New Prez a former Redskin? Good Omen for Thursday!

[Farley Face]

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071127/PKR01/71127209

[Farley Face]

I guess Rayner being cut by the Chiefs is a bigger scoop? No opinions on who will be guiding our franchise from the Packer faithful??

[HarveyWallbangers]

Give it more than 10 minutes before whining about no replies.

I don't know anything about the guy, so I don't have any thoughts. This guy could be the hard hitting, bald safety that played for the Pack as far as I know.

[Farley Face]

Do I need to start a "get your customized Redskins Mark Murphy Jersey" thread to get a response?

[Farley Face]

You are right Harv, my bad. I'll go back to trolling.

[HarveyWallbangers]

No, keep posting, but this is a dead period of the night. It looks like you, me, and numb are the only ones online right now. I'm pretty sure people will have plenty to say about this. This is a big decision.

Is this guy a "Green Bay guy?"

[HarveyWallbangers]

BTW, I hope it is a good omen.
:D

[Bretsky]

This is interesting; honestly I'm kind of surprised this was the best guy they could find experience wise. Maybe Reinfeldt was a pipe dream and the Texans were not going to give him the opportunity. But I'd be surprised if we hired a guy that lacked some more intense NFL background and experience

Bob Harlan has stated a few times that he has always felt it was very important to hire somebody with loads of background and experience in the NFL. Based on candidates being discussed I'm not sure the search committee would agree with that assertion.

Bob McGinn implies the Packers brass were keeping Harlan out of the interview process and selection process for the most part and he verbally stated in his opinion this was a big mistake. If this is the case I'm completely agree.

Concern is the new committee w/o Harlan becomes medlers in how the Packers are run.

Hopefully that will not occur

[MJZiggy]

The fight over whether he gets approved will be interesting to watch, then again since no one knew a thing about the selection process, I imagine we won't hear much about the approval/disapproval either. I think I'd have liked to see Wied get it.

[HarveyWallbangers]

This is interesting; honestly I'm kind of surprised this was the best guy they could find experience wise. Maybe Reinfeldt was a pipe dream and the Texans were not going to give him the opportunity. But I'd be surprised if we hired a guy that lacked some more intense NFL background and experience

Bob Harlan has stated a few times that he has always felt it was very important to hire somebody with loads of background and experience in the NFL. Based on candidates being discussed I'm not sure the search committee would agree with that assertion.

I never heard they wanted a guy with "intense" NFL experience. This guy is the former Redskins safety, so it's not like he doesn't have any experience with the NFL.

[Bretsky]

This is interesting; honestly I'm kind of surprised this was the best guy they could find experience wise. Maybe Reinfeldt was a pipe dream and the Texans were not going to give him the opportunity. But I'd be surprised if we hired a guy that lacked some more intense NFL background and experience

Bob Harlan has stated a few times that he has always felt it was very important to hire somebody with loads of background and experience in the NFL. Based on candidates being discussed I'm not sure the search committee would agree with that assertion.

I never heard they wanted a guy with "intense" NFL experience. This guy is the former Redskins safety, so it's not like he doesn't have any experience with the NFL.


Stop being a nitpicker :lol:

Does this guy have NFL office experience or was he just a player :?:

Torkelson, Barty Smith, Paul Ott Carruth; if we're just going to hire a player lets' find a guy with some roots :lol:

[Tyrone Bigguns]

I hate him already. What has he done for the pack so far? He is just doing nothing.

I don't care what he does cause if he doesn't reach the personal benchmarks i've established for him then he is a LOSER.

[Rastak]

This is interesting; honestly I'm kind of surprised this was the best guy they could find experience wise. Maybe Reinfeldt was a pipe dream and the Texans were not going to give him the opportunity. But I'd be surprised if we hired a guy that lacked some more intense NFL background and experience

Bob Harlan has stated a few times that he has always felt it was very important to hire somebody with loads of background and experience in the NFL. Based on candidates being discussed I'm not sure the search committee would agree with that assertion.

I never heard they wanted a guy with "intense" NFL experience. This guy is the former Redskins safety, so it's not like he doesn't have any experience with the NFL.

I kinda thought Harlen meant front office experience but he did say NFL experience.....so the fact he played fits that criteria.......and it is the Redskins Murphy not the Packer one, not that that matters much.

[RashanGary]

He seems pretty qualified to me. Hopefully he meets Ted Thompson and realized he knows what he's doing. Hopefully he's a guy that stays out of football opperations like Harlan did.

[cpk1994]

I hate him already. What has he done for the pack so far? He is just doing nothing.

I don't care what he does cause if he doesn't reach the personal benchmarks i've established for him then he is a LOSER.

Very nice Merlin impression! Dead on! :P

[b bulldog]

Diehard football fans will recognize him once they see his picture. I remember him from the Hogs era. I think he played S like our Murphy . He was apart of some very good Redskins teams.

[Bretsky]

This is interesting; honestly I'm kind of surprised this was the best guy they could find experience wise. Maybe Reinfeldt was a pipe dream and the Texans were not going to give him the opportunity. But I'd be surprised if we hired a guy that lacked some more intense NFL background and experience

Bob Harlan has stated a few times that he has always felt it was very important to hire somebody with loads of background and experience in the NFL. Based on candidates being discussed I'm not sure the search committee would agree with that assertion.

I never heard they wanted a guy with "intense" NFL experience. This guy is the former Redskins safety, so it's not like he doesn't have any experience with the NFL.

I kinda thought Harlen meant front office experience but he did say NFL experience.....so the fact he played fits that criteria.......and it is the Redskins Murphy not the Packer one, not that that matters much.


You are right in that he meant NFL experience in the front office....so he had a pretty good understanding of how the league works behind the obvious of what players and fans see. Who knows if this turns out to be good or not; hopefully this group doesn't mettle in the FB business

[swede]

The article I just read at the top of this thread suggested that he had experience as a player, possessed an ambitious and active intellect and continued his schooling during and after his NFL career, had obtained a law degree and spent four years in the justice department, had worked for the NFLPA, had a working relationship with Paul Tagliabue, and had worked as a College AD in a couple different programs.

That is almost a perfect template for the job of Packer President.

[The Leaper]

That is almost a perfect template for the job of Packer President.

Huh?

You need some BUSINESS experience, I believe. Running the Packers organization is a FOR PROFIT business. You have to know how to appease customers. You need to understand the small market obstacles facing the Packers in the big market business of the NFL.

Being a lawyer and working for the NFLPA doesn't seem to me perfect qualifications for running the Packers. It isn't bad...but I wouldn't label it perfect. I thought there were others in the running who actually possessed better qualifications in terms of prior experience. Guys who worked in high positions running other small market NFL teams with success.

[Patler]

Murphy might fit kind of nicely, especially with Wied also in the picture to form a front office "team" on the administration side.

Wied is awful young, 35 I think. He will be named the "President in waiting" at some point in the future is my guess.

Wied has a lot of current league experience, from what I have heard. Murphy is experienced with the Union and league negotiations with the Union. I suspect he had contacts at the league office other than just Tagliabue.

Much of the Packer job is PR. That was actually Harlan's background. Murphy as a trial lawyer and Athletic Director should be good in front of audiences, the press, etc. He should have good negotiating skills.

An AD also runs a big business, and a University athletic department is somewhat akin to the Packer structure. A University Board of Regents sets general policy, acts on major things but should stay out of the day to day running of the business, just like the Packer Board should. The close parallel is that, unlike general businesses, and even other pro-teams, there is no real owner in either the Packers or a University. Also there are no shareholders with any real power or influence. Each has to be run to sustain itself, not to make profit for owners. I think the parallels are there.

Murphy is obviously an intelligent, hardworking and ambitious guy. I think it could work well.

[Carolina_Packer]

Yeah, not many guys who go for their MBA while they are playing. I did read an article that said because of his style of play he had sustained about 6 or 7 concussions in his playing days.

I guess you just have to trust the powers that be that they know who's best for the job. As concerning as the 11th hour decision to back off of John Jones was, at least they saw the error of their ways and corrected it. Sure, it made them look silly, but they avoided what they saw and further problems.

[Cheesehead Craig]

I hate him already. What has he done for the pack so far? He is just doing nothing.

I don't care what he does cause if he doesn't reach the personal benchmarks i've established for him then he is a LOSER.
Well done! :lol:

[The Leaper]

An AD also runs a big business, and a University athletic department is somewhat akin to the Packer structure.

I would agree...but Northwestern?? That university is about academics, not athletics. Granted, it does provide some experience...but I'd rather have someone with NFL experience in that regard, not Northwestern AD experience. If he was the AD at Illinois or Georgia...I'd be more impressed.

I'm not saying this guy isn't qualified. He looks like a solid enough pick. I just don't think I'd say he has perfect qualifications. Few candidates would, but I did feel there were a couple of other guys who had stronger qualifications ON PAPER...although that isn't all that meaningful.

Harlan's position is basically what the owner is to other franchises. The board also has a say in Green Bay, obviously, but they aren't the face of the organization that Harlan is. That is why I think business experience is very important. Most successful owners have some kind of business background.

[Patler]

Looks like Murphy has done well. From the Northwestern website (emphasis mine):


Mark H. Murphy was named the 20th director of intercollegiate athletics and recreation at Northwestern University in June 2003, and has been at the helm for four of the finest athletic years in school history.

In the past four years, Murphy has overseen a 19-sport program that has won nine conference team championships and 34 individual Big Ten titles, including 13 in 2006-07 alone. Northwestern has garnered 13 conference Coach of the Year accolades, 19 Player of the Year and 11 Freshman of the Year honors. A total of 49 student-athletes have earned first-team All-America distinction, with 32 of those honors coming in the last two years (16 in both 2005-06 and 06-07). There have been eight individual national championships (four coming in 2006-07) and three NCAA team titles, 216 all-conference honorees and 505 Academic All-Big Ten certificates in Murphy's tenure, along with 10 CoSIDA Academic All-America awards and 28 CoSIDA Academic All-District honorees.

NU had its best sports season in program history in 2005-06. Eleven sports earned postseason berths, and women's lacrosse and men's swimming's Matt Grevers successfully defended their NCAA championships from the year before. Cristelle Grier and Alexis Prousis of women's tennis won the 2006 NCAA doubles championship to add to Northwestern's exploding total of titles. Softball nearly made it two team titles in 2006, advancing all the way to the final pairing of the Women's College World Series.

In 2006-07, the Wildcats continued to improve as a department, sending 10 sports to the NCAA postseason and earning an astounding four individual national titles (three for men's swimming) and one NCAA team title courtesy of women's lacrosse.

As a department, Northwestern finished 30th in the U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup standings with a school-best 626.5 points. NU has been in the top-30 in the standings for the past three seasons. Northwestern finished sixth among Big Ten schools for the third-straight year after not placing higher than ninth in any previous season.

Following the 2006-07 season, Murphy was named the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) AstroTurf Football Bowl Subdivision Central Region AD of the Year.

"I am very excited about the future of our program," says Murphy. "We offer student-athletes a truly unique combination-a chance to receive a first-class education at one of the top universities in the country while playing athletics at the highest level. I think we can serve as a role model for schools nationally by showing that you can combine excellence in athletics with excellence in academics."

A former professional football player who holds both a law degree and an MBA, Murphy brought a record of similar success both on and off the field from his 11 years as athletic director at Colgate, a member of the NCAA Division I Patriot League. During his tenure, Colgate's football program went from 0-11 in 1995 to three consecutive appearances in the NCAA I-AA playoffs, and the men's basketball team twice advanced to the NCAA Tournament. The Colgate women's soccer team captured eight Patriot League championships and made three NCAA tournament appearances, while the women's volleyball team went to the NCAA tournament twice. In addition, the softball and men's ice hockey teams also made appearances in the NCAA tournament.

During that same time, Colgate, like Northwestern, had some of the highest graduation rates for student-athletes in Division I athletics. Northwestern's graduation rates for student-athletes are perennially among the best in Division I-A while Colgate also has been in the top 10.

"Mark understands our goals and values at Northwestern: to maintain the highest academic standards while competing at the highest level on the field and providing outstanding recreational opportunities for our students," says Northwestern President Henry S. Bienen when he first introduced Murphy. "We are confident that, under his direction, Northwestern's athletics will continue its recent track record of success and our club sports and recreational offerings will be enhanced even further for the entire Northwestern community."

A 1977 graduate of Colgate, where he was captain of both the football and baseball teams, Murphy brings a varied background to his position. He holds a master's in business administration from American University and a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center. He worked on his MBA in the off-seasons while a player for the Washington Redskins pro football team.

Murphy was a safety for Washington from 1977-85, co-captain from 1980-85, co-captain of two Super Bowl teams and a first-team Pro Bowl player in 1983. When he completed his playing career, he served as assistant executive director of the National Football League Players Association.

After receiving his law degree, Murphy was a trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice. He also served as a radio commentator for NPR for 10 years, analyzing football games and commenting on other sports issues.

Murphy became Colgate's athletic director in 1992. During that time, he significantly improved the school's athletic facilities, including a new fitness center, an Astroturf stadium for field hockey and lacrosse, a cross-country trail, and improvements to numerous other athletic facilities.

Murphy and his wife, Laurie, who also is a Colgate graduate, have four children: Katie, 24, a graduate of Harvard who played basketball for the Crimson; Emily, 21, a junior at Middlebury; Brian, 18; and Anna, 16.

[MadScientist]

Looks like Murphy has done well. From the Northwestern website (emphasis mine):


Thanks for digging up Murphy's bio. He has a track record of success, lets hope it continues. His biggest weakness is that he doesn't have recent NFL experience, but that might not be such a bad thing, since he won't have 'his own guys' to bring in on the football side of the organization, but since he is an outsider, he doesn't have any reason to keep people who aren't working out.

I had been rooting for Brandt, but perhaps that would have caused some issues when a guy who was working for TT suddenly becomes his boss.

[Cleft Crusty]

Murphy is still holding a grudge against the Packers for getting whipped on the MNF game back in 1983. I mean, he blew the coverage on Gerry Ellis, allowing a huge completion down the middle for the Packers' final score. It wasn't his fault that Moseley botched the final FG, but for a guy having a career year with 9 INTs, you think he could have stepped up in that game. I don't trust defensive backs as a rule, and I suspect there are evil, hidden motives behind that craggy facade.

[Patler]

Thanks for digging up Murphy's bio. He has a track record of success, lets hope it continues. His biggest weakness is that he doesn't have recent NFL experience, but that might not be such a bad thing, since he won't have 'his own guys' to bring in on the football side of the organization, but since he is an outsider, he doesn't have any reason to keep people who aren't working out.
.

I think that's where Jason Wied comes in. It has been mentioned that Wied has attended all league meetings for several years, and has been learning the ropes quickly. Further, Murphy will not be a stranger to many in the league administration from his careers as a player and as a union official after his playing days. He is not a true outsider, as someone from the business world with no NFL background would have been.

If he was a close to Tagliabue as some articles have implied, I suspect he is known in league circles.

[The Leaper]

Following the 2006-07 season, Murphy was named the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) AstroTurf Football Bowl Subdivision Central Region AD of the Year.

My my...that is a mouthful.

Were they able to fit all of that on the award he got?

[The Leaper]

I still think NFL front office experience trumps being a college AD...but he's not a poor choice.

[pbmax]

I think being Athletic Director at Colgate and then Northwestern might have better prepared him for the small market realities of Green Bay's NFL franchise than you might think at first glance.

I am glad they didn't just pick the most recognizable names off a press release or the search firms first survey. That's good.

Lawyer? check. Knows Upshaw, Tags and possibly Goodell? Check. Management experience? Check. Has managed both people and complex organization with a sales and operating budget? Check.

Former Redskin who might reverse the weird juju of Lombardi retiring from the Packers only to go coach the Redskins? Check.

I would fear Harlan's warning about league experience more if he hadn't been so far wrong with Jones for years. Has anyone seen an explanation of how Harlan had been so wrong for so long that it only came to a head in the month before JJ's ascension?

Was the revolt against JJ from those under him or did the anti-Jones people find allies on the board?

[pbmax]

Oh and to second the thought, if the exec committee, board or Murphy start to interfere with the GM total authority package, I am selling my single fractional share of stock.

[Merlin]

Hopefully there isn't some secret scandal to follow this selection. Bob Harlen has done a great job for the Packers and he will be sorely missed. I think this guy has the qualifications and is taking over a team on the rise so he has the success there already to build on. Much of the job is PR but he also makes personnel decisions (e.g. GM). Harlen did a great job at that and kept the Packers winning and was there for the fans during the hard times.

[FritzDontBlitz]

That is almost a perfect template for the job of Packer President.

Huh?

You need some BUSINESS experience, I believe. Running the Packers organization is a FOR PROFIT business. You have to know how to appease customers. You need to understand the small market obstacles facing the Packers in the big market business of the NFL.

Being a lawyer and working for the NFLPA doesn't seem to me perfect qualifications for running the Packers. It isn't bad...but I wouldn't label it perfect. I thought there were others in the running who actually possessed better qualifications in terms of prior experience. Guys who worked in high positions running other small market NFL teams with success.

He was athletic director at Northwestern for the past 4 years. Contrary to popular belief, Northwestern is a Big 10 school.

Harlan was brought to Chicago to meet and interview they guy, so apparently he's OK with the choice....

[Tyrone Bigguns]

If he doesnt' fire TT he is a loser. I've seen a total decline in the accounting department. They need to go. The whole bi weekly pay period is a sham.

It is day two and I can't see any visible improvement in the Packers. The running game is still weak. Our guards can't block.

So what if he brought in a new coffee maker and put up pictures of his family. That doesn't help the team.

[FritzDontBlitz]

The thing I like about hiring Murphy is he started at safety for a hard hitting Redskins' defense when they were making all their Super Bowl appearances, so he knows what it takes to win. He's probably not some amoral numbers cruncher who only watches the bottom line. I think he is the perfect compliment to TT.

[HarveyWallbangers]

Not everyone's sold on Murphy
By Pete Dougherty

The Green Bay Packers’ board of directors meeting on Monday will be one of the most important, intriguing and spirited in years.

Early Monday afternoon, the Packers’ executive committee will introduce Northwestern University athletics director Mark H. Murphy to the board as its candidate to replace outgoing Chairman Bob Harlan as head of the 89-year-old organization. The committee was negotiating a contract with Murphy over the weekend.

However, the 45-person board must approve his nomination by a simple majority, and interviews with sources from the board, the team, as well as outsiders with considerable knowledge of the board’s workings, suggest as many as one-third of the board’s members appear ready to vote against Murphy, with that number potentially growing or dropping depending on what happens behind those closed doors at 1265 Lombardi Ave.

“Fireworks could be an understatement,” one board member said of the likely atmosphere at the meeting.

Based on interviews with the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the “no” votes wouldn’t be based on Murphy’s resume or reputation, which appear to be solid.

Instead, there are factions that want to hire a local candidate — team vice president Jason Wied or board member Tom Olejniczak — rather than bring in an outsider to run the team for the first time.

There’s also a group of perhaps 10 or 12 board members who perceive that executive committee members Carl Kuehne and perhaps John Bergstrom marginalized Harlan’s role in the search for a time, then took the lead so a candidate of their preference could increase their influence in the organization.

Opinions from numerous sources diverge on the degree to which Kuehne and Bergstrom pushed the selection process, but the perception of board members is important.

Several board sources said the 10-person search committee was composed of many quality people who worked diligently, but some of the sources, based on observing the search and attending two board meetings on the matter, believe Kuehne and Bergstrom were the driving forces and brought Harlan back at the end of the search only because they need his support to get the board to approve Murphy.

That’s spurred fears among other board members that the organization could slide back from the successful model Harlan established and that makes the Packers an attractive NFL franchise for football executives and coaches: The general manager is given ample resources and complete control over football matters, and he and his coach sink or swim based on their decisions without influence from other team executives.

Harlan will chair the meeting, and the executive committee will introduce Murphy. Murphy will make a presentation to the board, then will leave the meeting while the board discusses his candidacy and votes by secret ballot.

Perhaps Murphy’s presentation will mollify concerns, sway some “no” voters to approve him, and get him voted in by a large majority. On the other hand, based on dissension on the board, there probably will be a lively debate, and there’s no telling what could happen if it becomes drawn out and heated.

The executive committee appears confident Murphy will be approved, but even so, if one-third or more of the board votes against the nomination, it would be something of a no-confidence vote.

One factor that lends to a potentially close vote is the secret ballot, which is new for the board. In past votes on hiring presidents, the board voted openly by a raise of hands. That minimized the chances of dissent, because most members were reluctant to have the executive committee see them vote against its recommendations for fear of losing their prized spot on the board. But the board changed the team’s bylaws for this vote, and the secret ballot should embolden dissenters.

Murphy, 52, though not the perfect candidate, has a good resume and reputation. He has an master's degree in business administration from American University and a law degree from Georgetown.

Sources from across the Packers’ organization — football, administration and the board — who researched him over the past few days had encouraging reports about his calm, deliberate temperament, intelligence and history for letting his coaches run their programs as an athletics director at Colgate and Northwestern.

Nevertheless, there’s concern among the football staff about a major change in leadership in what’s been a successful organization since the early 1990s. They wonder whether Murphy, who played in the NFL from 1977 to 1984, will try to influence football decisions, and administrative staffers and some board members fear he’ll bring in colleagues from his past to fill upper-management jobs with the Packers. Those are issues Murphy will have to address Monday if the board approves him.

Among some board members, there’s concern about Murphy’s lack of experience in NFL administration — he’s never worked for a team in that capacity — after the search committee told the board this fall that NFL experience would be priority No. 1.

The executive committee will argue Murphy has compensating qualities to ease his transition. He has some contacts in the league because peers from his NFL career are in upper management of NFL teams. He’s participated in NFL collective bargaining as a member of the players’ negotiating team during the 1982 strike, and later worked as an assistant executive director for the NFL Players Association. He’s an attorney by training, though presumably his knowledge of the NFL’s current and complicated collective-bargaining agreement is minimal.

Two sources said the executive committee has asked Harlan to remain with the team for another year to help Murphy’s transition to the NFL. Harlan would work part-time as an adviser and would attend league meetings to introduce Murphy to team owners and presidents from around the league.

Murphy will have to get up to speed quickly on major matters, most notably the CBA, because the players and owners can opt out of the agreement in November. If one side does, the Packers will want a respected voice to look out for their interests and the league’s interests in negotiations with the players.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell must sign off on the Packers’ choice, as well. No doubt Murphy’s relationship with former commissioner Paul Tagliabue, Goodell’s predecessor, helped. Murphy and Tagliabue became acquainted during the 1982 strike, when Murphy was on the players’ negotiating team and Tagliabue was an attorney representing the league. Murphy has said Tagliabue helped him immensely in his career.

It’s unclear whether Tagliabue recommended Murphy to the Chicago-based search firm that gave the Packers their initial list of candidates, and the Packers didn’t contact Tagliabue about Murphy. But it’s safe to assume the former commissioner gave Murphy a good recommendation to Goodell.

Murphy was one of three finalists for the job. Sources said Wied was another, though two said that was as a courtesy to Harlan, who’s known to have recommended him for the job. Coach Mike McCarthy strongly supported Wied’s bid, though Wied’s youth — he’ll turn 36 later this month — precluded him from being a serious candidate for some search committee members. The third finalist hasn’t been identified publicly.

Sources said former Packers vice president Mike Reinfeldt never was a candidate. Reinfeldt, who’s executive vice president and general manager of the Tennessee Titans, never showed interest in the position, and the search committee never pursued him.

The sources didn’t know whether Titans owner Bud Adams blocked Reinfeldt from pursuing the job, though there’s as good a chance Reinfeldt was unwilling to leave the Titans after only one year as GM. He and Adams have a close friendship that goes back to Reinfeldt’s days as a player for the franchise.

If Murphy is approved, he’ll take over an organization that’s in excellent shape financially and on the field. The Packers have a preservation fund of about $125 million and made a profit of about $22 million last year. Also, in Ted Thompson’s third season as general manager and McCarthy’s second season as coach, the Packers have a 10-2 record, which is second-best in the NFC.

Harlan signed a five-year contract when he was hired as Packers president in 1989, and the Packers probably will sign Murphy to a four- or five-year deal. The contract probably will be worth about $1 million a year. However, Murphy and members of the executive committee are subject to board approval every year.

[Harlan Huckleby]

he must be wearing a hair piece, because I swear he was bald during his playing days.