Agreed. This is what we gm have all been waiting for. A competent leader in the AD suite. The thing is there are plenty of programs doing more with less. Not saying we will ever compete with the top 3-5 year in year out. But there is no reason we should not be “competitive with the 5-10 range. We are in a hotbed of wrestling in the country between NJ eastern Pa. We have top 5 facilities in the country. I like we are making inroads outside of this geographical base. Zinn will be holding all of our programs to new standards of excellence. I don’t think any coach is safe in the next 2 years.
Posted this a few months back on the Lacrosse thread on a q. about a lack of dedicated lacrosse coverage. Reposting here:
Some thoughts. Former RU wrestler and also a big fan of lacrosse.
Re. wrestling and lacrosse. Wrestling roster is roughly 30, lacrosse roster is 48 scholarships. Wrestling draws 4k fans per match, Lax draws 2k. Both sports are popular in the area and both sports are in a top 3 recruiting area in the country with the best talent in the country within 200 miles/a 3 hour drive. Lacrosse actually may be in the best recruiting area in the country but has way more competition in that same area for the top talent (Maryland, Hopkins, Princeton, Penn to name a few). Wrestling has elite practice facilities, Lacrosse needs some upgrades to compete with the top teams. Lacrosse has arguably outperformed Wrestling, in particular, in the last 5 years but Wrestling was in way worse shape to begin with when Goodale arrived.
If I were AD, my expectations re. ceiling for both teams would be:
Lacrosse- Perennial top 10 program, perennial tourney team (7-8 out of 10 years for both these goals). Final four team 3 out of 10 years, national finalist/title run within the next 10 years. I would evaluate current resources/competitive advantages/disadvantages/potential overall prestige value to the school based on conference/national prestige/overall goals and ask current coaches; alumni what they need to achieve this/whether these expectations are fair.
Wrestling- Perennial top 10 program, consistently a top 5 program & consistently in the running for a team trophy (top 4 finish at NCAA individual tournament) 8-9 years out of 10 for top 10 ranking, 5-7 years out of 10 top 5 program, 2-3 years out of 10 top 4 finish at NCAA’s. I would evaluate current resources/competitive advantages/disadvantages/potential overall prestige value to the school based on conference/national prestige/overall goals and ask current coaches; alumni what they need to achieve this/whether these expectations are fair.
Be curious to hear people’s thoughts on whether these are fair expectations and how best to get there with both programs