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George Washington AD Nero set to exit at the end of the month, a move that will cap off six & a half years of leadership on Foggy Bottom. Nero: "The department has recently concluded a very successful five year era driven by our 2012 Strategic Plan. I am also completing my 30th year in intercollegiate athletics, the last 15 of them in a leadership position. This is a good time for me personally and the university to make a change, it allows for fresh perspective and ideas to continue the momentum the department has gained these past six years." Provost Maltzman highly complementary of Nero's tenure, points to Deputy AD Vogel as Interim AD, though Nero will be available through the Spring semester to provide support. (link)
ESPN: As you likely know, Worldwide Leader Prez Skipper announced his resignation yesterday citing substance abuse challenges. Former Prez Bodenheimer to return for a 90-day interim leadership role. Disney boss Iger: "I join John Skipper’s many friends and colleagues across the company in wishing him well during this challenging time. I respect his candor and support his decision to focus on his health and his family." (link); SBJ/SBD's Ourand was all over the news, points to EVP/Affiliate Sales & Marketing Connolly - who also led the launch of the SEC Network - as a possible permanent replacement for Skipper. Ourand also lists Disney Senior Executive VP/Chief Strategy Officer Mayer, Chair of Disney Consumer Products Pitaro, former ESPN #2 & current F1 Chief Commercial Officer Bratches, Endeavor co-Prez Shapiro & Facebook COO Sandberg as others who could be in the running. (link); Wall Street Journal's Flint believes the race will come down to Connolly or EVP/Content Schell. (link); Sports Illustrated's Deitsch wonders if we could see less investigative journalism from Bristol over the next two years with Skipper no longer in place. (link)
$15.2M is the largest gift in Virginia Tech athletics history & will help the Hokies push forward on a new $16.5M Student-Athlete Performance Center. The donors behind the commitment are anonymous, other than a note that they're Virginia natives. The new digs will be connected to Cassell Coliseum on the fourth floor of the Jamerson Athletic Center & feature 17K square-feet of dining, nutrition, donor hospitality & recruiting space. Hokies AD Babcock: "These upgrades will enable us to utilize this space 300 times a year rather than 50. It makes a huge statement to our commitment and vision to be the preeminent program in the ACC." (link); More from the Daily Press' Teel as Babcock points to a 20-month completion timeline for the project (fall of '19). (link - scroll down)
Georgia AD McGarity and Sr. Assoc. AD for Sports Medicine Courson Q&A with the Athens Banner-Herald on the Dawgs revised substance abuse policy. Courson recounts wanting to change the thinking of substance abuse violations from discipline issues to medical issues. The revision has been in the works since 2015 and FB HC Smart had "zero" influence on the policies. Courson: "There’s really not any significant changes. The biggest thing is we try to, number one, make it consistent with pre-existing policy with the university to mesh with the amnesty and Good Samaritan that the university has. To mesh with the current university drug and alcohol policy on level one and level two violations. Then we tried to make it more individualized. One of the things we also did was we outsourced our substance abuse treatment education. We want to put it in the hands of professionals." Four football student-athletes have been arrested this year on marijuana-related charges, including starter Patrick, who has been cuffed three times since 2015. (link)
Yahoo's Thamel writes on what to expect with FB's early signing period coming later this week: 1) Established staffs expect to sign 2/3 to nearly all of their recruits for the 2018 class, new staffs are pushing prospective student-athletes to "pump the brakes" & wait for February; 2) The life of a bowl-bound HC right now is pretty, pretty busy; 3) ~400 ACs could switch jobs after the signing window is over & some expect us to see our first $2M coordinator; and, 4) Long-term impact still a bit unknown, but traditionally premier programs may be at a disadvantage. A bit more. (link)
And then there's the situation at UAB as the Blazers will be in the Bahamas during the early signing period, prepping for its post-season matchup against Ohio. HC Clark: "We do have phone service, that was checked on last week, and so we'll be dealing with that along with practice. We practice mornings so it's going to be interesting. […] With these high school guys there's such a connotation with that first Wednesday in February, that's a big deal, and I think there's some trepidation there on signing early and what does that mean to them. I know that's a big day and maybe in some of their minds it's almost like it's been taken away from them so I'll be interested to see, even guys that we know are coming here, if some of them don't sign. I hope they do, a guy that's truly committed should go ahead and do it." (link)
SBJ/SBD: Notable industry leader Sutton has dipped into college athletics once again with his Teall Investments, this time its the retail merchandise space as former IMG College/ISP leader Hough will direct the new Dyehard Fan Supply. Sutton, Hough & company are looking to roll-up a handful of businesses that together can create synergies to better the gameday retail experience. North Carolina-based Team Retail Solutions was the first to get scooped up. Sutton: "There’s got to be a better way to deliver customer service, the white-glove treatment and just a better connection with fans on game day. What we hope to bring is a much more polished approach to this space." (link); More from Ourand, this time on the Disney-Fox deal & of particular note is that Home Team Sports is not part of the agreement. (link); Ourand's annual media predictions for 2018 include an expectation of Disney-Fox to get federal approval, the sell-off of some RSNs to Comcast & AT&T, the Mountain West rejecting a deal with ESPN to go with Facebook Live, YouTube moving into local sports, PASPA gets overturned, more. (link); Down in the weeds, but an excellent pod from Ourand with Fox Sports sales leader Lefkowitz on the future viability of six-second in-game ads, a key topic as we continue to push for shortened game times. (link)
Flynn Heath Holt Leadership Principal Kathryn Heath shares for HBR: "3 Simple Ways for Women to Rethink Office Politics and Wield More Influence at Work." After surveying 134 senior executives, tendencies showed men describe office politics as "competition," whereas women call it "a natural part of influencing." The study revealed 81% of women and 66% of men believe women are judged more harshly than men when they are seen as "engaging in corporate politics." Advice for women: 1. Create relationship maps (know who to influence); 2. Construct a scaffolding (find "agents" and "truth tellers"); and, 3. Think bigger (don't doubt your ability to wield influence... own your vision). (link)
Experiencing the World presented by Anthony Travel
The Advocate's Ching: "Is it really important to dominate college football recruiting in your own state? It depends... ." In this third installment on LSU FB recruiting Ching contends that schools like Tennessee, Oregon, Oklahoma, Kentucky and West Virginia must seek talent outside of state lines, but that recruiting well at home is "more of a necessity" for the Tigers. ESPN National Recruiting Director Luginbill: "If we’re speaking about the state of Louisiana, I think it is more important to dominate your own state when you don’t have a competitor at the Power 5 level within your state. Because you then start to run thin on excuses. Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Florida — they have multiple schools competing, and I get that. But when you’re LSU, I think there is a higher expectation level to keep the best players at home — and by and large — 90, 95 percent of the time — they do." One interesting note, however: "Of the 25 top-tier programs that signed the highest percentages of in-state players over the past decade, only 12 posted a winning record in the 2017 regular season." During that timespan, when comparing teams in the latest CFP top-25, TCU led the way with 73.1% of in-state signees, followed by USC (66.6%), Miami (65.8%), Georgia (63.1%), and LSU (54.1). To Ching's point, Notre Dame (7.73%), Oklahoma State (15.2%), Oklahoma (15.7%), Washington State (16.6%) and Northwestern (21.8%) ranked lowest among in-state signees. More graphics and stats to illustrate the point. (link)
 presented by Anthony Travel
The changing face of ADs as Arizona State law leader Wong updates the latest look at characteristics of those who sit in the chair. "Four in 10 current Division I ADs had previous AD experience prior to entering their current role. Of those, the average length of their previous AD experience was 8.5 years. So, while it is certainly important, it is not absolutely necessary to have previous AD experience to be hired into the role. Those numbers change, however, when the Power 5 conferences are isolated: In those conferences, 64 percent of the current AD had previous AD experience prior to entering their current role. This wide gap is demonstrative of a principle that has long been evident in the business world: The more lucrative and powerful a business enterprise, the more experience and proven success is valued. Translating that principle to collegiate athletics can help explain why Power 5 schools tend to place a premium on experience when looking to fill vacancies in their departments." More. (link)
I haven't read every part of this eight-segment oral history on Tennessee's recent FB HC search, nor will I given the track record of media around the state who contributed to the effort. However, upon glancing, there are a couple of notable passages, such as this from senior ESPN writer McGee, "I think the game has now changed for everyone involved in the process of hiring big-time college coaches, from ADs and agents to search firms and boosters. Their committee now has a new member at the table – the social media-powered public. That will ultimately be what tells the truth about what happened with Tennessee fans and Schiano. If this story uniquely stands the test of time, then so be it. But if fan bases start grabbing up digital pitchforks every time a coach they don’t care for is interviewed for a job at their school, that’s a routine and a road I have zero interest in traveling down again." (link)
Washington State FB HC Leach inks his new deal in Pullman & it's of the five-year variety. Base pay starts at $3.5M next season, up to $3.75M in '19, then $4M in '20 with a $750K retention bonus if he's still with the Cougars after 2020. $3.5M will put Leach in the top half of Pac-12 HCs. WSU's AC pool up by $400K to $3.14M, plus Prez Schulz notes the need for a new indoor facility. (link)
More HC & Personnel Notes: Looks like Kent State AD Nielsen has selected Syracuse OC Lewis to take over the Golden Flashes program. (link); Morgan State is yet another HBCU that will hire a new FB HC, but not until after the 2018 campaign. (link); North Carolina A&T HC Broadway may retire or he may ink an extension to continue leading the Aggies, who recently completed a 12-0 season. (link); USF AD Harlan will start the search for a new Women's Golf HC. (link); Madison Square Garden brass promote VP for Corporate Development Lustgarten to Prez. (link); Liberty AD McCaw goes with Texas A&M AC Johnson as the new Women's Volleyball boss in Lynchburg. (link)
Adidas is the latest mega swag brand to pivot on its digital plans as it pushes the unit back under existing departments & no longer a standalone initiative. Reports indicate Three Stripes will focus on Runtastic & its shopping app, as well as continued alignment with Fitbit. engadget's Fingas: "It's part of a broader effort to make Adidas a more responsive company, and folding the digital team into other areas may help if it speeds up decision making and makes technology a mainstay of the company's products." (link)
The Jr. NBA World Championships will be held at Disney's Wide World of Sports Complex for the first time next August as the NBA looks to create a seminal youth event akin to the Little League World Series. Eight domestic regions & eight international will make up the field. Ages: 14 & under. NBA Prez of Social Responsibility & Player Programs Behrens: "As you know, we worked together with USA Basketball over the course of the last 18 months to develop a set of standards and guidelines for youth basketball, and so this tournament, I think, represents in a way that nothing else that we’ve done before does." More. (link)
The Connected Fan Sponsored by From Now On
The ACC & Pac-12 will join the SEC in having their own dedicated SiriusXM channels. (link, link); NBC acquires the right to stream all Sunday Night NFL games onto mobile devices. This piece of the NFL rights pie opened up last week when Verizon gave up its mobile exclusivity in exchange for streaming rights for all games across its media properties. (link)
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Here's how Colorado State AD Parker sees the current gap between 'Group of 5' FB & 'Power 5' counterparts, "There's a big gap between a need and a want. I think we fulfill every need that I've seen on our campus as it relates to intercollegiate athletes. The list of wants is extensive and there's probably not a budget to address every one of them. That's the space we live in, making those tough decisions and prioritizing them. Not convincing ourselves that this thing that might look and seem nice is a necessity when it really isn't it. […] I think a lot of emphasis is placed on budget size. Maybe too much. In what I've seen when people line up to compete, the size of your budget does have much meaning at that moment." (link)
Arkansas Online continues to dig on the relationship between Arkansas athletics & the Razorback Foundation. The overall push has primarily been "we-can't-get-access-to-records," but this segment notes new Hogs AD Yurachek is not expected to have an agreement with the foundation "as of now." Back in 2015, foundation Executive Director Varady pushed for an increase in deferred annual compensation for former AD Long from $200K to $250K, which looks to have been granted. Varady on recent developments, "The Razorback Foundation was in the process of preparing an amendment to extend the term of Mr. Long's personal services agreement as requested, but the amendment was not completed and signed prior to Mr. Long's termination for convenience by the University." (link)
The Greenville News used a FOIA request to obtain the Sept. 26 subpoena the University of South Carolina received from the federal grand jury in New York "seeking all documents, communications and evidence 'regarding actual or potential NCAA rules violations' in the MBB program." Former USC AC Evans was among those indicted in the probe and per Gamecocks spokesman Stensland the school "has complied with the subpoena and is continuing to cooperate with the FBI investigation." The subpoena sought communications between  "any member of the MBB coaching staff or athletic department and a parent of any current or former member of the basketball team beginning Jan. 1. 2014," communications between SC employees or officers, communications with the NCAA and any non-privileged material from any NCAA or internal investigations, and communications between the USC MBB staff or coaches and three of the ten men who have been charged in the case (Dawkins, Blazer and Sood). More. (link)
Wisconsin FB had an announced home attendance average of 78,824 in the 80,321-seat  Camp Randall Stadium this season, but only 84% of those tickets were used, which is on par with the usage stats from the previous 11 seasons. Link includes a charted breakdown of scanned vs. sold for past 10+ years and which opponents yielded the most butts in seats this year (spoiler: Michigan 71,264). (link)
More Digs: Check out photos of the new Krzyzewski Fitness Center on Nike's campus in Beaverton. (link); Here's a fly through of Illinois' coming FB Performance Center. Lots of bells, lots of whistles. (link); Minnesota got the green light from is Regents on a new Golf practice facility. (link)
Also Noticed: Papa John's CEO Schnatter, who also serves as the co-chair of the University of Louisville presidential search committee, praised the efforts of Interim Prez Postel during Friday's fall commencement ceremonies, calling him "our fantastic president." (link); Michigan State Prez Simon declined a $150K raise last week in light of the recent Nassar developments. (link); ESPN expert & headlining author Miller launches his newest podcast series with a close look at the Worldwide Leader. Episode 3, dropping January 3rd will focus on College GameDay. Lots of goodies. (link); Iowa AD Barta speaks highly of the annual Hy-Vee Classic that brings the Hawks together with Drake, Iowa State & Northern Iowa, but the move to 20 Big Ten games could change things for the event after 2019. (link); Incoming DI North Alabama will add Beach Volleyball starting in 2018-19. (link); Former Louisville MBB HC Pitino sold one of his homes in the Derby City for $1.9M. (Iink)
1.Question brought to you by Turnkey
The story of UAB's FB resurgence has a number of layers, one of which is how Blazers AD Mark Ingram landed in Birmingham to aid the rebuild. In this 1.Q, Ingram goes in on who he leaned on for advice heading into his first AD post and how he had a unique background full of experiences that helped to navigate the overall situation. Listen by clicking the link. (link) (length - 6:10)
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Part-time Staff Writer (Total Campus Report, a division of Drive & Company): Total Campus Report, a curated news vehicle for Higher Education & a sister product of D1.ticker is growing & ready to hire a handful of new writers! Responsibilities on Sunday, Tuesday & Thursday nights. More details HERE.

Assistant Football Coach (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill / Chapel Hill, NC): The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a Division I member of the NCAA, and a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference, has an opening for a full-time assistant football coach. More details HERE.

Associate Director of Athletics (Harvard University / Boston, MA): Manage and direct the compliance function for Athletics, the largest D1 program in the U.S. Ensure compliance with NCAA, Ivy League and University regs. Supervise select sports, key student services. More details HERE.

Director of Development for Athletics (University of North Carolina Wilmington / Wilmington, NC): Responsible for planning, development & implementation of strategies that position UNCW to acquire, manage & distribute funds that will enhance educational mission of the Department of Athletics & UNCW. More details HERE.

Coordinator of Academics for Football (University of Akron / Akron, OH): Position will assist football student-athletes in pursuit of their educational goals by developing and assisting with study plans to increase retention and graduation rates of athletes. More details HERE.

Director of Aztec Club (San Diego State University / San Diego, CA): Promote the SDSU athletic program; solicit private contributions; and sponsor or host activities to provide alumni, donors, and fans a vehicle to remain loyal to SDSU Athletics. More details HERE.

Athletics Administrative Associate (Purdue University / West Lafayette, IN): Assist in the day-to-day operations and execution on a variety of Athletics Administration functions. Provide research and data for strategic initiatives for Athletics Administration. More details HERE.

Assistant, Associate, or Sr. Associate Director, Athletics Major Giving (Boston College / Chestnut Hill, MA): Responsible for the cultivation and solicitation of alumni, parents and friends of Boston College who are capable of making gifts of $100,000 to $999,999 to support Boston College Athletics. More details HERE.

Assistant Director of Development (Air Force Academy Athletic Corporation / USAF Academy, CO): Help grow the Falcon Pride Club Annual Giving program in support of Air Force Athletics. Works on the strategic execution and management of the annual giving program for Air Force Athletics. More details HERE.

Associate Director of the Ohio Bobcat Club (Ohio University / Athens, OH): Primary responsibilities including oversight of the annual campaign, coordination of the premium seating and parking program, planning all donor events and management of a donor portfolio. More details HERE.

Assistant Manager, External Relations (Princeton University / Princeton, NJ): Princeton University Dept of Athletics seeks an Assistant Mgr External Relations to support the overall functions of the External Relations team within the Dept of Athletics. More details HERE.

Head Volleyball Coach (Eastern Illinois University / Charleston, IL): Eastern Illinois University is seeking candidates for the position of Head Volleyball Coach. Please email resume/cover to Mark Bonnstetter, Sr. Associate AD, mdbonnstetter@eiu.edu. More details HERE.

Assistant Athletic Director, Compliance (Florida Gulf Coast University / Fort Myers, FL): The Assistant Athletics Director, Compliance directs all aspects of the NCAA compliance program. Develops procedures and policies to monitor and ensure compliance. More details HERE.

Director of Marketing and Fan Engagement (Elon University / Elon, NC): Elon University is currently accepting applications for a Director of Marketing & Fan Engagement . Apply at https://elon.peopleadmin.com/postings/4914. Please do not submit your material via email. More details HERE.

Director of Strategic Communications (South Atlantic Conference / Rock Hill, SC): The Director of Strategic Communications is primarily responsible for providing vision and strategic thought for Conference communications that is tied to the Conference’s overall mission/strategy. More details HERE.

Major Gifts Officer - Mountaineer Athletic Club (WVU Foundation / Morgantown, WV): The WVU Foundation is currently seeking a Major Gifts Officer - Mountaineer Athletic Club For more information visit: http://www.wvuf.org/jobs. More details HERE.

SR ASSOC ATHLETIC DIRECTOR/INTERNAL OPERATIONS (Central Michigan University / Mount Pleasant, MI): As part of the Athletics Executive Leadership team, this position acts as the chief financial officer for Athletics by providing budget management and facilities & event operations management. More details HERE.

Assistant Athletics Director for Annual Giving (University of Maryland, College Park / College Park, MD): The Asst. Athletics Dir. for Annual Giving's duties are to provide leadership and management for the annual giving team, develop data-based strategies that will help to grow the annual fund. More details HERE.

Director of Athletics (Yale University / New Haven, CT): Yale University, a global research university in the Ivy League, seeks a dynamic leader to become its new director of athletics. Please visit Witt/Kieffer's website for a detailed leadership profile. More details HERE.

Associate Director of Compliance (Big Sky Conference / Ogden, UT): The Assistant Director of Compliance is responsible for the day-to-day compliance operations of the conference and will work primarily with the Associate Commissioner for Compliance & Governance/SWA. More details HERE.

Assistant Director, Ticket Operations (University of Arizona / Tucson, AZ): The University of Arizona seeks an Assistant Director, Ticket Operations. Independently plans, organizes, administers and implements ticketing operations for assigned sport teams. More details HERE.

Assistant/Associate Director of Development (Pennsylvania State University / University Park, PA): A top frontline fundraiser is needed in the role of assistant or associate director of development to engage alumni and friends as partners in supporting Penn State Intercollegiate Athletics. More details HERE.

Property Operations Manager (JMI Sports / San Diego, CA): Experienced project manager to support multiple properties. Working understanding of multi-media rights ops including sales, fulfillment, radio/TV affiliate relations, business admin, budgeting. More details HERE.

Associate Director, Sport Management Master's Program (Southern California/Orange County, CA) (University of San Francisco / San Francisco, CA): University of San Francisco’s Sport Management Program invites applicants for its Associate Director position to assist in marketing, recruitment, admissions, and advising at Orange Branch Campus. More details HERE.
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