I would also be mindful/concerned with respect to what happened a couple of decades back, at the University of Notre Dame - that is, and at least to my recollection/understanding, a donor gave significant $$ to the school, purportedly toward endowing/ensuring the existence of its wrestling program (believe he had a son wrestling there); but once he passed away, the school rededicated the $$ toward other sports (mainly women's, toward complying with Title IX), and cut wrestling.
So I would confer with someone much smarter, toward determining whether and to what extent I could place enforceable strings on any $$ "donated" - e.g., perhaps I could put big $$ (e.g., $50 million) into some sort of revocable trust which, assuming the school's continuation of its wrestling program, would be doled-out, say to the tune of $500,000 per year, toward funding the school's lacrosse and/or theatre programs, etc.
So in the event the school drops the wrestling program, the "gift" fails, and no further payments are made.
I say "donated" and "gift" in quotes, because my guess is that the more strings I seek to attach, then the less able I would be to take advantage of tax benefits that might otherwise be available.
But hey, you said I am a multi-billionaire, so whatevs. :-)"
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Great point about "enforceable strings"; play money becomes just that: play money.
Anonymity in donating (in our Billion Dollar Scenario, we'd just use a Tom Hagen style attorney as the middle man...or Rex) also permits more guerilla latitude if things don't roll like they should because you don't have to overcome the silly hurdle of being liked or admired for your philanthropy.
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