University of Tennessee Athletics
2005-06 TENNESSEE ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT ANNUAL REPORT
December 20, 2006 | General
Dec. 20, 2006
2005-06 Annual Report in PDF Format
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It's an exciting time to be at the University of Tennessee!
At Tennessee, we are fortunate to be surrounded by tremendous young men and women who accomplish great things both on and off the field of competition. During the 2005-06 school year, 313 student-athletes volunteered more than 2,500 hours for 72 different organizations. On the academic front, 88 student-athletes earned their degrees in 31 different majors and 53 percent of our student-athletes achieved a 3.0 GPA or higher in the fall and spring semesters.
We also are blessed to have some of the best coaches and staff in the country. In 2005-06, UT finished 14th in the country in the Sports Academy Director's Cup and had 17 of 20 sports competing in postseason play. The Lady Vols were named the 2005-06 Southeastern Conference women's all-sports winner by the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group for the third straight year.
Over the next few years, the look of our facilities will be undergoing some major changes as we have several facility projects underway that will enable Tennessee to continue to be a leader in athletics. Phase I of the Neyland Stadium Master Plan was completed in August. This is the first of the five phases of the proposed Neyland Stadium Renovation. Since last season, we have widened the concourse from 10 feet to 30 feet and replaced concession stands and bathrooms in the concourse near Gate 21. We have also completed infrastructure improvements throughout the stadium and completed the East Club, which is a primary funding source for the stadium renovations. This phase will give fans the opportunity to see the vision for the entire project.
Along with the Neyland Stadium renovation, we have several new facilities underway. The Regal Soccer Stadium will be completed this fall, we broke ground on Sherri Parker Lee Softball Stadium and the Pratt Basketball Practice Pavilion this summer, and the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center is well underway and is scheduled for completion in late 2007. For more information on facility projects, see page 13.
We are looking forward to continued success in 2006-07. We appreciate your continued support of Tennessee athletics.
ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENTS
Academic success is a very important component of the experience for a University of Tennessee student-athlete. UT Athletics wants to ensure that student-athletes receive the best possible education and leave UT prepared for the real world.
In 2005-06, 88 current and former Vols and Lady Vols graduated from the University of Tennessee, continuing Tennessee's athletics commitment to excellence in the classroom. This group boasts 47 SEC honor roll and 71 Thornton Athletics Student Life Center honor roll recognitions.
Tennessee had 243, or 53%, studentathletes who achieved a GPA of 3.0 or higher in the fall of 2005 and 242 student-athletes who achieved a GPA of 3.0 or higher in the spring of 2006.
UTAD is currently working with more than 20 former student-athletes who left UT to pursue professional athletic careers and have returned to finish their degree through the Renewing Academic Commitment (RAC) Program through the Thornton Center. In 2005-2006, two former student-athletes - Buffalo Bills defensive back Jabari Greer and Billy Ratliff from the 1998 National Championship Football squad - returned to the university to finish their degrees. The RAC program works with former student-athletes by assisting them with advice on remaining degree requirements, course scheduling, tutoring, employment and internships opportunities offered through the CHAMPS/Life Skills Program, as well as use of the Thornton Center for their everyday needs.
Other academic accomplishments worth noting include Tennessee swimmer Tyler Gustafson and Zack Sabatino, track, received the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. Gustafson and Sabatino are two of 29 male student-athletes in the country who received the $7,500 scholarship.
ATHLETIC ACHIEVEMENTS
The University of Tennessee athletics department had a great year, combining for a 14th place finish in the 2005-06 Sports Academy Director's Cup standings.
The Lady Vols were named the 2005-06 Southeastern Conference women's all-sports winner by the New York Times Regional Newspaper Group. All 11 sports sponsored by the UT women's athletics department advanced to their respective NCAA events. The men's department had 6 out of 9 teams advancing to their respective NCAA events.
Baseball
The Vols finished the season with a 31-24 record and an 11-18 mark in league play. After starting the season slow, the Vols made a push during the last stretch and recorded eight SEC victories, claiming road wins at Georgia, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Head Coach Rod Delmonico picked up his 650th career win and his 250th SEC triumph.
Basketball
The Volunteers opened the season with a 106-83 victory over East Tennessee State in front of a near capacity crowd of 21,280, the fourth largest crowd for a home opener. From there the Vols went on to beat big name teams such as Texas, Florida, South Carolina and Kentucky. Tennessee went into the NCAA tournament as a number two seed and SEC Eastern Division champs. During the year, Chris Lofton broke Tennessee's single-season records for 3-pointers made (114), 3-pointers attempted (261) and 3-pointers per game (3.80 pg). First year Head Coach Bruce Pearl wowed fans and the nation, and earned Associated Press SEC Coach of the Year and National Coach of the Year from The Sporting News and CBS Sportsline.com.
The Lady Vols advanced into the NCAA Sweet 16 for the 25th consecutive season and the Elite Eight for the fifth straight campaign, after winning their second consecutive SEC Tournament title and their 12th title overall. Candace Parker became the first women's player to dunk in the NCAA tournament doing so twice against Army. Along the way Tennessee set a single game attendance record for Thompson-Boling Arena as 24,653 onlookers saw the Lady Vols beat UConn 89-80. Head Coach Pat Summitt during this season became the first coach in NCAA history to win 900 games in a career, as she closed her 32nd season with a 913-177 record.
Cross Country/Track
The Vols cross country team opened their season Sept. 9 with a win at the 5K Chattanooga Invitational. Tennessee went on to win two more to start the season with the best mark since 2002. Tennessee took 28th at the 10K NCAA championship and fourth during the SEC championship.
During the critical championship portion of the season men's indoor track roared to a second-place finish after scoring106 points at the SEC indoor championships in Gainesville, Fla. The runner-up finish marked the Vols' best at the SEC indoor meet since 2002. Tennessee finished fifth with 25 points at the NCAA indoor championships. The Vols boasted three SEC individual titles and one NCAA individual title.
The men's outdoor Track finished the season strong with a sixth place finish at the NCAA outdoor championships and second at the SEC outdoor championships. During the meets, Tennessee took home one individual championship at nationals and four individual conference titles.
The Lady Vols cross country team finished the season with a 125-23 record, marking the third consecutive season of achieving a new schoolbest victory total. Tennessee made its fourth straight appearance in the NCAA Championship meet and captured their fourth consecutive NCAA South Region title, holding off their nearest competitor, Georgia by 22 points. Head Coach J.J. Clark became the school's all-time winningest cross country coach, with a four season record of 404-122-1.
The Lady Vols indoor track and field charted a tie for 18th at the NCAA Indoor Championships, marking the 14th time the school has posted a top-20 women's finish. The team ended the season ranked 10th by Trackwire and had four Lady Vols earn All-America honors.
In outdoor track and field the Lady Vols claimed fifth place at the 2005 SEC Championships and finished 3rd as a team at the NCAA Mideast Regional and qualified 10 athletes for the NCAA Outdoor Championships. The Lady Vols scored 15 points and claimed 18th at the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Football
The Vols finished with a 5-6 season and a 4th place finish in the SEC East. A highlight of the season was an overtime victory against LSU, when the Vols rallied from a 21-0 deficit to win 30-27. Two days after the season ended Coach Fulmer brought back highly-regarded David Cutcliffe as offensive coordinator, and with proven John Chavis returning to head up the defense, the Vols will head in to the 2006 season with a high level of coaching leadership.
Golf
The Volunteers started the season on a high note when they took the team crown for the second year in a row at their own Coca-Cola Tournament of Champions. Tennessee followed up their victory with a second place finish at the Shoal Creek Intercollegiate. The Vols tied for seventh at the prestigious Carpet Capital Collegiate to finish the fall season. Injuries hurt the Vols' all spring but the team still achieved four top-10 finishes and were invited to its seventh consecutive NCAA East Regional, where the Volunteers achieved an 18th place finish.
The Lady Vols claimed runner-up at the SEC Women's Golf Championship, its best showing since 1999 and won their second straight NCAA East Regional title, this season qualifying them for its third consecutive NCAA Championship tournament. The Big Orange tied for 13th place at the tournament and were just four strokes behind 10th position. Because of the great leadership that guided the Lady Vols to a successful season, Head Coach Judi Pavon was selected as the 2006 SEC Women's Golf Coach of the Year.
Rowing
The Lady Vols rowed their way to their first NCAA South Region title at the 2006 Aramark Central/South Region Spirits, securing them the first full-team appearance into the NCAA Rowing Championships in program history. At the 2006 NCAA Championships the Lady Vols claimed 12th place and the varsity eight crew finished 14th in the country after winning the "C" Final, the top race at nationals. For the third time in four years, head coach Lisa Glenn was selected as the South Region Coach of the Year.
Soccer
The 2005 squad was the second team in program history to claim the SEC soccer triple crown, winning their fourth straight SEC Division crown, a third consecutive SEC regular season title and the program's third SEC Tournament championship. UT reached its fifth straight NCAA Tournament and advanced to the second round after beating Wake Forest 5-2. Five UT players grabbed All-SEC honors and head coach Angela Kelly was named the SEC Coach of the Year for the third straight year.
Softball
The magical season concluded for the Lady Vols with another outstanding third-place national finish at the Women's College World Series, the second most victories in school history (61), the fewest defeats in a single season (12) and the highest winning percentage in program history(.836). Tennessee also picked up its first SEC Tournament title with a perfect 3- 0 series. Lady Vols Monica Abbott and Sarah Fekete were named as two of the 10 finalist for the USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year, joining Arizona as the only school with more than one representative. Co-head coaches Ralph and Karen Weekly now claim the most SEC wins (83) and total victories (255) in UT program records.
Swimming & Diving
The men's swimming and diving team finished the 2005-06 campaign 7- 2 and 3-2 in the SEC. Their seven wins were the most since in 2001. The Vols finished fourth at the SEC championships and 15th at the NCAA championships. The 15th-place finish at nationals marked the 24th consecutive top-25 final standing for Tennessee. All 11 qualifiers for NCAAs left the meet with All-America honorable mentions and all relay events made the consolation finals each day.
The Lady Vols achieved a 12th place finish with a total of 104 points at the 2006 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships, it's best showing in eight years. At the 2006 SEC Championships Tennessee swimmers broke six school records and UT tallied points in every event for the first time since 1989, to help attain a fifth place showing. In his first year as head coach, Matt Kredich, matched the best opening year record for a rookie coach in UT history.
Volleyball
Tennessee finished 13-0 at home this season and carries into the 2006 season a home 19 match winning streak. The Lady Vols advanced to the NCAA National Semifinals for the first time in school history. Head Coach Rob Patrick was named as Vball Magazine National Coach of the Year and finished the season as the winningest coach in Lady Vol history.
Tennis
The Vols went 6-3 at home this season, including a win over 5th-ranked Florida on March 10. A young Tennessee squad finished the season 9-11 and 3-8 in the SEC. The Vols were led this season by sophomore Bobby Cameron. Cameron went 8-9 this season playing at the No. 1 singles spot and was 10-10 overall in dual-matches.
The Lady Vols advanced to the SEC Tournament semifinals for the first time in three seasons, after finishing 6-5 during regular SEC play. The team completed their season in the NCAA Tournament for the 12th consecutive season. During the year Tennessee played 15 teams ranked in the top 35 in the country and beat eight nationally-ranked opponents.
IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY
During the 2005-06 school year, 313 student-athletes volunteered more than 2,500 hours for 72 different organizations. Some of the community service projects that the student-athletes participated in this year included:
UT STUDENT-ATHLETES JOIN MORE EFFORTS TO AID HURRICANE VICTIMS
University of Tennessee student-athletes helped UT football player Jason Mitchell support Hurricane Katrina victims through a donation drive at Cumberland Baptist Church. Members of various teams pitched in with monetary and clothing donations and assisted with the packing and loading of materials to be sent to Louisianna. A tractor-trailer load of items was driven to Abbevillie, La., where it was distributed to Hurricane Katrina victims with the help of Mitchell's family, which founded the Mitchell Family Foundation.
APRIL PLAY DAY 2006
The University of Tennessee's Men's and Women's Athletics Departments celebrated National Student- Athlete Day in April by partnering with Team VOLS to host April Play Day. April Play Day involves more than 500 children from eight different Knoxville area Boys and Girls Clubs. The event is a chance for young children to play and interact with student-athletes from UT, listen to a motivational talk from Coach Bruce Pearl and see that college is an attainable goal with a little hard work. The carnival-like atmosphere included numerous activities: face painting, race the UT student-athletes, play catch with a player, jumping rope and learning basketball and soccer skills. Other activities included the giant slide and an obstacle course.
KNOX COUNTY MAYOR'S READ WITH ME PROGRAM 2006
Mike Ragsdale began Read with Me after he read to a first grade class every week for an entire school year. The experience impacted him, as well as the students. The program initially targeted the 1st grade classes at Greene Magnet Elementary, and due to its success it has expanded to the 2nd grade classes. Doing our part to help, UTAD provided readers, such as athletic department administrators and studentathletes, once a week beginning in September and ending in April to read to the classes.
ORANGEAID BENEFITS RED CROSS
During the Labor Day weekend, Tennessee fans once again demonstrated their volunteer spirit by joining the UTAD in raising $133,538 to aid victims of Hurricane Katrina. Fans attending the UT-UAB football game donated $77,198, and UTAD donated $50,000 from concession sales at the game to the Red Cross' relief efforts. On Labor Day, the football and men's basketball teams held the second annual "OrangeAid," raising $6,340 for Red Cross relief efforts. For a donation to the Red Cross, fans had the opportunity to get autographs from select players and coaches at West Town Mall. The football team also sold t-shirts with the inscription "One Heartbeat" for $15.
IMPACT ON THE UNIVERSITY
Over the past year the University of Tennessee athletics department donated more than $25 million - directly or indirectly - as well as another $6.93 million in tuition payments back to the university for the 2006 fiscal year.
Scholarships
Every year the athletics department provides funds to the university to grant non student-athletes academic scholarships. Theses funds for the fiscal year 2006 totaled $1.375 million, providing more than 2400 students with the opportunity to further their education. In addition, the athletics departments spent $6.93 million for scholarships for 348 student-athletes in the 2005-06 academic year.
University Community Support
Along with its contributions for scholarships, the athletics department also contributes to improving overall campus life in other ways. Through free or reduced rate tickets, licensing revenue, player of the game scholarships and alumni association tickets, the athletics department provided approximately $11.99 million in athletic benefits to the university.
Twenty-eight percent of the athletic department's expenditures in the 2005-06 were spent with Knoxville campus units.
During the fiscal year, the athletics department paid more than $9.1 million for facilities, utilities and maintenance expenses - expenses the university pays for other departments. The athletics department's annual debt service cost for several university parking garages totaled more than $1.125 million.
In 2005-06, the athletics department spent more than $480,000 on travel expenses for the Pride of the Southland Marching Band, $75,000 for band member scholarships and $22,890 for pep band. The athletics department provides funding for three areas with out having any oversight of the units. Last year the department spent $1.6 million to operate the Thornton Athletics Student Center, and approximately $1.2 million to cover the budget shortfall for Thompson-Boling Arena. The athletics department also spent $279,036 to cover operating deficit for Gibbs Residence Hall in addition to its normal housing fees for student-athletes.
FACILITY UPDATES
The University of Tennessee athletic department has always prided itself on the quality of its athletic facilities. Top-notch athletic facilities are necessary in order to recruit some of the nation's finest studentathletes who will train and compete in these facilities for SEC and NCAA championships. Over the next few years, the landscape of UT athletic facilities will change greatly thanks to the generosity of many UTAD supporters. Here are some of the facility projects currently underway.
Intercollegiate Golf Complex
The golf complex will be a joint effort between athletics and the college of agriculture, serving as UT's Turfgrass Management laboratory. The golf complex will include three practice holes designed by Greg Norman Golf Design Group on 41 acres and feature the Bonnie P. Blackburn clubhouse overlooking the Tennessee River. Construction on the golf complex is currently on hold pending regulatory approval.
LaPorte Stadium
UTAD has already completed numerous enhancements to the outdoor track facility, including the resurfacing of Tom Black Track, the construction of new restrooms and concession stands, and the installation of a color video board. Current ongoing improvements include the addition of a new entrance on Volunteer Boulevard with brick pillars and wrought iron fencing, replacing the current chain link fencing to keep with the University's master plan for campus beautification.
Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center
The $24.3 million aquatic center will serve as new home of the swimming and diving teams when completed in late 2007, replacing the Student Aquatic Center and Ray Bussard Intercollegiate Pool that opened in 1967.
Neyland Stadium
In the spring of 2004, the University of Tennessee Athletic Department commissioned a master plan to serve as a long-term solution to issues currently facing Neyland Stadium and prepare the stadium for the next 75 years. The master plan was created in a five phase approach to ensure that funding is available for each phase before it begins. Phase 1, which included the addition of the East Club, infrastructure improvements to the stadium and the expansion of the lower north concourse near Gate 21, including new restrooms and concession stands, began in January 2006 and was completed in August. This phase will give fans the opportunity to see the vision for the entire project. Phase 2 is in the planning process and is scheduled to begin after the 2007 season. The addition of club seating will be the primary funding source for the renovations. Other funding sources will include the additional contributions from the 2004 sideline seating policy change along with other philanthropic gifts.
Lindsey Nelson Stadium
UTAD is in the planning stages of a $6 million renovation to the baseball facility which will include the addition of seating and a new entrance that will feature a brick veneer and an elevator entrance to improve accessibility to the stadium, club level and press box.
Sherri Parker Lee Softball Stadium
Construction began this summer and will be completed in the spring of 2007. The new stadium will feature permanent stands, dugouts, lights, locker rooms, restrooms and concession facilities.
Pratt Basketball Pavilion
UTAD broke ground on a basketball practice facility in August 2006 with completion scheduled for October 2007. Pratt Pavilion will house two full size gymnasia, one for each of the men's and women's varsity basketball teams, as well as space for an athletic training room, a weight room and a film study room.
Thompson-Boling Arena
Following the 2006-07 basketball season, construction will begin to add 32 luxury suites to the upper north side of Thompson-Boling Arena. Plans are also underway to add loge seating in the 200 level of Thompson-Boling Arena and improve general fan amenities.
Regal Soccer Stadium
Construction on the new 3,000-seat soccer stadium began in December 2005 and will be complete in fall of 2006. It will include permanent stands, a press box and new restrooms and concession stands.
UTAD Budget
For fiscal year 2006, UTAD generated a profit of approximately $6.93 million. Athletics made transfers to support Knoxville campus programs of approximately $2.78 million, which included $1.375 million for academic scholarships awarded to non-student athletes. These funds provided more than 2,400 students with the opportunity to further their education. UTAD paid an additional $400,000 back to the UT System for the Buzz Peterson buyout loan in fiscal year 2005. As a result of these transfers back to campus and the system, UTAD generated a profit of approximately $3.757 million.
Revenues for fiscal year 2006 were approximately $4.225 million higher than expected due to an increase in men's and women's basketball ticket revenues, an increase in development and marketing revenues, and interest income earned on cash deposits and endowments.
Expenses for fiscal year 2006 were $2.265 million higher than expected, primarily due to increased scholarships costs, statemandated raises, turnover in the football staff, better than projected performance bonuses, and higher than anticipated costs to cover the operating deficit for Gibbs Residence Hall in addition to normal housing fees for student-athletes.
The Volunteer Athletics & Scholarship Fund (VASF) had a recordbreaking year in 2005-06. Total donations for the year ending June 30, 2006 were $31.86 million - up more than $6.7 million from the previous year. This included $17.56 million in annual gifts and $10.6 million in gifts to capital projects. Additional endowments and miscellaneous gifts totaled $3.65 million. VASF gifts supported athletic scholarships in addition to other on-going operational needs such as recruiting, training, academic support and academic scholarships for non student-athletes.
Giving to capital projects enabled facilities such as the Allan Jones Intercollegiate Aquatic Center, the Pratt Pavilion, Phase I of the Neyland Stadium Master Plan, Sherri Parker Lee Softball Stadium, Regal Soccer Stadium, and LaPorte Stadium to begin construction in the last year.
| Revenues | |
| General Funds | $ - |
| Student Fees | $1,000,000 |
| Ticket Sales | |
| Football | $18,003,549 |
| Men's Basketball | $4,188,898 |
| Women's Basketball | $1,586,443 |
| Other Sports | $267,910 |
| Total Ticket Sales | $24,046,800 |
| Broadcasting | $2,920,734 |
| Concessions & Souvenirs | $3,927,320 |
| Conference/NCAA | $8,313,430 |
| Volunteer Athletic Scholarship Fund | $18,561,946 |
| Lady Vol Boost-Her Club | $1,456,502 |
| Marketing/Sponsorship/Advertising | $3,862,684 |
| Interest Income | $914,889 |
| Licensing Revenue | $1,400,000 |
| Postage | $418,238 |
| Sports Camps | $1,791,385 |
| Other Revenue | $1,308,991 |
| Total Revenues | $69,922,919 |
| Expenditures and Transfers | |
| Sports Programs | |
| Operations | $20,878,904 |
| Recruiting | $1,723,632 |
| Scholarships | $6,934,950 |
| Total Sports Programs | $29,537,486 |
| Student-Athlete Support | $3,011,982 |
| Administration | $9,007,534 |
| Marketing and Development | $3,549,952 |
| Broadcasting | $1,076,358 |
| Band, Pep Club, & Cheerleaders | $867,833 |
| Concessions & Souvenirs | $1,468,769 |
| Sports Camps | $1,667,881 |
| Post-Season Expenses | $669,813 |
| Other Projects | $508,248 |
| Arena Support | $1,244,521 |
| Facilities Maintenance | $4,268,226 |
| Debt Retirement | $5,757,170 |
| Thornton Center Support | $1,622,355 |
| University Academic Scholarships | $1,375,000 |
| Other University Support | $532,663 |
| Total Expenditures | $66,165,791 |
| NET SURPLUS/(DEFICIT) | $3,757,128 |
Players Mentioned
