Univ. of Houston AD & VP/Athletics Hunter Yurachek in his first year in the position saw the school's football program complete a "historic season" as well as a "resurgence of the men's basketball program and more than a half-dozen construction projects already completed or in the works," according to Joseph Duarte of the HOUSTON CHRONICLE. Yurachek said that the key is for UH to "build off the momentum of the past year." Yurachek: "We cannot take a step backward. We have to keep moving and pushing forward. We cannot have a dip, especially in our main sports." Duarte noted Yurachek is "careful to walk a fine line between UH's membership in the American Athletic Conference and desire to be part of the Power Five." Yurachek said, "I do believe in the American Athletic Conference. We did have a very good football season, a really good basketball season. This is a strong conference." UH, which has an annual athletic budget of roughly $42M, "was a major part of the conference's success this academic year." UH won both the AAC's inaugural football championship game and the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. The men's basketball team also earned a spot in the NIT. Yurachek: "We're nationally relevant again and back on the map. And football has done that for us. Men's basketball is starting to do that for us again. Baseball, men's and women's golf, track and field has been there." UH as of tomorrow's renewal deadline for the upcoming football season "had sold a record 18,193 season-ticket packages." The school said that the old record "was 15,022, in the first year of TDECU Stadium" in '14. Yurachek said that the goal is "reaching 20,000, which would be half the stadium's capacity" (HOUSTON CHRONICLE, 5/4).
