Here is how I'd rate some moments from her tenure:
Good[/b]
- Hiring Deboer: Although he wasn't her first choice
- Stadium renovations: This probably would have happened regardless of who the AD was
Neutral[/b]
- Hiring Hopkins: At the time this was an intriguing hire but in no way a "splash" hire. Coach in waiting behind Boeheim, good recruiter and tied into team USA basketball
- De-prioritizing football during the pandemic: Not sure how much of this was her fault
Bad[/b]
- Firing Jimmy and paying him his full salary
- Hiring Jimmy: Some reasons to think he was a good hire but also reasons to think he had worn out his welcome
- Brand/Game day experience: Can be so much better
That list just screams "mediocre" to me.
What else would you throw on here/change?
I think you are already answering your own question on the "Good" line items -- not sure we can truly credit her for bagging her third choice in DeBoer, and for renovations that had to happen anyways.
Let's chronicle some additional "Bad" items:
- Negotiating against herself with Jon Don and then firing/paying buyout 18 months later
- Her large (60%!!!) raise she gave herself in 2018, while attendances and revenue continued to decline through the Peterman era, and kept hidden for quite some time -- thanks for the 5% clawback during the pandemic, Jen
- Hopkins extension (the initial hire can be neutral, sure, maaaaybe even good until we got to the extension)
- All three of her NIL hires -- Ramming, the disbarred lawyer and now someone from Eastern Illinois of all places
- Burying the sexual assault allegations against Roy Shick (her assistant AD) in 2018 - her contribution being to let the fucker leave quietly with no consequences, and offering to "pay for therapy" for the affected student athlete
- The general state of the AD finances (yes, that's on you, Jen, not "upper campus")
- Persevering on the WSU matchup/relationship and talking openly in the media how she wanted UW to stay linked with them conference-wise
It's hard for me to see how you can even get to "average" or "mediocre" in terms of her ability as an AD. You really have to give her full credit for DeBoer (and Peterman too) to have even come close on the pluses and minuses side to a balanced set.
