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Courtesy Image -
Jaime Taylor and Mike Hamrick -
Jeff O’Malley
Home to more than 17,000 students, Lamar University sits on a beautiful 300-acre campus that offers 139 degree programs, which are nationally recognized as quality curriculum for all program levels. When Dr. Jaime Taylor became the university’s 16th president in July 2021, he wanted the Lamar athletics department to be just as successful as they were academically, but he knew it would take a lot of work.
The athletic department was not in good shape, partly because of the previous athletic leadership at the top. Programs were floundering, coaches were put on the field with little to no help, and students were not supporting teams rostered by their peers.
Taylor, a physicist, came to Beaumont from Marshall University, where he was provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. The school was also known for fantastic sports programs, across the board. He saw firsthand what athletic success was.
“Marshall is filled with winning traditions,” said Taylor. “When I got to Lamar, I knew the sports’ programs were struggling, so my immediate thought was, ‘How do we turn this thing around?’ When you look at a healthy institution, you have outstanding academics, but you also need the same with athletics. You have to have that balance.”
Taylor immediately picked up the phone and called one of his best friends and colleague, Mike Hamrick, who was the former director of athletics at Marshall University.
“One of the main reasons I wanted to work at Marshall was to learn more about athletics,” said Taylor. “That’s where I met Mike (Hamrick).”
Hamrick, who has 33 years of experience being a Division I athletic director at UNLV, East Carolina, University of Arkansas-Little Rock, said he and Taylor connected immediately.
“Most provosts and athletic directors aren’t best friends, but we became best friends,” said Hamrick. “When we first met, Dr. Taylor really didn’t know if a football was pumped or stuffed, yet he had a unique desire to understand athletics. To be a good president, you have to understand athletics. I knew he wouldn’t be at Marshall long.”
Hamrick retired in 2021 as one of Marshall University’s most decorated athletic directors. From 2009-21, there were historical achievements – athletically and academically. The men’s soccer program won the NCAA national championship and the Thundering Herd boasted Conference USA’s winningest football program for the past decade. In the 2018-19 season, four of Marshall’s athletic programs, football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball and softball, won postseason games, which is an unprecedented feat for the university.
The 2019-20 academic year was also historic in the Marshall classroom. In the fall 2019 semester, 42 student-athletes received a 4.0 grade-point average. In spring 2020, that number rose to 68. The overall student-athlete GPA was 3.12 in fall 2019 and 3.20 in spring 2020.
Also at Marshall, Hamrick spearheaded the Vision Campaign, which was the most ambitious fundraising effort in Marshall athletics history. The campaign raised more than $33 million in private dollars to enhance facilities. In all, more than $50 million in facility improvements have been completed during Hamrick’s tenure, and the program operated without any major NCAA violations during his term.
The “Charleston Gazette-Mail” named Hamrick its 2019 West Virginia Sportsperson of the Year – joining a list of previous winners such as Jerry West, Mike D’Antonio, Jimbo Fisher, Nick Saban, Randy Moss and Joe Manchin.
In desperate need of a new athletic director, Taylor brought in someone that he and Hamrick were very familiar with – Jeff O’Malley – who worked under Hamrick for 12 years at Marshall as the associate director of athletics/chief of staff, as well as the interim athletic director when Hamrick retired.
O’Malley became Lamar’s new athletic director and on his first day on campus, began to recognize problems.
“We walked into the Montagne Center and all of a sudden, Jeff stomped his foot on the floor and said we needed a new court,” explained Taylor. “He asked if the basketball teams were dealing with injuries, and they were. He said the floor was probably causing the injuries because it was hard as a rock – it was sitting on concrete with no give. Since then, we have announced we are getting a new floor for basketball. With great thanks to a donation, Lamar doesn’t have to pay for it. That’s the mentality of a leader. Jeff gets it.”
Under previous leadership at Lamar, the Cardinal athletic programs were moved from the Southland Conference to the Western Athletic Conference, which shocked many of its supporters, and none in a positive way.
Taylor knew the move didn’t make sense, so he contacted Hamrick, who also believed it was a bad decision. Retired and living in North Carolina, Hamrick decided to come to Beaumont and help his friend, free of charge.
“Lamar shouldn’t be going to Seattle, Utah and California to play athletic events,” said Hamrick. “So, we negotiated a deal to get Lamar back in the Southland Conference and it was a better deal than when they first moved into the Southland. That big mistake was rectified.”
Once on campus, Hamrick spoke to donors, trainers, managers and student athletes.
“They didn’t have anyone in the athletic department who could pull this together,” said Hamrick. “A lot of daily issues that coaches shouldn’t be dealing with, but within two weeks Dr. Taylor solved every one of those issues. Athletics were neglected and Dr. Taylor has changed that.”
A change in football was also needed. Taylor said, thanks to O’Malley and Hamrick, the head coaching position attracted 117 applications and all believe they have selected a winner in coach Pete Rossomando.
“I’m a football and basketball guy,” said Hamrick. “I can really help him in those two sports. Coaches in other sports know that if football and basketball are winning, that really helps them. It filters down.”
For LU athletics to be successful, they needed to tap into the new NIL rules. Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) is a term that describes the means through which college athletes are allowed to receive financial compensation. NIL refers to the use of an athlete’s name, image, and likeness through marketing and promotional endeavors. This can include autograph signings, product endorsements, social media posts and more.
“We have a NIL collective,” said Hamrick. “We are working in the community to get it going. Now, if TCU or Texas Tech wants one of Lamar’s players, they are going to leave, but let’s say if you have a good quarterback who has four offers from other Southland Conference schools, Lamar can offer him a great education and a chance to better themselves through NIL, and those three others schools may not be able to, so we got a great chance to get that kid. This is where college athletics is now. It helps young people. Some of these kids don’t have cars and it really helps. You have to have NIL money.”
With the guidance of O’Malley, Lamar was able to bring in a third party that helps students who are participating in NIL with contracts and income taxes to make sure they get the support they need.
The popular Cardinal Club was reengaged as the Cardinal Athletic Fund to help raise money for athletic endeavors. A full-time business manager was also hired.
“I’ve been out in the community and we have put a plan together for athletics,” said Hamrick. “It’s not easy. You can’t do an immediate U-turn in athletics. I compare it to a big barge in the ocean making a turn.
“Lamar can win. They have done it before in the past. First and foremost, you can get a great education here. People know Lamar. The facilities are great and there are enough athletes within a 90-mile radius you can win with, plus it’s a great community to live in.”
Signs of the culture change can already be spotted under the new leadership.
During the women’s basketball winning run through the Southland Conference Tournament, Taylor arranged for students to ride a bus to Lake Charles, Louisiana, for free, to watch the team play in the championship game.
Also, Taylor and a group of Lamar athletic donors sat center court at the men’s basketball NCAA national championship game in Houston.
“Other athletic teams are supporting every sport,” said Taylor. “That wasn’t happening my first year here.”
Taylor added that there are many bright spots in Cardinal athletics.
“Women’s soccer were the conference champions, tennis is thriving, as is track and field; baseball had a great season last year and they are off to a good start this season,” said Taylor. “Of course, women’s basketball was one quarter away from going to the NCAA Tournament.”
Taylor knows that Lamar Cardinal fans are tired of hearing, “It’s going to take time,” but they are working hard every day.
“I was once told, ‘Coaches win games and administrations win championships,’” said Taylor. “Jeff and Mike are phenomenal. Jeff is a ‘boots on the ground’ type of guy. He is working in an environment where coaches can be successful.
“You need the right people at the leadership level. O’Malley and Hamrick are rock stars, but we have that across all levels here at the university. Everyone is buying in. If one side is successful, both sides win. When we do stuff at Lamar, we do it as an entire institution. That is what gets me excited.”
There are short-term and long-term goals in place, added Hamrick, which include an indoor practice field for football and basketball practice facility that would allow the Montagne Center to begin hosting events again.
Hamrick said that Taylor loves Lamar University. “My intentions are to make Dr. Taylor, Jeff (O’Malley) and Lamar University athletics successful,” he said. “I’ve never seen a president go to every athletic event like Dr. Taylor. The word is out that this president wants athletics to succeed. Lamar is a sleeping giant. It really it is. They hired a great president and great athletic director, so I’m here to help them any way I can.”
Fans love a winner and Hamrick has shown his ability. In six years at UNLV, the Rebels won 22 Mountain West Conference Championships. He has also hired and worked with coaches, such as Jerry Tarkanian, Lon Krueger and John “Doc” Holliday.
One of Hamrick’s first hires as a young athletic director at UALR was Wimp Sanderson, a legendary basketball coach from the University of Alabama.
“He told me winning is a deodorant for stink,” said Hamrick. “When you win, nothing stinks, but potential will get you fired. The pressure is on us to get Lamar going again. We have to live up to this potential.”
Make no mistake, Taylor has put many pieces of the puzzle together to make Cardinal athletics relevant again, across the board.
“Obviously, we want to win, but I want it to be good for the student athlete:” said Taylor. “A phenomenal experience with a great education. A structure like this helps turn our students into leaders. You can’t find better people anywhere in the country. There are good people in Southeast Texas.”