USA Announces Jaguar Sports Properties With Pat Greenwood As Director Of Multimedia Operations
Head coach Joey Jones speaks with sideline reporter Pat Greenwood heading into halftime against Middle Tennessee on Saturday, November 17, 2012.
On Thursday, South Alabama Athletics Director Joel Erdmann announced that the University will part ways with IMG College and will create the Jaguar Sports Properties division.
J.D. Byars was named the Director of Broadcasting/Corporate Sales Executive, Ashley Ehlert was named the unit’s Account Executive and Mike Geidlin as named the Assistant Business Manager for the group. The three began their duties earlier this month.
Local 15’s Pat Greenwood will join the staff as Director of Multimedia/Corporate Sales Executive on March 1. Greenwood has been the sideline reporter for the Jaguar football team since it began and did some color commentary for football and men’s basketball broadcasts on occasion over the last couple years.
JSP will be overseen by current Associate Athletics Director for External Affairs Travis Toth. The group will be responsible for athletic corporate and multimedia sales as well as radio and television production including game broadcasts and coaches’ shows.
“These hires reflect well-seasoned and superior professionals in their field of expertise,” Erdmann said. “The mission of Jaguar Sports Properties is to generate revenue through sponsorships which are paid directly to the department while expanding our awareness, growing our fan base and solidifying our brand. The broadcast assignments for applicable sports – including current radio personality Lee Shirvanian — will be announced later this semester. We anticipate a tremendous broadcast team promoting several sports and the department as whole using radio, television and ever-growing on-line content.”
“This is a very exciting and important time for our department,” explained Erdmann. “Approximately five years ago we entered into a partnership with IMG College which gave them the rights to manage our sponsorship and multi-media sales. That partnership was a prudent decision as working with IMG helped us in navigating the birth of an FBS football program. We deeply appreciate IMG College for that guidance and support. The decision to go in a different direction and create an internal unit was amicable in nature and primarily based on our desire to have complete control of our advertising inventory, our audio and video productions, our sales strategies and stewardship of our sponsors.”
It is expected that Lee Shirvanian will continue his work announcing baseball and basketball but the football announcing crew may change and is currently being considered. ALso Erdmann wants to add affiliate radio stations to expand reach and help increase the fanbase.
South Alabama Honored Their Student-Athletes Tuesday Night
On Tuesday evening the University of South Alabama honored their student-athletes at the fourth annual Pete Tolbert Night of Champions at the Mitchell Center.
Augustine Rubit was named Jaguar Male Student-Athlete of the year. Rubit earned All-American honors from CollegeInsider.com and was a National Basketball Coaches Association first-team All-District selection. Along with several other accolades.
Hannah Campbell was named the Jaguar Female Student-Athlete of the Year. She is ranked in the top five nationally in ERA and saves and leads the Sun Belt in both categories while ranking in the top five in wins and strikeouts as well. In 33 appearances she has a record of 18-7 with six saves, a 0.94 ERA and 132 strikeouts over 164 2/3 innings of work. She aslo recorded her first career no-hitter in March versus UC-Santa Barbara. Some notable appearances include wins over nationally ranked ULL and Mississippi State and saves against then #25 ranked Florida State and Ole Miss.
The event recognized the achievements of South Alabama nearly 400 student-athletes both in the classroom and in competition.
Brittany Fowler is USA’s NCAA Woman of the Year nominee. To be eligible for the honor a student-athlete must be a varsity letterwinner who will complete her intercollegiate eligibility by the end of spring sports season. They must have excelled in academics, athletics, service and leadership with a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5. She is batting a team-leading .406 with 52 hits, eight home runs, 31 RBI and 48 runs scored. She rankes among the conference leaders in each of those categories.
Julie Moss earned the Tom and Barbara Corcoran Scholar-Athlete Endowed Scholarship Award which is presented to a Junior who most excels in sports while maintaining at least a 3.0 cumulative GPA.
Brittany Campbell earned the Denny-Gottfried Athletic Scholarship Award that goes to a student-athlete who holds a minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA, has completed their NCAA eligibility and with the assistance of the fund will graduate from USA within two consecutive semesters. The Senior’s total of seven home runs this spring are more than her previous three seasons combined while she is batting .328 with 11 stolen bases and 33 runs scored.
Trey Clark earned the Jimmy Taylor Scholarship Award which is given to a student-athlete who has exhausted their eligibility, maintained an outstanding GAP and achieved significant Athletic accomplishments. Clark not only played every snap at center last season for the Jags, but he also started every game for the Jags since the teams inception in 2009. Clark also earned second-team Capital One Academic All-America honors off the field.
Romelle Jones earned the Male Perseverance Award while Scott Garber earned the Male Jaguar Athletic Fund Award for the second year in a row.
Mychal Ammons earned the Wilson Durgin Memorial Scholarship Award which is presented to a deserving minority student-athlete.
COle Billingsley earned the Auralia Crowell Freshman Scholar-Athlete Award for the most outstanding freshman based on excellence in academics and athletics. In his first season with the Jaguar baseball team he is batting .295, scored 26 runs and 19 RBI.
Kristyn Thacker earned the Female Perseverance Award while Amber Wyatt earned the Female Jaguar Athletic Fund Award.
Brent Mitchell earned the Forrest W. and Beverly B. Crowder Endowed Scholarship for Baseball. Jacob Noble earned the Clifton Inge Endowed Baseball Award. Garrett Schumacher earned the McKinney Family Endowed Scholarship for Track and Field Award. Ross Metheny was named the Mayer Mitchell Quarterback Endowment Fund Award winner while Daniel Ballard was named the George Smith Memorial Endowed Scholarship Fund Award winner.
Travis Toth was named the Matt Smith Award Winner. This is presented to a member of the athletic staff who consistently goes the extra mile, has the spirit of commitment, strong work ethic and a deep sense of pride in their job. It is named for former USA Sports Information Director Matt Smith who passed away in December of 2004.
Each sports program also presents awards. The winners of those honors were: Eddie Stanky Award (baseball), Brent Mitchell; Goldie Ungar Heart of Gold Award (men’s basketball), Javier Carter; Lady Jag Basketball TEDs Award (women’s basketball), Ronneka Robertson; Female Distance Award (women’s cross country), Salom Lecoq; Male Distance Award (men’s cross country), Patrick Rohr; Jim Yance Heart of a Jaguar Award (football), B.J. Scott; Heath Slocum Award (men’s golf), Jared Burleson; Beth Barry Award (women’s golf), Kristen Golightly; Lindsay Rogers Award (soccer), Jess Oram; Extra Mile Award (softball), Meghan Collins; Lubel Family Award (men’s tennis), Daniel Leitner; Marilyn Lubel Award (women’s tennis), Mary Angela Martin; Female Field Events Award (women’s track and field), Briana Aiken; Male Field Events Award (men’s track and field), Nick Farrell; Female Track Events Award (women’s track and field), Leah Hixon; Male Track Events Award (men’s track and field), Tyler Agee; and, Jaguar Volleyball Award (volleyball), Olivia Mohler.
USA has 45 student-athletes set to receive their degree in two weeks at commencement. They were given Sun Belt Conference Graduation Medallions to honor their accomplishement both through competition and academics culiminating in their graduation.
Congratulations to all of the Jaguar Student-Athletes and good luck to the soon-to-be alumni. Thank you for your hard work both on and off the field and for representing the University in a distinguished manner.
GO Jags!!
Are Some South Alabama Fans Calling For A Coaching Change?
In this mornings Sound Off in the Mobile Press-Register, a reader wrote in criticizing the Jaguar baseball coaching staff. This is rightly so, the team has not performed well since 2006 and the ERA lately has been over 6. So, what is the Athletics Department to do?
With Coach Kitrell’s past success and general likability in the community, it would be a hard sell to fire him. It doesn’t seem like Coach K wants to retire either. However, they might be able to convince him that this would be the best for the program. Either way, what do you do?
Probably the most likely to happen is a shake-up in the staff. Pitching is definitely an area where the bullseye would probably fall. Another area where things could change would be the position of recruiting coordinator.
Recruiting is definitely a tough area for College Baseball. When good high school players graduate, their first inclination is to try to make it in the Minor Leagues. This is the shorter route to possibly making it to the Major Leagues. If they go to college, they may get drafted early in their collegiant career and go play in the Minors. But again, because it’s the shortest route, you don’t go from College to the Majors.
South Alabama and the other programs must have top notch recruiters in order to convince these kids to come to their program. Currently, pitching is at a premium. Which is why you see major league pitchers receiving high paying deals while clubs are scouring minor league teams for the next pitching prospect.
So what is the answer for the South Alabama baseball program? I think it’s too early after the major letdown at the end of the season to determine that. This may be the first major decision the new Athletic Director Joel Erdmann will have to face at South Alabama.
Would Luis Gonzalez like to become a college baseball coach? It could be a big boom in recruiting and his alma mater might be searching.
Joe Gottfried Honored At His Retirement Ceremony
Joe Gottfried was honored today for his 28 years of service to the University of South Alabama. University President Gordon Moulton hosted the ceremony held on Thursday afternoon at the Mitchell Center. Gottfried served the last 25 years at athletic director before he stepped down from this position on August 1st.
He is a 1963 graduate of Ashland College and would earn his master’s degree from Morehead State in 1969.
Coach Gottfried, a 1963 graduate of Ashland College and 1969 graduate of Morehead State where he received his master’s degree, came to USA as an Assistant Athletic Director in 1981. He served in that position through 1984 when he was promoted to the position of Athletic Director. Previous to USA he had successful coaching stints at Ashland and Southern Illinois. In addition to being in the USA Athletic Hall of Fame, he is also a member of the Ashland College and Crestline (Ohio) High School Halls of Fame.
The Jaguars athletics experienced success both in competition as well as in the classroom under his direction. Plus he probably had the most impact on the school’s architecture in recent years, with the development and improvement of the athletic facilities. Gottfried was also very instrumental in adding football as the 17th program for the school. He initially lead discussions in an attempt to bring football to the USA campus in 2001 and was finally approved by the Board of Trustees on December 6, 2007.
Gottfrieds impact can be seen in the $30 million Mitchell Center, which is the home of the men’s and women’s basketball program as well as offices for athletic department presonnel, Stanky Field which underwent a $3.5 million renovation prior to the 2005 season, a 4,000 square-foot baseball clubhouse built in 1996, the intramural fields on the west side of campus, the softball complex built prior to the 2007 season which was the first-ever for the program, a new locker room for the softball and soccer programs, improvements to Jaguar Gymnasium, the Striplin Center, “The Cage” soccer facility, the USA Track Complex, the Bruce David Lubel Memorial Tennis Courts, the football field house and the football practice fields.
However just as important the athletics is the academics which also flourished under coach Gottfried. With the addition of football, the athletic department is at an all-time high of more than 300 student-athletes. In the latest Academic Progress Rate report released by the NCAA last month, 13 of 16 programs in competition at South Alabama scored above the 925 standard set by the NCAA. Also under coach Gottfried, 83% of South Alabama’s student-athletes that have completed their eligibility have graduated. There have been 37 individual student-athletes that have been named to the Sun Belt Conference Commissioner’s List for maintaining at least a 3.5 GPA while 32 others have made the Sun Belt Acadeimc Honor Roll with a GPA of 3.0 or higher in 2007-2008.
Also 75 South Alabama student-athletes have earned All-America recognition while 62 of the schools coaches were selected the SBC Conference Coach of the Year in their sports. South Alabama has claimed the Vic Bubas Cup 10 times in a 13 year span. No school in league history has earned the award more than USA. South Alabama teams have won 104 league titles, appeared in 54 NCAA Championship events, and have had 123 individual student-athletes qualify for NCAA postseason play. Including two track and field athletes who have won NCAA titles. Plus, in baseball, 95 players have signed with prefessional teams including 17 who have made it to the Major Leagues.
Thank you coach Gottfried for your hard work and dedication to South Alabama Athletics, thank you for taking time to talk to students and fans, and thank you for putting South Alabama in the position continue to improve its level of competion for many years to come.
Dr. Joel Erdmann Named To Replace Gottfried As Athletic Director
On Sunday afternoon, university president Gordon Moulton, introduced Dr. Joel Erdmann as the next athletic director for the University of South Alabama. Dr. Erdmann was one of over 50 applicants for the position after Joe Gottfried announced his upcoming retirement on August 1st.
Dr. Erdmann is 46 years old and has served as athletic director at Southeastern Louisiana University Hammond, Louisiana for the previous two years. Previous to that he served in the same capacity at Division II North Alabama for five years between 2002 and 2007. During his time at UNA, the football team won two Gulf South Conference Championships (2003, 2006) and Division II Regional Championship (2003). While at Southeastern Louisiana the school captured its first ever Southland Conference Men’s All-Sports Trophy and also captured two conference championships while also playing an instrumental role in facility upgrades.
Three candidates were interviewed on campus in the previous few weeks, Erdmann, Brian Wickstrom from UTEP and Derrick Ramsey from Coppin State. President Moulton phoned Erdmann over the weekend and offered the job to him.
Erdmann has previous ties to the university. He held several positions at USA where he received his master’s degree in physical education. He was a graduate assistant coach for the baseball team, assistant to the athletics director, executive director of the Jaguar Athletic Club and other capacities including handling compliance issues, game operations and special projects. He was also a tenured associate professor in the College of Education.
Dr. Erdmann is a native of South Dakota where he graduated from South Dakota State . He earned his doctorate from Florida State University in Sports Managament and Athletic Administration in 1995.
President Moulton spoke about Dr. Erdmann at the press conference on Sunday by saying, “Joel Erdmann brings to the University of South Alabama the experience that comes from having led other athletic programs, as well as a familiarity with and appreciation for USA athletics stemming from his earlier leadership position here. Dr. Erdmann is the right person to take the torch from Joe Gottfried and lead University of South Alabama athletics to the next level.”
Following are Dr. Erdmann’s remarks about his selection to be USA’s fourth Athletic Director since the school was founded in 1963. “I appreciate President Moulton and everyone who was involved in the selection process. I am honored to have the opportunity to lead this tradition-filled department and look forward to capitalizing on the addition of football while maintaining a high level of excellence throughout all sport programs. It is truly a privilege to be a member of the University of South Alabama and a memorable time to be a Jaguar.”
I hope this is the right hire for the position. I thought this would be a good time to hire a solid name to further strengthen the athletics department, however its also nice to have someone that seems to truly appreciate the University and has the excitement and energy to help lead it along. With Football set to kick off its first season in a mere 46 days, that enthusiasm and energy will definitely be tested quickly.
The funniest line to end the statement was from the usajaguars.com press release. The last line says, “A native of Bismarck, N.D., Erdmann is married to the former Tina Milton. The couple has three dogs and a cat.”
Go Jags!