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By
Brad
Duncan
Mitch
Barnhart
"A
program of this nature has to have someone with experience
in collegiate athletics and someone who knows the
best practices, the industry and its people. I selected
who I think is the best person."
--
Lee T. Todd Jr.,
president,
University of Kentucky
To
see streaming video
of the first part of the news conference, click here.
To
see streaming video of the second part of the news
conference, click here.
To
read the announcement news release, click here.
To
read biographical information about Mitch Barnhart,
click here.
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July
15, 2002 (Lexington, Ky.) --
"I think this is one of the top jobs in the country
and I will work tirelessly day and night with great
energy and enthusiasm to make this program something
you can be extremely proud of. There is no reason
it cannot be everything you want it to be."
With that,
Mitch Barnhart introduced himself as the new athletics
director at the University of Kentucky after a four-month
search.
After UK
President Lee T. Todd Jr. provided his official recommendation
of Barnhart's hire, the UK Athletic Association Board
of Directors voted 11-1 to accept the appointment,
which was then unanimously approved by the UK Board
of Trustees' Executive Committee making the action
official.
Barnhart,
who has held the post of athletics director at Oregon
State University since 1998, becomes the first athletics
director since Chet Wynn in 1934 who has not had UK
ties as a player, coach or staff member.
In selecting
Barnhart, Todd addressed a number of key factors in
his decision, including Barnhart's success as a fund
raiser, his leadership in the success of the OSU teams
on the field and in the classroom, and his ability
to balance the OSU athletic budget.
"A program
of this nature has to have someone with experience
in collegiate athletics and someone who knows the
best practices, the industry and its people," Todd
said. "I selected who I think is the best person."
"He has
a deep passion for the job he has," Todd continued,
"and his ideas for running this program are in line
with mine." In accepting his post, Barnhart outlined
a five-principle philosophy for success that he expects
the university and its Athletic Association to follow.
In everything
UKAA, its staff, its coaches and its players do, they
must maintain the following: - First class - Great
integrity - A great student-athlete experience - Sound
fiscal management, and - Compete for championships
in all sports.
"The administration
and staff are here for the student-athletes and coaches,"
Barnhart said. "We will work hard and challenge the
coaches to provide the best experience on the field
for the student-athletes while we prepare them for
their lives off the field."
With his
first athletics director job at OSU, Barnhart had
tremendous success. He reduced an inherited operating
debt from $12.5 million to $4.8 million in four years,
a debt which is on schedule for elimination. He produced
a balanced budget in each year of his term. He raised
$20 million in capital contributions for new baseball
and softball stadiums, indoor practice center and
basketball arena renovation.
He also
produced record football sales from 6,000 season tickets
to 23,000, while guiding the athletics department
to the highest finish in school history in the Sears
Cup standings - 48th with only 14 sports.
While at
OSU, Barnhart served on several sports working committees
of the Pac-10 Conference, NCAA and NACDA, and completed
the second-cycle of NCAA certification in February
2001.
Before
arriving at OSU, Barnhart, who received his bachelor
of arts degree from Ottawa University in Kansas and
his master of science in sports administration from
Ohio University, was at the University of Tennessee
from 1986-1998, serving the last four years as senior
associate athletics director.
He also
spent time as assistant executive director of the
Mustang Club at Southern Methodist University and
regional director for the Duck Athletic Fund at the
University of Oregon.
Athletics
Directors at the University of Kentucky 1910,
1914 - E.R. Sweetland
1912, 13, 15 - John J. Tigert
1916-34 - Stanley A. "Daddy" Boles
1934-37 - Chet Wynn
1938-67 - Bernie Shively
1968-75 (Dec.) - Harry Lancaster
1975-89 Cliff Hagan
1989-2000 - C.M. Newton
2000-02 - Larry Ivy
2002 - Mitch Barnhart
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