Hauck: it's all about economics
The University of Montana has the luxury of drawing 1 in every 40 Montanans to each of their home games. It's a luxury that keeps everything steady and the administrators happy. Unfortunately, this luxury may also hurt the program. More money means less risk. More money means no reason schedule challenges.The scheduling issue has been discussed at length, with the best explanation coming from UM Athletic Director Jim O'Day. An article in the Great Falls Tribune gives Hauck's stance on the subject. It's not one every Griz fan would agree with.
"It's a good schedule," Hauck said in a recent interview. "There's no good reason to go on the road (for nonconference games). The big factor in the equation is economics. We can't afford to go play people like Maine or Hofstra ... the only reason to go on the road and play (big-name opponent) is dollars.If it doesn't make dollars, it don't make cents. No talk of the benefits of challenging his team against a mid or lower level FBS team. No desire for a big time FCS brawl with Appalachian State. It just wouldn't make fiscal sense.
"Our fans want to watch us play at home. They want us out here. If we can't make more money (on the road) than we bring in at home, there's no good reason to do it."
This is an odd mentality for the head coach. Let the AD worry about the money. Hauck should be worried about getting his team prepared and advancing the program. Can't he understand the difficulties and still wish the schedule was a little bit more solid? Glanville is looking at lining up Pac-10 and SEC opponents while Hauck is content with a D-II school and Southern Utah.
Here's my hope for the next few years: UM lines up paydays against BCS schools and takes its lumps but also saves that chunk of change for home-and-homes with the likes of Appalachian State and Georgia Southern.
