Stallion gets his first wish

[PhirePhilBennett]

SMU athletic director says he is weighing retirement
Jim Copeland, 60, has led the program since leaving Virginia in 1995

07:58 PM CST on Friday, January 6, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News


UNIVERSITY PARK – SMU athletic director Jim Copeland said he is on the verge of retirement.

Copeland, whose contract ends in May 2007, addressed speculation that he will leave this spring by revealing that retirement is in the near future.

"It's natural at my age that people will speculate on when I will retire," the 60-year old Copeland said Friday morning. "I'm not going to make any public statements on when I will retire until I meet with the president."

SMU boosters and fans have asked administrators about Copeland's status over the holidays.

Copeland said he's heard rumors of his retirement in the last few weeks, but he said he is committed to finishing his SMU contract.

Leaving with time on his contract is nothing new for Copeland.

He left Virginia for SMU in 1995 with three years left on his deal. Copeland departed Utah with two years remaining on his contract to take the Virginia job.

When asked if there was a chance he could leave this spring, Copeland said, "The president and I have talked about how much longer I will work."

Turner has met with Copeland over the last several months to discuss his possible departure and the direction of the athletic program.

Turner said he evaluates all of his senior administrators, including Copeland, at the end of the school year.

"Jim and I have formed a great relationship," Turner said. "When the time is right for Jim to move on, then we'll have that discussion. Of course he's thought about retirement. That's something most people do when they get to a certain stage of their careers."

Copeland said he's in no hurry to ask for a contract extension from Turner, but the athletic director said this will be his last job.

Copeland, who makes a base salary of $368,050, said there are some goals he would like to achieve before leaving.

SMU has plans to build a basketball practice facility and a pool, upgrade its soccer stadium and start the physical process of moving the golf program to the Dallas Athletic Club.

[Stallion]

while I think Copeland may be coasting and doesn't seem to have any real plans for the direction of the program, I'm not leading that bandwagon. I don't think the AD is probably the one making the decisions holding the program back.

[abezontar]

Maybe not, but maybe having to hire a new AD would lead to more positive changes by the board, just like there have been policy changes everytime we have fired and then hired a new coach.