William & Mary Athletics

Jeremy P. Martin

As we prepare to welcome Brian Mann as William & Mary’s new director of athletics on August 9, the athletics department is making much needed progress in the areas we’ve identified as critical to the long-term health of the Tribe.

For the past 10 months as the interim director, I’ve witnessed firsthand the passion and commitment of our community of supporters and fans. Regular updates, like this report, ensure the entire Tribe knows where we are as an athletics program and what must be done to ensure a successful future for it. Three critical areas will define that future: gender equity, financial sustainability and excellence.

The university recently concluded a comprehensive gender equity review, and the information gathered in the process will inform our gender equity planning effort.  

Thanks to the All In campaign and the continuing generosity of donors, the department’s finances are in a stronger position at the conclusion of FY21 than they have been for several years. We’ve been able to replace some of the reserve funds that had declined for six consecutive years. Fundraising, both in dollars raised and in the number of donors, once again reflected the strength of the community’s support after several years of decline. We also trimmed expenses and operated a frugal department.  

Though we find ourselves in a better financial position following FY21, we must do as well, if not better, every year moving forward. In FY22 and beyond, W&M Athletics will again depend on the continuing generosity of its alumni and friends.

We’ve also renewed a conversation on excellence for W&M Athletics. As a department, we expect to compete for championships – and to win them in the right way. Student-athletes’ experience as competitors should reflect the same commitment to excel as the exceptional education they receive at William & Mary.

It’s been my great pleasure to get to know Brian Mann better in recent weeks, and I’m continually impressed by his thoughtful preparation in getting up to speed. I look forward to the entire Tribe getting to know him better as he takes the helm.

As we closed the books on FY21, W&M Athletics is making headway in its efforts to attain financial sustainability.

Starting in FY15, existing reserves were tapped each year to balance the budget, reflecting an ongoing structural budget deficit. In FY20, the pandemic devastated W&M Athletics' finances as the number of donors declined by 36% and expendable gifts also declined by 36% – $1.5 million less than the prior year. As a result, our reserves were depleted at the beginning of FY21.  ?

W&M Athletics trimmed more than $5 million from a $28 million base operating budget, primarily through one-time cost reductions and austerity measures associated with the pandemic. We played fewer games, froze or eliminated vacant positions and found savings wherever we could.  ?

In October 2020, we examined our situation and recognized March 1, 2021, as the date by which we needed to hit a fundraising target to avoid "painful" decisions. Those decisions would have involved personnel actions, including furloughs and layoffs. Thanks to our donors and our willingness to cut expenses wherever possible, we reached that target six weeks early.

I am happy to report that in the last two quarters of FY21, some positive trends emerged in relation to our finances.  

Overall, in FY21, W&M Athletics raised $7.2 million in expendable funds to support the Tribe.  The amount of total expendable funds raised was the highest since 2010 and the 7,262 donor total was the second-highest  in a decade. Combined with the department's frugal approach, this year's fundraising is allowing us to "refresh" – though certainly not "replenish" – reserve funds that had been on the decline for six consecutive fiscal years. We are pleased to acknowledge that several sports met their specific fundraising goals this year, returning a consistent percentage of their funds raised to their Athletics Foundation reserve accounts.

Our efforts in FY21 to raise sport-specific goals were overall successful as indicated in the chart below. With the start of FY22, the campaign for each sport begins anew.

Our goal for FY21 was to raise $4 million in expendable funds, with $2.8 million in hand no later than March 1. With an unprecedented response from our donors, we achieved the $2.8 million goal six weeks early, and we surpassed the $4 million mark in early April. By the end of FY21 we had exceeded our overall $4 million goal by over a million dollars. Including funds received in FY21 for use in FY22 and sport-specific gives beyond some teams’ targets, W&M Athletics received $7.2 million in expendable donations this year.

When the All In campaign  was launched in March 2021, it established critical fundraising goals for every team. As of July 12, the campaign had raised $22.3 million toward our $55 million goal. Ongoing results for the three-year campaign are at https://tribeathletics.com/feature/allin.

As President Rowe has said, "Every sports program annually depends upon generous support from alumni and friends in order to thrive." It's vital that we remain committed to sustain W&M Athletics each year, building on some programs' early fundraising success and bolstering the initial efforts of others.

Although we were able together to cover our reduced expenditures in FY21, ongoing financial challenges remain. As an auxiliary, W&M Athletics is required by state law to balance its budget each year. Though some frugality measures remain in place, W&M Athletics needs to raise $5.2 million in FY22 to meet its operating budget needs. We must replicate our fundraising success each year, and work is already well underway to secure the necessary funding for FY22.
 

As we know, gender equity is a matter of federal law. It's also about respect and one of the university's core values. We respect every competitor by providing the most level playing field possible.

Every student-athlete and head coach were invited to participate in the comprehensive review of the athletics experience at W&M. Information was collected through surveys and individual meetings with our consultant and a review of materials pertaining to departmental operations over the past 10 years or more.

The information gathered during the gender equity review will inform the university’s forthcoming gender equity plan.

Excellence, one of the three critical areas for the defining the future of W&M Athletics, is the hardest on which to reach consensus. Each sport has distinctive characteristics through which success is measured, and as a community we’re continuing to build a shared awareness of what constitutes success for the department.?

In opening these conversations seeking to build that shared awareness, I’ve heard from a number of folks sharing their thoughts on the subject. When paired with my own thoughts, here are some common elements frequently mentioned, some of which are more aspirational than others:

• Every W&M student-athlete should graduate.
• Every W&M student-athlete should have a championship experience during their years at the university, graduating having won a conference championship and/or having participated in NCAA championship competition.
• Every W&M fan should cheer on our teams in facilities that provide a superior game-day experience and reflect the commitment of that program’s community to its success.
• Every program should be community building, whether through providing the opportunity to gather en masse to celebrate William & Mary or developing an ardent group of alumni and friends committed to that program’s financial sustainability.?

William & Mary has won more CAA championships than any other member of the conference. However, we cannot take that tradition of excellence for granted. This year,  is the first in which no Tribe team won a CAA championship since the conference began in 1985-86. While the pandemic  brought numerous challenges, the end of a 35-year streak cannot be ignored. One team, men's gymnastics, advanced to NCAA championship competition, finishing in the top12 of the 15 varsity programs in the country.  

?Another measure of the Tribe's championship success is the Learfield IMG College Directors' Cup, which awards points based on reaching NCAA championship fields. For most teams, reaching those competitions is via a CAA championship, though athletes in track & field advance based on individual performance. Gymnastics, for which the CAA does not have a championship, advances through regional meets or directly to the NCAA championship meet. In other words, the Directors' Cup gives a standard measure of the Tribe's championship experience over time.

From 2006-07 to 2015-16, W&M Athletics averaged more than 158 points and four teams earning points by advancing to NCAA championships. In the seasons since, W&M Athletics has produced fewer championships.

Why? Therein is the link between equity, financial sustainability and excellence. How we address the first two will in large part determine the level of excellence we are able to achieve – in all sports that William & Mary chooses to sponsor.

As William & Mary continues the hard work of planning for an equitable and financially sustainable future, we understand it is critical for the community that loves and supports the Tribe to hear from us frequently. We must also strive to hear the thoughts of those who support our programs.  

During the last quarter we continued the online publication of “From the Desk of the Interim Athletics Director,” which is sent to more than 8,000 donors, fans, alumni, student-athletes and their families. These messages will now transition to regular communication from Athletics Director Brian Mann. 

We also kept to a robust schedule of meetings with our friends, donors and fans. Coaches, athletics administrators and I conducted Zoom meetings, personal visits and phone calls to maintain a steady flow of information about the department.

On June 23, Brian Mann, senior associate athletics director at the University of California, Berkeley, was named the university's new director of athletics. After a months-long search that involved dozens of highly qualified candidates, he was selected to lead the Tribe into the future.

William & Mary President Katherine A. Rowe said of Brian, who has 18 years of experience in intercollegiate athletics, the private sector and professional sports, "With the selection of Brian Mann as William & Mary's next director of athletics, the university will benefit greatly from his exceptional professional and personal leadership experiences in intercollegiate athletics. He has a wonderful habit of exceeding goals at top institutions, which also is a hallmark at William & Mary."

Mann began his tenure at William & Mary on July 9 as a special assistant to the president for athletics and he will continue that role until August 9 when he will become full-time director of athletics. During the interim period he and his family will transition to Williamsburg.

Brian Mann News Coverage and Background

https://tribeathletics.com/news/2021/6/23/general-brian-mann-named-w-m-director-of-athletics.aspx

https://tribeathletics.com/news/2021/6/23/general-introductory-press-conference-for-director-of-athletics-brian-mann.aspx

https://spark.adobe.com/page/8ODoDarDblG0N/

https://tribeathletics.com/news/2021/6/30/tribe-scribe-athletics-kept-calling-him-back-and-brian-mann-is-glad-he-answered.aspx

I began my official role with William & Mary on July 9 as a special advisor for athletics to President Katherine A. Rowe. Although I am still in the process of moving to Williamsburg, I feel like I am already home.

In the meantime, I am getting to know, albeit via Zoom mostly, our student-athletes and coaches as well as the athletics staff. Their staunch commitment to their programs and to the university has moved me and made me realize yet again how glad I am to be part of W&M.

I’ve had many candid conversations with Jeremy Martin, our interim athletics director,  regarding the challenges ahead.  While heartened by the strong year in FY21, I understand the hard work is just beginning if we are to build the brightest possible future for our department.

Change is coming to Division I athletics, with the NCAA recently issuing landmark policy for Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) usage for student-athletes, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on allowable educational benefits in the Alston case, and the tectonic plates again shifting within FBS conference affiliation. I predict these are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the new issues that athletics departments will have to navigate in the future.  

Finances, of course, are an ongoing concern for us and every other D1 program. Ensuring the health and safety of our student-athletes, making sure each of our student-athletes is on course to graduate and having our department provide equal opportunities for every student-athlete are all on my radar to be watched closely. It is my goal to successfully complete these objectives, while making sure the Tribe is in position to compete for championships.  

While we are trekking east toward Williamsburg and outfitting the family in green and gold, I want everyone to know how humbled I am by having the opportunity to lead William & Mary Athletics. President Rowe and the search committee have given me an incredible opportunity and I promise I will do everything possible to show that was the right decision.

Go Tribe!

--Brian Mann