The University of Tennessee department of athletics executive and senior administrative staffs announced on April 16.
Executive staff
Name position salary
Dave Hart vice chancellor/director of athletics $750,000
Jon Gilbert executive senior associate athletic director $200,000
Mike Ward senior associate AD for administration and sports programs $192,000
David Blackburn senior associate AD for administration $170,000
Chris Fuller senior associate AD for development and external relations $170,000
Donna Thomas senior associate AD/senior woman administrator $170,000
Bill Myers senior associate AD for business operations/CFO $170,000
Jimmy Stanton associate AD, communications $104,040
Senior administrative staff
Name role salary
Ron McKeefery strength and conditioning $240,000
Todd Dooley compliance $110,000
Jason McVeigh sports medicine $110,000
Tyler Johnson business office $102,000
Brad Pendergrass football operations $102,000
Kevin Zurcher facilities $95,000
Joe Arnone ticketing $91,800
*Greg Hulen development $90,000
Dara Worrell housing/dining $85,000
Jason Yellin media relations $85,000
David Elliott event management $76,500
Doug Kose marketing $76,500
Thomas Moats information technology $66,300
Note: Academics/director of the Thornton Athletic Center has not been hired.
*Hulen is an employee of the UT Foundation.
All sport oversight administrators
Name sport
David Blackburn football
Jon Gilbert men's basketball
*Angie Keck golf/volleyball/rowing
*Carmen Tegano baseball
Donna Thomas women's basketball/track and field/cross country
Mike Ward softball/soccer
*Dara Worrell swimming and diving/tennis
*Salaries: Keck, $90,000; Tegano, $87,823; Worrell, $95,000
Source: University of Tennessee
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Comments » 23
CroKev writes:
Who is Todd Dooley?
jackbwana writes:
Little wonder why student tuition goes up every quarter and the begging for money from alumni( class of '69) adds to this insult of crooks ruining a once great UT. A major cleanup of UT needs to be done from the top on down.
FWBVol writes:
Get your facts straight. The athletic department budget takes no state or student money. The UTAD is self-supporting and, in fact, the athletic department has contributed several million dollars to the academic side of the university throughout the years.
Like it or not colllege athletics is a big business and as is the case with any other big business you need a lot of people to operate it and most of those people tend to make more than a fry cook at the local fast food joint.
Caspian writes:
Your perception of reality is a fantasy.
UT Athletics is one of only a handful of departments in the country that receives no funds from state subsidies or taxes. The only non-athletic department generated revenue is a $1 million contribution to women's athletics department coming from student fees to fulfill Title IX responsibilities.
In FY 2010, UTAD's total direct contributions to the university system exceeded $10.35 million.
For fiscal year 2009, the athletics department contributed more than $6.26 million in direct cash support to the university.
volsmith writes:
$750,000.00 is too much for someone who is turning all the sports programs into average and below average. I predict we will not win any SEC titles or come close to winning any, in the near future.
volsmith writes:
Dave Hart is only doing what Jimmy Cheek wants, and so Jimmy Cheek is the reason our sports programs are so-so.
raoucubs writes:
You might be right about the SEC titles but that has nothing to do with Dave Hart. He has not even been with the program for a complete year. He was hancuffed with the staffs when he took the job. He has to give them a chance. Dooley will be gone soon. Dave Hart knows football and knows how much a winning program means to Tennessee. He graduated Alabama. He was the AD at Florida State and was the associate AD at Alabalma. He knows how to run an Athletic Department and comfident he will get the right coaches at Tennessee.
mikkim writes:
Sorry but these salaries are out of control. When a strength and conditioning coach makes more than a middle market CEO then there are real issues. I don't care how much the program brings in, there is no excuse for this level of salary at a public institution. I can rationalize Hart given the scope of his accountability but there are major issues with the majority of the rest. Salaries of $200k plus need to be reserved for those that put their own money at risk, not those that move paper and use donor funds to do so. I am not a top level donor but significant and I tell you I am floored by this.
jhayes0926#638474 writes:
These salaries all look pretty fair to me. Remember these are executives or senior mgt., not lower level management. The S&C may be a little high, all others seem fair.
dvhill100 writes:
IT guy is under paid unless it is just a local network (workgroup type). Bottom line, they are self sustaining and generate their own operating expenses. Not presently getting the most bang for the buck, but I believe better times are ahead.
10seVol85_Part_Deux writes:
If I'm not mistaken, UT is the only SEC AD that contributes to non-athletic programs in the university system. I could be wrong, but I think I read that not too long ago.
WetumpkaThumpa writes:
The Strenght and Conditioning Coach is not being overpaid at UTK. He may be underpaid? Coach McKeefery thanks to NCAA rules is the only coach that is allowed access to the football team (the cash cow that drives it all) 365 days a year. Coach McKeefery is around the players more than anybody else and he coaches more than anybody else. Dooley and the rest of the coaches are very limited in the hours they can be around the team thanks to the NCAA.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
I'm not sure..I'll bet he's kin to someone in the athletic dept..Just a guess?
RememberTheVols writes:
These salaries are obscene.
underthehill writes:
and Jimmy Cheek is doing what his board tells him to do..what is it that flows downstream..blame or credit those responsible..I am a critic of hiring Hart but I would have done the same as he if offered the job..so I am not justified in being critical of Hart..just those who hired him..
RememberWhen writes:
many of the comments on here are just more proof that most idiots are born and that most fans are idiots. If KNS would do any in-depth reporting, they would be able to tell you of the major personnel/salary purge that Hart has undertaken in recent months in the AD. And if most fans had any business acumen at all they would understand things like self-sustaining enterprises, fair market industry based salaries, and the many business elements of a multi-million dollar corporation - which is what UTAD AD is. Oh well I guess we can continue to hope for miracles for both KNS and the fans in general.
RememberWhen writes:
now that you're on the floor...stay there...maybe you'll find some intelligence laying around.
WetumpkaThumpa writes:
What's the old saying??? You have to spend money to make money......Without the football program UTK wouldn't be UTK and this website wouldn't even exist. I guess you could take your comments over to the Austin Peay website? What is that Gogovs.com????
Ringleader writes:
You should tell "the rest of the story": Hart was in charge of the tutor program at FSU and in charge of the "book a rama" at Bama, he was discharged from his duties at FSU, and could not land a job anywhere but with his good friend Mal. You tell me any one reason he should be at Tennessee. There are seven former football assistants who would tell you why they are no longer at Tennessee, and the reason is not Dooley.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Thx for the link, RMV..The dude looks a lot like a young Vince Dooley though..
SevenT writes:
$750K really isn't a lot of money these days
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
I'll take it..
FearlessFreep writes:
The executive salaries are not out of line at all with similar institutions in the SEC.
Take those 8-10 away and the vast majority of individuals in the AD are underpaid according to job function, but probably in line with similar salaries at higher education institutions.
For those railing against Hart have you taken a look at what the Alabama AD did this year? Guess who had a hand in that?
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