Today’s article isn’t as much about Virginia Tech as it is other schools, though in the end it’s going to paint Virginia Tech in a very positive light. I’ve been doing some reading lately, and it’s pretty surprising how poorly some athletic departments are run. There are supposedly some very smart people out there who are running multi-million dollar businesses…and they are running them right into the ground.

Find 20 minutes of free time and read this article about Texas athletic director Steve Patterson. If you don’t have time, then I’ll sum it up for you. Patterson is alienating his fan base by doing things such as…

1: Charging $25 a person for alumni groups to walk on the football field during reunions.
2: An average of 21% increase in season ticket costs coming off a 6-7 season.
3: Season ticket holders are required to pay for parking ($100-195) for the first time ever.
4: Brushing off meetings with big donors.

What’s the result? Texas lost 10,000 season ticket holders this year. Hard to imagine, isn’t it? But it’s not just the fans he’s hurting. He’s hurting the student-athlete as well.

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