An Update on Lafayette's President, Dan Weiss

[carney2]

When last we encountered the name Dan Weiss on this board he was seen as the embodiment of evil. Based on his interview with the school newspaper, he had come out against football scholarships a few days before the mid-December Presidents' meeting. When the press release was issued saying that no decision had been reached and that it would be status quo for two more years, most fingers pointed at Weiss as something of a one man/one school arbiter of this process. Some, without evidence, stated that he threatened to pull Lafayette out of the Patriot League if scholarships were approved.

Since those first few days of disappointment and rage things have settled down and cooler heads have prevailed. What, then, has become of Dr. Weiss? Has he dedicated himself to an anti-athletics path that will take Lafayette God knows where and doom the Patriot League? There have been no pronouncements, nor is there likely to be. We have to make our judgments using bits and pieces of evidence. For instance:

Word has leaked out that Dr. Weiss addressed football recruits at a recent recruiting weekend. No details as to what he said are available, but it is common knowledge that his remarks were relevant, well delivered, and well received. Rumor has it that a very high percentage of recruits in attendance that day signed on the dotted line.

A Lafayette blogger named Bill Rappolt wrote a piece on scholarships. Mr. Rappolt normally blogs on field hockey which is a scholarship sport at Lafayette, so bear that in mind if you choose to read his well reasoned opinions:

http://blog.lehighvalleylive.com/laf...re_horses.html

The point here is that Mr. Rappolt had some encouraging things to say about Dr. Weiss:

"Being president of a college is a difficult job as he tries to balance the interests of various constituencies and in an economic environment as challenging as we are in, his/her task is that much more frustrating. Based on my early conversations with Lafayette president Dan Weis, I believe he understands the culture that includes Lafayette/Lehigh games as part of its student's experience and the attraction athletics makes to unifying alumni. I also believe he understands that Lafayette's continuation in Division 1 is part of that package. The role of athletics in bonding an undergraduate community and stimulating a giving alumni base cannot be underestimated at a school like Lafayette. Given the events of the past month and talking with people who are decision makers, I believe that fact is well understood."

Finally, Dr. Weiss is a big supporter of Lafayette teams. He will frequently be seen at sporting events with his family. This week, for instance, he attended a women's basketball game in the middle of a major snow storm, and was seen sitting with Lafayette defensive coordinator, John Loose, and thoroughly enjoying himself.

We, in the Lafayette community will, I guess, continue to take issue with Dr. Weiss on many fronts, and will, unfortunately, use the anonymity of the internet to resort to clever name calling. I bring all of this to your attention however, because there are mixed signals and it is probably a little early to be placing all the blame on Weiss's shoulders, batching it up and stuffing it in a Danny Boy doll to be burned in effigy.

[Bogus Megapardus]

I have probably been easier on Dr. Weiss than most mostly because he supports our teams by showing up and enthusiastically cheering the players. Not only football of course, but lacrosse, basketball, field hockey, baseball, etc. Dr. Weiss is an athlete himself (an avid runner and marathoner) and he has never uttered a negative sentence about sports at Lafayette (compare the presidents at Hofstra and Boston University).

Weiss did, of course, publicly derail the football scholarship vote in December. Many of us expressed our outrage. Given time, who knows? It might turn out that his lone position kept the Patriot League intact. We don't know all the machinations that were going on behind the scenes or how much (or little) the the influence of our Ivy friends came to bear. If it means two years to come to come up with a concrete consensus plan that will leave our ancient Ivy rivalries in place (which I, for one, am not prepared to abandon) plus the ability to renew our members' many old-school FBS rivalries (Syracuse, UConn, Navy, Rutgers, Temple, Army, Boston College, Duke) I think it's worth the wait.

Remember, there is nothing whatsoever that prevents Patriot schools from gearing up to 57 equivalencies under the current need-based grant system. And let's remember that it was under Dr. Weiss' stewardship that Lafayette began to offer its first Division I scholarships in any sport (Lafayette now offers Basketball, Field Hockey and Soccer scholarships).

[Go...gate]

Well said, gentlemen. It is fair to say that Colgate is going through the same thing, though it is now confirmed from a reliable source (Maroon Council) that CU's President Herbst and Trustees did support a full complement of football scholarships.

[Bogus Megapardus]

Once again, I'm pretty selfish. I really could care less about manufactured statistics, hyperbolic ESPN promotion and network bravado. I just like to go to the games and see them in person. I do so often. And I think nothing compares to the tactics, sophistication and gamesmanship of a great Patriot/Ivy contest while you're at the game with your family and friends, live and in person.

Yes, we build our teams to beat them - and we do a respectable job of it, by the record. And yes - many of us attend the games along with alumni from opposing PL and Ivy schools and a whole lot of of us (including me) possess graduate degrees printed on the sheepskin of our Ivy opponent's charter, don't we? You know who you are, folks.

Watching and wishing for things on paper and in blogs, merely with the hope to be ranked higher by some nerd with a computer, seems wholly unproductive to me. Accessible Division I football in grand, timeless, alumni-built stadia with friend-and-foe-alike camaraderie alike keeps the college experience alive for me. That's how I enjoy college football.

I worked very, very hard to get into my college back in the day, and I labored continuously just to be able to stay there. I hold no fault with those who try to keep that spirit alive today.

There's something about all of us PL graduates today, I think, that make us glad that we did so. What, really, is compelling some of you to want this to change?

[Go...gate]

Once again, I'm pretty selfish. I really could care less about manufactured statistics, hyperbolic ESPN promotion and network bravado. I just like to go to the games and see them in person. I do so often. And I think nothing compares to the tactics, sophistication and gamesmanship of a great Patriot/Ivy contest while you're at the game with your family and friends, live and in person.

Yes, we build our teams to beat them - and we do a respectable job of it, by the record. And yes - many of us attend the games along with alumni from opposing PL and Ivy schools and a whole lot of of us (including me) possess graduate degrees printed on the sheepskin of our Ivy opponent's charter, don't we? You know who you are, folks.

Watching and wishing for things on paper and in blogs, merely with the hope to be ranked higher by some nerd with a computer, seems wholly unproductive to me. Accessible Division I football in grand, timeless, alumni-built stadia with friend-and-foe-alike camaraderie alike keeps the college experience alive for me. That's how I enjoy college football.

I worked very, very hard to get into my college back in the day, and I labored continuously just to be able to stay there. I hold no fault with those who try to keep that spirit alive today.

There's something about all of us PL graduates today, I think, that make us glad that we did so. What, really, is compelling some of you to want this to change?

Well said. I agree with everything you posted.

[Lehigh Football Nation]

I do not think that Mr. Weiss kicks puppies in his off-hours. And I don't think he hates athletes.

I do know, however, that mere days before the scholarship talks were to begin, for some reason - it may be never known exactly why - he revealed to the world, possibly violating a confidentiality agreement in the process, his stance on scholarships and why he thought they were a bad idea. He revealed his hand at a time when virtually every other Patriot League president, past and future, did no such weighing in on a subject that has been under serious discussion for at least two years, and under casual conversation for many more. (Fr. Brooks of Holy Cross is the only other exception to my knowledge.)

For good measure, he also hinted that Lafayette might leave the Patriot League over the matter. "The College is very supportive of the Patriot League, but what specific actions we will take in light of this vote is not clear. It's unlikely that we'd simply carry on as we do and have the League all become scholarships if we aren't doing them," he told the student newspaper. What does this mean? Drop football? Leave the Patriot League? Offer scholarships in retaliation, even though he's opposed to them? What other possible explanation is there than these three - and which two are consistent with his philosophical stance?

While we may never know for sure, the end result was that scholarships were tabled for the next two years, almost certainly pushing Fordham out the door. Mr. Weiss' on-the-record stance is diametrically opposed to what Fordham has already done: offer football scholarships.

I think those down Leopard Way are severely underplaying the historic nature of his admission of how he was going to vote - how infrequent such admissions were from the Presidents, and never on the eve of a defining vote of the League. The mere existence of the student article on his stance caused pages of message board postings on Lafayette's forum, AGS... all of them. You're now asking me to believe - that while it caused heart palpitations across the fan bases of the entire league, that it had nothing to do with what happened in the vote on Monday and Tuesday? Come on now.

Weiss is responsible for his vote. He made it very clear days before how he was going to vote. His vote had clear, immediate consequences to one of the league's football members. And no amount of statements as to how many recruits he personally signed nor how difficult his job is changes that fact.

[ngineer]

Appears to me Weiss is engaging in 'damage control' with alumni, many of whom he pissed off. He placated his faculty wing with his much public stance against scholarships, now just like any politician, swings back to keep those with the 'big bucks' assuaged. "What do you take me for?" Lady Astor said to Sir Winston. "We have already established that," Sir Winston replied. "Now, we're negotiating."

[Go...gate]

I do not think that Mr. Weiss kicks puppies in his off-hours. And I don't think he hates athletes.

I do know, however, that mere days before the scholarship talks were to begin, for some reason - it may be never known exactly why - he revealed to the world, possibly violating a confidentiality agreement in the process, his stance on scholarships and why he thought they were a bad idea. He revealed his hand at a time when virtually every other Patriot League president, past and future, did no such weighing in on a subject that has been under serious discussion for at least two years, and under casual conversation for many more. (Fr. Brooks of Holy Cross is the only other exception to my knowledge.)

For good measure, he also hinted that Lafayette might leave the Patriot League over the matter. "The College is very supportive of the Patriot League, but what specific actions we will take in light of this vote is not clear. It's unlikely that we'd simply carry on as we do and have the League all become scholarships if we aren't doing them," he told the student newspaper. What does this mean? Drop football? Leave the Patriot League? Offer scholarships in retaliation, even though he's opposed to them? What other possible explanation is there than these three - and which two are consistent with his philosophical stance?

While we may never know for sure, the end result was that scholarships were tabled for the next two years, almost certainly pushing Fordham out the door. Mr. Weiss' on-the-record stance is diametrically opposed to what Fordham has already done: offer football scholarships.

I think those down Leopard Way are severely underplaying the historic nature of his admission of how he was going to vote - how infrequent such admissions were from the Presidents, and never on the eve of a defining vote of the League. The mere existence of the student article on his stance caused pages of message board postings on Lafayette's forum, AGS... all of them. You're now asking me to believe - that while it caused heart palpitations across the fan bases of the entire league, that it had nothing to do with what happened in the vote on Monday and Tuesday? Come on now.

Weiss is responsible for his vote. He made it very clear days before how he was going to vote. His vote had clear, immediate consequences to one of the league's football members. And no amount of statements as to how many recruits he personally signed nor how difficult his job is changes that fact.

It is starting to look like this really could have broken up the football portion of the PL, though. There is a part of me that strongly believes that such a possibility arose in the meetings and the two-year extension was to preserve the status quo to see if some consensus could be reached.

[CrusaderBob]

He revealed his hand at a time when virtually every other Patriot League president, past and future, did no such weighing in on a subject that has been under serious discussion for at least two years, and under casual conversation for many more. (Fr. Brooks of Holy Cross is the only other exception to my knowledge.)

LFN

Just curious when and on what subject under consideration did Fr. Brook weigh in?

[carney2]

My personal belief is that the "postponement" did not occur because of one man, one school, or any threats to leave the League if scholarships were approved. In the end it came down to one word: passion. You and I, sitting up in row 47 week after week have the passion. We want it to happen in the worst way. My gut feel is that the academics on the pro-scholarship side were, and are, conflicted. They may have been willing to cast a yes vote, but in no way saw it as something of a life and death issue. The antis were a different story. At least two schools, in my opinion, did see it as a matter of life and death. My guess (and it is, and can be, nothing more than that) is that a few people showed a willingness to go to the mat. They did not threaten. They countered logic with zeal and it worked.