The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
10.01.2013 | Texas Athletics
Longtime AD DeLoss Dodds announces his intention to retire effective Aug. 31, 2014.
MEN'S ATHLETICS DIRECTOR DELOSS DODDS
Opening statement
Thanks for being here. We were going to do this yesterday when you all were here and make it more convenient, but James Street's passing just made that impossible. What a great man he was for Texas. What a great student-athlete he was while he was at Texas. Our hearts go out to the family and he will be remembered forever.
This is a big day for me. I thought a lot about it. Obviously, I am going to step down Aug. 31, 2014. I think in 62 years it will be the first time I haven't had a job, and Mary Ann and I have decided that's long enough to work. We've loved every minute of it. We've loved every minute of the 32 years we have been at Texas. Looking around the back of the room, that's my family. I love each and every one of them. What a great opportunity for me to be here to work with people of the caliber we have at The University of Texas. We love our student-athletes, we love our coaches, we love our staff, and this will be hard not to be part of. But on the other side of this, Mary Ann and I need to go to Tuscany; we need to go see the leaves turn in the North, and there is a lot of life we need to live, that we haven't lived, because we worked.
We appreciate the media. They have pretty much been fair most of the time, and just know we have been talking about this for a long time. I told our executive staff in June that we were contemplating this and I want to thank Bill Powers who has been a great President at The University of Texas, who has been a great friend to athletics, who's as good of a person I have ever been around. When things are good, you look and he is not there, and when things are tough, you look and he is standing there beside you, and that is important to me.
Aside, Donnie Duncan is here, I don't know where he is, but Donnie and I have been friends forever, he was the AD at Oklahoma and we have forgiven him for that. When he was AD at Oklahoma, Donnie and I pretty much took the Big 8 and the Southwest Conference and made the Big 12. So Donnie, thanks for coming down here, love you bud. So, with that I'll turn it over to my president, and your president, and I will say just one last thing. My intent in all of this is that it's the best thing for the university, it is the best thing for the athletic department. It gives, me announcing this early, gives the university time to step in and find new leadership. It also gives that leadership time to work with me on transition, and I will play whatever role needs to be played in that and will love it.
UT AUSTIN PRESIDENT BILL POWERS
Opening statement
Well thank you DeLoss, and again thank you all for being here. Let me begin as DeLoss did, by recognizing a great loss for our university in James Street. I too extend my prayers and thoughts to his family, and to all of his friends, and to all of us who loved him. I saw him about a week ago, and it is a big hole, a big loss for our university.
DeLoss thank you for what you've done for our university, thank you for those words. It was the fall, as you all know, of 1981. I was here at the university. All we knew was it was a former track star, a coach, athletic director at Kansas State. He reported here in 1981 as the athletic director. How many of us either in the media, or here at the university, have suspected that on that day, that 32 years later he would be retiring as one of the giants in college athletics? DeLoss' vision reshaped UT Austin, it reshaped college athletics, the entire NCAA, and DeLoss let me say, it has been an honor to work with you, to call you my friend. You are my friend, and to do that for so many years.
During DeLoss' tenure, nine Longhorn men's teams have won 14 national championships and 108 conference titles. He's overseen hundreds of millions of dollars in facilities upgrades; he put together, as he mentioned a moment ago, the Big 12 conference, and he had been through multiple conference realignments and handled them with poise. He has been a driving force behind innovations like the Longhorn Network, helping us spread the Longhorn spirit far and wide. Over the past three decades our teams have not only won conference championships, national championships, but they have, and you will recall DeLoss emphasized this about our student athletes, these teams have produced the highest quality of student athletes, who like DeLoss himself, display integrity on the field and off the field.
DeLoss embodies all that is great about our university, the state of Texas, and college sports. He has laid the foundation for generations of Longhorn athletes to come from here on out. And even though we never will be able to truly replace him, we will start a nationwide search today, with his help, and the help of others, to find a successor. To his wife, Mary Ann, I want to say thank you, for sharing this great man with all of us, and with our university. DeLoss you might have been a quarter miler in college, and in track, but on our campus you found distance running, going the long haul has been your forte. And you gave the world of athletics and The University of Texas your greatest gift, vision, innovation, and integrity. So I want to personally say, and for everyone here at our university, thank you for all you have done, God bless you, Godspeed, and hook 'em my friend.
What do you consider your single greatest accomplishment in the last 32 years and what are you the most proud of?
(Dodds) Survival. There's more than one. Winning championships. I'll never forget the locker room after the national championship in football. The exchange I had with Vince Young in the locker room. A student-athlete, AD kind of conversation. It doesn't get better than that. Facilities, Longhorn Foundation, Longhorn Network, Big 12, mostly about kids though. I love to watch kids come in as freshmen and see them leave four or five years later being very different and much better. A lot better prepared for society.
Who would you like to follow you as successor, and what are your thoughts on that?
(Dodds) At my age? That's the great thing about this. There are a lot of qualified men and women out there that can do this job and give it a different set of eyes and different style of leadership probably. The time has come for me to step down and the time has come for the university to have somebody else in there. There are a lot of people that can do the job. President [Bill] Powers will find the right person to do the job. I'll be on that person's team.
From your perspective, what are the most important characteristics for the next AD?
(Dodds) Integrity. Do it the right way. Put kids first. Hire good people that care about kids. This place is about kids, and having somebody that fits with that is really important to me.
When did you start thinking about this decision, and why did you decide to announce it now?
(Dodds) I've been thinking about it for a year or two. We bought a little place out in Marble Falls, and we've got a big Toro tractor out there. Being out there Sunday afternoon and having to come back to Austin you're thinking, 'Maybe I ought to just stay.' I think as you get older, you change. It's been in my mind a long time; Mary Ann and I have talked about it a lot. President Powers and I have talked about it a lot. I wanted it to be an appropriate thing at the right time for the university and the right time for my family. I feel so comfortable with our folks on staff. This place can run without an AD. We've got good people everywhere. It's been a long time coming. Hard to make the decision, but I'm feeling good about it.
How hard was it to make the decision, and then actually follow through with it?
(Dodds) I feel good about it. I really feel good about it. The reality will come when somebody else walks in and sits at my desk, but I feel good about it. I feel good about the university, I feel good about the athletics department, and I feel good that I was part of it and making it what it is today. I'm going to be a Longhorn the rest of my life.
Do you feel that the athletics department is 'fixed'?
(Dodds) Well, truthfully, I don't think you ever get to that point where it's always fixed. I mean, I can look at what I have on a list of things that I'd like to see done at Texas. It's a long list. So I don't think there is a perfect time to [step down]. People might say, 'Well, football is struggling a little and that's why you're making a move.' We could be 4-0 in football and we'd be sitting here doing this, or we could be 0-4 in football and we would be sitting here doing this. It's about doing something at the right time. President Powers has been great about it. I know you know him, but he is absolutely a wonderful person.
What did you think your development plans would be in regard to the North End Zone, and how did all the developments over the last three years keep you busy?
(Dodds) I love a challenge. I love doing these things. I've started thinking about the south end; I've started thinking about the new Erwin Center; I've started thinking about and actually working on a new tennis center. By the way, we built [the old tennis center] in my first three years at Texas. So that explains how long I've been here. We built it, and now we're tearing it down. So all of those things have energized me, but it never stops. So, you've got to find a jump-off place.
On having to try to look for the commanding nature of DeLoss Dodds in someone else
(Powers) I think you're absolutely right. I've been in a lot of meetings with DeLoss; he's actually very quiet in meetings until he thinks through something and speaks, and you can hear a pin drop. Everybody listens. He has that kind of respect among commissioners, among other ADs, among coaches. So that is a signal of the kind of impact and respect with which he's held. They are huge shoes to fill. Somebody who comes in to try to fill them I think will have to try to understand that you never replace someone. What you do is build on the foundation that they've made. You extend things. You don't replace them. The good news for the person coming in is they are inheriting a wonderful edifice that DeLoss has built over the last three decades. That actually will be a blessing for the new person coming in. I have no doubt that this will be a very highly sought after job, and that we will get a great men's athletic director.
Is it going to be a two-person search committee with you and Dodds, and what is the timeframe?
(Powers) Well, we have not put that together. Certainly I'll consult with the chairman of the board, the two athletics liaisons; there will be key people in athletics, the women's athletics director [Chris Plonsky] for example. I will rely heavily on DeLoss, but the details of that will have to be worked out over the next days and maybe a week or so. On the current timing, we do not need somebody in a week because DeLoss is not leaving tomorrow, so we can do it thoughtfully. I think we will begin that process, I would hope over the next couple of months, but there is not deadline and no precise timeframe.
How has the job of athletic director changed in the last 32 years?
(Dodds) Well it's like everything else. You go from a $4 million budget to a $170 million budget, you go from a staff of 60 to a staff of 350. The technology. I think the great thing about Texas, the passion was here, expectations were here when I came. I don't think that's changed. I don't think kids have changed. We still see the same high-quality young people come into our program. The business side, the NCAA side, the Big 12 side, TV influence on our lives has changed things immensely. The money absolutely has changed things, trying to keep in perspective that this is about kids and not about money. On the other side, you have got to generate the money to afford to do the things for kids and to compete.
Will you make any coaching changes between now and August if you have to, or would you prefer to leave that to your successor?
(Dodds) I'm not going to go there. I think that's an answer that will work itself out over the next several weeks with what President Powers is doing to fill the position. I think anything that this department does significantly in the next year needs to have a hand of the new person, because that's the person that is going to have to manage it, live with it, and be responsible for it. Whatever activity needs to be worked on, I think that person needs to be really involved in it.
Are you looking for someone to stay in line with what Dodds has done, or are you looking for someone to bring something new to the table?
(Powers) This enterprise that we're involved in, we go through all the time when we bring in deans and now a new athletics director. This one is probably a little more visible. But I think that question you're asking is true whenever we bring in senior management. The person who comes in will have to fit in Texas, with this program, and I think DeLoss [Dodds] put it exactly right. The number one criteria is integrity. That won't be compromised. I think every time you bring anyone in new, they have new and fresh ideas. So, I think it'll be a combination of the two of them. What DeLoss [Dodds] has built, with many, many other people in this room and alumni and coaches, but over that period of time, what has been built here is not something that you want to change direction all that much. Fresh ideas are one thing, but I think that we are on the right trajectory.
On endowing scholarships:
(Powers) Endowment locks money in place and gets a 21 to 1 reduction in the payout. In return you get it forever but you can't use it now. We do all kinds of things on the campus and have a mixture of those. I would anticipate we will always be looking to endow some scholarships but not using your operating money for scholarships as well I don't think is a good business strategy in any enterprise. That is really a finance question that we always try to get right.
(Dodds) The financial side in the last 15 years is -- I think our bond payment, Ed Goble is in the room and he can be exact, but I think our bond payment is $17 million a year on the new things we built. The revenue generated on the new things we built is like $28 to $29 million so that is a pretty good payout compared to an endowment.
What will be the new Athletics Director's role if they come earlier before Dodds steps down?
(Powers) First of all, that procedure of course the Board of Regents at any appoint at this level will have to approve it. That will be a smooth enterprise. I think when the new person, first it depends on how soon the new person can get here. They might have to wrap some things or they may want to take some time. I think, as DeLoss said, getting that future started as early as we can and that we know who it is will be helpful but it depends on the person as to when exactly they get here. I think it will be helpful if there is overlap. I would anticipate that DeLoss and the new person would work together. The new person, my anticipation would want to be the Athletics Director will honor Deloss's contract through the end of the year but we will have to wait to see exactly who the person is to work out the details. I do not anticipate any obstacles to that kind of transition.
Any regrets?
(Dodds) Oh I am sure there are. They are so easy to forget. It has been a great 32 years and I can remember struggling to decide whether to come to Texas or not 32 years ago. What a blessing for me, for my family to be here and have a place to retire. I have all my kids here, my grandkids here, and I have certainly no regrets being in Texas.
(Powers) Let me just add on what a blessing it has been for Texas.
Who has really influenced and been behind you these past 32 years?
(Dodds) Oh to start naming names would be really, really hard. There are so many of them. Texas is blessed with wonderful alums and they are so availably, so helpful, so generous, and I think to start naming would be a mistake. I just know this, they are out there and they are ready to help this University accomplish wonderful things.
Should the football coach at Texas be able to handle the booster and relations side of the job on top of coaching?
(Dodds) I know that when we hired head coach (Mack) Brown he was head and shoulders above anybody in the marketplace. I know when he came to Texas, this place, I could use the word overwhelming but that isn't a good word, it took him two to three years to get into this. This is a hard job and he was so ready to do it but it took him time to get into it. You can't short change the fans, you can't short change the team, you can't short change the media, you can't short change anything as the head football coach at Texas. Mack has been able to play that magnificently.
Is Texas still 'The Joneses'?
(Dodds) Kirk, that was said to you one day when I was upset with you and I have regretted that ever since.
(Powers) I will add to that and again I go academically, for example the American Association of Universities or other campuses at the conference, in the whatever the new name for the BCS is now and I will say people around the country have enormous respect for the way athletics is done here at Texas. It is not quite an answer but it is a highly respected program.
Has anyone reached out and expressed any interest in the position yet?
(Powers) No, and we haven't been in contact with anyone.
Will you leave Texas completely behind after August 2014 or 'hang around' for a bit?
(Dodds) Well I am able to hang around -- your words -- through 2020 as a part-time person on staff. So I would be available to the staff and the Athletics Director to do whatever they wanted me to do. So it would be part-time.
What would your role be?
(Dodds) Just very much working with and for the Athletics Director and doing what he or she thinks I can help most with.
Any vision of what you wants college athletics to be?
(Dodds) There are so many moving parts out there today that are serious kinds of things. Restructuring the NCAA is maybe leagues away and I think the commissioners are starting to get a good handle on that. I think ADs are working in the system to make it better so I see that side being better. There are some things that aren't quite so good or the answers aren't quite so clear but athletics is in a wonderful place. College football is more popular than it has ever been. I feel so good about our kids and graduation rates, GPAs, and APRs so from that side I think it is in great shape.
Thoughts about student-athletes sharing in revenue anytime in the near future?
(Dodds) I will leave that to the attorneys.
With the influence that Dodds has in the nation, do you worry about not having that influence with a new athletics director?
(Powers) Well I do, it is a loss. He is a great leader. As I said I think at some point there always has to be a transition but we will get an excellent, excellent Athletic Director to follow. But yes I have learned a lot from DeLoss even outside of athletics. Sort of an [unflappable], calm, keep focused on the things you can do something about and try not to worry about the things you can't do anything about, which is very hard to do at times, be strategic. The good news, I think you hear him say, is he is staying in Austin and he will have a connection with the University so I think we will be able to tap his wisdom. But certainly, we will lose his leadership over time and we will gain the leadership of a, I think, terrific, new athletic director.
