D1.ticker - News from Wednesday, January 11, 2017

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New 1.Question: David Teel - Daily Press - Updates on the William & Mary AD search

It's an even 27 miles from Presbyterian in Clinton, South Carolina to Lander (DII) in Greenwood, so exiting PC Athletic Director, Brian Reese, may not even have to find a new house for his new AD gig. After six-plus years leading the Blue Hose, Reese will take over at Lander on the 17th of this month. Reese: "It is an exciting time at Lander University, and I am humbled to be selected as its new athletic director and to play an important role in the university’s future growth. […] It is my goal for Lander University to continue to strengthen as a national NCAA Division II power, and to have our student-athletes be a part of an overall great campus atmosphere." (link); Presbyterian Prez Staton appreciative of Reese's contributions, will name an Interim leader in the near future & conduct a full national search. (link)

"The nicest guy in college sports," College FB Playoff Executive Director Hancock, will continue to lead the premier FBS post-season affair with a new deal that runs through June of 2020. Hancock excited to continue forward, doesn't expect any major changes to the CFP format, wants to see more host cities be as successful as Tampa just was, points to effectively navigating committee turnover as a key challenge, believes the event can create new college FB fans. (link)

Former 11-year Santa Clara AD Coonan is the new Prez/CEO of the ECAC. Southern Connecticut State AD Moran thanks Inter-Collegiate Athletics Consulting for its work during the search process, adds, "Dan has a strong background in fundraising and cultivating relationships which is what the ECAC needs right now. His demonstrated management skills and strong work ethic will enable him to advance the ECAC’s mission, enhance the public perception of the organization and strengthen the value of membership benefits." (link)

Clemson won Monday night's CFP National Championship as the first department outside the Top 20 in overall department revenue since 2005. AD Radakovich: "It's a testament to understanding it's still about people. I think there's still pockets of places in this country where if you get the right people at the right time doing the right things, you can be incredibly successful. I really believe that. Without that, let's just look at USA Today and figure out who spends the money and those are going to be the ones that win. [...] It's not just all about money. It's about being at a place that embraces college football, that embraces those seven Saturdays every year. You want to get to a place that says, 'This is important.' Dabo's been the maestro to make sure it's stayed very, very important and at a very, very high level." (link)

This year's AFCA Convention concluded last night in Nashville & one of the most high-profile recommendations to come from the event is a mid-December early signing period. Stanford HC Shaw: "Players still have the power. The coaches don't have the power. If they don't want to sign that first signing day, they can sign that next signing day. We can try to pressure them, we can try to talk them into it, but it's up to them to decide." The recommendation will undoubtedly be debated at next week's NCAA Convention. (link); Additional notes from new AFCA Executive Director & former Louisiana-Monroe HC Berry include a "complete condemnation of Friday night games" by FBS HCs, giving student-athletes an opportunity to redshirt if they play in less than four games (would still keep five years to play four framework), the addition of a 10th AC & more. (link)

Ole Miss boss Bjork does not believe the latest AC hires for FB HC Freeze were impacted by the on-going NCAA process. "Obviously we were very, very transparent with the candidates in terms of what we could tell them, what we knew and what we thought was next. They had a few questions, but we didn’t lose anybody over it. That’s for sure." In the opposite direction, Bjork on background checks for the new ACs, "We did the same exact background checks we do for any coach that we hire whether it’s a volleyball coach or a football coach. Of course it’s a question that people are going to have and should ask, but in terms of cause and effect, nothing that deterred us or deterred anybody else." (link)

As he begins his second year on the job, Rutgers AD Hobbs says the "challenge is greater than I thought it would be" and vows to close the gap between the resources Rutgers can offer and what the rest of the B1G offers. "It's not going to be closed within a year. But the opportunity here at Rutgers is far greater than I thought it would be." While Hobbs explains that he can't discuss "in detail" the recent NOA sent by the NCAA, he is candid about the university's new drug policy, saying there are lots of reasons a student-athlete may use alcohol or drugs. "Years ago we criminalized everything. Today we understand some of these things are mental health issues...One of the parts that I feel good about in developing the new policy is that everybody had a voice at the table. We had our medical personnel. We had our coaches. We heard from our student-athletes. We heard from our administration on what is the best policy we can come up with." More. (link)

Fox Sports personality Travis breaks down the state of the College FB Playoff after three years, works through the rationale of TV ratings with two southern-based schools in the Championship Game & believes the perfect TV viewership scenario is a USC-Notre Dame/USC-Ohio State/USC-Michigan matchup to pull in large midwest, east coast & west coast markets. Notes the reason ESPN broadcasts the game, justifying high carriage rates to cable companies, instead of ABC where more eye balls are likely located & proposes a Friday night kick as opposed to Monday. Suggests running the clock after first downs & cutting commercial inventory in half, but charging double for the air time, both as improvement for length of game concerns. More. (link)

Idaho State AD Tingey indicates he & his fundraising team have rallied together small gifts, but needs one of the naming variety to make a dent on what's left on the $20M push for a new on-campus arena. "We’re beating the drum at this point. Myself, the president, and the basketball coach are going out and meeting with people to engage their interest and see if we can acquire a gift to help us build. We’re not even halfway yet, we’re just in the early stages of it. Once we get to halfway, it will help get other donors on board." Tingey points to the events center at Utah Valley as the blueprint, needs to reduce facility stress for hoops as the programs have to shift games between Holt Arena & Reed Gym. (link)

With an expected average salary of $50K, the new Pacific Pro FB League is being positioned as an alternative to college ball & expects to launch next Winter. Former NFL & Stanford standout Ed McCaffrey is one behind the effort, "It'll make sense for a lot of young men and a lot of families. We're hoping to provide them with that choice." Four teams is the initial startup point & pro style strategy will be the competitive focus. Notable sports agent Yee is also pushing, "We believe that the business environment is good for a project like this. We believe that the players are ready for a choice, and we think we can be a good supplement to other football products that are out there." (link)

Southwest has split the roles of Prez & CEO, with the former going to EVP for Strategy & Innovation Nealon, who returned to the company last year after a stint as CIO back from 2002-2006 & a body of work that includes leadership positions at PepsiCo Frito-Lay, J.C. Penny Co. & the Field Group. Nealon's role will specifically be responsible for oversight of commercial, financing, technology, corporate delivery and strategy. Nealon will partner with COO Van de Ven to form an "office of the CEO" & report to longtime $LUV Chairman Kelly. (link)

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New Mexico State AD Moccia says his department is "starting to run out of creative options to cut" after seeing its budget slashed by more than $1M the last two years. Reductions since the 2014-15 school year include $248,300 from state appropriations, $468,600 from tuition and fees and $454,301 from the instruction and general fund. In part, Moccia says some of the "creative options" include finding ways to do more with less: "We had postponed the search for the marketing director position…(and) we have yet to fill it so we have savings there. When (T&F HC) Orin Richburg retired (in August 2016), we appointed two of the assistants co-interim coaches so there was a savings there. We want to hire a full-time coach at some point this year, but we are delaying that search up a few months for now." NMSU is scheduled to repay the university an average of $1,188,332 over the next four years, including $1.4M in FY17. Moccia adds that coaches are willing to make these cost-saving measures work but that it "certainly puts you at an unbelievable competitive disadvantage." (link)

Learfield inks a 10-year deal with Little Rock, beginning with the 2017-18 academic year, marking the first time the Trojans have outsourced their multimedia rights. The pair have already been effectively working together as portfolio brands SIDEARM Sports & Learfield Licensing Partners were already embedded with Little Rock. Eight of twelve Sun Belt members are now part of the Learfield family. Trojans AD Conque impressed with his new partners, expects external growth. (link)

Texas Track HC Sategna, who has been on a personal leave of absence since September & was the subject of a school ethics & misconduct investigation, has been reinstated by the university. Although there were no details provided, a joint statement from Men's AD Perrin & Women's AD Plonsky says the school's concerns regarding the coach have been addressed & that Sategna must meet "appropriate responsive measures" in the future. Sategna also released a statement, indicating he had to address personal issues & was grateful to be allowed to return to coaching. (link)

Beer at ballgames: Starting with its home opener on March 3, Missouri will unveil a new premium seating area at Baseball's Taylor Stadium dubbed the 'Left Field Lounge Club,' which will allow fans the opportunity to buy beer & specialty menu items. A $100 donation to the Tiger Scholarship Fund will give fans a season membership to the new fan space or they can donate $20 to the TSF for access on a single-game basis. Interestingly, Left Field Lounge is also the name that Mississippi State uses to describe its tailgating area at Polk-DeMent Stadium. (link)

Upgrades: Wisconsin will install new digital boards & sound systems in the Kohl Center & the Field House this summer. $8M is the overall investment level. Also, on the 20th of this month the Badgers will unveil an update to its Facilities Master Plan which is expected to cover the next 10 to 15 years. More. (link); Rice is adding a 21.5' high by 47' wide 15HD pixel layout board to Baseball's Reckling Park. No specific completion timeline is mentioned, but the release does indicate the unit will be ready at some point in 2017. Daktronics is the partner & the Owls will also leverage Dak's Creative Services to populate the board. (link)

A quintet of former football players from Oklahoma, TCU, Texas Tech & Texas have filed a class-action lawsuit seeking damages from the NCAA & the Big 12 for brain injuries suffered during their collegiate careers. The 60-page complaint alleges breach of express contract, breach of implied contract, fraudulent concealment, negligence & unjust enrichment. "The NCAA and Big 12 specifically intended to induce a false belief in its student-athletes that they should continue to play and should not be prevented from playing their respective sports even after a concussion or several concussions that should have required time to heal." Further, it states the "defendants sacrificed player safety — including the plaintiffs’ and the class’ long-term health and well-being — in favor of profits and self-promotion." NCAA Chief Legal Officer Remy: "This complaint against the NCAA presents nothing new or unique to the many cases consolidated to federal court in Illinois. The theories in this case, like the others, simply are not supported by the law." (link)

The Big East launches its 'March to MSG' activation plan in lead-up to March's MBB Tourney in NYC's Madison Square Garden. The event's championship trophy will make its way around the league & started last night in Omaha for Creighton's win over Butler. Social media will be heavily leveraged to engage fans through a variety of challenges that include tickets & hotel accommodations. (link); Instagram expands its ad model & brands will "soon be able to run immersive, full screen ads in stories. Ads in stories will let you use targeting, reach and measurement capabilities that make your ads personally relevant to the people you want to reach—which is unmatched in a stories experience today." Early research shows 70% of users watch these ad units with the sound on. More. (link)

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Western Michigan AD Beauregard continues to support her FB program & says the school & former coaching staff were not fully knowledgeable of past behavior by former signee White. White's high school HC has again commented & indicated he provided all the necessary information & warnings to Broncos leadership. "The information reflected in the email from Mason school officials is simply wrong. […] The assertion that information was shared with our coaching staff is untrue. As you know, we cannot release student records without violating federal student privacy provisions. If we could, I would be able to share these documents with you, and this matter would be quickly put to rest. We will not, however, stand by while our program and the ethical standards we cherish and instill in our student athletes are unjustly maligned." (link)

East Tennessee State AD Sander expands on his quotes from a Bloomberg article earlier this week, saying the rising cost of coaching salaries and the downward trend of enrollment nationwide are among the factors which make him "nervous" about the direction of college athletics: "We don’t know exactly what the future of college athletics is in general and what the future, I mean, me personally, I have a real concern about the future of higher education. Because I think the model needs to change dramatically you know, but that’s just me." Despite his acknowledgment that bringing back football will likely not translate into reliable source of revenue, Sander maintains that re-establishing the program was worth it, saying what it has done for the community and the university has been a huge success. (link)

Louisiana announced contributions to the Ragin' Cajuns Athletic Foundation Annual Fund totaled $2.168M in 2016, breaking the previous record of $2.165M achieved last year. RCAF officials also revealed that total contributions in cash & pledges during FY16 approached $11M. RCAF Chairman Daigle: "As my term as RCAF Chair ends I will take pride in knowing the last two years were the most successful in the eight-year history of the RCAF organization." Pretty important data points for the search for a new AD. (link)

Profile piece on San Francisco Senior Assoc. AD Allocco, a former Notre Dame QB standout who originally came to USF as an assistant basketball coach. Several stories of his career revealed, including how his injury during his pro days with the 49ers allowed then-backup QB Montana to get some playing time, Allocco: "That was a pretty big break for him. And then, you know, the rest is history." Alum Traverso: "He’s amazing. He’s one of the best things that have happened to this school in a long time." More from Allocco: "There is a simple formula that works. The cornerstone of all great organizations is love." (link)

Georgia Southern & Armstrong State (DII) are headed toward a merger. Exactly what that means for the two athletics portfolios still seems to be anyone's guess. GSU Prez Hebert: "Athletics is an aspect of the consolidation that has to be decided upon early in the process because of the seasonality of athletics. This is a priority and we will get answers to students and coaches as soon as possible. We will work within conference requirements to resolve issues for student-athletes. Student-athletes’ scholarships will be honored throughout the consolidation process." Some Armstrong student-athletes verbalize their concerns on the unknown. (link)

Also Noticed: Middle Tennessee AD Massaro has hired Auburn AC Crawford to lead the Blue Raiders Women's Volleyball program. (link); The CAA's MBB Tourney Championship game will be broadcast on CBS Sports Network in March. (link); Virginia & Georgia FB will matchup in the 2020 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game. (link); Former Tennessee Women's AD Cronan is the inaugural recipient of the NCAA President's Pat Summitt Award. (link); The NFL's Chargers are headed to Los Angeles. Wonder what this means for San Diego State's use of Qualcomm Stadium? (link); In what should probably be no surprise given its new HC, FAU FB is in "preliminary" conversations with Showtime to be featured during next year's "A Season With" docuseries. (link); Pictures of construction progress on the Baseball facility at Louisiana. (link); The Butler-Georgetown MBB matchup on FS1 over the weekend set a high water viewership mark for the last two years with 1.02M engaged. (link); Fox Sports EVP Mulvihill adds to the narrative, "Thanks @NovaMBB for hosting us yesterday prior to facing @XavierMBB. Big East viewership up 15% this season and +74% over their 1st season." (link); WME-IMG is partnering with UNICEF. "The mega-agency will lend its resources to help create and distribute content that promotes UNICEF's humanitarian causes and identify opportunities to connect the organization with its clients and feature it in its vast portfolio of events" (link); San Francisco gets a massive $500M gift from the Helen Diller Foundation. One of the largest commitments ever in Higher Ed. (link)

The Daily Press' David Teel is back on 1.Q to update on the William & Mary Athletic Director search. Teel provides perspective on the search timeline, a continued belief it will focus on those who can raise money, the impact of James Madison's recent FCS National Championship, some thoughts on the department staffing situation, what Williamsburg is like from a style of life standpoint, if there's a particular "attitude fit" for the Tribe, an important HC hire that will likely be made in the not-so-distant future & lots more. Listen by clicking the link. - link (length - 15:43)

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(Posted from most recent over the last 30 days)

Executive Director, Athletics Development (Syracuse University / Syracuse, NY): Syracuse athletics is seeking an executive to lead all development activities for the athletics program, including direct oversight of the Orange Club. This will be a key senior leadership position. More details HERE.

Assistant Men's Soccer Coach - Goal Keepers (Appalachian State University / Boone, NC): Assist the head coach in the development and management of all facets of a NCAA Division I soccer program. More details HERE.

Senior Associate Athletic Director / Executive Director of the Mountaineer Athletic Club (West Virginia University / Morgantown, WV): The West Virginia University Foundation, Inc., is seeking a Senior Associate AD/Executive Director of the MAC to lead all development activities for the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics. More details HERE.

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Head Coach - Women's Soccer (University of Massachusetts Lowell / Lowell, MA): This position responsible for leading, developing and managing a competitive Division I program. To learn more and apply, please visit: jobs.uml.edu/applicants/Central?quickFind=55269. EOE. More details HERE.

Associate Athletic Director, Facilities and Capital Projects (UCLA, Department of Intercollegiate Athletics / Los Angeles, CA): This Senior Staff position will lead and oversee all aspects of current and future athletic facilities, Capital Projects, and venue scheduling related to the Department of Athletics. Requisition#25086. More details HERE.

Head Coach, Women's Soccer (The University of Delaware / Newark, DE): The Head Coach for Women’s Soccer is a valued member of the Head Coaches’ team within the Department and is responsible for all aspects of operating a fully funded NCAA Division I varsity program. More details HERE.

Head Coach, Women's Volleyball (The University of Delaware / Newark, DE): The Head Coach for Women’s Volleyball is a valued member of the Head Coaches’ team within the Department, upholding and embracing the departmental mission of “Inspiring Greatness Together.” More details HERE.

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