#10: Louisville AD Josh Heird is contemplating budget cuts in advance of the potential approval of the House settlement and tells LEO Weekly’s Tim Sullivan: “I think we’re definitely shifting to an attitude of what is needed in college athletics as opposed to what is wanted. If our marketing department has eight staff members, do we need eight staff members? If our senior leadership team has 10 people on it, do we need 10? That’s a scary proposition for people to think about.” Sullivan notes that in addition to reducing employee headcount, trimming expenses and shelving plans for new capital projects, ticket prices are also likely to go up. Heird: “We need to be benchmarking against professional teams as opposed to college teams. What’s it cost to go to a Colts game, a Bengals game, a Titans game? That’s going to be the balance of trying to make sure our fans feel they are getting value for what they’re paying for while at the same time maximizing the amount of money we can raise. … We have to totally rethink how we do things. And that’s not, ‘Hey, we found a cheaper flight.’ Operationally, fundamentally, how do we do things differently?” (link)
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#9: St. Thomas has released a series of renderings for the Lee & Penny Anderson Arena, which is slated to open in 2025-26. Have a look. (link) |
#8: From Fox Sports’ John Fanta: “As the St. John's search for a new athletic director begins, there's an interesting dimension to one of the candidates, Ed Kull. The current Fordham AD is not only in the running at SJU, but also a primary candidate for Marquette's vacant AD position, sources tell Fox Sports.” (link)
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#7: Creighton is expected to hire former South Carolina Baseball HC Mark Kingston for the same role. (link) |
#6: Country star George Strait broke the record for largest U.S. ticketed show with 110,905 fans at Texas A&M’s Kyle Field. Photos inside. (link)
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#5: St. John's and AD Mike Cragg will part ways at the end of June after nearly six years leading the Red Storm. President Brian J. Shanley: "We thank Mike for his leadership and all of his contributions to the University community. He strengthened the foundation for the continued success of St. John's Athletics and its student-athletes while always representing the University in a first-class manner. We wish Mike all the best in his future endeavors." (link) Cragg’s LinkedIn shows his next role will be as CEO of NewEraSports Consulting. (link)
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#4: Check out the videos of Alabama’s new golf course and facility: 176 acres, four buildings, and located just a half of a mile from campus. (link) |
#3: The Daily Memphian’s Tim Buckley & John Martin indicate Memphis is down to six AD candidates, all of whom will interview virtually this week. Four of those in the mix: Buffalo AD Mark Alnutt, Tennessee Deputy AD of Championship Resources/Chief Revenue Officer Ryan Alpert, Clemson Deputy AD Kevin White & Virginia Deputy AD Ed Scott. (link)
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#2: Houston has parted ways with AD Chris Pezman after nearly seven years. One person familiar with Pezman’s year-end meeting with Khator tells the Houston Chronicle’s Joseph Duarte the decision “was a surprise to him.” Pezman had 18 months left on his contract and is owed $350K. Duarte also reports Pezman “began to lose support, particularly among the top level of UH’s hierarchy, and there was a ‘consensus decision’ for a change. … One issue was UH’s lack of progress to increase revenue through fundraising and sponsorships, especially at a time when the men’s basketball program has been one of the best in the nation the past six years.” Additionally, Pezman’s decision to interview for the Washington AD job “did not sit well with UH leadership,” per Duarte. SVC/VP for Administration and Finance Raymond S. Bartlett will serve as Interim AD. (link)
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#1: Fresno State will select Houston Deputy AD/Chief Revenue Officer Garrett Klassy as its next AD, per ESPN's Pete Thamel. (link) |
