RIP Ron Mason

[byco42]

A little stunned that no one has mentioned the passing of Ron Mason (that I saw) -- an icon of college hockey who made the transition to effective athletic director. I had the pleasure of a 10-minute one-on-one at Metro Airport last New Years' Eve and he was engaging, personable and forthright with his observations the future of the B1G (he mentioned Florida as a possible future member), his own hiring of Dantonio over the objections of several regents and boosters, his satisfaction that Dantonio far exceeded his expectations. He also mentioned that Dantonio told him that the program was "not in as bad a shape as I expected" (Mason's words) and Mason credited JLS for getting the players academically sound. He sat down next to me and I asked him "I figured you'd be in Dallas" and after he mentioned he had an obligation at the GLI, off he went on a monologue. May he rest in peace.

 

[Spartanmack]

Yeah, it was unfortunate news. Did he mention anything about not hiring Kelly Miller instead of Rick Comley? That's maybe his biggest mistake at MSU in my opinion. Speculation was that he was protecting his legacy. That's hard to believe but I still think Comley was a bad call - even though he did win the NC in 2007, against significant odds.