By R.G. Mason

The Day’s News

Year in Review: Numbers, Trends, and Data from All 35 Division I AD Hires

Throw Your Excuses Out the Window, the New Reality Is What It Is

Looking at the Finances FGCU’s Next AD Will Have to Work Through

Big South Assistant AD Exits

Wofford Pauses AD Search

• Wofford announced Wednesday morning that it was pausing its AD. Sharing a message on X, Wofford released the following statement:
• “Expectations are justifiably high when it comes to finding the next person to lead Wofford College through the complex landscape of the NCAA D-1 intercollegiate athletics. The search for the next director of athletics remains open, but the college is pausing the process until after the February meeting of the Wofford College Board of Trustees. As indicated from the beginning, Richard Johnson will continue to lead until the college completes the search.
• Johnson, who has led the department for the past 23 years announced in August his intentions to step down, “at the end of a successful search for his replacement.”

NCAA Approves Waivers for Northwestern State Football

• The NCAA has approved a pair of waivers covering Northwestern State student-athletes who competed during the 2023 season.
• The national governing body approved nine “extension of eligibility waivers” and 38 “season of competition waivers” for players who competed in more than four games in the shortened season.
• “We appreciate the NCAA Student-Athlete Reinstatement staff members working with us through the arduous process,” Associate Athletic Director for Internal Affairs/Director of NCAA Compliance Dustin Eubanks said. “They were with us every step of the way. With the circumstances surrounding this past season, we wanted to help our student-athletes as much as we could. We couldn’t have asked for a better outcome and hope these student-athletes can move forward in a positive manner whether at Northwestern State or at another institution.”

Kansas Spent More Than $10M On Outside Legal Fees Defending NCAA Infractions Case

• When Kansas athletics director Travis Goff and basketball coach Bill Self first reacted to the end of the NCAA infractions case concerning Self’s program back in October, it was referred to as a good day for the university.
• That good day, courtesy of an NCAA verdict that saw Kansas basketball hit with lighter penalties than many expected, came at a cost: more than $10 million in outside legal fees over the past five fiscal years, according to documents obtained by The Topeka Capital-Journal through a public records request.
• Four law firms were paid by KU for work on the school’s defense in the case, including $70,000 in fees paid during the current fiscal year. The $10 million is an estimate provided by KU’s public records office, backed by 1,575 pages of documents provided in response to the request.

GCU Brings Game to Luke AFB

• With Grant Canyon holding one of the nation’s best records at 10-1, the Lopes aim high and are taking their game to the place that embodies “Aim High” — Luke Air Force Base.
• GCU used the room on its schedule to add a Wednesday game in front of a military-only audience at Luke, which sits just 15 miles west of campus. The Lopes will tip off at 1 p.m.in the base’s Bryant Fitness Center against Bethesda (Calif.), which is part of the National Christian Collegiate Athletic Association.

Presbyterian Names Matt Smith Women’s Soccer Head Coach

• Presbyterian College Director of Athletics Dee Nichols has formally introduced the second-ever head coach of the Blue Hose women’s soccer program, announcing the hire of South Carolina native Matt Smith.
• A former assistant under previous coach Brian Purcell – who retired in October after over three decades as the program’s lone coach – Smith brings a lofty resume with him in his return to Clinton, including a seven-year stint as the head coach at Limestone and stops as an assistant at Big 12 institutions Baylor and Kansas State over the past seven seasons.

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