Baylor President Appoints Athletics Search Committee
Baylor University President Robert B. Sloan Jr. today (Aug. 12) released the names of individuals who will serve on a search committee for a new athletic director and head men's basketball coach.
Baylor regent and basketball letterman Jim Turner, president and CEO of Dallas-based Dr Pepper/Seven Up Bottling Group, will chair the committee. Other members include Waco regents and basketball lettermen David Sibley and Tommy Bowman; Dallas regent Joe Armes, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Southwest Sports Group and Southwest Sports Realty; Baylor Law School associate dean and faculty member Leah Jackson; and Waco banker and Baylor alumnus David Lacy.
Appointment of the committee follows last Friday's resignations of athletic director Tom Stanton and men's basketball coach Dave Bliss in the wake of major NCAA rules violations in the basketball program.
"The search committee and I will work very hard to find the right individuals to lead our athletic department and our men's basketball program," Sloan said. "While speed will be a priority, we will focus on finding the right combination of experience, athletic success, and a commitment to integrity and Baylor's unique mission that will yield the results our constituents expect and deserve. Uncertainty is hard on all of us - especially for our players and our fans - so we will move as quickly as possible in making these key appointments.
"In the case of the athletic director, we will be looking for someone who has been associated with highly successful programs, appreciates the critical importance of football and basketball, and at the same time deeply values and is an advocate for all of our sports programs - men's and women's. For our men's basketball coach, we want a proven recruiter, mentor and winner," Sloan said.
Sloan said the committee will work on both searches simultaneously and that the University would not necessarily wait to have an athletic director appointed before naming a coach.
"We already have a number of excellent prospects for both positions, and I am very pleased to have this outstanding committee conducting these searches."