Flight Series - Part 2: Coaches use flights to recruit new players
>>Print ViewPublication Date: 10/27/2009
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Editor's Note: On April 27, The Exponent filed a public information request for the flight logs of the three planes used to transport Purdue VIPs for the period of Jan 1, 2008 to date. This is the first in a five-part series examining the University's use of these aircraft.
Women’s basketball coach Sharon Versyp and men’s basketball coach Matt Painter spent an estimated $76,000 from Jan 1, 2008, to April 30, 2009, on flights for recruitment.
The athletic department is different from the other areas of the University who request flights because it is self-supporting.
“It generates 100 percent of its financial resources and receives no financial support from the University in the form of general funds, student fees, etc.,” Glenn Tompkins, senior associate athletic director of business, said in an e-mail. “Therefore, no ICA expenses, including individual and team travel, are paid with ‘university funds.’”
REQUESTING FLIGHTS
There are five people listed in the Turbine Flight Operations Primary User List from August 2009 from the athletic department. They are Painter, Versyp, head football coach Danny Hope, head volleyball coach David Shondell, and athletic director Morgan Burke.
Tompkins explained that some of the teams could submit a request for use of the plane, but only one sport would be small enough to travel on a University-owned plane.
“Theoretically, some of our teams could submit a request on this basis, but in practice, only our golf teams have small enough travel parties to be able to use a University plane,” Tompkins said.
James Almond, senior vice president of business and assistant treasurer, said in an e-mail the planes can be utilized by authorized users as long as there is a business purpose.
“There are no threshold levels,” Almond wrote.
RECRUITING
Versyp went on 36 flights between the questioned dates. All but one of those logs listed recruiting as the reason. The other trip, on Jan. 14, 2009, was listed as the Wooden Cup Award. Most of Versyp’s flights were to various parts of Ohio and Tennessee, with some occasional flights to Georgia and South Dakota.
Painter went on 33 trips, all of which were also listed as recruiting except one on Oct. 26, 2008, which was for Big Ten Media Day and included Versyp, six players, assistant sports information director Mark Leddy and associate sports information director Sara White. Painter’s flights were to places in Tennessee, Florida, Ohio, Wisconsin and Illinois. There was also one flight to Bloomington, Ind., on April 30, 2008, for recruiting.
Monroe County Regional Airport is about 2 hours and 9 minutes from West Lafayette.
Tompkins said the flight time is 32 minutes from West Lafayette, allowing Painter to interview a potential recruit in less time than it takes to drive there.
“Recruiting trips are often by car, but a coach may have a schedule conflict such as needing to be back for a game,” Tompkins said. “The timing of a recruitment visit is often not under the coach’s control. For example, if the coach wants to watch a prospect in a game, that dictates the travel schedule which must be coordinated around the coach’s on-campus responsibilities.”
POLICY FOR AWAY GAMES
Tompkins explained that the football team will travel by bus to Madison, Wis., and fly back. The same will be done for the game held in Ann Arbor, Mich. For football, he said they charter a Boeing 737-800 for the team and others that travel with them. According to the Delta Air Lines Web site, a 737-800 can accommodate 160 passengers.
For volleyball and basketball team travel, the athletic department charters a 30- to 50-passenger regional jet.
Each team utilizes one plane per trip.
“All of our charters depart from the Purdue Airport which minimizes missed class time for our athletes and provides financial support to our airport,” Tompkins said.
According to Tompkins, those permitted to travel with the teams must be an essential support function to the team or the trip.
“This is true for both out-of-state and in-state trips,” he said. “For example, the travel party for a football trip includes not only players and coaches, but also equipment staff, sports medicine staff (doctor, athletic trainers and strength and conditioning coach), staff to handle team operations, security, sports information, video crew, travel coordination, development staff, radio crew and cheerleaders.”
As for the Paradise Jam for the men’s basketball team in the Virgin Islands Nov. 20 to 23, Tompkins said the normal travel party is 32.
“Others may accompany the teams, but it would be at their personal expense,” he said.
Tompkins said team travel is more than just travel – it can be a complicated process.
“A team is traveling to compete in a sporting event which requires a number of support staff for successful execution,” he said.