I would argue that many of the people who were bashing athletic spending a couple years back have a good deal of egg on their face today.

A couple years back, one common argument was "spending on athletics with hopes that Ohio University will ever experience athletic success that positively showcases this school on the national level is nothing but a pipe dream."
The problem with that argument now is that Ohio has now seen that success on the national level.

Playing in the Beef O'Brady bowl, playing in the Potato Bowl, playing in the CBI. Spending money on these games isn't just about rewarding the current team. These postseason trips are good for the program as opposed to just this single Ohio football team.

5 straight bowls, the potential for 3 straight bowl wins. That is meaningful.

Being highly thought of enough as a fanbase to earn a bowl over a solid Toledo program when few thought it was in the cards. That is meaningful.

I think we have come a very long way in just a few short years. If you want to argue if we have the staff in place to continue this growth, that is one thing. It is perfectly logical to raise those questions after a disappointing season.

If you want to pretend all this spending has been for nothing and further plans to build the program is wasteful spending... I would say you are upset things worked out better than you thought possible and now you are grasping at straws.

This administration bet big on athletics and won. Top 25 rankings in football, bowl wins, Sweet 16 showings, OHIO on the front page of the USA Today, Yahoo Sports, sports illustrated features and even more people recognizing the OHIO university not named the Buckeyes..  Money well spent in my mind.

For years, many of the people who bashed athletics stated it was a very big bet. We were wasting a large amount of money on athletics when there were areas of greater need that the administration could put money into to raise the quality of Ohio Univeristy.

You talk about "joining the pack" but that is viewing athletic spending as the end game. Like spending the most is what the goal is... That isn't where the value in athletic spending is. The biggest return on our investment in athletics has come in increased visibility for this University. In that regard, the Ohio brand has pulled ahead of much of the MAC, not "joined the pack."
A couple years back, it would have been absurd to come on this board and argue bowl directors viewed "Ohio" as a bigger brand than "Toledo" yet here we are... In a bowl game over what many have argued was one of the biggest brands in the MAC.

Besides NIU who has benefited from their success in football, would anyone like to make the argument that another MAC school is generating more national brand recognition than Ohio currently in athletics? Over the past couple years, our wins have been of the high-profile variety. For what we have spent, it looks like a bargain to me.