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News Nuggets, 06.20.04
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Compiled from staff reports and electronic dispatches

Contender for ECU AD position takes USU job

One of the candidates whose name was once prominently in the mix of those being considered for the athletic director's position at East Carolina has been named to head up the athletic program at Utah State.

Air Force Colonel Randall W. Spetman, the former AD at the Air Force Academy, will take over as AD for the Aggies on July 1, USU president Kermit L. Hall has announced.

The position has been open since April, when Rance Pugmire resigned after pleading guilty to one class-B misdemeanor charge of alcohol-related reckless driving on April 7. He rolled his vehicle three times near Brigham City on Feb. 15.

Hall said Spetman draws from deep wells of experience and understanding and a wide range of skills and abilities that will serve Utah State well during during a period of transition in its athletic program.

The Aggies, currently members of the Sun Belt Conference, have accepted an invitation to join the Western Athletic Conference.

A major reason for accepting the offer to come to Utah State, Spetman said, is its emphasis on academics. He noted the university's 10th highest graduation rate in the nation among its student athletes.

Spetman's name was among three finalists forwarded forwarded by a search committee to recently-appointed ECU chancellor Steven Ballard for consideration for ECU's open AD position.

The other names forwarded to Ballard were ECU senior associate AD Nick Floyd, who has served as the Pirates' interim AD since last August, and ECU alum Jeff Barber, an associate AD at South Carolina who serves as director of the Gamecock Club.

Ballard declined to hire any of the three for the time being and has indicated he would retain a consultant and rely on a paired down search committee to help with the process as he seeks additional candidates.

Floyd and Barber have formerly withdrawn their names from consideration for the job, though Floyd has offered to continue to serve in his interim capacity for a period of time.

Sources close to Floyd, who was associate commissioner of Conference USA in charge of finance before coming to ECU three years ago, say he would likely still welcome the chance to consider becoming ECU's AD if such an opportunity were to arise before his career pursuits steer him elsewhere.

Floyd is thought to be a potential hiring target for a number of AD or other senior positions in athletics administration around the country.

Turner hired to quell turmoil at Washington

Todd Turner, whose experience as an athletic director includes stints at Connecticut, N.C. State and Vanderbilt, was hired to head Washington's troubled athletic department.

An alumnus of UNC-Chapel Hill, Turner will replace interim athletic director Dick Thompson, who took over when Barbara Hedges announced her early retirement in January.

Washington's athletic department has been rocked with a series of scandals in the past year. The school faces the possibility of major NCAA sanctions in a gambling investigation, and a federal probe is looking into the actions of a former softball team physician.

There also are lawsuits filed by former football coach Rick Neuheisel and former softball coach Teresa Wilson.

"I'm not terribly concerned about the past," Turner said at a news conference Saturday. "I'm more focused on what lies ahead."

Turner is optimistic all those issues will be resolved in due time, and he pledged continued cooperation.

"You can't always control what happens, but you sure can control the way you respond," Turner said.

Turner will receive a five-year contract worth $325,000 in base salary. Administrators are negotiating incentives that should boost the package to $420,000 annually.

"We ended up with absolutely the right person for this job, and I couldn't be happier how the process went," incoming university president Mark Emmert said.

Emmert, who is leaving his job as chancellor at LSU, worked with Turner in the Southeastern Conference.

Turner's position at Vanderbilt was eliminated last fall in a major overhaul. The athletic department was integrated into the rest of the administration.

Turner was Vanderbilt's athletic director from 1996 to 2003, overseeing a program that included 14 varsity sports and 300 student athletes at the private school in Nashville, Tenn. Prior to his tenure at Vandy, he served as AD at N.C. State from 1990-96 and at UConn from 1987-90.

Vanderbilt, with about 6,000 students, is a member of the Southeastern Conference.

Washington has 23 sports programs with about 650 student athletes and a $39.5 million annual budget.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically from staff, ECU, Conference USA and its member schools, and from Associated Press and other reports. Copyright 2004 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Page Updated: 02/23/2007