Maryland AD Insists He Is Staying

The Baltimore Sun

http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/07/16/2202562/despite-report-maryland-athletics.html

Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson said he spent much of Monday putting out “a lot of fires” after a San Francisco newspaper reported – erroneously, Anderson said – that he was on the verge of being hired as Stanford’s AD.

“I spent the majority of this afternoon calling – talking to my president and to supporters of the athletic department and staff members. I had to put out a lot of fires,” Anderson told The Baltimore Sun.

Anderson said his phone calls were the product of “somebody putting some inaccurate information on the Internet.”

The San Francisco Chronicle reported Stanford was to name Anderson as athletic director “assuming the two sides can agree on contract terms.”

In a written statement, Anderson said: “I am not in discussions nor have I been with Stanford University regarding their open athletic director position as I am committed to being the director of athletics at the University of Maryland.”

The Chronicle’s report was widely disseminated via Twitter and other sources. Maryland issued Anderson’s statement to set the record straight.

Anderson’s original contract, which began in 2010, was for five years. But it gets automatically extended by a year each Sept.30 unless one of the parties objects. The deal was for $401,015 annually. In addition to the base salary, the contract offers up to $50,000 collectively in incentives for athletes’ graduation rates and academic achievements, athletic fundraising and team success.

President Wallace Loh said in February: “I would like to state unequivocally that Kevin Anderson has done a remarkable job since becoming athletic director about a year ago. I am proud that Kevin was my first hire.”

Anderson arrived at Maryland from Army in October 2010. His tenure has been eventful. He oversaw the buyout of the final season of football coach Ralph Friedgen’s contract and replaced him with Randy Edsall. He hired Texas A&M men’s basketball coach Mark Turgeon to replace the retired Gary Williams.

Anderson faced the grim task this year of eliminating seven athletics teams because of budget issues that were years in the making. The teams were targeted by a university commission that studied possible remedies to the financial issues and made a series of recommendations.

In his written statement Monday, Anderson suggested that his work at Maryland remains unfinished.