President Pastides establishes advisory committee for new hire
South Carolina President Harris Pastides heard the rumors leading up to his meeting with Athletics Director Eric Hyman, but when the two met Friday afternoon, there was nothing Pastides could do to stop Hyman from leaving for the same position at Texas A&M.
“I thanked him for his professionalism and I thanked him for his contributions to USC and then I told him that we would look forward to beating Texas A&M every possible opportunity we could,” Pastides told The Daily Gamecock in a phone interview Friday night.
Hyman had his resignation letter ready, typed and sealed in an envelope for Pastides, who said he was not given an opportunity to change Hyman’s mind or counter-offer. The meeting between the two was cordial, as Pastides said he believes that the athletic department is stronger because of Hyman’s contributions over his seven-year tenure.
Pastides didn’t waste anytime in moving forward to replace Hyman, establishing an advisory committee of five individuals and having the first meeting Friday, hours after the official announcement of Hyman’s resignation.
“We think we’re probably one of the best (athletics director) positions in the United States, so we’re optimistic that there’ll be lots of interest and we’ll find a great athletics director,” Pastides said.
The members of the advisory committee are William C. Hubbard, chair of the USC Board of Trustees Intercollegiate Athletics Committee; Dawn Staley, women’s basketball head coach; Thomas E. “Tommy” Suggs, president and CEO of Keenan Suggs Insurance and Carolina broadcaster; I.S. Leevy Johnson, Columbia attorney; and Charles F. Adams, clinical assistant professor at USC.
Though the university release said an interim athletics director was expected to be named within a week, Hubbard, the leading voice on the advisory committee, told The Daily Gamecock in a phone interview Monday that the preference of the committee is not to name an interim but to hire someone full-time. In order to secure someone on a permanent basis, a new athletics director would need to be retained prior to Aug. 1, which is when Hyman is officially no longer USC’s athletics director.
The committee compiled a long list of qualifications for the next athletics director, which Hubbard said included integrity, financial acumen, vision, communication skills and other characteristics. When asked if prior experience as an athletics director was on the list of qualifications, he said it was not.
Hubbard would not comment on South Carolina baseball coach Ray Tanner, who has expressed interest in holding an administrative position in the past. Tanner was an associate athletics director at North Carolina State prior to becoming the baseball coach at USC, but he has never been an athletics director.
With speculation of Tanner being a possible candidate for the athletics director position, Pastides said he did not name Staley to the committee for any specific reason other than feeling comfortable with her as an advisor. He said Friday that he planned to call coaches over the weekend to solicit their input on what they want in the next athletics director.
“She’s certainly not the only one that I could have invited, but I am personally close to Dawn (Staley),” Pastides said. “I thought she would be a good representative of the coaches — not the only one, but a good one.”
Pastides said the salary of the new athletics director would depend on negotiations, though he said the university is always sensitive to paying fairly. Hyman’s base salary was $500,000, though Hubbard said it was closer to $700,000 with the incentives that he was achieving. The Houston Chronicle reported that Texas A&M would pay Hyman $1 million.
How much more than Hyman’s pay could South Carolina afford?
“I don’t know that you would necessarily have to go more,” Hubbard said. “It’s just a question of once the president settles on someone, it’s negotiating an agreement. I think it’s premature to say how much the president would pay and how much the person he selects would expect. I think it’s fair to say that we probably won’t be looking to pay less than what Eric Hyman was paid.”
With Hyman, the university achieved its first men’s national championship with the baseball team’s back-to-back titles. The USC football team also had a program-high 11 wins last season, while the women’s basketball team advanced to the Sweet Sixteen.
Hyman also had to fire one of his first coaching hires, as the basketball team had a program-worst 10 wins with Darrin Horn as head coach. Hyman hired new USC coach Frank Martin from Kansas State to replace Horn.
Under Hyman, the Gamecocks also had NCAA troubles, as an investigation revealed $55,000 in impermissible benefits, leading to a three-year probation, monetary fine and a reduction of scholarships. The school’s self-imposed penalties were accepted by the NCAA and a show-cause was added to the program.
Hyman’s signature move as South Carolina athletics director was the $200 million master plan of facilities, which included the new baseball stadium and facility, the Dodie Anderson Academic Enrichment Center, the Carolina Tennis Center and updates to the football facilities, such as tailgating lots and the new video board, that will be completed before the coming season.
With Texas A&M joining the SEC in all sports this season, Hyman said in a statement that he is looking forward to aiding the Aggies in that transition. Hyman’s two children reside in Fort Worth, Texas, and he is expecting his first grandchild in November.
Hyman is expected to be introduced as the Texas A&M athletics director at a press conference Saturday afternoon, replacing Bill Byrne, who retired last month.