Tepper speaks at Carnegie Mellon

[WarHeel]

Didn’t realize he had his doctorate. Anyone know what he studied?

[KB_fan]

1 minute ago, WarHeel said:

Didn’t realize he had his doctorate. Anyone know what he studied?

Could be wrong, but I think CMU conferred an honorary doctorate in business today. He got his MBA there.

[RoaringRiot]

1 hour ago, t96 said:

He's hardly progressive or new age at all. More like John McCain or the Bush family than any progressives. And he's going to run this franchise very very old school like the Steelers have for 50 years--which isn't a bad thing, as long as he can do it right and not screw it up like JR did. Yet to be seen whether he succeeds though. I'm rooting for him.

Disagree. Not sure how you’re defining progressive, but this guy wants to win at all costs and will take calculated risks and go against the grain to get there. He’s absolutely not going to sit back and be conservative like this franchise has always seen. Neither McCain nor any of the Bush family ever bought a revenge house or flew their boys around on private jets going to events like they were on Entorage.

[Mr. Scot]

16 minutes ago, RoaringRiot said:

Disagree. Not sure how you’re defining progressive, but this guy wants to win at all costs and will take calculated risks and go against the grain to get there. He’s absolutely not going to sit back and be conservative like this franchise has always seen. Neither McCain nor any of the Bush family ever bought a revenge house or flew their boys around on private jets going to events like they were on Entorage.

He's speaking politically, not personally or footbally.

[tondi]

16 minutes ago, RoaringRiot said:

Disagree. Not sure how you’re defining progressive, but this guy wants to win at all costs and will take calculated risks and go against the grain to get there. He’s absolutely not going to sit back and be conservative like this franchise has always seen. Neither McCain nor any of the Bush family ever bought a revenge house or flew their boys around on private jets going to events like they were on Entorage.

That may be but there's nothing particularly progressive, at least not as it was meant in the earlier post, about building giant revenge houses or flying his kids around like royalty. 

[t96]

5 minutes ago, Mr. Scot said:

He's speaking politically, not personally or footbally.

No I'm speaking about what I perceive to be his core values which is the force behind how he will run the team and shapes his personal life as well.

 

22 minutes ago, RoaringRiot said:

Disagree. Not sure how you’re defining progressive, but this guy wants to win at all costs and will take calculated risks and go against the grain to get there. He’s absolutely not going to sit back and be conservative like this franchise has always seen. Neither McCain nor any of the Bush family ever bought a revenge house or flew their boys around on private jets going to events like they were on Entorage.

Progressive would be someone like Lurie for the Eagles letting his GM make a ton of splash moves with trades and signings. It was successful this year, yes, however I don't think Tepper will ever run the team like that. Winning at all costs isn't "progressive" or "conservative." You can want to win at all costs and fit into either those categories. Some things may be quite a bit different than JR but that's yet to be seen.

 

The way I predict it plays out is that Tepper will run the team very similarly to how JR ran it in terms of the philosophy behind it. The team will continue to be build through the draft without many trade or splash overpaying of free agents. I also expect us to continue focusing more on the defensive side of the ball and the run game like we always have and the Steelers have for decades before getting Antonio Brown and Big Ben and shifting away from that a little under Tomlin.

The differences I hope to see are: 

- We won't overpay our own players due to loyalty. That's a JR core value that isn't really part of this conservative philosophy that I believe Tepper shares. Tepper has been known to be ruthless as a business man and when it's time for one of our own to go I think he will know it, unlike JR.

- He will let the football guys do their job without meddling and will base all hiring decisions off of results. This goes off of the last point a bit as I think JR was too loyal to his coaches and GM (yes, singular...) as well as the players. 

- And going off the last point again, I think Tepper will be significantly more accessible and responding to pressure from media and fans if the team struggles without being adverse to making a change. For example, he was among the Steelers owners that wanted Tomlin fired this year. He won't live with mediocrity or inconsistency. 

- Not sure on this one but we may be more willing to sign more guys with questionable personalities or off field issues. This falls into the win at all costs that JR didn't quite have considering the Hardy fiasco. I think Tepper will be more open on this in order to win but it's yet to be seen. 

 

Overall I think Tepper will ideally be a much much better version of JR. Running a team old school isn't a bad thing as long as it can be done correctly and I hope Tepper can do that. But we really have no real evidence to base it off of so anything right now is just a guess.

[juliosantos]

im tearing up , great speech . i couldn't be happier to have him as the owner , seems like a humble guy

[t96]

58 minutes ago, WarHeel said:

Didn’t realize he had his doctorate. Anyone know what he studied?

Think it was honorary... got a BA in economics 

[RoaringRiot]

33 minutes ago, tondi said:

That may be but there's nothing particularly progressive, at least not as it was meant in the earlier post, about building giant revenge houses or flying his kids around like royalty. 

Boys meaning homeboys not kids. And he flew them around to party. The point of that is that he’s not ultra conservative like the McCain or Bush comparison.

When we spoke to Jessica Pressler (who did the profile on him that most of you have heard stories from) she indicated that he definitely wouldnt be afraid to mix things up. 

[RoaringRiot]

20 minutes ago, t96 said:

No I'm speaking about what I perceive to be his core values which is the force behind how he will run the team and shapes his personal life as well.

 

Progressive would be someone like Lurie for the Eagles letting his GM make a ton of splash moves with trades and signings. It was successful this year, yes, however I don't think Tepper will ever run the team like that. Winning at all costs isn't "progressive" or "conservative." You can want to win at all costs and fit into either those categories. Some things may be quite a bit different than JR but that's yet to be seen.

 

What is progressive about letting a GM make a big splash? That happens all the time. In fact, the Eagles did it a few years ago with the “dream team”.  I’m just saying he’s totally going to open to change/improvement/risk taking/new ideas, he’s got a history of it in his business career.

[Kevin Greene]

How can anyone say how Tepper will run this team until he does it? The previous owner promised us a Lombardi in 10 years. The same codger who thought he'd outsmart the NFL and gave us 2010, fug the fanbase.

Show us Tepper. 

[t96]

22 minutes ago, RoaringRiot said:

What is progressive about letting a GM make a big splash? That happens all the time. In fact, the Eagles did it a few years ago with the “dream team”.  I’m just saying he’s totally going to open to change/improvement/risk taking/new ideas, he’s got a history of it in his business career.

Big splashes like that are risks and actually really quite new in the sport. Yes many dumb owners do it nowadays but they never ever did in the past. To make this a bit easier, give me an example of something new that you think he may do compared to owners back in the day and how the Steelers and we have run things in general. Can you see him hiring a 30 year old like McVay or Shanahan? Or hiring a former player/analyst as GM? I really can't see that happening at all. I'm talking team building philosophy and philosophy on the field. Can you see a team under him building a top 3 offense while mostly ignoring the defensive side of the ball. That is a more new/progressive way to run a team. I can't see him doing that, based on what has been reported about him and his history with the Steelers. Yet to be seen but that's my guess.

[MHS831]

Many of you are missing a major point about him, based on what I have read.  Some call him ruthless and objective, but there is something about him that I can relate to--he is a survivor of abuse.  I have actually written a book about child abuse and brag that I am most proud of the fact that I broke the cycle of abuse by never hitting or belittling my children.  You have to think beyond your norm, accept a new reality and that reality is based on a strong commitment to your morals and ethics--things the people who are beating you are supposed to be developing.  Fear replaces love, and survival skills replace confidence you get from supportive adults.  When he refers to "breaking the cycle" as his greatest accomplishment in life, that was all I needed to hear about him.  It means he is an innovator, a person who makes decisions based on a code he created and was not taught.  He fights for what he is entrusted to protect without hesitation or mercy.  I  know because I have researched abuse and its victims and survivors.  I will include the link to my book should any of you find interest.  It is about the impact of competition in schools (I am an education professor and abuse survivor) and how it adversely impacts abused and neglected children.  https://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Desperation-Competition-Neglected-Children/dp/0761839933

[Pejorative Miscreant]

He’s not quite the recluse that JR tends to be.  He will be a bit more accessible but I think it will take a season or two for him to start changing culture where we can see it. 

No reason not to be optimistic about the future tho