From the Birmingham News, “Rep. John Rogers Jr., D-Birmingham, urged the presidents of Alabama and Auburn to schedule UAB in sports events. Rogers, who is employed by UAB…”
AND there you have it. Rogers is paid by UAB. Isn’t that a conflict of interest to be working on budgets when you are paid by the institution that is the beneficiary of your budgetary work? Even if there isn’t a quid pro quo, this stinks.
But what about Alabama politics doesn’t stink? Rogers a Democrat is trying to help his employer (or himself), and apparently the GOP isn’t any better.
According to a report in the Birmingham News, “A powerful state senator Tuesday asked the president of Auburn University to explain why the school was willing to accept $4 million less from Rep. Mike Hubbard’s former company when it took bids on athletic broadcasting rights.â€
This could all be fine. But it looks bad.
Alabama fans should hold politicians accountable when they attempt to meddle with the University. Dr. Robert Witt should do what is in the best interest of the University of Alabama—not what is in the best interest of Rep. John Rogers.
Alabama should never play UAB in football or basketball. It would be the same type of mistake that Ohio State has made in its scheduling of other Ohio teams; it results in horrible games. Alabama’s schedule with teams like Clemson, Virginia Tech and Penn State is far superior to adding an insignificant team like UAB.
This proposal is simply an attempt to grab money from successful programs like Alabama and Auburn; it is an attempt to transfer wealth from the SEC to whatever pathetic conference to which UAB belongs.
It is a bad idea, and Alabama fans should remember it at the ballot box.
Scheduling powerful non-conference games is fantastic for the program, but inserting a UAB in place of a UT-Chattanooga or a Tulane wouldn’t exactly dumb-down the matchup factor and would help keep some $$ in-state. Everybody that pays taxes in Alabama has an interest in the good works of all our public universities.
That said, having John Rogers in the role of the “voice of reason” doesn’t do anybody any good.
I have to admit seeing that quote by John Rogers was just too good to be true. 😉
Alabama fans don’t vote for John Rogers. Only dead people and his family / friends vote for John Rogers.
It’s like watching a sequel to The Sixth Sense when you visit polls in Rogers’ district. The dead walk, talk, and vote. Sometimes twice!
It’s just disappointing to have to read those words instead of hear them. He’s such a good public speaker.
This story is much more relevant to Basketball. There is NO excuse for Bama not playing UAB.
They’re playing Samford ? What’s up with that double standard ?
Pluto, I don’t see Auburn playing UAB. They used to, but quit when UAB started whipping their ass every year.
The message was not a bad one, however, the messenger has much bigger things to worry about (like the State’s budget).
I’ll concede that scheduling UAB in football would make little sense for UA because they are in another galaxy when it comes to every comparable stat. That being said no one in the state has had as much success or has made as much progress as UAB has in basketball. For any sensible UAB fan the goal is to end up like GA Tech. Great basketball program with a cyclical football team whose success or lack there of never triggers the attention of the UA board of trustees. UA and the board of trustees will never let UAB’s football program grow into what it could be so I’m all in on basketball. That being said there is no one in the state UAB couldn’t beat in mens basketball at this exact moment or at any point in the last 8 years. So bring on Alabama, Auburn, Troy, or South we would beat any of them.
To clarify on being like Ga Tech; I realize they are haveing a great football season so I guess Duke would be a more accurate example.
Outside of a couple of years with Bartow and a good run a few years ago, UAB basketball blows. They can’t even fill the tiny Bartow arena when they are having a good year, much less when they are pitiful like the past couple of seasons. Even in basketball, they would show themselves to be the little sisters of the other teams in the state. Including Hoover.
Alabama went to the Elite 8 in 2004, with a better team than UAB has ever had. Had Alabama been in any other bracket, they would have been in the Final Four that year.
I’m all for talking about your school, but UAB is irrelevant yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Just wait til Anthony Grant gets it going. Mike Anderson will look like a water boy compared to Grant at Alabama. Come to think of it, Eddie Munster, I mean Billy Donovan has been very average without Anthony Grant around.
cap has it right. this is about MONEY. we have it, alabama/birmingham doesn’t.
we built auburn’s athletic program.
if uab’s needs money, let them go to their alum to get it.
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