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D1.jobs... New opportunities at Alaska Fairbanks, Brown (x2), Nebraska, Purdue, Saint Mary's (MN) (DIII) & Southeastern (NAIA), below. 690 different schools, conferences and companies have posted their openings with D1.jobs. Click HERE to post your openings for tens of thousands of administrators to see.
D1.dossiers... The D1.dossier for the AD opening at Eastern Washington is available for those interested in preparing for the gig in Cheney. $249 for an entire year of subscription and access to all dossiers. Long Beach State is up next & will be ready no later than Friday. (link)
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U.S. Senator Murphy (D-CT) has sent a letter to NCAA President Baker urging him to “buck the NCAA’s long history of fighting positive change in college sports and instead be a partner in finally centering the rights and well-being" of student-athletes, USA Today’s Berkowitz reports, adding that Murphy also notes Baker has a choice: Take this opportunity to "position the association as a proactive force that builds on the recent positive changes in college athletics, or continue the NCAA’s legacy of protecting the interests of athletic departments and corporate partners.” (link)
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All 10 FBS commissioners are in favor of three proposed rule changes to shorten football games, ACC Commissioner Phillips tells ESPN’s Dinich, who notes the running clock after incompletions has not garnered overwhelming support. Phillips, who also chairs the NCAA’s “Game Length” subgroup notes that “even if it’s at a minimal amount, [the other changes are] going to reduce the number of impact plays. It should help with the length of the game. I think these are noncontroversial, I really do, and I hope we'll be able to move them through and they should be a part of the '23 season." (link)
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The ACC has retained Octagon to assist in exploring variable revenue distribution per SBJ’s Smith, who notes: “The ACC has a long history of distributing all revenue evenly, but conference revenue front-runners like Clemson and Florida State have been more vocal recently about schools keeping more of what they make. That could come in the form of on-field success, such as championships, or off-field success, like generating larger TV viewership and growing the ACC fan base. It would be more specific than that, but that’s the idea. The conference is still working on a model.” (link)
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Outgoing Big South Commissioner Kallander reflects on his 27-year tenure, telling SBJ’s Williams he has a “lot of concerns” about the current state of the industry. While he’s in favor of NIL, he posits that “when we start crossing over into endorsements it gets problematic because it’s so hard to control.” Kallander believes college athletics needs congressional help because it’s “really important for college athletics to be distinctive because that’s what’s been great about college athletics for so long. … and so I worry that we’re losing that.” As for the Big South, Kallander hopes the league continues to “explore growing in a smart way” as well as “explore ways to generate revenues in this new world of college athletics and being innovative and creative around that.” (link)
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Nebraska AD Alberts says the preliminary response since NU announced it would play a volleyball match in Memorial Stadium has been “incredible. There have been some (schools) that said, ‘Are you serious? Really?’ There have been a lot of others that said, ‘Hey, how can we get in on this? We’d love to play.’ … We’re going to have to think more broadly like this, and not just volleyball, about how finding new revenue streams and entrepreneurial ways are going to be important to us long-term.” Alberts also talks about the decision to remove the interim tag and name Track & Field HC St. Clair to the permanent post. “He (St. Clair) did an amazing job with the way that he built that culture. If we wouldn’t have taken the interim tag (off) we would have had some really upset student-athletes and families.” (link)
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The NCAA shares some trends for women in college sports in conjunction with the start of Women’s History Month. First, the NCAA notes 226,212 student-athletes competed in NCAA women's championship sports in 2021-22, a 5% increase from the previous year and the largest percentage increase for women since 2000-01. Next, there are 2,893 student-athletes participating in sports currently in the Emerging Sports for Women program. As it relates to ADs, the NCAA reports there are now 274 women who hold the post across all three divisions, a 30% increase since the 2011-12 season. There has been a 6% increase for female ADs in Division I (from 9% to 15%) specifically from 2011-12 to 2021-22, the biggest percentage point increase among the three divisions. The increase from 33 to 53 female directors of athletics represents an increase of 61% in the number of women in the role in DI. Coaching data show there has been a 2% increase (from 23% to 25%) in the number of female HCs for all championship sports from 2011-12 to 2021-22. Finally, The number of conference commissioners who were women (30%) across the NCAA totaled 44 in 2021-22, an increase of 6% from 2013-14 (the first year this data was reported to NCAA research). (link)
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Leadership Ledes…
+ Austin Peay names former Yale Asst. Dir. for Student-Athlete Development McGreggor as Assoc. AD for Student-Athlete Success, effective this month. (link)
+ South Alabama parts ways with WBB HC Fowler after 10 seasons. (link)
+ Radford will retain MBB HC Nichols, who was arrested for DUI last week, per The Roanoke Times’ Berman, who notes the school has announced Nichols will return to his full-time duties on Monday. (link)
+ James Madison extends Volleyball HC Steinbrecher through the 2027 season. (link) |
D1.ticker/Connect’s Fischer talks with Section 127 NCAA Account Director Rump about the firm’s branding efforts around NCAA championships, including what went into designing this year’s Final Four logos, maintaining consistency while incorporating local elements, how athletes should think about their own brands and lots more. The full conversation is now live on Connect. (link)
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Aflac will go from Alabama FB HC Saban and Colorado FB HC Sanders to former Duke MBB HC Krzyzewski and South Carolina WBB HC Staley for the hoops version of its “GOATS” advertising campaign, SBJ’s Smith reports. As part of its deal, Aflac is working with Staley to identify what they’re calling “Dawn’s List” of inequities in sports. The list includes resource equity, fan experience and community engagement. Aflac CMO Knutson: “There has been a lot of attention placed on the disparity between the men’s and women’s Final Four. In our first two years, we didn’t do anything about it. We activated on the ground at the men’s event, like most sponsors did. So, we decided that we were going to do everything we could do to change that. We struck a long-term deal with Coach Staley and we’ll continue to look for opportunities like that.” (link)
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South Carolina’s College Sport Research Institute released its 13th annual DI MBB and WBB Adjusted Graduation Gap (AGG) Report, which found that the overall AGG for DI MBB student-athletes players is “-23.4, indicating that the average AGG among DI conferences is 23.4 percentage points below the adjusted men’s full-time student body rate.” The women’s figure is 15.6% below. Among the 31 DI conferences, all MBB AGGs are negative, and only one DI WBB conference (MEAC) has a positive AGG (+4.8%). Additionally, major conferences continue to perform significantly worse than mid-major conferences. Specifically, MBB players in major conferences had an AGG of -33.1% while mid-major student-athletes’ AGG was -18.7%. For WBB players, those figures are -22.3% and -12.5%, respectively. Full report. (link)
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A GOP bill that would extend Texas’ restrictions on transgender athletes to include those in college has received support from a majority of House members. The legislation would prohibit transgender men from competing on men’s college sports teams and transgender women from joining women’s college athletic teams; however, it would also allow cisgender and transgender female athletes to play on a men’s team if there is no corresponding women’s team in a particular sport. Governor Abbott previously voiced support for the legislation. (link)
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Also Noticed…
+ The Big Ten has a new corporate sponsor in Old National Bank, which will receive media inventory on the Big Ten Network, social and digital assets and be presenting sponsor of Big Ten Football media days as the league’s first official bank. (link) + Sunday’s Indiana-Iowa WBB matchup averaged 622K viewers with a peak of 870K on ESPN, which notes WBB viewership is up 12% on its platforms YTD. (link)
+ UC San Diego MBB has canceled its final two regular season games, including Thursday’s senior night, due to a COVID outbreak. (link)
+ It’s been a home run bonanza so far this baseball season, as D1Baseball’s Rogers reports there have been 2,108 four-baggers through 12 games, up from 1,551 through the same stretch last season and 1,300 in 2019. (link)
+ Memphis and Southern Miss agree to a home-and-home FB series in 2027 (Memphis) and 2030 (Hattiesburg). (link) |
Yesterday's Evening Standard... |
Welcome, Mr. President…
+ Freshly minted NCAA President Baker tells The Athletic’s Auerbach he has two main goals during his first 100 days: meet virtually with every conference in every division and conduct a SWOT analysis to inform his strategy. “I have gotten very comfortable with this whole notion that 90% of college athletic programs are investments made by schools to support their infrastructure and their student body and all the rest, and it isn’t really a money-making activity. … One of the things I would like to figure out how to do in this job is to recognize and understand what’s going on with the revenue-positive folks, but at the same time not do something that’s going to put the rest of DI, DII and DIII in a position where they can’t continue to provide what I think most people believe is a tremendously valuable element of that collegiate experience.” (link)
+ On NIL, Baker says the most consistent theme he’s heard from stakeholders is the lack of transparency around the topic. “There needs to be some sort of protective skin put around this stuff either congressionally, which obviously comes with all 50 states — ‘here are the rules and the standards associated with that’ — or something that’s done by us. One way or another, we’ve got to address it.” (link)
+ Regarding whether student-athletes should be paid, Baker says the discussion is part of the larger discourse about how college sports is changing. “I've actually had a lot of student-athletes tell me they would rather be student-athletes than be employees for a whole bunch of reasons. I think that will be, in fact, a big part of the dialogue going forward. But from my point of view, the goal here should be to figure out how to deal with this issue in a way that actually addresses some of the concerns people have about the very successful and financially successful programs, recognizing that there are literally hundreds of thousands of student-athletes who don't play in those programs and for whom the idea of being an employee is really not an attractive one. And I think people need to keep that in mind.” Pressed on when the NCAA should give up on the prospect of Congressional action, Baker replied: “You want a date? I mean, that's a hard question to answer. … I think your question about when is enough is a good one. But I can't answer that today.” (link)
+ Baker tells ESPN it’s important to “make sure we control, to the extent that we can, our own destiny on this stuff, to recognize and understand that means that we need to make some decisions and move a little more quickly than maybe we have in the past." In doing so, Baker hopes the NCAA can avoid the "all or nothing" options for revamping the rules governing all three divisions. “It's [5,000] to 10,000 athletes at the Power 5 schools, and then it's all the rest of college sports. I don't think we can treat them both the same. My hope is we can figure out some way to bridge those two universes in a way that makes them both better instead of ending up in a situation where the whole thing comes tumbling down." (link)
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Mountain West Commissioner Nevarez on her vision for branding the league: “My end goal is we have the late time zone issue being in the West, so we really need to break into that East Coast media market because that's where all the selection committees and talking heads are. The ranking services. But also just to really be that hero brand to our schools.” Nevarez also identifies realignment among the most pressing challenges for any Group of 5 commissioner, noting that “my every day is checking in on conference realignment and expansion and keeping an eye on those television deals we're all waiting to happen. … Concerned is not the right word, but we're ready for it. We have a small subcommittee, three presidents and three ADs, that have met. We've scrubbed the entire landscape of schools. We have scenario A if one school leaves, B if two schools, Armageddon if big conferences get destabilized. So we're ready. We have no shortage of schools that are ready to join us.” Full interview. (link)
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The Southland Conference unveils its newly rebranded visual identity which “reflects its ongoing surge in national significance, athletic excellence, and member unity.” The new logo also comes with a new tagline of “Earned Every Day.” Commissioner Grant: “Our conference encompasses the proving grounds for the finest athletic talent our country has to offer, and we’re proud to give the best a place to compete on the field, commit in the classroom, and contribute to the community. This new brand reflects our member schools’ enduring commitment to helping our student-athletes navigate the pathway to significance in academics, athletics, and life. Their ultimate success in life is our north star.” (link)
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Extra Points’ Brown shares what he’s hearing about mid-major conference realignment, starting with the OVC, which he reports is casting an eye southward, specifically toward West Georgia (DII). West Georgia, Brown notes, would help to “bolster the OVC/Big South partnership, giving them a membership buffer in case one of the geographic outlier institutions (like Bryant) decides on other league affiliations in the future. UWG’s enrollment (over 10,000 undergraduates and growing) and institutional profile also broadly fits many of the other schools currently in the OVC.” Additionally, Brown reports there appear to be no immediate plans for Missouri State to move to an FBS league. “If there is a secret reclassification in the works, that would also be news to a few other school leaders I asked over the last few days. … Could Missouri State end up in a different league at some point in the near future? Sure, that’s entirely possible. But based on this agenda meeting and recent conversations, I do not believe that is imminent right now.” (link)
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NCAA EVP of Regulatory Affairs Wilcox sent a memo to member schools that appears to single out the newly formed collective through Texas A&M’s 12th Man Foundation, Sports Illustrated’s Dellenger reports, noting that Wilcox in the memo reminds “administrators that the association’s current rules prohibit a school from compensating athletes for NIL, including ‘entities acting on behalf of the institution.’ The memo also expressly states that schools are prohibited from providing assets to ‘entities engaged in NIL,’ such as priority points to stadium seating and access.” While the memo does not mention TAMU specifically, Dellenger reached out to Aggies AD Bjork, who reiterated that the university cleared the initiative through its compliance department. NCAA spokeswoman Durham: “Texas A&M notified the NCAA that an NIL-related announcement was upcoming. However, the NCAA did not review or approve any concept prior to the announcement.” (link)
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Washington AD Cohen, Miami (OH) AD Sayler and former Nevada FB HC/former AD Ault have been named to three-year terms on the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. The CFP has also extended the term of NC State AD Corrigan, who will serve as chair for a second year through the 2023 season. (link)
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ESPN Chair Pitaro announces a leadership reorganization through which President of Programming and Original Content Magnus will take on the role of President of Content, “seemingly solidifying his place as number two to” Pitaro, SBJ’s Ourand reports. Additionally, former ESPN SVP of College Networks Durant will return to the network after a stint as a Disney Parks executive. Durant will take over Magnus’ previous role overseeing programming and rights acquisitions, as well as Andscape and espnW. Meanwhile, Head of Content Operations & Creative Surround Thornton will expand her role to oversee ESPN’s Production Operations group. (link)
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Development Wins…
+ Penn has received a $5M gift from alumnus Greene and his late wife to establish the Greene Family Lacrosse Fund, which will provide ongoing financial support for the men's and women's lacrosse programs. (link)
+ West Virginia is the recipient of a $200K gift from late alumnus Harrison. (link) |
Navy will add Women’s Triathlon as the academy’s 36th varsity sport this fall. AD Gladchuk: “As an NCAA nationally emerging sport for women, triathlon defines exactly who we are at the Naval Academy and the type of opportunity we should offer to our midshipmen. The broad-based requirements through highly competitive swimming, running and cycling highlight the demanding physical characteristics that correlate with personal confidence and leadership development. Our currently successful women's club team allows us a seamless transition to a varsity program.” Club HC Edwards will lead the upstart program. (link)
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The average attendance at Big East MBB games this year has risen to 10,322 fans per game, up 6.87% over last season. Led nationally by Creighton (17,172, 6th) and Marquette (14,098, 16th), seven schools rank among the top-50 in overall attendance for 2022-23. Creighton has sold 98.96% of tickets to its 14 home games, while Marquette has filled 76.21% of Fiserv Forum’s 18,500-seat capacity. (link)
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Fox Sports EVP for Strategy & Analytics Mulvihill tweets: “Total viewing of regular season Women's College Basketball was up +54% this season across all nationally-rated networks. Comparison includes all games on major broadcasters, ESPN networks and FOX Sports networks including BTN.” (link)
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Like the D1.ticker Christmas party, the Big 12’s MBB and WBB championships will feature performances by hip-hop legend Fat Joe, DJ Diesel (sometimes known as Shaquille O’Neal) and Jordin Sparks, who will sing the national anthem. Additionally, the conference is expanding its partnership with A Bathing Ape (BAPE) by creating a limited-edition Big 12 x BAPE t-shirt that features each school's logo circling the BAPE insignia. (link)
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Coaches Wire… + Lehigh taps New Haven (DII) Field Hockey HC Lykens for the same role. (link)
+ Pepperdine WBB HC Dowling steps down after four seasons. (link)
+ Stadium’s Goodman: “Remember when (Georgia Tech MBB HC) Josh Pastner was extorted years ago? Ronald Bell has pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit extortion.” (link) |
Quick Hitters… + The fields for the NCAA men’s and women’s skiing championships have been set. (link)
+ So, too, are the 322 participants for the men’s and women’s swim & dive championships set to be held at Tennessee in two weeks. (link)
+ But wait, there’s more. The men’s and women’s indoor track & field championships participants have also been announced. (link)
+ Northern Iowa partners with Opendorse to run its NIL marketplace. (link)
+ Stephen F. Austin unveils its new Sidearm Sports NextGen website. (link)
+ Delaware State is concluding its women’s bowling season in light of the bus crash that left two student-athletes still in the hospital. (link)
+ Eight student-athletes from today’s Kentucky-Florida WBB SEC Tournament matchup were ejected after an in-game scuffle broke out. (link) |
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Interested in advertising a job opening in D1.ticker? Click here to submit your position. To view more recent job openings by discipline, click on the corresponding button below...
(NEW!) Associate Athletic Director (University of Alaska Fairbanks / Fairbanks, AK): The position will work with the Director of Marketing, Sponsorships, & Fan Engagement to create sponsorship packages and develop partnerships with corporations and organizations. More details HERE.
(NEW!) Medical Director of Sports Medicine (Brown University / Providence, RI): Principal supervisor and coordinator for the medical team in Athletics, primarily providing and supervising medical care to student athletes in addition to the general student population. More details HERE.
(NEW!) Assistant Athletic Trainer (Saint Mary's University of Minnesota / Winona, MN): Saint Mary’s University is seeking to hire an Assistant Athletic Trainer. This position will work in conjunction with an amazing staff to coordinate the healthcare of Student-Athletes. (DIII) More details HERE.
(NEW!) Assistant Director of Football Creative - Video Production (Purdue Intercollegiate Athletics / West Lafayette, IN): Oversee idea development, creation & production of video for Football. Shoot, produce, direct, & edit video content to represent the Boilermaker brand. Maintain & organize digital media. More details HERE.
(NEW!) Head Women's Basketball Coach (Southeastern University / Lakeland, FL): Must develop a culture which expects excellence in the classroom, competition, and character of the student-athletes. Must have previous collegiate coaching experience to be considered. (NAIA) More details HERE.
(NEW!) Assistant Coach, Sailing (Brown University Athletics / Providence, RI): Assist the Head Coach, Sailing in all phases of the Coed & Women’s Sailing programs, supporting all efforts to continue to attract the nation’s top sailors. More details HERE.
(NEW!) Football Recruiting Assistant (University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Athletics Department / Lincoln, NE): 4 10-month entry-level positions available in Nebraska Football. Responsible for film organization and distribution for football coaches. Research critical academic information on prospects. More details HERE.
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