Column: Glass is the leader IU Athletics deserves

Athletics in the history of IU have always been strong. They were always respectable, high-class programs for all sports.

About five to seven years ago, that wasn’t necessarily the case.

IU athletes and athletic programs weren’t being kept to the academic and moral standards that Hoosiers had been in the past.

This all became clear with the Kelvin Sampson incident, but there were other cracks in the IU Athletics Department that needed to be fixed, as well.

The hiring of IU Vice President and Director of Athletics Fred Glass helped change all of that.

Glass was hired in fall 2008, and his job took effect Jan. 1, 2009.

As an IU alumnus, he had seen the proud traditions from the past, but as athletics director he did several things to bring IU athletics back positively into the national
spotlight.

He has not been alone in the work he has done since 2009, but he put many measures in place to help get athletics on track, including cutting his senior staff when he took his office.

This helped save money for the department when revenue sports were hurting.

He also increased the numbers on staff in the area of compliance and academics. This helped to make sure that IU got back on the track it was on before, with an equal emphasis on student and athlete.

Outside the office, Glass worked with the community to secure the largest donation in the athletic department’s history.

The $15 million donation from the Cook family provided funds for Cook Hall to be built.

The state-of-the-art practice facility gave IU men’s basketball Coach Tom Crean real progress to show to recruits. Venues like Cook Hall bring in the top talent.

The baseball and softball teams will also have something to show in the name of progress since Glass has been at the helm.

He helped ensure the creation of the new baseball and softball facility, giving those teams to something to attract recruits with.

He played a pivotal role in organizing the $3 million deal for the IU vs. Penn State football game at Fed-Ex Field in Washington.

Glass hasn’t just made the pleasant decisions. He has fired two coaches in three years: former football Coach Bill Lynch and former women’s basketball Coach Felisha
Legette-Jack.

These choices weren’t easy, but what he did was right for the future of those programs.

The two coaches chosen as replacements will put the programs back on track; it will just take them some time.

Glass did not do all of this work on his own, but he was the force behind it all. He’s been willing to do whatever it takes to make IU athletics proud.

Next time you see Glass riding around campus in the Fred-Mobile, give him a shout out.

Tell him thanks for getting IU back where it belongs.