Can ISU Athletics Restore their Image?

Photo courtesy ISU Athletics

NORMAL, Ill. – It’s all about the execution in sports regardless if you’re an athlete or not.

The same goes for ISU Athletic Director Larry Lyons as he looks to recover from the situation with his Plan for Social Change. Associate Dean in the College of Arts and Sciences Dr. Joseph Blaney, who has researched image restoration in sports, said that the plan put in place is both sincere and reasonable.

Dr. Joseph Blaney, courtesy ISU College of Arts and Sciences.

“What [Larry Lyons] is offering here in this action plan that they’ve got is essentially an apology or a mortification and a corrective action saying here is how we’re going to address it,” said Dr. Blaney. “Mortification and corrective action combined together is the textbook approach to a good organization speaking well.”

Dr. Blaney added if both the message and the plan are sound, there is an opportunity for ISU Athletics to succeed.

“I have every reason to believe that the athletic department is sincere about this and so I suspect that if they follow through with this that they will successfully repair their image, Larry Lyons in particular.”

While Lyons is off to a good start, it will essentially depend on the extent to which the plan is followed. If he and the athletic department can follow through with the changes, research suggests Lyons will be able to give athletes and fans confidence in the Plan for Social Change implemented by Redbird Athletics.