UCF AD Is Leading Candidate

[Peruna_Ate_My_Rolex]

04:33 PM CST on Thursday, March 23, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News



UNIVERSITY PARK – Steve Orsini, the athletic director at Central Florida, has emerged as the leading candidate to become the new athletic director at SMU, sources said.

SMU's search committee is meeting this afternoon to finalize the deal.

Orsini, was unavailable for comment, but officials at Central Florida said he wasn't in Orlando, Fla.

Orsini was named AD at Central Florida in June 2002. Prior to joining UCF, Orsini spent three years as an senior associate athletic director for Georgia Tech. Orsini also was associate athletic director and treasurer for the U.S. Naval Academy. Orsini worked 10 years for the Cowboys in administration.

Here's his bio from the UCF website.

Since being named Director of Athletics at UCF in June of 2002, Steve Orsini has directed the Golden Knights into a new period of athletic and academic excellence. An innovative leader with a long record in athletics administration, Orsini, along with UCF President Dr. John C. Hitt, has been energetically pursuing the goal to transform UCF into one of the top athletic programs in the nation.

Driven by his belief that the UCF Athletics Association should provide opportunities for student-athletes both on and off the field, Orsini has increased funding for all sports. He has made a commitment to expand academic support as well as hiring and retaining the best coaches and support staff. Orsini's goal for each and every student-athlete is to be successful in his or her field of competition, serve as a good role model and graduate with a valuable degree from UCF.

UCF has achieved immediate success under Orsini's leadership. During the 2004-05 academic year, six UCF teams advanced to NCAA play, including the men's basketball squad, which made its second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament. Competing in its last season in the Atlantic Sun Conference before moving to Conference USA, the Golden Knights swept the league's all-sports awards, given to the top men's and women's program in the conference, for the third straight year.

In 2003, Orsini led UCF's push for an all-sports league affiliation as the Golden Knights received an invitation to Conference USA. That same year, he hired former National Coach of the Year George O'Leary to become the eighth football coach in school history.

Orsini's tenure at UCF has been marked by growth. He is currently overseeing major facility additions and renovations. New construction projects that are in the planning stages include an on-campus football stadium, a convocation center that will house the basketball programs as well as a new area for administration and academic support and a softball complex.

A number of projects have already been completed since Orsini arrived in Orlando. The Wayne Densch Sports Center, home of the Golden Knights football team, and the Nicholson Fieldhouse, provide UCF student-athletes with two of the top athletic facilities in the nation.

He continues to explore new ways to increase the athletics budget, which has increased 60 percent since his arrival. Orsini was instrumental in the change of the athletics department in July of 2003 to a direct support organization that was incorporated as the UCF Athletics Association.

Academically, Orsini has made it a priority that Golden Knight student-athletes achieve great success in the classroom. During the 2004-05 academic year, a record number of UCF student-athletes earned academic accolades. The football team boasted the best fall semester team grade point average in the school's Division I-A history.

Prior to his appointment at UCF, Orsini spent three years as senior associate director of athletics for the Georgia Tech Athletic Association. In that capacity he was responsible for administration and business affairs for the Yellow Jackets. He played a pivotal role in the expansion of the football and baseball stadiums and also served as the tournament manager for the 2002 NCAA Final Four in the Georgia Dome.

Orsini, 48, joined the Georgia Tech staff after five years as the Associate Athletics Director and Treasurer at the U.S. Naval Academy Athletic Association. Previously, he spent 10 years in administration with the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League.

A native of Hummelstown, Pa., Orsini graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1978, with a degree in Business Administration, majoring in accounting. He was a three-time letter winner at fullback on the Fighting Irish football team and was one of four team captains on the 1977 national championship squad.

After graduation, he spent three years as Senior Assistant Accountant and became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in the New York office of the national accounting firm Deloitte, Haskins and Sells.

He began his career in athletics administration in 1981 as Assistant Business Manager and Ticket Manager at Notre Dame and remained in that capacity for three years until leaving to join the Dallas Cowboys as ticket manager in 1984. He became Director of Administration for the Cowboys in 1989, serving in that capacity until 1993 when he went back into private business as the Sales Controller for Fjitsu-ICL Systems, Inc. in Dallas. He resumed his career in athletics administration at Navy in 1994.

During his time at Navy, Orsini was responsible for all business and legal affairs and helped increase the Athletic Association's revenue by 70 percent. Responsible for the development of the department of External Affairs while at Navy, the program set all-time records at the school for season ticket sales, marketing and sponsorship revenues and fan attendance during his tenure.

Orsini is married to the former Amy Kertesz of South Bend, Ind., and the couple has a nine-year-old daughter, Angela.

[CalallenStang]

He was the only AD in the country brave enough to hire George O'Leary, and it's paid off as their football team has been improving.

[Terry Webster]

Sounds promising. I like the ties that he has to Dallas through his years with the Cowboys.

[CalallenStang]

So far, on the UCF Board (http://ucf.rivals.com/forum.asp?sid=908&fid=71&style=1), all they are talking about is a new medical school. Apparently the news hasn't broken in Orlando yet.

[Roach]

04:33 PM CST on Thursday, March 23, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News

.... senior associate athletic director for Georgia Tech.
.... Orsini also was associate athletic director and treasurer for the U.S. Naval Academy.
.... Orsini has increased funding for all sports.
.... including the men's basketball squad, which made its second consecutive trip to the NCAA Tournament.
.... swept the league's all-sports awards, given to the top men's and women's program in the conference, for the third straight year.
.... hired former National Coach of the Year George O'Leary ....
.... overseeing major facility additions and renovations. New construction projects that are in the planning stages include an on-campus football stadium, a convocation center that will house the basketball programs as well as a new area for administration and academic support and a softball complex.
.... He continues to explore new ways to increase the athletics budget ....
.... Senior Assistant Accountant and became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) in the New York office of the national accounting firm Deloitte, Haskins and Sells.
.... and helped increase the Athletic Association's revenue by 70 percent.

Sign him up. Now.

[abezontar]

I just hope he understands our situation with the faculty senate and knows how to make it change.

[Hoop Fan]

like his bio alot. Get him now. But what is our fascination with poaching ADs from our own conference???

[SMU Football Blog]

This just makes me look stupid.

At 1:39 today, I sent this e-mail: "Shot in the dark: Steve Orsini from UCF put his name in? Or somebody at Florida State? I get a report on activity on the blog that says what domains people that read it are using. While it is kind of creepy, it is interesting to see that lots of Iowa people started reading it yesterday, lots of New Orleans people before that, and today a few from Florida, including fsu.edu and ucf.edu."

To the two "You Know Who You Are's." When I ask you a question about a certain person, one of you never responded and the other responded cryptically.

Dammit.

[SMU Football Blog]

This will be the first and only time the committee meets to discuss a candidate and the only one brought to campus.

[Blunt Pony]

Call it a blind embrace as I do not know more than what I read and have watched of UCF, but that is a school that has put a serious priority on winning since that guy came on board.

If we get him we better give him (or any other) the tools to succeed!

[Diamond Girl]

what happened to the other two candidates? did publishing their names scare them off?

[ponyplayer]

will be announced Friday that the UCF AD will be the new SMU AD........

[SMUPhil]

When, where? Source?

[smupony94]

SMU to hire Central Florida AD

06:28 PM CST on Thursday, March 23, 2006
By CALVIN WATKINS / The Dallas Morning News


UNIVERSITY PARK – Steve Orsini, the athletic director at Central Florida, will be named the new athletic director at SMU at a Friday news conference. He will replace Jim Copeland, who will retire May 31.

SMU's search committee met Thursday afternoon to finalize the deal.

Colleges
Orsini's bio (from UCF site)

More SMU
Orsini was unavailable for comment, but officials at Central Florida said he wasn't in Orlando, Fla.

Orsini was named AD at Central Florida in June 2002. Before joining UCF, Orsini spent three years as an senior associate athletic director for Georgia Tech. Orsini also was associate athletic director and treasurer for the U.S. Naval Academy. Orsini worked 10 years for the Cowboys in administration.

[PonyPride]

Welcome to SMU, Steve!