It may be time for Tennessee athletic director Danny White to take a break from social media after raiding his fanbase’s wallet.
Depending on what circles you run in, White’s recent ticket increase, which was packaged as an NIL talent fee, was either incredibly deft or a violation of everything that college football stands for. I’ll explain.
Let’s begin with this. There are some that favor NIL and some that don’t think players should ever be paid anything, that a scholarship is more than enough. Given that Off The Hook Sports has participated in NIL ventures, I think you know where I stand on the issue. However, I can completely understand and respect the other side.
White thought he was being smooth when he used the term “talent fee” earlier this week in an email that informed season-ticket holders that he would be pulling a bit more cash out of their pocket, about 10-percent for the best seats in the house. In some cases, that could be a $2,000 per seat per year. Ouch.
Fans never like to see ticket prices go up, but some particularly dislike this one. The contingency of fans that don’t like players getting paid were particularly perturbed. They surely know that some of the money they pay towards Tennessee’s athletic department will go towards the UT’s players in the future, but some fans don’t want their nose rubbed in it. That’s essentially what White has done in some recent posts whether he realizes it or not.
White has teased fans with the notion of an absurd third deck on Neyland Stadium, which might as well have a direct shuttle to the nearby Neyland Entertainment District that is planned out and on the docket for the near future.
Then, White backtracked a bit.
It’s the latter part of that post that seems a bit overbearing to some fans that have reached out to Off The Hook Sports.
“In the meantime, all interested should get on the wait-list,” White posted. “That’s the best way for us to measure demand.”
In other words, just get in line to spend more money. That wasn’t the best look.
I fully support White in doing what he has to do, which won’t be easy. He will have to raise roughly $30-million that was not on his budget just a few months ago. Although I’m sure he knew it was coming, that’s a pretty big chunk of change.
One could argue that White is raising prices that could exclude the common fan. However, as a businessman, White sees the supply and demand, which is in his favor.
White knows that as long as Tennessee is winning, the demand will be there. White also knows that scoring a lot of points makes marketing much easier, which is why offensive guru/head coach Josh Heupel is such a great fit for White’s grand plans.
Here’s what I Iike about White that some may not. I like his aggressiveness and bold moves when it comes to building up Tennessee’s athletic department, particularly in football. He just needs to be aware that he has raised the stakes.
If Heupel’s offense is suddenly figured out or he decides to go to the NFL, there will be a lot of wheels in motion that will need to be paid for. I don’t foresee either of those happening and, apparently, neither does White.
Here’s why White is so confident and willing to be so bold even though some fans may not like it. He treats his employees very well. His coaches, particularly Heupel, haven’t had to have their agents to fight for a raise. White shares the wealth, which will make his employees more loyal. That wasn’t always the case at Tennessee when coaches felt they deserved more money. More often times than not, it was a battle. Not now.
Tennessee has been burned by a couple of head coaches bolting without warning. Football coach Lane Kiffin and basketball coach Kevin O’Neill come to mind. While I don’t see Heupel ever leaving Tennessee to return to Oklahoma, there is always that concern.
Any danger of that particular move is practically nil after the way Heupel was treated at Oklahoma when he was fired in 2014 and the commitment that White has made to Heupel, both financially and in support of facilities and NIL. Heupel would be crazy to leave for any other job given what we know about his relationship with White and what he has going for him at Tennessee. However, stranger things have happened. UT fans know that all too well.
That’s exactly why White has to be aggressive when he asks for your money again and again and again. That’s his job and he’s really good at it. He probably just doesn’t need to brag about it quite so much because one old-school segment of his fan base still has plenty of disposable income and makes some hefty financial decisions. Maybe they aren’t on X, but they hear about it.
I’m cheering for White and I think I’m in the majority. While no fan base will ever be completely unified, the fans that have had their feathers ruffled are some of his bigger boosters. Sure, they may be older and White may be planning for the future, but he doesn’t need to remind them quite as often or tease a third deck on Neyland Stadium.
Unless he’s not teasing.
