Episode 17 feat. Chris Massaro

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[00:00:44] The Blue Raider Podcast, I'm your host Jake Bolden and today is Tuesday, April 2nd and it is the

[00:00:58] Part 2 edition of the Blue Raider Podcast interview with MTSU Athletic Director Chris Masaro. Mr. Masaro,

[00:01:04] how's it going? Great Jake. Spring weather has been perfect and it's nice to see a little warmth

[00:01:12] coming north to our area. Oh absolutely and I know that there's a lot of things that come with

[00:01:16] that warm weather. I know last time we kind of tease the opening of the outdoor tennis facility

[00:01:21] and now you've got the SAPC, it looks like they're rocking and rolling there with the warm weather also.

[00:01:25] Yeah, we're very excited. We posted four or five tennis matches at the outdoor tennis center

[00:01:31] and it's a spectacular place to watch tennis and we're just so proud and it's really done what we

[00:01:37] wanted to do on that Northwest corner of campus that helped modernize it. That was getting

[00:01:45] a tired look and so we also thank the Student Athlete Performance Center and a new hotel

[00:01:52] kind of in that region will really revitalize that area. That's the most by traffic counts,

[00:01:58] that's the busiest intersection we have on campus is Greenland, the Middle Tennessee Boulevard,

[00:02:05] so it's important to us as a university that we modernize that and it's to us as an athletic

[00:02:12] department that we leave those kind of good impressions. Absolutely and that curb appeal has certainly

[00:02:20] improved with the look there at that, as you say, that modern look there with the tennis facility

[00:02:24] and we got that conference tournament coming up here in two weeks. That's exciting news but also

[00:02:29] just to go ahead and we talked about this before we came on but the April 13th weekend there with

[00:02:33] the spring game that's coming to blue and white game with Derek Mason as well as you got baseball

[00:02:38] on campus that day. I believe you also have a softball match so there's so much going on on campus

[00:02:42] and there's only one ticket for the baseball game will get you to all the activities that afternoon.

[00:02:47] Yeah and it's whether it's a baseball or softball ticket, whatever any sort of ticket will get you

[00:02:53] to any of our athletic events. So you are right we have a spring football game which is the first time

[00:03:00] in years that we've done that. We've got a baseball and softball games and then the universities also

[00:03:07] that's part of their spring showcase as well so a lot of colleges and stuff will be having events

[00:03:14] on campus. So April 13th is a really great day to bring your family, bring your kids, come visit

[00:03:21] campus see a little bit of football, a little bit of softball, a little bit of baseball and just kind

[00:03:26] of visit our campuses it opens its doors to the public that day. Absolutely and it's very

[00:03:32] very unique to have that opportunity to see that many sports on campus at one given time but a

[00:03:38] lot to be excited there with a lot of things given the football and we'll get it to a lot of

[00:03:44] those things later and I have a lot of stuff that we kind of left off the docket from the last time

[00:03:47] we were here so that was kind of the pleasure of having you on for the second time but the main

[00:03:52] thing and we talked about this and we'll go ahead and get this off now because I know that this

[00:03:57] is what everyone's tuning in to really listen to you make the comment on was you release a statement

[00:04:02] to the BRA this last week about the department's willingness to stick with Nick McDevitt. And I think

[00:04:08] for a lot of us we appreciate it that I know today's world in the NCAA and Division 1 sports especially

[00:04:14] it's unique and we talk we talk about you making an statement on it and you know 10 years ago

[00:04:18] you may not have to make a statement on those kind of things but in the age of social media and

[00:04:22] you have so much connectivity with your fans that you almost you're left stranding to say something

[00:04:28] at some point in time we see Kentucky make the same approach with Calipari they make a public

[00:04:32] statement about that and you kind of made yours with BRA so I'm just I'm excited to kind of hear

[00:04:36] what you have to say in regards to our our situation here at MTSU. Yeah and there was a lot of noise

[00:04:42] surrounding our men's basketball program and quite honestly and I said so in the letter that

[00:04:49] it did not perform up to anyone's expectations this past year you know and we can delve into a

[00:04:56] bunch of different reasons why that happened but the fact is is that we thought it would be

[00:05:03] we all thought in October it'd be a lot better season than what turned out so

[00:05:09] so obviously there's disappointment when that happens you know and there are reasons for it

[00:05:17] there's some things that the the coaches tried to correct during the course of the season and

[00:05:23] those adjustments took a while you know and I think at the end of the year we were again a pretty good

[00:05:29] basketball team we were not a very good basketball team in December and January and that's when

[00:05:35] there was a lot of experimentation it kind of had to take place like what what are what additional

[00:05:42] roles or new roles could our players adjust to because they'd really work through the summer and fall

[00:05:48] very specific roles and those kind of things and then when you lose can't can Western and you lose

[00:05:55] Josh you know big center that's two out of your out of your rotating eight that that are gone

[00:06:02] and so that causes a whole different set of circumstances so it did take us a while I normally don't like

[00:06:10] the comment much on personnel matters but did really think because there was so much chatter

[00:06:16] the the hey let's just get all behind coach McDevitt to soft season let's bring a couple of really

[00:06:23] great transfers let's reboot the team in my opinion the staff is best position to fix whatever

[00:06:30] ails us they they saw it all firsthand they study it day in day out and to give them a chance

[00:06:38] to go recruit to it you know and things are a little bit different now that you can you can fall

[00:06:44] quickly you can rise quickly all those kind of things you know and the transfer portal has changed

[00:06:52] the dynamics of the timing you know like app stayed had their best year and you know and maybe the

[00:06:58] last 20 years they've got three four guys the top guys in the portal you know and and you just

[00:07:04] see it all over the place that that where people are in the portal and so it's hard to sustain a

[00:07:12] program that way and it's also easier to rebuild and reboot a program that way so so it's a little

[00:07:21] bit of a double edge sword I think we need to do to take advantage of the rules as they present us

[00:07:29] do a great job in the transfer portal and also in the junior college portal because a lot of those

[00:07:35] kids are being overlooked now and and to bring in three or four guys that can really help us

[00:07:41] immediately and fit into our rotation and in those kind of things so so we'll see it's a I'm excited

[00:07:50] about it we've got a all conference guard that's going to be back with cam and I think we've all

[00:07:59] kind of forgotten maybe how valuable he was until he got hurt but that's a big addition to our lineup

[00:08:06] and he he does a lot of things by being able to dribble drive as effective as he does to get to the

[00:08:14] to the basket to do that and then open up spot shooters on the perimeter and we really didn't have

[00:08:20] in our in our lineup and that's one of my criticisms of this is that we didn't really have a backup

[00:08:27] plan B at point guard you know and so all the other positions appeared to be interchangeable parts

[00:08:35] but that one really really caused us to change our roles so how does this staff adapt to that as well

[00:08:42] so they're they're well versed they've stayed all year they know they've been thinking about

[00:08:50] who we can get and all those kind of things what kind of player are we looking for

[00:08:55] so I'm very confident in their plan and really think that we're going to bring in some good players

[00:09:02] to supplement some really good players that we already have on staff you know and the other

[00:09:07] thing that I looked at Jake is just to make sure you know we we were trending up the last couple

[00:09:15] years prior to this year were good years you know and we came within an eyelash in a really

[00:09:22] hard league last year we were in the top four or five teams in the league in a league that finished

[00:09:29] with team in the final four a team that won the NIT a team that was the runner up in the NIT

[00:09:36] and the one that we finished ahead of won the CBI and which we did not participate in a year ago

[00:09:43] to do the injuries and those kind of things and in our semi-final game

[00:09:49] that year we had you know a deandre dishman with a four footer to win it with about two three

[00:09:56] seconds left when we're down one and and missed it so we're right there the year before

[00:10:03] we lost in the semi-finals the UAB and triple overtime you know and so both those teams

[00:10:11] went on to win our conference turn out won the final we'd alike to one both those games

[00:10:17] it just wasn't to be and then made the semi-finals this year and I was really hoping for

[00:10:23] that kind of performance where it would be that sort of competitive game and I think we're all

[00:10:28] disappointed really disappointed in that result versus Western Kentucky so we just can't allow

[00:10:36] that to happen again and so better fix it through recruiting and off seasons and those kind of

[00:10:43] things so we get in that semi-finals we have to find a way to win one of those and get into the

[00:10:49] finals and then you're playing for the NCAA tournament. Yeah I think you summarized it well

[00:10:55] there about if we take a step back to how quickly things can change when you look back two years

[00:11:01] ago we were I think it was five wins and then we make the jump all the way up to 20 wins so

[00:11:07] I think with the way the portal is now yeah yeah absolutely so you look at that and how quickly

[00:11:14] things are able to change and I also think in your letter here here at the end you say your last

[00:11:19] sentence your closing sentence is I invite everyone to get behind Nick and his staff during this

[00:11:23] recruiting period and I think that's essential and maybe it was planned by you to put it that way but

[00:11:28] I think a lot of us that you know we know basketball well enough to know that like as you pointed out

[00:11:33] the lack of of ones on the team was what kind of created that problem of trying to shuffle players

[00:11:37] around and figure ourselves out but it sounds like and again I just love to hear you say it you know

[00:11:42] that the emphasis that you've got it you've talked with Nick and everybody collectively as a program is

[00:11:47] recruiting is our emphasis this offseason because that can be the maker break for us because as we said

[00:11:52] that that class that came into 2021 was was the catalyst for for where the program was the last two

[00:11:58] years and we have a few injuries that knocks us down so I think again just to reiterate what you're

[00:12:02] saying and in the back you up is to say that you know things can change on a dime and it's a matter

[00:12:06] of an offseason that can change those things yeah and you know and to win a championship sometimes

[00:12:12] you need a little bit of luck involved as well like that triple overtime loss against UAB right

[00:12:18] before the tournament we lose our leading score and Josh Jefferson to in the injury you know

[00:12:23] we still play them to a triple overtime game so we've been right there I would suggest that

[00:12:32] that COVID team was a was a real disappointing team I thought we were better I thought we had

[00:12:38] some cohesion and actually that was the year we brought in a lot of newcomers but we had to keep

[00:12:44] people separated you know and that really kept the team from bonding and that was one of our

[00:12:50] off-season initiatives following COVID is how do we bring these talented guys to play a better

[00:12:56] cohesive basketball and they did that the next year you know and so we brought in some newcomers

[00:13:04] this year that helped us you know and and we've seen enough player development players like Chris

[00:13:14] Luf and you know and how he developed through the course of the year Jared Coleman Jones on how his

[00:13:22] role changed to be the primary guy from from sitting behind him being a supplementary guy at the

[00:13:29] Andreid Dishman and turns himself into a regular double double guy so we've seen we've seen the

[00:13:36] players develop you know and and so that also gives me encouragement we need some of our current

[00:13:44] players to really get better as well and work on some small things whether it's Bach and whether

[00:13:50] it's a little bit better shooting how do they play to their strengths and those kind of things

[00:13:56] so I'm excited that with the nucleus that we have and the improvement that we can show and in

[00:14:03] those kind of things with the individuals and then supplementing that with some really good

[00:14:08] transfers and recruits absolutely and it's going to be an exciting off-season hopefully you know

[00:14:14] we see some names come across as now the seasons are wrapping up and that transfer portal starts

[00:14:18] to open up gets vast the other and we'll keep it on the hardwood here what's talking about the

[00:14:22] lady Raiders now one of the exciting run that was for them I think we all saw it in them to go 19 and

[00:14:28] know in the conference and I'll say this for any of the listeners I said that back in December that

[00:14:32] they would go undefeated but they had a heck of a run there in Baton Rouge you know you have what

[00:14:37] at one point was the biggest comeback of the year and then you get swiped later and later that day

[00:14:42] but you have a big win they're overluoval and you kind of have an unfortunate event there at LSU

[00:14:46] will keep the referees out of it and I'll keep my bias out of it but they had a heck of a run

[00:14:50] and that's exciting and there's a lot that comes from that from the university side of things where

[00:14:55] you know the excitement already is there for the lady Raiders but I my main question to you

[00:14:59] from the department standpoint and some that's come up in discussion this year was how LSU

[00:15:04] was the benefactor of being a host school and we know last year around January when it's time

[00:15:08] to put those bids in we were a top 25 team and we fell out of it with a you know a bad trip to

[00:15:13] Texas there in San Antonio and El Paso and we kind of fell out of that opportunity to host and

[00:15:18] be in that top 16 team but where does where do you lie and that we're in women's basketball how

[00:15:25] that that plays out how the homeschool or the homeschool gets to host the first two rounds is that

[00:15:29] good for the game of basketball especially on the women's side or do you kind of think do you think

[00:15:33] it would be better off having neutral sites like the men I mean obviously it helped LSU I'd

[00:15:36] like to think it helped LSU and certainly could help us given our record here at Murphy Center.

[00:15:41] Yeah and I mean that's a really good question Jake that first of all you know that

[00:15:49] I told the women in our locker room that and I'll believe this tell that they put me in the ground is

[00:15:55] that if that game's played anywhere but in the state of Louisiana we win that game

[00:16:02] you know and just the way it was unfolded because all of sudden the pressure goes to them

[00:16:08] and we've seen it in those neutral site games and those kind of things where it's happened and

[00:16:14] they got that little bit of confidence that crowd was this loud it's the loudest arena

[00:16:20] I've been in period whether it's NBA or her men's or women's basketball all those kind of

[00:16:26] things I mean they got it going on and then where we needed to call kind of the break that

[00:16:32] momentum we never got it for whatever reason so I just think that we could have

[00:16:39] had it to that run I'll always believe that but I was really proud that these girls our women

[00:16:47] didn't back down you know that they knew the challenge everybody knew it going to baton Rouge that

[00:16:54] you know if we win we're gonna face the defending national champs nobody was scared nobody

[00:16:59] was intimidated in fact we're excited to play them and that's that's the culture of that program

[00:17:06] and what coach insults done within that program and it's all about culture

[00:17:11] and those kind of things so they didn't back away from that challenge at any time during the game

[00:17:17] they held their form I think that we want a lot of fans with that across the country two million

[00:17:24] people watched that game on ABC so it had a big TV audience and we've gotten all kinds of great

[00:17:31] feedback you know the women's games been interesting because it's taken a dynamic leap the last two

[00:17:37] years and when I actually served on the women's basketball committee and that was our debate at that

[00:17:44] time we had neutral site first round games to put it to campuses and those kind of things to

[00:17:50] generate excitement for the early rounds of the tournament because it really made for poor

[00:17:55] television and that was 10 12 years ago and so now when you flipped on the TV it did make for great

[00:18:02] television you know and you look and it's a packed Pete Merrivic center you tune in Iowa and

[00:18:09] it's packed a Carver Whitney arenas is packed colonial life arena and Columbia South Carolina

[00:18:19] is packed and so you saw Reynolds call a sim and at NC State was packed so you saw these big crowds

[00:18:26] for these early round games and it was good it was good television it was good for ratings but I do

[00:18:32] think that it deserves some study you know and see if it's strong enough to go to some neutral sites

[00:18:41] and I think that you can be strategic about your neutral sites and place it in places that you know

[00:18:48] will draw you know like a Charlotte North Carolina Nashville Tennessee all those that are kind

[00:18:54] of round hubs of really strong women's basketball Indianapolis Indiana you know all those kind

[00:19:01] of things where you're going to get teams that are going to fill fill the buildings and I think

[00:19:06] that'd be very helpful so I'd like to see us look at that as a sport and it may be really consider

[00:19:14] going back to neutral sites and I think that the one thing missing from the women's game is still

[00:19:20] those first and second round upsets we were one of the few that had it and I didn't really consider

[00:19:27] that much of an upset I mean those that were involved in our program really did not consider

[00:19:33] that an upset by seed it was an upset but we felt like we're as just as good as Louisville and

[00:19:38] we'd beaten them by 18 the year before so but yeah that for us to get a host site it's really not

[00:19:46] a bid process the women's selection committee takes the top 16 teams and seeds them one through four

[00:19:55] and each one of those top 16 seeds gets a host site so you have to earn it on the court which is

[00:20:02] a really good thing but it's hard for a non autonomy five or autonomy four to get those

[00:20:11] get those sites so we'll see as we move forward on women's basketball but I'm excited about

[00:20:21] I'm bullish on the tournament that the women are the numbers are strong and there's hope for

[00:20:27] the future when Caitlin Caitlin Clark graduates and goes to the WNBA there's do-do walkins and

[00:20:34] these phenomenal freshmen that are ready to replace them for star power so I think that it's

[00:20:40] here to stay and I'm just glad I'm so grateful that our women's basketball team is part of that

[00:20:46] wave in it and they're so appreciative in our local community and statewide that this is a basketball

[00:20:55] women's basketball area and we're so excited that that our women are part of that March madness

[00:21:03] yeah and I think the biggest struggle and you can attest to it is the scheduling aspect of it

[00:21:07] does he only weigh a team like him to issue you can sneak into that top 16 is that non-conference

[00:21:12] schedule so I mean that's something I know you guys have to go to war with every offseason about

[00:21:16] getting teams to play in TSU yeah we do and so you know we're very excited that Kelly Harper

[00:21:25] you know signed off on a series with UT where we play one in Huntsville go back to Knoxville come

[00:21:32] back to Murphy Center go back to Knoxville so it's a four-year deal and now that Kelly's not there

[00:21:38] I always worry whether the new coach wants to continue that series and those kind of things so

[00:21:45] those games are hard to get that's why Rick is such good friends with Jeff Walls at Louisville

[00:21:51] because he'll play those games he'll play as he he recognizes our value so so Louisville is always

[00:21:59] can't kind of be on our schedule and but they're hard to get it's hard to get those kind of teams

[00:22:04] to come to your place absolutely and he he said in this first opening press conference that Jeff

[00:22:09] is one of the good guys and he is and it certainly is nice to have but at this point you know

[00:22:14] our ladies program is to the point where it's going to be a quality win for those teams like

[00:22:18] if Tennessee were to beat us on a neutral floor this year they would have been a beneficiary

[00:22:22] of that and St. Ghost for Louisville when they played us at our at our place last year didn't hurt

[00:22:26] their their net or their RPI if anything it probably benefited them to lose that game as opposed

[00:22:31] to someone another you know lesser group of five so that's got to be a selling point

[00:22:36] and I think it's a good game it's a to your point Jake that it doesn't hurt them at all on their

[00:22:43] their net rank rankings and those kind of things in fact it can enhance it and then the other thing

[00:22:48] is is they they know that particularly when they come to Murphy Center they're going to come

[00:22:53] and play before a really knowledgeable women's basketball crowd it'll be enthusiastic about the

[00:23:00] blue raiders but that's a great test for another team to come in before they start their conference

[00:23:08] play for a coach to really see where their teams at before they enter SCC or ACC this is a really

[00:23:15] good game for them to judge it by and and so it's it's a really good game so I think our names

[00:23:23] getting strong enough now that the women's basketball fans recognize that we're a good program and

[00:23:30] it's not as devastating when a Louisville gets beat by middle Tennessee with their local fan base

[00:23:36] and all those kind of things because that's what coaches worry about is like if I play them will it

[00:23:41] cost me my job you know and that kind of thing and so we got to try to remove that best we can

[00:23:47] so I always kind of compare it to Gonzaga on the men's side Gonzaga 10 years ago had to go through

[00:23:52] that that kind of growth and now nobody bats and I it's when you play Gonzaga I mean it's

[00:23:59] it's it's it's a tremendous win if you can get get a victory against though so that's where we need

[00:24:04] to get to is that kind of point like Gonzaga on the men's side absolutely well well change gears

[00:24:12] here another new development for the university this last spring is the the NIL collective radar

[00:24:17] rising you've created an official partnership there and there's an opportunity tomorrow night on

[00:24:21] Wednesday over at the Boulevard from six to eight for the lady Raiders and I believe I saw today

[00:24:26] that 15% of the proceeds will go to the radar rising to support the NIL and I just have this question

[00:24:32] for you it just says as a typical fan and I would say I probably measure up in in regards to finances

[00:24:37] to most I would consider myself middle class um you know if we're contributing to the BRA and then

[00:24:44] now the radar rising their program that starts out at a thousand dollars a year it's kind of a steep

[00:24:48] price for those of us that are may already already be contributing to the BRA is there any sort

[00:24:53] of future plans in place for those that want to say contribute to both we don't want to lose our

[00:24:57] benefits that are the BRA but we still like we understand the importance of the NIL and I'm sure you

[00:25:02] can and you have an interesting perspective because you can see it from both sides so I guess my

[00:25:07] my main question is is me as a fan that doesn't have all this buku's of money to throw at the university

[00:25:12] where should my allegiance lie or is there ever an opportunity where I could be able to split my

[00:25:17] you know my my budgeting 5050 for radar rising and for the BRA yeah and that those are great

[00:25:24] questions Jake and I usually tell donors that when they ask me that question that kind of turn it

[00:25:30] back to them like whatever your patient is like if you really want to help student athletes economically

[00:25:38] the Raiders' Rising is probably a good avenue for you because that'll go directly to them

[00:25:44] in a collective if you are interested in bricks and mortar and facilities then our capital bill

[00:25:50] blue campaign if you are interested in their academic well-being then our BRWA annual gifts

[00:25:58] and those kind of things so and then there are some people that have very specific

[00:26:05] passions about those kind of things and it knows very easy somebody like you that's

[00:26:10] a general fan and just kind of wants to know where to direct the money I think it's perfectly

[00:26:17] okay to to to have it you know and those kind of things and what we've done is try to readjust

[00:26:23] our fundraising goals so we count the collective even though it might not hit our treasury books

[00:26:29] at the university as part of our total fundraising number because I don't want

[00:26:36] Lee De Leon and his team going out say well that's not part of our goals because we need to think

[00:26:43] about and everything we do how we can get more money to the student athletes and some of

[00:26:50] that's going to require a little bit of change of thought and and and typically we do have

[00:26:56] a end of the year type acknowledgement for our teams when they do well and and it was sort

[00:27:04] of my idea to come up with hey let's see if the Boulevard will donate 15% culture over there

[00:27:11] and he was more than willing to do that of course and so 15% of those proceeds will go to

[00:27:19] the NIO collective for women's basketball and so those kids will be able to benefit off of their

[00:27:27] show so to speak and I think that's a really good way for us to kind of get into our donor base

[00:27:35] a little bit differently the hey you're going to eat come eat with us on Wednesday night come to

[00:27:41] lunch on Wednesday at the Boulevard and 15% your hamburger at the Boulevard will go to our women's

[00:27:48] basketball so if you really support the women's basketball program and want those kids to have a

[00:27:53] little bit of extra change in their pocket that's a really easy way for you to donate and we need

[00:27:59] to find opportunities like that because all of us in in our industry worry about donor fatigue

[00:28:06] and those kind of things and and so we have to be very careful about how we go about doing this

[00:28:13] but I think those are avenues that are really easy to put to put some NIO deals

[00:28:21] in front of our and student athletes is there ever a plan to kind of merge the two groups

[00:28:26] in regards to the collective and the BRA like is there will there ever be some sort of partnership

[00:28:31] there where like I said I can give give one to both yeah right now that's prohibited by NCA rules

[00:28:37] okay and they're looking at actually in august there's some legislation that might change all of

[00:28:43] that and so that's the one of the frustrating things about NIO is that every four or five months

[00:28:50] the rules all change you know so it's hard to develop a really good policy and systems

[00:28:57] in place knowing that they could all be wiped out in a couple of months so I think there's a lot

[00:29:04] of movement to allow these collectives to be brought inside the university and those kind of

[00:29:10] things and once that hits your books then there are opportunities that you described

[00:29:16] that that's just another check-off point we do have an area like already that exists

[00:29:24] and not to be too complicated but it's a there was a court case the Austin court case where

[00:29:33] the NCA can pay almost six thousand dollars each school can pay six thousand dollars a year

[00:29:39] in additional educational expenses and so we do raise money towards it is part of the BRAA because

[00:29:49] that money actually hits our books and we we were able to disperse that as additional financial aid

[00:29:57] right now every student athlete gets a thousand dollars extra with that we'd like to have it be more

[00:30:04] our women's basketball team has a donor that's fully funded that so they get all their

[00:30:09] $5,980 in what's called the Austin fund but so there's it gets really confusing for donors

[00:30:18] there's the Austin fund there is the NIL which is a straight sponsorship and then there's a

[00:30:25] collective and so I think there's some confusion out there as we settle in more and this stuff becomes

[00:30:35] more routine I think that educational process will be easier for people to understand

[00:30:43] what's your thoughts on creating some sort of parity in in all sports I think we saw it a lot

[00:30:49] last year with the NIL wasn't an effect last year but you see the FAU San Diego State you see all

[00:30:55] these G5s and the final four this year we're kind of back to an all-chalked final four but that's

[00:31:00] just one example do you see this this NIL creating more parity across division one collectively or

[00:31:07] there'll be a great divide between the power fives and the group fives and Jacob I'm going to

[00:31:12] challenge your statement that the men's final four is not really all-chalk because you got

[00:31:16] number 11 see North Carolina state in there that kind of came out of nowhere right you know

[00:31:23] and what's the automatic qualifier I mean Greg Sankey made a big deal out of some of the automatic

[00:31:28] qualifiers getting in and there's another AQ that went to go out and then except for the AQ

[00:31:35] that's made it to the final four so time will tell on that I think that basketball you can change

[00:31:45] over your roster so quickly as we describe like North Carolina that make the tournament last year

[00:31:50] and all of their one seed this year and had a really remarkable season you know and so those

[00:31:58] highs and lows it'll be interesting to see what how Kentucky reacts to their issues right now

[00:32:05] you know and and those kind of things so I don't think I think that the economics were always

[00:32:13] stacked against us whether there was NIL or not so I don't see it as much of a

[00:32:20] substantive change if you get if your team's older and particularly in the sport of basketball

[00:32:26] then you have a chance to beat guys that are younger than you and and a few more cohesive unit

[00:32:32] you have those opportunities to do that so I'm bullish about the basketball tournament I think it's

[00:32:40] one of the great sporting events in America and I hope we don't change it you know and I hope

[00:32:46] that those AQ still remain intact so St. Peters can go to the Elite 8 you know and you see those kind

[00:32:53] of things so every now and then when you give David DeRocque he can slay the giant you know and

[00:33:00] and so I just the AQs are rock and we need to keep that and and fight for it and make sure that

[00:33:06] the NCAA tournament doesn't get ruined by some of the powers to be yeah I know Sankie caught a lot

[00:33:12] of flack for that comment especially seeing Kentucky go down and Auburn go down as early as they

[00:33:16] did so it would be a shame for something like that to happen and we're kind of seeing the development

[00:33:21] where college football is expanding to 12 and as you said you know David's getting an opportunity

[00:33:25] now against those schools where you know if the college football playoff expands and I think it

[00:33:30] is inevitable that we'll see it past 12 at some point in time maybe not soon but at some point in

[00:33:34] time that these upsets will just continue to happen across more sports and we see them baseball

[00:33:38] every year again it's on this prominent as basketball and footballers televised but I think

[00:33:42] those opportunities are arising yeah it's you know it's sports is still a funny thing you know

[00:33:49] Neyankis could have all the money in the world not win the world series I mean so we just kind of

[00:33:53] look at the pros and you know and and that's the one thing I wish the again that the powers understand

[00:34:02] it the being nationally relevant is important to be spread out all through all the geographic areas

[00:34:10] of the United States so if all the football powers just concentrate in the southeast then that's

[00:34:16] not necessarily a great thing in the long term for college football it's good to have Southern

[00:34:23] Cal be good it's good to have Washington be good you know and so it generates interest in areas

[00:34:28] away from the South as well so I think that I always say that yeah that you get paid to oversee

[00:34:37] your school oversee your conference whatever the role might be whether your commissioner AD but also

[00:34:43] and I think we've lost some of this that we need to be better guardians of our games you know and

[00:34:49] so we need to be true to basketball we need to be true to football and I don't think that my

[00:34:55] colleagues have particularly done that very well that well this is best and now we got Stanford

[00:35:02] the outcomes is that you have Stanford and Cal and the Atlantic Coast Conference it just doesn't

[00:35:08] make sense and it's just this stuff that that really got greed and analytics and not talking about

[00:35:18] maybe overall what's good for the game and what's good for the student athletes so I hope

[00:35:23] that that pendulum will swing back the other way and we'll get more rational thought about how

[00:35:28] we're going to go about our future well change gears once again here keep rolling through these

[00:35:33] questions that I have for you someone that presented this to me a while back and it was about well

[00:35:38] one we've seen this resurfacing of the Mac and you we already touched on that topic I'm not going

[00:35:41] to make you revisit that but what Western Kentucky had some interest with the Mac and we know that

[00:35:46] you've made the stance that what us staying in the conference USA was the best move force at that

[00:35:51] time and I still personally believe that that statement is true but one thing that was brought to me

[00:35:55] we were looking at the 1099 from conference USA and we look at the distribution for MTSU at 10.1 million

[00:36:01] I believe that was in 2022 was the last one that they had released and that was that was world

[00:36:06] almost 5 million beyond the next again school me on this because I don't know much past that

[00:36:12] I'm just interested to know why such a large discrepancy for I'm not going to I'm sure you're

[00:36:16] not upset about it either but why the large discrepancy from MTSU say to second place Western at 6 million

[00:36:22] yeah that uh number one it was a good idea for us to to to stay in conference USA

[00:36:30] and we were able to by by Florida Atlantic making a push to the final four by liberty getting into

[00:36:36] the New Year's six games that's helped solidify those revenue streams so we were able to take advantage

[00:36:43] of a lot of things and back when we were deciding Mac versus conference USA and and so there was

[00:36:54] a lot of entrance and exit fees that were being negotiated and those kind of things and so

[00:37:02] it really worked out well for us to be able to do that and and that was some of the money that we

[00:37:09] were able to buy out coach stocks till we kind of set some of that aside kind of for a rainy day

[00:37:15] like like that so we we had a plan and we executed our plan kind of is it related to the Mac and

[00:37:23] conference USA and and you can see where it kind of the beneficiaries of it how so how so us

[00:37:30] compared to the others like I said Western was at 6 million we were at 10 where's that I mean

[00:37:34] that that 4 million discrepancy was there something like that again I don't know much about it

[00:37:37] I'm just curious to know what why the why the gap there yeah and I'm not sure I would see the 1099

[00:37:44] I don't know kind of what Western received in that kind of thing so so I know what we got

[00:37:51] I'm not sure I can comment very accurately on what Western got I got yeah it was just an

[00:37:57] interesting figure and I think again on the on the conversation of Mac versus USA and I have not

[00:38:02] looked at max 1099 from that same year but I'd have to imagine you know that's a good chunk of

[00:38:07] change the stay in conference USA and as you point out it's it was a reward to stay that was

[00:38:12] a good enticement and then Jake the other thing to consider is that the Mac was charged from

[00:38:18] the centrist fees as well so so our net was really a wild swing like when you put it on a financial

[00:38:26] statement the amount that it would cost you to get out of conference USA plus to buy your way

[00:38:31] into the Mac was was was really astronomical when you compared that to to kind of what you would

[00:38:40] receive if you just simply state put and then try to work real hard to surround yourself with

[00:38:46] good partners and grow the league back up so a little bit similar to maybe what Oregon state

[00:38:52] in Washington state you know they whittled themselves down to two but for them it's been a little

[00:38:58] bit of a financial windfall now their key will be can they rebuild their own league and I'm not

[00:39:06] sure they can we we were probably better positioned in conference USA because there was five of us that

[00:39:12] remained then maybe western state Washington state and Oregon state so yeah it was it was a good

[00:39:23] move financially for us and culturally I think we all point to the south we all relate to the

[00:39:29] south more than we would in the Mac so at the end of the day when you really stacked them upside

[00:39:36] by side those were kind of the issues that were discussed well another new partnership this summer

[00:39:43] or this spring that was announced was your partnership with Tamar sales and I know they made an

[00:39:48] announcement on the go blue radar website as well as on the socials and I would say the statement

[00:39:54] was a little vague other than you know they're going to handle ticket sales and it looked like

[00:39:58] they were going to handle some game day stuff as well I was just a little interested to hear your

[00:40:02] piece on what that partnership entails and how does that intend to boost revenue if it does for the

[00:40:07] university yeah and uh it really is what's called outbound ticket sales so we have basically this

[00:40:17] dedicated company that these people that will do nothing but place calls to people that maybe

[00:40:24] lap season ticket holders to solicit group sales to really go out and in mind those markets uh

[00:40:32] Tamar has had a lot of success in doing that and been able to grow the fan base so

[00:40:39] you know when we made the change in football and kind of watching Derek the first really

[00:40:45] couple weeks of how he's interacting with the with our public and we really had a couple choices

[00:40:52] like as it relates to the company like Tamar do we go ahead and do it because our sales will likely

[00:40:59] go up just by the activation of Derek Mason and kind of how he's connecting with our public

[00:41:07] so should we should we just not do that and maybe save their fees with HR just

[00:41:14] and be good and maybe evaluate that in the year to down the road or option B was hey let's strike

[00:41:20] while the iron is the hottest and let's see how we can maximize this the quickest and that's

[00:41:27] what we decided to do we're making a greater investment of football we've put more money into

[00:41:33] salaries on the coaching staff and and hire different positions in recruiting uh we put more

[00:41:39] money in nutrition and the weight conditioning programs all those kind of things so we've we've

[00:41:45] added a lot of money uh several hundred thousand dollars into our football program and so we need

[00:41:52] a little we need to return on that and best way to return on that is to bring some life to our

[00:41:59] ticket sales and to have dedicated people that have no other responsibilities other than to sell

[00:42:05] tickets and that's what this company does for us sometimes uh are as a university employee you

[00:42:13] get caught doing other things you know and the bureaucracy of a university so we decided it's best

[00:42:19] to go out and let's just hire this and and see how well they do and and they've got a good track record

[00:42:28] I know the people at the head of the organization for a long time so I trust them they're going to

[00:42:33] give us good people to work with and and to go out there and be our representatives and

[00:42:39] quite honestly we need to do a better job with that with the group sales in particular

[00:42:44] uh you know and that to offer it up to companies and the for events and and have a really nice

[00:42:51] structure in place so if you're looking for a birthday party for your child come to our game

[00:42:56] you know and this is the package that you can purchase and it'll be unique and great birthday

[00:43:01] party and have a visit from lightning at the game you know and in those kind of things just to have

[00:43:06] people put those kind of things together for us I think will be a lot better uh and we'll be able

[00:43:13] to reach more people and get our message out so uh Floyd Stadium is going to be a fun place to

[00:43:19] be in the fall so we want to just to to put as much into it as we could this first year so we're

[00:43:25] excited about our day more yeah and I think it's segway's great in my next question as far as

[00:43:31] when we first talked we were you're doing something a little bit different we're you're doing the

[00:43:34] down payments for the for the tickets and now you've got those those sales that are coming through

[00:43:39] now that you've got a price and all that have are we seeing a tangible number like are we seeing an

[00:43:44] increase we had sales you know it's still early in the ticket selling process so those numbers get

[00:43:50] a little distorted but but we're running way ahead of where we were a year ago in comparison but

[00:43:57] are just people more excited to send in their money and earlier you know so you got a

[00:44:02] temporary excitement a little bit I think a better gauge right now as I know our BRAA memberships

[00:44:08] and and right now I just got a report this morning that we're running 50 members ahead we've got

[00:44:14] 50 new members into our BRAA since I think January and so that's a really important thing

[00:44:22] and we're just now really starting to reach out to the first time season ticket holders so those

[00:44:29] numbers will come more in June and July and those kind of things so things are ticking up we just

[00:44:37] want to be able to maximize it as much as we can but I think we're going to sell more football tickets

[00:44:44] than we have in a long time and that's certainly our goal and I think we'll see the increase just

[00:44:48] from the football recruiting side alone and me and Austin Lewis talked with Derek Mason a few

[00:44:52] weeks ago about how he's recruiting the the mid-state area very well which that in turn you got

[00:44:58] little Billy has 12 family members that are just 30 minute drive over like that's you know

[00:45:03] that's the season ticket right there in the end of itself and I think that's going to help

[00:45:06] significantly with with the ticket sales and all that stuff and that's pretty exciting and

[00:45:10] yeah I know we've we've talked ad nauseam about Derek Mason and what he's brought to the

[00:45:15] university in such a short period of time but I'm just interested to hear the spring game

[00:45:19] returning where's kind of you're excited he has a staff fully stock now and he's kind of ready to

[00:45:23] go where is where is Chris Masaro's gauge on on Derek Mason thus far and what's your excitement level

[00:45:28] for fall yeah I mean his offseason he's gotten eight plus plus I mean just the the biggest thing is

[00:45:36] you know like when we're interviewing coaches you kind of think that every coach is going to have

[00:45:43] like football expertise you know so yeah you're going to drill into that a little bit

[00:45:51] but you also want to really kind of who's can connect with our fan base who's very relatable

[00:45:58] who will people get behind how will this person present themselves to recruit and those kind

[00:46:06] of things and so far in this offseason Derek and his staff have been tremendous in this area

[00:46:13] and we've made more progress more headway with local high school coaches than I thought was really

[00:46:22] plausible not possible but plausible and so he's done a really good job there the connection to our

[00:46:32] fans has been really great I'm thinking that he's also connected to the Murphy's Burrow community

[00:46:39] as a whole and that's one of our keys is our fans are our fans I mean we're automatically kind

[00:46:47] of easy to communicate with but we need to get that circle a little bit broader and bring in people

[00:46:53] that are mildly interested in MTSU and make them more passionate about what we're trying to do over

[00:47:01] here and Derek's done that inviting them to games and those kind of things so so that part's

[00:47:06] been good that then when you look at how he's managing his football team and you watch a practice

[00:47:11] you see how the the strength and conditioning you hear reports from the training room and

[00:47:18] and the academic people on how supportive he is to their efforts and and installing a sense of

[00:47:23] discipline all the way through the organization and that makes you super excited so so I'm very

[00:47:31] bullish on what Derek's brought the first three months to to our university and just we just

[00:47:38] need to keep it up I mean he needs help we need to finance our expectations so it's really important

[00:47:45] to people that are listening this podcast to get involved biases and ticket join the collective

[00:47:51] do whatever you can to help our program whatever is possible with you because the most important

[00:47:57] thing we can do is to put people in the stadium because that's a visible sign of support so if

[00:48:02] there's just one thing that you're asking yourself what you can do is buy season tickets and come

[00:48:08] to the games and cheer for the blue raiders and be entertained because it'll be a fun it's

[00:48:13] going to be a fun fall and this should be and I know they get started with with you got Tennessee

[00:48:18] tech rolling in so you got local local competition there it'll be it'll be again as you say fluid

[00:48:24] stadium would be a fun place to be this fall for multitude of reasons and another thing that's

[00:48:28] going on there and the north end zone is that SAPC still going along do you have any updates for the

[00:48:34] fans yeah that uh there's the steals coming out of the ground uh so those of you that haven't been

[00:48:41] the campus lately that you can see like the how the second floor of the building now is formed

[00:48:48] up in the steel you can see actually our interior stairwells which I don't know that kind of excited

[00:48:53] me Jake just to see stairwells man it was like awesome so uh then the height of it you can probably see

[00:49:01] it it's maximum height so it's really starting to take some shape with the early steel and so

[00:49:09] there are still on targets still on target to to cut the ribbon in the summer of 25 so there's

[00:49:16] there's a long ways to go we still got a little bit over a year but it's going to be this the next

[00:49:23] few months we're going to see remarkable progress on that and uh just really excited about the look

[00:49:30] of the building and how it's going to be and then we're also part of this project is that

[00:49:37] we were building a new loading dock on that uh the south south east side of the Murphy Center

[00:49:48] the side closest to our football press box and so that's kind of the first step of phase two

[00:49:56] is to you know relocate that Murphy Center loading dock so one day we'll want to put a building

[00:50:02] there with a grand entrance rather than bring people through by the trash cans and those kind of

[00:50:07] things so so that part's going on uh we're building a new control room which will start right after

[00:50:13] the graduations uh so all of our uh all of our electronic equipment uh for the scoreboards and

[00:50:21] those kind of production capabilities will be we've converted one of the we're converting one

[00:50:26] of the concession stands in the in the Murphy Center concourse uh so Nathan Waleck and his team

[00:50:33] will we'll have more toys and modern equipment so we can do a better presentation on the video boards

[00:50:41] new video boards in the Murphy Center and then this summer we'll see a new video board go up

[00:50:47] in football as well so so we'll have better production capabilities on both those uh next year so

[00:50:54] just trying to do everything we can to enhance the fan experience uh but that that building the

[00:51:01] student athlete performance center is a really game changer for us because that building's huge 86,000

[00:51:08] square feet and it's gonna really help all of our student athletes and and the crane is it still

[00:51:15] out there? It's still there and it'll be there for a while. Well they I remember when it when it came

[00:51:19] out that there was an orange and white checkered flag on the top of that thing all hell broke loose and

[00:51:24] I think that the rest assured for people that don't know that that's there for clearance level

[00:51:29] purposes and it's orange and red it's mandatory that it has to be or orange and white and it's

[00:51:32] mandatory it has to be orange there's no allegiance to UT on that crane is that correct? That is

[00:51:37] correct and one of the things we did kind of that to help mitigate that is when the crane first

[00:51:44] went up we put the MT flag right below it so we have the aeronautics flag which just happens to be

[00:51:51] the like this this orange checkered board thing but it's a requirement and then the middle 10

[00:51:57] of seed flag right below it so so it's waving proudly up there for all to see. Absolutely yeah

[00:52:03] I just I just think it's funny how some people can make a mountain out of a mole hill and something

[00:52:06] like a checkered flag on a crane was the end of the world for us and it was some sign of disrespect

[00:52:11] and it was simply just a safety protocol as all it was so um well that's that's exciting news

[00:52:17] and a lot of people are excited to see that go up but the one thing you mentioned there was the

[00:52:20] video board I know it's been a while since that's been upgraded and I think it's it's great that

[00:52:24] you say that it's going to be installed and ready to go by this fall yeah that's uh I think the

[00:52:29] plans to block off Falcon Berry uh so I think it's in the month of June and so the cranes can get in

[00:52:36] there and and lift in the new video board so so it'll be put together by the end of July and

[00:52:43] operation by football season awesome awesome stuff well um Chris it's been a pleasure to have

[00:52:50] you on once again and answer my questions um some some be it I'm sure you were prepared for

[00:52:54] you've heard a million times from fans and I always love that you're willing to do this and I

[00:52:59] got a lot of compliments from people not only from MTSU but I have plenty of friends that

[00:53:02] I'm we're doing a collaboration that we're gonna announce in a couple weeks but a lot of those

[00:53:06] have breached out and listen and they're actually they couldn't believe that the athletic director

[00:53:10] was willing to come on and so again I know that you don't have to do this but I appreciate you

[00:53:13] coming on and answering some of these questions well Jake and thanks for all your patience

[00:53:17] that uh Jake was trying to schedule me and and I said let's kind of wait till our women's basketball

[00:53:24] run ends because my schedule gets so iffy hoping that we'd be in Albany New York and those kind of

[00:53:30] things so uh so thanks for your patience Jake and thanks for what you do from middle Tennessee it's

[00:53:36] important that we get the word out and we talk to our fans whether uh you know like sometimes

[00:53:42] I may not agree with what fans or what the dialogue is but it's better to have dialogue out there

[00:53:48] than nothing so so appreciate it and uh let's all work together and and support Nick and

[00:53:56] and support Derek and support Rick and all of our other sports because uh we have a chance to

[00:54:02] really have a great year next year I can't wait absolutely thanks again see you man thank you

[00:54:10] thanks for sticking around to the blue-rater wrap up portion of the episode where we go over

[00:54:14] the last week and review of blue-rater sports we'll start off with baseball who had a

[00:54:18] disappointing week dropping all four contest starting on Tuesday in Bloomington against Indiana

[00:54:24] the Raiders dropped that contest five to twelve and then this weekend hosting the Binghamton

[00:54:29] Bearcats and Breast Smith Jr. feel dropping all three games of that contest Friday losing four to

[00:54:36] eight then on Saturday zero to nine and then on Sunday a Mercy-rolled shortened three two fourteen

[00:54:42] my MVP of the weekend does go to Briggs Rutter who went four for eleven with they run and a double

[00:54:49] but they are back in action this week and they will be on the road all week as tonight they are in

[00:54:54] Cookville facing Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles that first pitch is at six p.m. and then they're back

[00:54:59] into conference you as they play facing off against a very good Louisiana Tech team and Rustin

[00:55:04] Louisiana that series will start on Friday at six p.m. Saturday's games at two and Sunday at one

[00:55:10] p.m. and all of those games will be viewable on ESPN plus softball had a good weekend as they

[00:55:18] take home a win series win against the FIU Golden Panthers they beat the Golden Panthers on Thursday by

[00:55:25] score of nine to three drop the second game contest three to six and then swept up the series there

[00:55:30] on Saturday with a walkoff eight seven win and Zlee blavins goes five for twelve on the week with

[00:55:37] two runs seven RBI as a walk in two home runs and Cameron Carstich goes two and oh on the weekend

[00:55:43] with both of the wins going 13 and a third innings pitch giving up 17 hits just six earned runs

[00:55:49] two walk and seven strikeouts Mary Martinez also pitches in the loss but in her efforts it was only

[00:55:56] one earned run despite the the defense kind of not back on her very well on that Friday matchup

[00:56:02] but nonetheless she has a great performance and hopefully you can back her up again this next week

[00:56:07] as they are back in conference USA play in Huntsville Texas against Sam Houston State that series

[00:56:14] will begin on Friday and that first pitch is at six p.m. Saturday is at three 30 p.m. and Sunday

[00:56:19] is at 12 30 p.m. looking for a sweep this weekend as they face the last place Lady Bearcats

[00:56:26] Minnes Tennis returned after a short break they did pick up another top 25 win beating the Memphis

[00:56:34] Tigers at home four to three they did drop a doubles which is kind of put on a little bit of a

[00:56:39] skid for the doubles teams and they do bounce back later in the evening but shout out to Leo Requeen

[00:56:44] Terremonli's Matsuoka and Kuedo Ramos makes a return to the singles matchup and they pick up all

[00:56:50] four points there and all four were huge because they were needed to win against a 23rd ranked Tigers

[00:56:55] and then on the back into that double header the Raiders defeated Alabama A&M by a score of six to one

[00:57:01] doubles breaks off their snide finally it's Raqueen Horak Terremonli's Matsuoka and Al Min all pick up

[00:57:09] a win in singles they wrap up their season this week with a contest their regular season they wrap

[00:57:18] up that is they start on Tuesday against 44th ranked Vanderbilt at home and then on Sunday they will

[00:57:25] finish with a double header against Tulane a very good program not ranked but a very prominent

[00:57:31] program an NCAA tournament team a year ago and then they'll finish up that double header with

[00:57:35] the game against or a match against UNC Asheville and that will begin at 4 p.m. all the games this week

[00:57:41] are at the brand new tennis complex so if you haven't seen them yet it's now your last chance

[00:57:44] before that conference you as they tournament coming up in a few weeks women's tennis they go one

[00:57:50] and two on the week that they dropped their first contest to DePaul by a score of one to four it was

[00:57:55] Eloise Warbrick with the lone singles win and then they made a road trip out west at New Mexico state

[00:58:00] losing that contest two to four it was Schmidt and Chef Falcar who picked up the other singles win

[00:58:08] and then they did pick up their first team win and they'll pass so against UTEP winning 4-1 doubles got

[00:58:15] their first one of the week along with Garrickani Piaire and Chef Falcar also picking up her second win

[00:58:20] of the week also they face another conference USA opponent in Liberty this Friday at home at 4 p.m.

[00:58:27] at the outdoor tennis complex and then they wrap up their regular season at Memphis on Sunday at 10 a.m.

[00:58:36] Minsk Golf returns back to action at the Mason Rudolph Championship in Franklin toasted by Vanderbilt

[00:58:41] University they're finally back after a short break for them and then on the women's side they had

[00:58:46] a really great finish last week at the Ozark National Invitational they are in Hall of the

[00:58:50] Sturmiserie finishing in second place at a 13 teams elementally impressively got an ace or

[00:58:58] commonly known as a hole in one on her final hole and that was just enough to put her into tied for

[00:59:02] second place in the individuals and all of the lady raiders finished in the top 40 he

[00:59:08] have Lauren Gilchrist and Nicole Johnson and then individual Jillian Bowman that all went tied

[00:59:13] for 20th at 12 strokes over par Molly Bavillard goes for tied for 30 second at 14 strokes over par

[00:59:19] and Laney Campbell tied for 36 at 15 over par so again excellent week for the lady raiders golf

[00:59:26] program and then they will continue their season in Chattanooga this weekend from the 7th through

[00:59:31] the 9th all in Chattanooga as a part of the Chattanooga classic lastly outdoor tracking field

[00:59:38] they returned from the Raleigh in Florida relay they split them up the sprinters and jumpers were

[00:59:42] in Raleigh North Carolina where Steven a low G placed 4th in the 110 meters and then John Sherman

[00:59:48] a top 50 NCAA time of the year and the 100 meters at 10.39 seconds and then all the distance runners

[00:59:54] were down in Florida and to highlight some of those Sammy Sang plays 10th in the 1500 meter

[01:00:00] purity Sanga Rana top 65 NCAA time in the 5k at 16 minutes 19.68 seconds and then Nancy

[01:00:08] may out runs a top 100 NCAA time in the 10k at 34 minutes 56.9 seconds they'll be back in action

[01:00:17] at the Tennessee relays up in Knoxville here soon and that'll pretty much do it for us I appreciate

[01:00:23] everyone tuning in now listening to this much anticipated episode with Chris Misara once again I know

[01:00:29] that we're not necessarily able to answer all the questions that those of you that got to me

[01:00:33] at gomiddle.com and I do appreciate those answers that are being written in of course we will be

[01:00:38] over there at the conclusion of this episode to discuss all the topics that happen or all the

[01:00:43] topics that were covered today and I'm always welcome to your feedback and it's certain that I will

[01:00:48] have Misara want at some point in time again and hopefully we can continue great conversation I

[01:00:53] think it's important that we we don't take for granted that the athletic director is willing to

[01:00:58] sit for us I understand that it's not always the answers that we want to hear I'm not always

[01:01:02] able to get the answers that you want to hear but it is important that we have that sort of dialogue

[01:01:07] and I think it's vital that we have that between the athletic director and the fans even though again

[01:01:12] we don't always disagree we always just we always agree or disagree with what he has to say but

[01:01:17] again it's important I'm glad I can be that segue for some of you guys so but don't forget to follow

[01:01:23] us on all of our socials over at Instagram Twitter and TikTok at Blue Rater Pod and of course continue

[01:01:30] the conversation over at gomiddle.com as always don't miss out on a collaboration announcement coming

[01:01:36] up as I alluded to in the episode with college football that's coming up we will have some news to you

[01:01:42] here in the middle of April with that as I'm partnering with a podcasting group to basically help

[01:01:47] with coverage of the conference USA Group of five and all that good stuff so a lot to look forward

[01:01:52] to from the Blue Rater podcast as well as hopefully some merchandising opportunities within IL

[01:01:57] incentives for some athletes and just some things that I'm really excited about rolling out

[01:02:02] for you guys coming up this summer but um that'll wrap it up for today's episode I appreciate

[01:02:06] everyone tuning in and I'll catch you next week and until then go Blue!