Do you plan for success?  Most people would say yes…it is the answer most expected.  Who wants to say no, I just let the chips fall as they may?  Bracket time is nearly on us and most sport analysts and sport news articles are talking about bubble teams and field expansion.

Big schools do this automatically and with great efficiency.  A few years back, Canisius College and Niagara University shared hosting a Men’s Basketball First and Second Round at HSBC Arena in Buffalo I was the host contact for VCU and my husband was the host for Duke.  We chose those teams because they were squared off in the first round and we would secure having a team in the second round.  Who, except for the fine folks from VCU, would have predicted it would not be Duke?

When VCU arrived in Buffalo I met the team at the airport, secured lunch for them during practice and took the administrative staff out for wings.  Their Associate AD and basketball manager were entered into my speed dial.  When Duke’s charter landed at Prior Aviation my husband and son were on the tarmac welcoming Coach “K” and his family to Buffalo.  That was it – a little “Welcome to Buffalo” and back to work.  Duke may have perfected planning for success.

Our coaches plan their travel each year and are expected to plan for the championship.  Several things happen when this is done.

1. They put themselves in a mind-set for success.  We never say “if” you qualify in any conversation but “when” you qualify.
2. Once they do qualify for any tournament they do not have to add team travel plans to their game preparation.
3. They can likely secure more economical transportation that last minute scheduling.

Championships do not get charged to their budgets.  Once the total cost of the tournament is calculated we transfer funds from outside their cost center in to balance.  This is where the great mystery occurs.  What black hole do these funds come from?  I would like to have a Championships cost center which would have an escrow amount in each sport line.  This way there would be no mystery and the college would not be surprised when they need to come up with funds to cover championships.  I continue to advocate for this but still have more hill to climb.

I would like to ask again: do you plan for success?  Please share with me how you plan championship funding and how your institution participates with you in championship success.

Jude Russo Caserta

AthleticBudgetCoach.com/blog

Twitter: JudeCaserta

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