June 22, 2009

Director of Athletics Mike Thomas

Opening Statement

"We are here today about the future of the UC football program. No one is more important to the success of our program and where it's going in the future than our head football coach Brian Kelly.

"I think all of you are aware some months back, we had gone through the process with Coach Kelly as to some of the enhancements needed for Brian and for his staff, and the resources needed for the program to move the forward.

"We've come a long way since December of 2006 when Brian was hired. We know what Brian has done.  With the profile of his work for him and his team and the success we've had, we certainly needed to reward Coach Kelly for those things and making sure we have the resources needed to move forward.

"It's an extension of a year, but we really have taken his contract and pretty much started over. It's a five-year contract. There's a salary upgrade for Coach Kelly. There are resources that are going towards his assistant coaches so they are competitive with our peers in the BIG EAST. There are also a number of operational items that are necessary to ensure that we have the success we need moving forward. I think it's also obvious regarding our long-term stability.

"I will tell you this, if there's a poster child for CATAPULT (Championships, Athletes, Together), it's Brian Kelly. I don't think anyone would dispute what he's done on the field of competition, what his student-athletes have done in the classroom, and what he's done in the community. My best bet of finding out what Brian has done on a day-to-day basis is to read the Cincinnati Enquirer or listen to the local, national, and regional radio.

Closing Statement

"I would be remiss, and I'm glad Brian mentioned it, the fact that those people on this campus that have been so instrumental in moving this forward. Brian mentioned the Board of Trustees and (interim president) Monica Rimai, Jeff Wyler, who was the board chair at the time these decisions were made, Buck Niehoff, but I don't think we can forget Nancy Zimpher, our former president, who was sitting at the table at the time these decisions are made."

Head Football Coach Brian Kelly

Opening Statement

"I apologize for being late. I was doing an event at the Talbert House. I had a chance to speak to a group that obviously does great work in the community. That has been the great thing about this job. It's allowed me to be part of this community. This new agreement allows me to continue to build our program to a championship level.  At the end of the day, for me, it's always about being given the opportunity to build a championship program. Wherever I have been, whether it be at Grand Valley State where we won national championships or at Central Michigan, it's always been about winning championships. Now at the University of Cincinnati, we can set our goals towards winning a national championship.

"Certainly CATAPULT is important, and we've won a BIG EAST Championship. The next goal out there is to continue to build our program and be a championship contender. That's what this agreement really does for our program. It puts us in a position to compete nationally. Mike Thomas has always been part of that want and desire. What this agreement signifies is an investment from the University of Cincinnati. I want to thank our Board of Trustees and interim President Monica Rimai for their confidence and support in giving us this opportunity. Like I said, under Mike's direction, that's always been the course. But you also have to have the resources. Mike's been given the resources and he's entrusted those resources to me to continue to build our program. I'm very excited about that opportunity."

On the facets of the contract that are most important

"You can't do it yourself. It's not a one man show. You've got to have continuity in your staff and in your support staff. This contract signifies our ability to maintain and keep quality people here at the University of Cincinnati that are associated with our football program. That was absolutely crucial because it's not a one-man operation. You have to have great assistants and a great support staff. That's a major piece of this. I think the other very important part of this contract, and Mike (Thomas) talked about the language, was making sure that we could continue from an operational standpoint to be a BCS football program. To do that you need support from the University and we've been given that support to maintain being a BCS football program. Not just a team in the BIG EAST. That's not good enough. I want to be a BCS contender every year."

On being fully equipped to contend for a national title

"The pieces are now in place. It's still a journey. Remember now, we're only in this for 30 months so far. You do not build a national championship football program in 30 months. What you do is you stay committed to a program because the pieces are now coming together. That's the most exciting thing for me. Now, the University and Mike Thomas have given us the opportunity to continue to build this program towards a championship program."

On the future practice facilities

"We're going to have those facilities. We've raised a great deal of money in a time where it's difficult to raise dollars because they all have to be private. Mike Thomas has been there from Day 1 relative to the leadership we need. What I wanted to see was our University. What they did for us was probably give us one of the last buildable spots of green space on this campus by giving us that land to build our fields. That's been a huge commitment for me. Then we had to go out and raise the money and we've done a great job. We're going to have those things in place. I'm always one that wants it yesterday.  I feel really good about where we are, the money that we've raised, the commitment we've gotten from the University to have that piece to finish off the infrastructure needs of this program."

On the operational components of the budget

"There's technology. When you look at today in terms of digital versus analog, there's so much that goes into technology to maintain our program's edge. Film. Video. All those things are important. Maintaining a budget in a difficult time when there is so many cutbacks. We have to be humble about what we have but we also know that we can continue to move forward. Operationally is really about all the technological things that you need; recruiting, film analysis, video. We've ensured that we will continue to have all the things necessary to compete at the highest level."

On doors open now in recruiting that were not open a year ago

"Absolutely. If you look at where we've gone in our recruiting, you can see now that the kids that we're recruiting, we're recruiting against the very best. We can't get them all, but there are so many good football players in this area, that there's enough for everybody. We're still going to take kids that we think fit our profile athletically and academically, but we think we can be in the conversation with any kid. That wasn't the case when I got here two years ago."

Closing Statement

"Again, thank you so much. It's an exciting time for me and my family. We get to call Cincinnati our home, and that's a great thing for us. Thank you very much."