New Yale AD Chun says the job in New Haven is one of the only for which she would have left Colgate, "Because of our success at Colgate, I had a lot of opportunity. It had to be the right school. I could list them on two fingers. Yale was one of them." Prez Salovey: "But more than anything else, you start asking people about her, and people just light up. You hear 'I loved working with her.' 'I loved being on this committee with her.' 'She really supported me as a coach; as a player she knew who I was.' That kind of relentless praise? That was her." (link); Chun went first-person with AthleticDirectorU: "I was a student and an athlete. I became a coach. Soon I was an athletic director. My entire life spent in the world of sports; each step in the journey a new appreciation earned for what makes the student-athlete experience so sacred and unique. Our world provides few better vehicles than college athletics to shape the lives of young men and women. To learn life balance, to perform at the highest levels both on and off the field, to strive for greatness in every facet of our lives. […] Most importantly, the Bulldogs will do all this without ever compromising our values. As the great seal of the university says, Lux et veritas – Light and Truth, we shall become the light of the college athletics world by being truthful with our words and intentions, and by always putting the well-being of our teammates before our own individual desires. We shall humble ourselves and be exalted." (link)

Arkansas at Pine Bluff brass will hire a new AD as the contract for outgoing boss Hardy was not renewed last June, though he continued to lead the department as the university figured out next steps. Hardy says he was surprised the news hit the wire yesterday. Chancellor Alexander names Assoc AD Wells-Kilbert as the interim, will launch a national search today. (link)

Louisville Interim Prez Postel indicates he's pushing to hire a permanent AD by the end of March as final submissions from search firms to assist on the effort are due on the 13th. Postel: "It’s a very aggressive goal. We’re told this is not at all impossible. But we’re going to ask a lot of the committee." More from yesterday's Athletic Association meeting includes Interim AD Tyra saying it's too early to speculate on the candidacy of Interim MBB HC Padgett for the full-time gig, the university switching law firms to handle matters connected with former AD Jurich, a coming $7.2M build - as long as the Governor approves - of new TV studios for the linear ACC Network play, MBB season tix sales being $500K off last year's figures, the departure of Assoc. AD for Student Life Simatacolos, more. (link, link)

The SEC distributed an average of $41M to each member for its FY17 take, a figure that's double what the league paid out in 2014. Commish Sankey hauled in $1.9M in the 2016 calendar year & the consulting firm run by former conference boss Slive was paid $250K for "facilitating the transition of the conference commissioner, facilitating key conference relationships, and advising on operational and strategic planning issues." More, including pay rates for MBB officials like top-liners Greene & Petty, who earned $139K & $134K respectively in 2017. (link)

CBSSports.com's Dodd keep his roll going, obtains documents that show how former Ole Miss FB student-athletes are pushing for immediate eligibility at new schools due to alleged misleading communications from former Rebs HC Freeze. Dodd: "In a series of texts that will be forwarded as part of these materials, there is evidence that shows players and their parents believed Freeze as he allegedly minimized the scope of the NCAA investigation concluded last year." Notable attorney Mars, who is assisting the student-athletes, "It's an open and shut case is what happened." (link)

In part two of his interview with The Hustler student newspaper, Vanderbilt AD Williams chats on his vision for the Dores moving forward. Williams accepts the fact that Vandy is in a league of its own in terms of academics but has to compete in a league full of large state schools: "I do think the schools like us, Duke, Northwestern, Stanford, that’s a challenge. It’s how do you mimic, if you like, that academic piece of the Ivy but play in those five conferences that really play. I see it as a real opportunity to basically forge a way. I was in D.C. last week and someone asked me 'Wouldn’t it be good if all of your schools, the Northwesterns, the Dukes, the Stanfords, started your own conference?' And there was a time when I said yeah that would be pretty cool. No, I think what our trick is is we’ve got to make the rest of them realize 'man, we’ve got to play them.' And so I do think there’s a place for us to change that whole dynamic and take it back to where it began. This is the place where there’s really student-athletes. Really student-athletes. And that’s how the rest of you should be." Knows on-field success is the biggest factor in driving student attendance. A bit more. (link); Here was part one. (link)

The University of Arkansas System's Outgoing Board of Trustees Chairman Hyneman has proposed revisions to the board's policies that "would allow only the board chairman to speak for the panel as a whole, prohibit trustees from discussing the contents of closed executive session meetings, and introduce a new rule tightening how trustees request and obtain information from campuses." Though Hyneman says the suggestions are not in response to anything specific, the Arkansas Democrat Gazette suggests the recent turnover within the Razorbacks' athletic department and the executive session meetings about said changes that put trustees "in the spotlight" that could have precipitated Hyneman's ideas. (link)

Virginia Tech gets a $1M gift that will allow the Hokies to move forward on a $4.5M transformation to the Football strength and conditioning space. The project will nearly double the facility's current size, from 6,900 square feet to 12,300 and include additional weight racks and stations as well as office space for the S&C staff. Mockups and plans in the second link. (link, link)

More Legal Matters: U.S. District Judge Schiltz streamlines the $18M lawsuit brought by a handful of former Minnesota-Duluth women's sport HCs on the grounds of gender discrimination. Schiltz says only former Women's Hockey boss Miller can proceed with her claims. A trial is coming on Miller's grounds as Schiltz interestingly says Miller "may be the most accomplished women’s hockey coach in the history of college athletics." More. (link); Former UCF FB student-athlete De La Haye has now sued the university, Prez Hitt, AD White & the Board of Trustees on claims of losing a scholarship due to his You Tube channel. (link); From Law360: "A class of college athletes suing the NCAA in multidistrict litigation over the association's allegedly anti-competitive caps on what benefits players can receive asked a California federal court Wednesday to issue an appeal bond against the sole objector to the nearly $209 million settlement..." More behind the wall. (link)

Montana Women's Soccer HC Plakorus resigned this week after text messages to escort services in Las Vegas surfaced on his university-issued cell phone. AD Haslam and Senior Assoc. AD Gee looked into the phone records after complaints from student-athletes that Plakorus texted them "excessively and at inappropriate times." Several student-athletes voiced that "they felt their concerns about Plakorus were not taken seriously over the years," as Plakorus was known to break school policy and close his office door during one-on-ones, among other things. His explanation for his resignation was to help take care of his father. (link)

More Personnel Notes: Virginia AD Williams adds longtime university leader Rivers as Senior Assoc. AD & Chief of Staff. Rivers has been Chief of Staff for the President & AVP for Administration for the past 12 years. (link); Good read on New England Patriots character coach/team development Easterby, who previously spent five years in South Carolina's department. (link); Georgia Tech MBB HC Pastner's extension announced back in October is worth an average annual comp of $1.94M through 2022-23. Buyout on the university side is 100% of the remainder of the deal for the first four years. More. (link); Here's a full breakdown of FB AC salaries at Colorado State. (link); Houston Baptist FB HC Shealy gets an extension that could keep him with the Huskies through 2021. (link); Coastal Carolina AD Hogue tabs North Florida Women's Volleyball HC Loeswick to oversee the Beach program for the Chants. (link)

Florida AD Stricklin's take on the current student-athlete transfer debate, "There's a lot of different layers to the conversation about the transfer rules. I am not in favor of a young person who's an undergrad transferring and being eligible immediately. […] I think once a young person has their undergrad degree I think that's perfectly reasonable. The No. 1 goal for us on all of our kids is to help young people get their education. Studies will show that when young people transfer they are less likely to get their degree. So I don't think we need to do anything that encourages transferring. What I am in favor of changing is the way schools currently can dictate what schools a young person can look at if they are going to transfer. […] I do think we should take out where schools have the opportunity to limit where kids can transfer to. But I do think if they transfer they should have to sit out a year as long as they're still an undergrad." (link)

UConn: The Huskies have increased their cap for services from Lightfoot, Franklin & White from $100K to $250K as the NCAA is looking into the MBB program in Storrs. (link); Former FB student-athlete & NFL quarterback Orlovsky takes a stab at AD Benedict, "The whole program is headed in the wrong direction. Rumor has it that they're looking at bringing in [baseball coach] Jim Penders in as AD. That's the rumor, but we'll see. They have to do something soon." (link); Benedict announces 2018 FB season ticket prices will be reduced by 10% in an effort to drive attendance up & improve the fan experience. (link)

More shots fired, these by ESPN/espnW reporter Voepel aimed at Missouri AD Sterk, "The right way to try to put out a fire is NOT to pour more gasoline on it. Which is what Missouri AD Jim Sterk did with his remarks about Dawn Staley. Mizzou coach Robin Pingeton, in my estimation, tried to handle things correctly. But her AD just made things much worse. I have to question if Missouri AD Jim Sterk would say similar things about a men's basketball or football coach in the SEC. If he has, someone please point me to those remarks. I don't think either side - nor the SEC - has handled things perfectly in regard to the animosity that's developed between Mizzou and South Carolina WBB. But an AD calling out an opposing coach and putting all the blame on her is not leadership, nor does it help in any way. […] If a player/coach made allegations against an opposing coach, I would think they would need proof the allegations were true, or need to apologize, right? Shouldn't it be the same for an athletic director?" (link - scroll down)

Duquesne MBB HC Dambrot does not expect his Dukes to play home games in the Palumbo Center during the 2019-20 season, which likely means a major renovation project is coming for the venue. AD Harper has noted the possibility & need for such a move on several different occasions. (link); LSU will add a the largest Softball indoor practice facility in the SEC. 14,500 overall square feet for a space that will also include strength & conditioning areas, as well as new locker room. I don't see a price tag mentioned or a construction timeline. (link)