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Outgoing Mizzou AD Alden Reflects On 17-Year Tenure, State Of College Athletics

Outgoing Univ. of Missouri AD Mike Alden is "easing into his new life as a soon-to-be college professor," and with Mack Rhoades preparing to take over as AD on April 27, Alden this week took time "to reflect on his past, present and future" following 17 years in the position, according to Dave Matter of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. Alden has "taken calls about other jobs, but the answer's the same." Alden: "I will never be an AD again. I don’t have an interest in working at the conference level and don’t see myself in that area. Are there other areas that could come up that I don’t even know about? Sure, that could be." As Alden on Tuesday "discussed challenges that the next generation of ADs face in today’s world of college sports," he at times sounded "disillusioned by what the industry has become." He talked about the "commercialization of college athletics, the dramatic rise in coaches’ salaries and increased focus on national, legal issues, all of which, he said, leave ADs disconnected from the athletes and coaches on their own campus" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 4/15). In K.C., Tod Palmer wrote Alden "doesn’t want to be responsible for defining his own legacy, but several hallmarks of success are clear." Alden said that MU's FY '16 budget is "projected to be around" $95M and that the department "should eclipse" a $100M operating budget by '17, a spike of nearly 730% in less than two decades. Palmer wrote there are "concrete examples of Alden’s impact" across MU's campus, "including multiple expansions of Memorial Stadium, Mizzou Arena and the Mizzou Athletic Training Center." Alden said he is "very proud to be associated" with the school's move to the SEC. He added that he "speaks with Rhoades almost every day in preparation for the transition." Alden "listed Missouri’s apparel contract with Nike, various multimedia rights agreements, the new softball stadium and the proposed south end-zone complex at Memorial Stadium as key items on the agenda." However, he said that he "won't dictate priorities to Rhoades" (K.C. STAR, 4/15).

END OF AN ERA: Alden said that he is "leaving at the right time" after 17 years. In K.C., Sam Mellinger wrote Alden sees the growth of colleges' athletic budgets as being "unsustainable, a bubble waiting to pop, and the irony here is that the thing he is most concerned about is the thing that drove the biggest professional decision he ever made," the move to the SEC. No matter the "metaphorical shrapnel left behind in the fight, Alden and Mizzou walked away from college sports’ most recent conference realignment crisis as clear winners." The biggest loss in MU's move "was the rivalry with Kansas, but Alden thinks his departure could be a step toward renewing those games" (K.C. STAR, 4/15). Alden said of MU Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin's approach to athletics, "As we say in our business -- 'he gets it.' Dr. Loftin gets it in our business. He understands the priorities of where it ranks within an institution and he can help you navigate through a variety of things with a real level head. ... I think with Dr. Loftin, with [Rhoades], it's going to be a big asset for him." He said of the media's portrayal of him since he stepped down, "When some of the stuff I was seeing was, 'Boy I wish he would have been more open about who he was personally,' I heard that. ... I understood what some folks were saying. 'We wish we would have known a little bit more about your background. We wish you would have been a little bit more open on that.' ... That resonated with me a little bit" (COLUMBIATRIBUNE.com, 4/14).

SIGNS OF THE TIMES: Alden said of compensating college athletes, "I don't ever see a model that exists where you would make a student-athlete an employee. ... Are there more things we can do for our kids? There are. We're already doing that right now. I'm not talking about just full cost of attendance and the meals, I'm talking about how our kids travel to away contests and the different types of things they have for health care and the improvements of their experiences as a student." He said of offering athletes cost of attendance, "It does give them an extra little bit of money to be able to get that pizza or go home and see their families. I don't think it's a luxury. I think it's a necessity and I think it's the right thing to do" (COLUMBIATRIBUNE.com, 4/14).

FINDER'S FEE
: In Missouri, David Morrison cites records as showing that exec search firm Korn Ferry charged MU $206,000 to "help conduct the search" for Alden's replacement. MU "entered into an agreement with the firm" on Feb. 11 and hired Rhoades from the Univ. of Houston on March 9. The contract between MU and Korn Ferry "spelled out an initial $75,000 retainer and a cap of $200,000 for the search." The additional $6,000 "comes from 'administrative fees' billed at eight percent of the retainer" (COLUMBIA DAILY TRIBUNE, 4/16).

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