QUOTES FROM NEWLY APPOINTED UTAH STATE ATHLETICS DIRECTOR RANDALL SPETMAN
General Comments.”Let me tell you how excited and honored (wife) Becky and I are to be here and be a part of the Utah State Aggie family, because that is what we sensed a couple of weeks ago, this is a family. It’s with great appreciation that I give to the selection committee, to President (Kermit) Hall, and the Board of Trustees that they would have the trust and confidence in Becky and I to be at the reigns of this program. As the President said, this is not a short-term deal, you have us here for the long term, we don’t like to move. We like to be a part of a community that has the same core values that we have and that we’ve seen here of integrity, of service and excellence. I’ve seen those qualities in the coaching staff, the administration, the faculty, the student-athletes, and most importantly the student body. In this coming year, as we close out our conference play and then go into the Western Athletic Conference (WAC), the new energy that is out there across the nation is phenomenal. In my conversations with Karl Benson, the Commissioner of the (WAC), it couldn’t be any better, he’s a visionary that is going to take this to the next level and we’ll all be involved with that. It’s a great thing for me to be on the ground level, to be a part of that and to see it go. We’re going to need community support, we’re going to need alumni support, but we know this is possible because we have seen the pride in the University that it takes to get to the top. All you have to do is drive down the streets of Logan to see the pride that people take in Utah State University. As President Hall says, ‘Utah State is a University of the people.’ Well, I’m glad to be your people.”
Talk About Your Committment To Utah State And The Terms Of Your Contract.”The long-term for us is to finish out our career here and I hope that’s 35 years. Student-athletes keep you young and I always want to be around the student-athletes. President Hall and I have signed a five year contract, which at the end of two years will be looked at for an extension. If he’s happy with my performance and what we’re doing, then we’ll continue to go forward. I tried to talk him into a ten year contract because that’s my commitment to you all. This is a place I want to be. As you’ve heard earlier, the student-athletes graduate from here. When you are top ten in the nation and 81 percent of them are graduating, that’s the kind of program I want to be a part of. So yes, this is for us, we are not passing through.”
What attracted you to Utah State?”That’s a great question. I knew of (Utah State) because for many years in the old (WAC) and the Mountain West Conference, we talked about Utah State and whether they would be a part of our conference. I knew the reputation that the University had for academic excellence. I will say that Mr. Phil Olsen was very instrumental in getting me involved in the process and educating me on what this program really had to offer and where we could go, so that is what has brought us here. We still weren’t sure until two weeks ago when we drove into the valley and saw what this University is about. The people around the University take pride in it, from the facilities, the yards, the flowers and everything. It’s very similar to Colorado Springs, where we never thought we would leave, except you all have the mountains on the wrong side. This is the type of community we want to be a part of. Yes, I did interview with several other institutions and the Lord has a reason for us all and He has guided us here.”
What will you do as Athletic Director to hit the ground running?”The first thing you do whenever you take over a new position is you’ve got to meet your people. I need the administration and the staff, and I don’t just mean in the Athletic Department, I need the faculty and administrators across the campus to know who I am and what I stand for so they can be a part of that. Largely, I also need to get out to ouralumni so they know the direction I plan to take and where I want us all to go and to be a part of that. As I said before, we’ll try to write a strategic plan that is right in line with what President Hall has for the whole University so that we know where we’re going to go in our new conference and to be successful. Basically, it’s for you all to get to know me and to know where we’re going to go in the future.”
Being a former AD, what do you think you bring to the University that will help the Athletics Department in its transition to the WAC?”The great thing I bring to the University is experience. I’ve been a member of different committees in the NCAA and the Mountain West Conference and in the old (WAC). Karl Benson knows who I am and I know the other Athletic Directors that are in the different conferences. So I bring that automatic respect when I go back onto those committees, as I will, and to represent the University and to bring credit to where we’re going to go. I also know what it takes to win and have been a part of a program that has won and you have great coaches here that know what that is. I will gather from them how we continue that here in my new environment to be successful and to take care of the students and our community.”
Who is the constituency of Utah State Athletics? Is it Cache Valley, the Wasatch Front, the greater inter-mountain region?” It’s all of those people. We have to make this an experience when they come and watch our events that they feel captured by it. We need to have our student-athletes out there so that they know what they’re rooting for and who they’re rooting for and what these kids represent across the nation. So we are going to touch them all, we are going to make it a family experience when you come to athletic events at Utah State. We need to make sure when people come to events that we are taking care of them and making them want to be a part of the Utah State athletic experience. We are going to go out and reach out and touch all those different communities. We will look to the Salt Lake community more than we have in the past. We need to establish ourselves down there and become more recognized. This is an incredible place.”
What are your thoughts on the facilities and the renovations taking place at Romney Stadium?”We have some of the best facilities in the nation here. The new renovations that are happening at the stadium are going to bring new energy, but we have to continue it. I was somewhat surprised when I walked into the locker rooms and sports medicine area that takes care of all the athletes at Utah State. It will be one of my number one priorities. I think the weight room is sufficient, it’s not great, but we can continue to recruit with that. In the sports medicine area, we really need to address that, because that takes care of all the student-athletes. With the new field replacement, we have to have help to make that happen and not in the long term. We’re stepping into the (WAC) that has great facilities for the large part and we need to be right at the top, so that we have the best athletes in the nation here.”
How do you plan on raising money for facilities in the unique economic environment of Cache Valley?”I would be very naive to say that I know what the whole economic and fund-raising environment is here. The President and I have had many conversations, along with other people on the selection committee to address those issues. We definitely need to go outside of just the local community to create relationships. We need to go to the Salt Lake area and to alumni across the nation to gather them back in and to get them excited about Aggie athletics. This is something that we need to do very quickly so that they understand we need their help and to make them feel a part of something special. We need to sit down and look at our finances to see what direction we need to go. I think we can also look to the state of Utah as a resource. This is a state-run University and is something the whole state can be proud of.”