Notebook: Georgia athletics board conducts day one of meetings
GREENSBORO, Ga. — The University of Georgia Athletic Association Board of Directors held their annual spring meeting on Thursday, the first of a two-day affair at The Ritz-Carlton Reynolds Lake Oconee. DawgsHQ was on hand, and here’s what you need to know…
General Information
*** Jere Morehead shared his President’s Report saying that 8,300+ graduates were celebrated earlier this month at the spring commencement celebration. The University of Georgia ranks among top 20 of public research universities for eighth straight year, and among the accolades for the graduate programs, Georgia’s law school received much praise. Retention rate is at 95%, five points higher than average of other SEC institutions, and six-year completion rate is 12 points higher than average of the rest of the conference. Among individual accomplishments, Georgia professor Dr. Jenna Jambeck was named the SEC Professor of the Year.
*** The board conducted an 32 minute private session where all non-members of the board were excused. Jere Morehead said during an executive committee meeting that this would pertain to updating the board on ongoing litigation involving the athletic association. No action or vote was taken, and no further details were shared.
*** David Shipley shared his Academic Report with a spring student-athlete GPA of 3.24, the highest outside of the 2020 COVID-spring semester that is treated with an asterisk. The previous mark was a 3.22 from fall of 2022. Tennis led on the men’s side of things while the swim & dive had the highest GPA on a closely contested women’s side.
*** Election of a student representative to next year’s board was conducted on Thursday with George Moore winning the spot. Two student-athletes will also join the board, taking over for current representatives Caterina Don (women’s golf) and Jabri Abdur-Rahim (men’s basketball). The positions will be filled by Abby McCulloh (women’s swim) and Jalon Walker (football).
*** Former Georgia tight end (1999-2003) and a 15-year NFL veteran (2004-2019) Benjamin Watson was among the committee recommendations for new members of the board. After approval, he will join the board of directors next year.
*** Director of athletics Josh Brooks always likes to keep an eye on the Learfield Director’s Cup and is hopeful for a top-20 finish after results from the spring are included. Baseball and softball among the sports still going along with track & field. Georgia finished top-10 last year, and after a year of “young teams,” Brooks believes the Bulldogs have a great chance to make a return there next year.
*** Brooks is excited about recent head coaching hires for gymnastics (co-head coaches Ryan Roberts and Cecile Canqueteau-Landi) and women’s golf (Erika Brennan). Brooks noted that Brennan’s recent interview had him ready to hire her in a matter of minutes.
*** Basketball coaches Mike White and Katie Abrahamson-Henderson were part of a head coaches panel where topics included decision making of a leader, the biggest lessons learned from this last season and more. White gave a very honest answer on an approach he and his staff took this year, discussing the big picture (i.e. making the NCAA Tournament). According to him, that’s one he believes that backfired, and Georgia plans to get back to the “process oriented” approach.
*** Fundraising updates from Brooks included an all-time record for FY24 (year to date) of $113 million. Previous records came in FY23 ($102 million) and FY22 ($86 million). Ability to leverage the new club seating in the 1929 Club played a big part in hitting new marks – ones Brooks admitted will be difficult to top next year. Towards the $300 million capital campaign (ending June 30, 2027), $176 million has been raised.
*** Tanner Stines and Matt Brachowski shared in their facilities update that the indoor tennis facility is now complete. The SEC Tournament Championship final (won by Georgia over Texas A&M) was held there due to rain. The Butts-Mehre Circle of Champions is also complete. As for ongoing projects…
– Expansion construction for Foley Field is set to begin next month (estimated completion: February 2025) with an expanded canopy, premium space on the 1st base side, some new seating and player facility upgrades with pitching and hitting labs.– The softball construction project has been ongoing beyond left field throughout the season and estimated completion is in the fall.– Phase 2 of the Sanford Stadium South Side Improvements has been ongoing since November and will be finished before the fall. Refrigeration updates (going along with ability to sell beer at stadium starting next season) and funding request is on the agenda for tomorrow.
A funding request for the Stegeman Coliseum master planning will come soon. Included in this is the new video board, set to be 2.5-time larger than any other on a collegiate campus at almost 7,000 square feet.
*** Brooks brought up future considerations with ways to grow revenue being studied. Ticket pricing adjustments at both Sanford Stadium and Foley Field could come into play (no reseating plans). As he mentioned, these kind of considerations have already happened at Stegeman Coliseum.
Renderings of Track Facility
Initial plans to move Georgia’s track and field facilities out to a location on South Milledge Avenue were announced at last year’s spring board meetings in conjunction with side-by-side practice fields for the football program going in place of the current track and field facility location. On Thursday, Josh Brooks and the board took the next step in the process, revealing renderings for the state of the art facility – one that Georgia expects will be able to host SEC Championships and more events on campus throughout the season.
Funding for phase 1 of the project was approved in Mach, and construction is set to begin in August. Below are renderings that were shown…
Concourse view
View from throwing area at concourse
Shot Put Area
The board will meet again on Friday for a session that’s typically shorter. Focus for tomorrow will be student-wellness and finances with a Treasurer’s Report and discussion over the budget for FY2025.
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