The Academy Insider Podcast - Your Guide to The Naval Academy Experience
The mission of Academy Insider is to guide, serve, and support Midshipmen, future Midshipmen, and their families. Through the perspective of a community of former graduates and Naval Academy insiders, this podcast will help you learn about life at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis. Through our shared experiences, Academy Insider guides families through the anxiety and frustration caused by lack of understanding, misinformation, and confusion. This platform is designed to better relationships between midshipmen and their loved ones. This podcast is not affiliated with the United States Naval Academy, the United States Navy or Department of Defense. The thoughts and opinions are exclusively those of your host and his guests.
The Academy Insider Podcast - Your Guide to The Naval Academy Experience
#106 Learn About the Naval Academy Athletic Program - An Interview with the New Navy AD
Ever wonder what it's like to be at the helm of one of the largest athletic departments in the country? In this episode, we pull back the curtain on Navy Athletics with an exclusive interview featuring the new Naval Academy Athletic Director, Michael Kelly.
As a Naval Academy graduate myself, I'm thrilled to share an insider's look at how Navy Athletics is evolving to meet the challenges of modern collegiate sports while staying true to its core mission. We explore:
Key Insights on Navy Athletics' Impact and Future
- How the Naval Academy Athletic Association (NAAAA) operates as a privately funded organization
- The unique challenges of balancing 36 Division I sports programs
- Strategies for competing against larger programs without traditional NIL opportunities
- Recent and upcoming facility improvements across multiple sports
- The vital role of officer representatives and faculty in supporting student-athletes
Exciting Developments for Navy Sports Fans
- Updates on football's success and its importance to the overall athletic budget
- New partnerships and revenue-generating initiatives to support all sports
- Insights into the recruitment process and how Navy attracts top talent
- The impact of recent leadership changes on the athletic department's vision
What You'll Gain from This Episode
- Understanding of how Navy Athletics operates financially
- Insight into the decision-making process for facility improvements and sport additions
- Perspective on the unique value proposition Navy offers student-athletes
- Information on how fans and alumni can support Navy Athletics
Whether you're a current midshipman, proud parent, loyal alum, or passionate Navy sports fan, this episode offers valuable insights into the inner workings of Navy Athletics. Join us as we explore how the Nav
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The mission of Academy Insider is to guide, serve, and support Midshipmen, future Midshipmen, and their families.
Grant Vermeer your host is the person who started it all. He is the founder of Academy Insider and the host of The Academy Insider podcast. He was a recruited athlete which brought him to Annapolis where he was a four year member of the varsity basketball team. He was a cyber operations major and commissioned into the Cryptologic Warfare Community. He was stationed at Fort Meade and supported the Subsurface Direct Support mission.
He separated from the Navy in 2023 and now owns The Vermeer Group, a residential real estate company that matches service academy families with trusted real estate teams all across the country. Text (650) 282-1964 with any real estate questions.
We are here to be your guide through the USNA experience.
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Hey, and welcome to a brand new episode of the Academy Insider Podcast. I'm really excited about this episode because it's not often you get direct access to the athletic director of a massive institution like the Naval Academy. And so I'm joined by Mike Kelly. He's the brand new Naval Academy Athletic Director. And he talks about the Navy Athletics Program at large from all 36 Division I sports, club sports, everything that's going on in Annapolis, facilities improvements, recruiting with NIL, how he hires coaches, what he's doing to support the midshipment athletic experience in Annapolis. It's an incredible episode. We get a ton of behind the scenes and insight into what his priorities are, what his focuses are, and how he's going to define success in his time as the athletic director in Annapolis. So check it out. Let me know what you think. And if you have any questions, let me know. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy the listen. Have a great day. All right, hey, sir. Welcome to the Academy Insider Podcast. Thanks so much for taking the time to join us today. This is going to be a really fun, special episode. Before we jump into it, for those of you who may not be aware of who you are, again, like this, the Naval Academy Athletic Director can be such a high position. People may not know who you are personally. I'd love for you to have the opportunity just to introduce yourself, tell people where you're from, and kind of what your career path has been that has led you back to Annapolis, taking over as the new athletic director this year.
SPEAKER_01:Well, sure, happy to do it. And thanks so much for the opportunity to be with you uh uh today on this on this podcast. I mean, my name is Michael Kelly. I've served as the uh director of athletics here at the uh at the Naval Academy a long time now, since June 23rd. So just a couple weeks in to kind of get acclimated over the course of the summer and then hit these fall seasons uh full throttle. Most recently I joined from the uh University of South Florida where I served as the athletic director for the previous seven years. Uh I'd been there as an associate AD uh 20 years prior to that, uh, under then uh athletic direct athletic director Leroy Selman, who was a real mentor to me, former uh you know, NFL Hall of Famer, College Football Hall of Famer. Unfortunately passed uh back in the uh early two ten, you know, two 2010s, and that was a big loss for that community and for me personally, and uh when the opportunity to go to South Florida arose to kind of, you know, he he was largely responsible for starting football at USF back uh in the late 1990s, and so being there at the beginning and then be able to be a part of their next uh evolution was excited for me. We built an indoor practice facility there, and and their new stadium and operations building are well underway uh before I was able to find the opportunity here at Navy. Some uh some stops along the way before that, before Navy, were uh I served as the president for three different Super Bowl host committees in Tampa, Jacksonville, and Miami, which basically, man, almost similar to a military operation. It was basically an advanced team to go into those cities to be able to prepare uh, you know, hotels, party venues, practice sites, the stadium itself, security plans, kind of getting it prepped up for the NFL to come rolling into town. They execute the event flawlessly like they do, and then they bull it out of town and I would kind of uh clean up and go on to the next one. So that was fun to move from Tampa to Jacksonville to Miami and doing those events uh back in the early 2000s. I've served as the senior associate AD, excuse me, commissioner for the Atlantic Coast Conference, where I oversaw football operations, broadcasting, and communications, so served all those different sports for those 15 different schools at that time in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Uh and then I had an opportunity to be the very first chief operating officer for the college football playoff, where instead of working for one commissioner like I did at the ACC, work for all 10 at the FBS level that we're starting a brand new uh brand new venture that has now uh really become, I think, one of the best startups uh in the in the sports industry this century in terms of uh you know revolutionizing postseason college football and a big part of where we are. But all in all, it was always been a personal and a professional aspiration for me to come here to Navy. My father was a is a 67 grad. Uh so when he was uh even stationed here in Annapolis uh near the end of his military career, uh I was I was born in this area, was was around the yard as a youngster, came to games throughout my childhood and and teenhood. Uh went to high school over at St. John's High School in Washington, D.C., where I was a uh, you know, it was all all military at that point in time, so that gave me some good exposure to to that lifestyle. Went on to get a uh graduate of Magne can law and political science at Wake Forest University. Uh then went on to St. Thomas University in Miami, Florida, where they were well known for one of their one of the better sport administration schools when that industry was just starting to blossom in the early 90s, where I got my master's there, and uh that just launched the the career that that I've just outlined for you. So um, but all in all, it's a dream come true for me to come here, not only from the personal roots of my father, but the way I've always respected the nail academy, what I think nowadays, with all the changes in college sports, to me is really the you know just the best of all worlds, being able to serve those who serve, uh to be able to uh have uh in essence one of the largest athletic departments in the country at the Division I level to have that many varieties of sports because our our midshipmen are uh you know want to compete at the highest level possible in so many different sports to to round out their physical mission. And uh it's just a real joy to kind of help be a part of that element of creating great officers and and uh you know warfighters for the for the future of the Navy and the Marine Corps.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, no, absolutely. I think I that piece is really cool. Again, it's a unique job, right? It's a unique job that I think is, again, unlike maybe others that you could take in this world and you know, a professional, obviously accomplishment, but personally very cool as well with your ties to the Annapolis area and specifically the Naval Academy. I know that's got to feel special. But for you, kind of shifting into this role at a service academy specifically, what have your priorities been? Are they different from what they were at USF? Do you look at the role differently from the one you have at USF, or is the approach similar and kind of how has this adjustment been coming to Annapolis, taking on more sports, like more programs, as well as the service aspects of the service academies?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, there's some uh some uh uh you know aspects of it that are the same, and some, as you just mentioned, it are very, very different. And it's the ones that were different that were a life experience that I wanted to have. It was a feeling of service that I wanted to be able to give back to uh obviously a uh an uh an inter an industry and uh and an institution that that really gave uh me directly or indirectly a you know a chance at the life that I've I've had through my father and through the many uh others that have served through the Naval Academy. I mean, it's in some ways the sports are are the sports. You're trying to compete against the competitive environment that you're in. In our case, the American Athletic Conference for Football, uh Patriot League for many other sports. Um you want to, you know, you expect to win, you prepare to win, you have a strategy day in, day out uh, you know, to win. Uh so that requires on my side and then the side of the NAA, the Naval Academy Athletic Association, to be able to provide those resources uh for you know for the midshipmen to be successful in the competitive environment that they're uh uh that that they're in. So you gotta evaluate, hey, what what do we need to uh uh to you know to be successful? Yeah. Uh and that's the same when I was at USF or Wake Forest or and anything else, you're trying to evaluate the environment you're in and figure out what what can be your uh secret sauce, what can be the strengths that you can play to uh to be successful. And I would say here you you've got the ability of dedicated people, smart people, uh folks that are very competitive, uh they're striving to uh to to win, and and we're one of the greatest leadership uh factories in the in the world and and and trying to prove that mission, have the ability to test that mission each and every day. And that's what I think athletics and being able to play this many sports at D1 level allows. It gives you daily uh challenges in the crucible that as the superintendent refers to the Naval Academy as, as a as a chance to test, learn, uh, get better and and and and win each and every day, whether it's practice with one-on-one like you and me going at it, or whether it's uh uh whether it's ultimately a game. So for us, it's been really uh, you know, just kind of finding where what are the strengths that we can play too and uh finding ways to uh to win so that you you you prepare to the point that you're confident on game day to be the very best you can at the moment of of competitive greatness.
SPEAKER_00:I love it. I think that's really cool. The the superintendent specifically calling out and you know saying the Naval Academy is a crucible. I love it. Uh for anyone who's listening to the podcast again, we did release an episode earlier this summer all about the Naval Academy Crucible with a book that was written by Admiral McNeil, uh, who's uh you know on staff at the Naval Academy as well. I love that this theme of you know the Service Academy education meaning to be a really difficult one, meaning one to uh overcome a lot of adversity, face a lot of struggles, do really hard things, and prove to yourself you can do hard things is incredible. And that's why I'm turning maybe this back to you a little bit too, because again, we're talking about success in you know in an athletic perspective, about winning games, right? At the end of the day, that's what it is. Like you're saying, we have to provide all the resources necessary, give all the midshipmen everything they need to be able to perform and compete at an extremely high level. But with this mission of the institution overall, about producing warfighters, about you know, creating men and women who are ready to become officers in the Navy and Marine Corps, does that change your definition of success at all in this role? Or are there additional factors you have to consider? Or would you say, again, kind of your approach was the same at USF? At the end of the day, we're still just trying to develop young men and women to be ready to go out and do great things in the world. How has that shift at all kind of adjusted what success, success looks like in this role for Naval Academy Athletics?
SPEAKER_01:Well, the focus is similar in that you're still trying to provide through education and through experience to make uh men and women have the opportunities to be better citizens of the world. It's just that the the extra level here is that while you've got the ability to do that at other colleges, here you you've already committed yourself to being an officer, to being a leader uh for our country, and whether that's in the military, whether that's ultimately in governmental or or civic service or ultimately in business. Yeah. Um you've just already gone that next step and committing that extra uh focus. And that's very inspiring to uh have that maturity and have that uh self-awareness as a young man or one probably making that decision at the age somewhere between 18 to 20 that knows they want to serve that country to that extent. Yeah. Uh so that's the that's kind of the uniqueness there, clearly. It's just an extra level of of commitment and and uh realization of something that you want to do. Uh so we take we take great pride in that. And then realizing the full picture of not only what the Division I uh athletic experience can be here at the Naval Academy, but what you're uh you know, signing up for basically a brotherhood and a sisterhood of alums all over the world, quite frankly, so that have such has had such success and and common pride in the experience that you have here at the Academy and experiencing the uh the crucible, if you will. Uh I think that's uh that that that's pretty special. And then you kind of put it all together and uh you know try try to just uh bring great uh great glory here to uh uh to this great institution.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. And one that one of the you know the things specifically about this platform that I'm excited about is you know, we have a large audience of listeners who are their parents, their grandparents, their aunts and uncles of midshipmen. And as you know, again, in this institution, because of the amount of Division I sports that we have, the vast majority of midshipmen do compete uh in an athletics program at Navy. And one of the things that's gonna most drastically impact their experience are the people associated with their story, with their journey. And a lot of that comes down to coaches. And so specifically for you in this role, who again will kind of make the final decision about who are going to coach these programs, what is most important for you when it comes to keeping andor hiring coaches? Like, what are you considering when it comes to who is going to take the realm and lead these young and men, young men and women here kind of in their athletic programs?
SPEAKER_01:Man, that is an awesome question because you're right. The uh number one, the midshipmen here is so special because they've committed to what we've talked about already. Uh everyone breaks a sweat at the Naval Academy. So, because we we've got the 36 varsity sports, you've got the 15 club sports. Uh, everyone else during the respective sport period is still doing some sort of active physical training, uh, even if they're not playing uh you know an organized event to that extent. So that's important part of obviously being fit as a as an officer, leading your your your your people in your care, and then obviously to you know a lifelong uh you know quality of life toward toward toward healthy lifestyle. Um so that that that's that's first first first and foremost. But then when you think about the coaches, I mean 36 head coaches, uh you know, you've got uh 15 you know club coaches that are working with with folks, you've got uh an officer rep, at least one with every team, you've got a faculty rep with each team. So that's just a lot of great energy and leadership being poured into uh these midshipmen, and all those influences are really important. It's got to be done in a super efficient way uh because the time constraints, as I know I've even listened to some of your other episodes, just talk about the you know, the time management skills that are so necessary for our midshipmen and which prepares you for anything you want to do in life uh is really vital. So therefore you have to have the best quality uh possible there. And for and for me, uh of course I always want coaches that are gonna have the right grit to them, uh that they're gonna want to uh uh you know lead lead well and really have what I call real authentic relationships with their with their players, ones that uh obviously still treat them well and with respect, but obviously coach them hard, coach them with love, coach them hard, and and and so there's an understanding that hey, I'm only here to make you better, whether it's to win or make you be a part of the day that the physical mission plays in the ultimate development of an officer are all really, really important. So, yeah, just like the extra lens or filter that we we go through in our recruiting for all of our, you know, probably about 1400 varsity midshipmen that hey, you gotta make sure this is what you want and you're gonna be willing to commit to to what else goes into it. You know, it's the hard that makes it great, if you if you will, you gotta be able to commit to that. Same thing with coaches. I mean, it's there are some great qualities here that you would never ever want to leave, and this is everything you'd want in a college coaching experience, but you have to realize, and it's very clear, made clear to everybody in this organization, that they're midshipmen first. Yep. And so as a result, they have a lot of obligations there. And once you realize that, that's gonna, you know, from maybe what you've experienced at a civilian university, there might be some recruiting aspects that are different, there might be some time availability aspects that are different, and you have to embrace that and understand it. So as we look at our coaches, I think we've got some ones that are really accomplished, really great. And the one reason they're here is because they believe and understand that whole mission. And if we have searches in the future, that's just the other thing that I'll be uber careful about is that you just have to make sure they fully understand. I mean, we you know all the greatness of the academy, you know it's a great place to live, you know the tradition and the history and success that we've had in almost every single program here, but you got to make sure you understand the full mission, and it's it's made crystal clear to again everyone here that they're they're midshipmen first and then uh you know close close second, uh, you know, the great D1 athletes that are here to be the best they can be.
SPEAKER_00:It it's it's a hard job for coaches. Like I, you know, again, it takes it takes a little bit of perspective to like fully see it. I just remember being a midshipman like in the midst of it all, and you're exhausted. But like when you're a division one coach, right, your livelihood really depends on on winning games, right? Like on doing things and making the program successful. And that's tough. Like, again, for basketball specifically, that's the experience that I can talk about. Is you would go play at Lee High or Lafayette on a Wednesday night. Game starts at 7:30, hopefully. You know, you go to overtime, whatever, game ends 10:30, 11 p.m. Now you're on a three-hour bus ride back home, it's 2 a.m. And guess what? Those machim have to be up for morning formation and show up to class that starts at 7:45. And unlike maybe some of the other civilian institutions where you may be able to watch a lecture online or something or sleep in, like, no, you your kids are gonna be getting four hours of sleep, go into class for five and a half, six hours, and then have to show up and get ready to practice and compete again at the division one level that afternoon. And to like have to, but but I appreciate what you're saying is like coaches need to be able to understand, empathize, and adjust to that because it's not a traditional coaching experience. But at the same time, it doesn't mean you get to just like take it easy, like you have to figure out you know, untraditional ways to still go and compete and win. Um, and so like I appreciate that. And obviously, you have a deep understanding with the fact that your dad was a grad, you've been in Annapolis, you have a good understanding of the institution, but it does, it requires a deep level of understanding of the midshipment experience because of its uniqueness compared to other universities. How are you going about learning more about the life of a midshipman? And I appreciate you mentioning some of these other things and the podcasts that are going on to get a sense of, you know, the midshipman life. How are you choosing to invest in learning about the midshipman experience to kind of better understand how you're approaching this, you know, program at large for the entire university and institution?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I mean, you've you've described it well in terms of just how it's different. I mean, a lot of things are similar. There are some things different, you've got to accept that. And hopefully you shouldn't be embracing it because it is, again, it's the hard that makes a great, it's what it's what you're doing to be able to know what's at the end of the puzzle there. And and and but what I think is again, because there's some non-negotiables, right, to to create the great leaders that we're uh creating here. So um, but that being said, I think it's great to kind of understand things from all perspectives from the superintendent, from the commandant, from the provost uh staff from our perspective. It's my job to at least educate and explain you know what our our midshipmen are going through at the at the varsity and club level so that they too can have an appreciation for hey, what what's non-negotiable, what things could maybe be discussed that could be adjusted in certain certain ways if there are any. Uh, that still kind of again still have the ultimate mission of creating uh the officers that we're here to do. Um but also you know, everyone here on the on the art wants wants our teams to be successful and that when it's reasonable and successful to do so, we'll uh you know, we'll we'll make that happen. But I think the main way they do that is by pouring a whole lot of energy into it. The brigade uh so supportive of so many of our athletes at games, obviously at football games, the whole brigade is there. And and as I mentioned earlier, to have the dedication of officer reps that are there to to observe, monitor, support uh shows that the the care from the military side, the fact that the I mean, sometimes it's hard at some spaces, you know, you get an appreciation from a couple faculty members and certainly a great faculty rep here to have a fact, an awesome faculty rep in Dr. Copper to all these different ones that are each one for each individual sport. That's kind of unheard of to have that much to support. So everyone knows it's hard, everyone wants to support and make sure make sure it happens, but we also know that uh you know pouring into that is what it is what makes us be successful at the end of the day. 100%.
SPEAKER_00:For everyone listening, I just want to uh double down on just the importance of an officer rep and a faculty rep as well and the the impact that it makes in the Naval Academy experience. I remember deeply, I had a couple of uh incredible officer representatives during my time, Commander McInerney early on, and then it turned into Major Lil Cruisinger, um, who was the the officer rep. And I continually say, like day in and day out, the most that I learned about leadership and about my development as a young man came from road trips with Major Krusinger. Like he sat down and he took me under his wing, he mentored me, he taught me, he coached me, he gave me books. We read um uh Gates of Fire and like went through and broke down multiple chapters on different um, you know, road trips. We would sit, we would talk, we would discuss. He was the one that encouraged me to go and apply to be the Reg Commander of Pleep Summer for the year. He encouraged my involvement in the brigade and the military side of leadership. And that kind of stuff is just incredible because these officer reps, it's not just it's it's not just that they're there as a formality, they're there to mentor, to teach, coach, and mentor these young men and women uh in an environment that is mutually, you're mutually passionate about, which is that that sports team. And you're exactly right.
SPEAKER_01:I mean, just think about and and and all these officer reps and faculty reps are so accomplished in their own right. So you're you're around kind of legends of the game, uh, you know, thinking, hey, I'm an 18, 20-year-old, that's these people are pouring into me. And and as you know, firsthand, I mean, the people you meet here that might come speak to your team, or that you get to go hear a forestall lecture, or you get to see that someone that's visiting the uh you know, superintendent or the provost or the commandant, I mean, exposure that uh you have to to great leaders, great people, great experts in their respective fields, uh, you know, it's it's truly, truly second to none. So it's it's pretty inspiring to be here and well worth well worth the extra effort. Because you know it's you know, you as Coach Newberry likes to say, the NIL in this era here, uh you get the NIL on the back end here at the Naval Academy. You get prepared for life, you get a great job, you get skills for a great job, and you have a network of a brotherhood and a sisterhood unlike any other.
SPEAKER_00:There's no doubt about that. There's no doubt about that. Again, you just even take a look at Navy basketball, the lineage that we have here, right? Again, we have David Robinson, literally David Robinson in our in our chain here. Um, but just you're saying the network that you become a car a part of, you know, I've had a couple of meetings recently with Carl Liebert, who is another class of 87 grad, part of that incredible team in Navy basketball history. Uh, you know, he was COO at USAA, the CEO of Keller Williams, now the managing director of a massive private equity firm in New York City. And I have access to him because we're Navy basketball alumni and and and have that brotherhood, right? And that's crazy that's right.
SPEAKER_01:My high school teammates from St. John's High School, two of my guys that started ahead of me when I was a junior, they came here, Eddie Reddick and Eric Harris, uh, you know, played played here at the Nale Academy. They've gone on to highly successful careers. David Robinson's getting inducted into the DC Basketball Hall of Fame this this weekend. We've got Kyler Whitaker coming back. We've got a couple years later, Jeremy Totten here that's highly successful here in the Annapolis area, you know, uh again, all just trying to pour in and have come and met with me or called me, and I didn't reach even have to reach out to them. Like, hey, what can we do to help Navy basketball be successful? What can we do to name you name the sport? Uh someone's come come by here to try to find ways uh to make uh to make it happen. Which which uh as you and I have talked about a little bit offline is is really vital because having the largest athletic department in the country is great and we're doing it for all the right reasons. But the NAA is a privately funded organization. Uh so to run one of the largest athletic departments in the country in an era where there's you know not government support, not you know, institutional support, I don't and I'm not asking for it. I'm just saying that everyone that wants to see those those victories on on Saturday or Friday or what have you, you know, you really can't have an impact with the either the uh you know the networking that you and I have just been speaking about, or ultimately in terms of donations and support that kind of go into certain things or certain sports that you have a passion for. So buying those Navy football tickets for our different funds, all those things are really, really vital, or we can't compete. I mean, we can we can compete and put a team out, but if you want us to be successful and we want to have the experience that these young men and women deserve, yeah, uh that's what we need a brotherhood and sisterhood to do that for us.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, great, great segue. I appreciate it because that's that's where we're getting to, which is which is this idea of money, because at the end of the day, like you're mentioning, we have a massive athletics program. A massive athletics program. And so how does and you you mentioned a bit about it there, but I'd love if you could give a uh you know an honest breakdown to the people who are listening, just to provide context and understanding of how this whole ecosystem works. How is the Naval Academy Athletics Program funded? Like, do we generate our own revenue? Does it, you know, does that revenue cover the entire operating budget for all of the sports? Where do we really or receive supplements from this NAA? What is it? And then if parents wanted to support the overall Navy athletics program, including all of the Division I sports, how do how do they contribute? How do they support?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, no, great question. I mean, it's it's really kind of one that's uh you know often misunderstood. So that's why it's great to be able to talk about it on the on the podcast, because I think even some uh some alums sometimes will be like, ah, well, the government funds your whole deal, so you know you don't need me. Uh and and again, we're very grateful for what the in the government and and public funding does for the institution as a whole. Um but even for that, I mean, hey, that that that provides the grounds, that provides the you know, uh, you know, in our case, certainly the the the the scholarship, if you will, and and certainly the uh the food in Kings Hall and the Bancroft Hall and all that, you know, so the core is is taken care of for all midshipment. They're there we're all the same. Obviously, we're all midshipment first. But then everything to go with the essence, the travel, the coaches, the support staff, the operations behind things, the food, the you know, supplemental food, the uh everything that goes into the athletic department are all fully and keenly raised uh through revenue sources. And and a good part of it, frankly, is is through football. That's our most marketable and most revenue generating sport. So the background I have here of Navy Marine Corps Stadium being being filled uh every Saturday is really important for us. Uh the Army Navy football game is of vital uh commercial consequence to us. That's why we uh not only want it to be the beacon that it is of a great American tradition, but uh for both West Point and for ourselves, it's a major, major part of our of our budget in terms of what we can garner from television that broadcasts that game and certainly the different locations we move it around to to make sure we can maximize revenues of that game. Um and then obviously great sponsorship support. We have a whole corporate sponsorship team that you see at all of our, you know, mostly at football, but at other events as well, radio networks, uh, and then beyond that it's it's donations, it's generosity of people directly through either what's called our blue and gold uh efforts, which are you know have a lot of benefits directly related to uh parking and seats and seating locations and that sort of thing at the stadium, or the margin of excellence, basically our overall support through working with the foundation for our athletics and scholarships programs. People just flat out make gifts to make facilities because we do have awesome facilities. We we we have created awesome facilities that have been privately funded that our teams use, and we also share with the midshipmen. So we we not only take care of our own, but we try to find ways to enhance the life of the overall midshipmen in terms of facilities that they can uh the non-varsity athletes can use as well to make sure it's part of their physical mission. So long-winded way of uh of saying it's just uh that's where it's not unlike many athletic departments that we have to be as self-sufficient as we can, but it's not the situation where you know the government isn't and shouldn't be supplementing us with with more things. It's more a matter of uh uh what we can do with our donors, alums, and friends of the Naval Academy.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, no, absolutely. And again, we mentioned uh football, football is the flagship sport. It's the primary revenue generator that, you know, again allows in most cases allows us to have such an expansive uh athletics department across the you know the span of different sports at the Division I level. How do you ensure though, like what are the challenges you face when it comes to now reallocating a budget to make sure that every sport get what gets what they need to excel, but also continuing to emphasize, prioritize, and focus on a football program that continues to win, continues to generate support, and continues to generate revenue that powers the whole operation, right? Like that's that's a tough thing to balance. And where like how do you approach that whole situation?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, it comes with transparency and authenticity with this with the staff. And good news is the the coaches here understand that. I mean, uh we we we we will, and and and my predecessor has done an excellent job of identifying priorities, figuring out what do they need to be successful. You know, each coach is is clearly there to saying this is what I feel I need to do to accomplish the goals that you're setting out for me. And if we can provide those, uh then then that's where we go hand in hand and have the kind of success that that we expect with no surprises there, right? And so, but if we as a as the NAA are not providing what we think we need to be successful, then that's just as much that loss is just as much on us as it is on anyone else. So we want to have this symbiotic uh partnership that we go hand in hand together that, hey, look, I'm here to deliver the resources and the support uh that you need to be successful. And I say that speaking to both a coach and to a to a midship and varsity athlete. Uh so that's what we'll do. Uh we'll we'll we we'll we'll we hopefully are always on a mutual understanding going into each and every year about uh what's been provided, what our expectations are, how can we get better, uh, what do we need to do to help you get better, what facilities are needed, what can we kind of plan for long term and all those things. But making it clear that they understand that hey, our football's uh dominant uh revenue generator for us. Uh we we do well with lacrosse, we continue to put a big emphasis on lacrosse, that also is important. Basketball has some revenue opportunities, but a lot of other sports we don't charge admission for. We uh you know it's it's just something that we uh doesn't really have that revenue generating opportunity for us. So we all just gotta understand. But the ultimate revenue generating opportunity beyond the obvious aspects of football is on philanthropy. Uh and that's where for understanding what the students need to be able to tell the whole story of the Naval Academy to this this audience uh here mostly of parents and friends and grandparents, or if it's more on uh different podcasts related to uh you know Naval Academy, you know, Uber sports fans, whatever whatever it happens to be. But I hope everyone just kind of take away from this conversation and just realize like, hey, yeah, I love watching Navy football on Saturday as much as the next guy, and we're probably playing against, with very few exceptions, folks that are operating about three, four times the amount of the budget that that that we have. And again, that's not a complaint. We knew that, we know that. Uh, but we want to give our our our guys a a fair fight and and and the right types of training opportunities to be the best that they can be. And then it goes hand in hand with the other sports. But in this era of college sports the way it is, and so much emphasis being provided on whether it's NIL or maybe you know, different uh you know, with the whole revenue sharing aspect that's that's out there for many schools schools right now. So we we don't really have to, you know, worry about that. I'm not raising 20 million dollars just to pay the players, but what I am trying to always raise millions of dollars for is to improve their facilities, improve their experience, raise millions of dollars for is to improve their facilities, improve their experience, difference more more foot more things that will will help them win so we can kind of look at what whatever a coach thinks that we need to win, we'll know that. We'll tell the narrative to our our our fans and it it it it might strike a chord as to uh a Passion that they have and say, hey, this is what swimming says they need to be more successful. Can you help me, sir, ma'am? And you know, more times than that, we're able to get what we need, and that's a really great thing. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_00:And I I want to talk a little bit about facilities because this is like something that, like, it's the salty old grad in me, you know, like when I was going through my plebe year, Halsey was under construction. And so as a as a basketball player, like we would have to go to the locker rooms at the soccer facility, like all the way close to the seawall or in West B. And then we were practicing in Dry Dock, like they constructed like a you know a temporary court in Dry Dock, and the the sun would peek through the windows in Dry Dock, and you're trying to shoot a jump shot with like sun in your eyeballs. Um but now again, these facilities in Halsey are incredible, including the locker rooms, right? Which makes a huge quality of life improvement for these midshipmen to have a space that they can go to and relax and be able to like have a place to study, to work out of, to, to, you know, whatever the case is prior to and after practice. It's incredible. And I know there's discussions about like the lacrosse facilities, but I want to turn it to you to, you know, have an opportunity to talk about are there any more like facility improvements like in the works, kind of in the pipeline, and and what are the the goals or focuses when it comes to facility, you know, like maintenance increases improvements as as you're moving forward.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, I mean facility improvements uh here on the yard and certainly at most colleges are are never ending. And and and most important here because in this case, whereas a lot of civilian universities, hey, it's it's it's that one varsity team uses it and no one else, right? Here we obviously have some good priority scheduling, which we need to be successful, but we also share that facility with camps and we have people coming over, we all the whole brigade in many cases. So there's a lot of bigger use again to fulfill the physical mission here. So it's very, very different. And so there's a lot of ongoing, constant, uh recurring maintenance that needs to occur. You talked about your experience with Halsey when it was under development. Right now, uh McDonough Hall's been under uh a lot of renovations for years. Now, evidently, I'm obviously only been here a couple months. But that and that has all these things have a cascading effect, right? Because we have lacrosse that hasn't had access to their locker room for water polos. Uh different different teams have had all kinds of needs for that that to have metal use. We've we're squashing in the squash, you know, squishing in the certain metals to to make that work. And and that's hard, and we gotta do a good job, and that's just everyone has to react when there's good good progress being on. But looking ahead, uh, I mean, there's uh uh we we fully anticipate this uh calendar, or if not this calendar, there's certainly this academic year to begin uh construction on the lacrosse facility that's been talked about for a while. So that's a priority for me to get going because that will not only be something that will aid men's and woman across uh tremendously, but again, that that provides other weight rooms, rest and recovery rooms that kind of allow all of our teams to spread out a little bit, have a little more elbow room, and supports all of us, helps, helps even soccer since there'll be in a similar geographic footprint that can have some some more modernized things that can happen. We just put new practice fields in for football in the offseason, which is a nice new practice field. We put in a new turf at the Marine Corps Stadium. Uh we've got a track that's currently being completely refurbished and redone, which is gonna be in in place for the uh uh spring season this year. So that was important to get for uh for for track. We've got some uh important improvements necessary for our clubhouse and things happening out at the baseball stadium, so that should uh you know start sometime in the next uh six to twelve months. Uh and then we're just gonna keep uh and then then you get back to the earlier commentary. Those were all things that we need for our training and for our you know to improve our facilities. And then you look at some opportunities that are happening at Marine Corps Stadium where we're uh preparing some some additional renovations to some on the south side, those corner areas creating uh some uh banquet space and and and uh you know premium space that'll be good for revenue generation and a great huge gift from the Lakefield family that's gonna create a whole pavilion on the north side of the stadium that's gonna be another uh great uh again, great facility that'll serve the whole community, but certainly the Naval Academy community as well. So we're gonna always keep looking for ways to enhance the experience at Navy Marine Corps for football, for lacrosse, and obviously for other events that we can generate revenue from. Uh because when when when we if we can create one of the finest venues in in Andorondo County or really in the whole DMV for folks to have events at, those are things that are also gonna be sustainable for for us. Just like when we have the amazing golf course that we have, uh, you know, that that those are all revenue-generated things that help uh as well when we are able to host tournaments like we did last weekend with the GOAT or the women and being able to host the Patriot League Championship coming up, for us to be able to host NCA championships to help us have a better chance to win. All these things are there, all the while being able to serve a you know a major golf community here that gets to play on one of the best courses in the country. So all these things are symbiotic. We can kind of find ways to serve the midshipmen first, generate revenue, and then ultimately be able to serve the community, make Annapolis just a great place to live that it is. Heck yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Uh I I love it. I mean, there's so many, I think there's so many factors to your role in your job that people just don't even think about and consider. Right.
SPEAKER_01:It's fascinating, it's fascinating. I mean, every athletic director job is fascinating. But this, again, I'm still pinching myself to be honest with you. I mean, the people that will pour into this office every day that I get the chance to go meet with, uh the midshipmen I get to see every day walking or running on the yard. I mean, you cannot be here and not be inspired by the again, just the again, just the energy and the and the focus that uh everyone has on this whole yard, whether it's an 18-year-old plebe or whether it's a veteran professor. I mean, it's it's just awesome. Everyone believes in the same mission. Everyone wants to contribute in a way that's uh just really heartwarming to be honest with you.
SPEAKER_00:I love it. Um one one quick question here, because again, we just added Navy triathlon as a varsity sport a couple years ago. Um, are there any are there any other sports um that are in discussion that are either gonna, you know, potentially get promoted to a varsity sport or get added at some point? Any other additional programs that are kind of in discussion, or are you kind of we kind of set with the teams that we have, at least for the foreseeable future?
SPEAKER_01:Well, first of all, I appreciate you mentioned triathlon. They just won a huge event this week, this past weekend. It's one of their first um major victories in their program's history. So that was awesome to see. Uh rugby, uh, I was able to attend some rugby matches this this weekend, which is really cool. We've had a lot of success there. So uh we've got a lot of unique sports that again, you know, think about that. Triathlon, you have to be one of the most fit people in the world to be able to do that. That contributes to the physical mission and to our future warfighters. Rugby, what can be more physical than the mindset it takes both strategically and physically for that? So again, it all fits back into the mission with these sports that we have. And in an era where many colleges are just trying to cut them, uh, you know, obviously we we if we're able to continue to get the support we get and and hopefully increase it upon it, we'll be able to contribute that. As it relates to, you know, my relative uh newness here in terms of adding any. I mean, uh obviously sometimes I get the opposite reaction. It's like, man, you why do you have so many? And I've explained that already on this podcast. Because it is a lot. Sometimes people have to realize there is a you know, you've got to you've got to think about the experience for the student athlete overall. You gotta think about what coaching and support staff is necessary, the trainers, the uh the the extra nutrition aspects, everything that goes into it all has to be thought about and make sure they have the facility. I think the biggest challenge we have right now, if we ever consider adding more, is really just the facilities. I mean, we're we're maxed out, uh we want to keep maxing out what we what we what we can do, because they they all kind of have it at the same time. Again, the time constraints are so regimented here for logical and obvious reasons that it's not like I can it's not like I can use I can use the basketball practice gym all day long that while they're in class and they're at drill and they're they're doing they're doing other things there. So it's really uh very regimented in terms of what we do. And that's where you know we're gosh, we're so fortunate to have like the brigade sports complex on the other side of the river to be able to have not only the golf course but uh the rugby and the uh the indoor tennis facility and the other sports that that compete and train over there else, man, we'd we'd be we we we would have real challenges. And then maybe there's potential obviously there for other things in the break and the ice rink, which provides for our hockey uh club club teams and that sort of thing. So too early to tell anything about any future varsities, but obviously any of our clubs, if there was the right support, the right facilities, that's something to be thinking about. I don't know. I mean when you look nationally, I mean there's a big growth in uh we already have gymnastics on the on the men's side, so that's we're good there. So that that there's some growth there. There's uh flag football is becoming one that's uh uh become more uh increasingly popular, particularly on the on the women's side and in the world. Uh we already have sprint football on the men's in addition to our varsity. So I don't know. We'll just have to kind of keep watching what's out there. There has to be a demand uh in terms of uh you know you know people that are playing on the scholastic level, and then ultimately do we have the facilities that can support it? I think we're pretty comfortable with 36 for the for season. That's fair.
SPEAKER_00:When do you think pickleball's getting? Uh I keep seeing the ride of the pickleball. When yeah, when's D1 pickleball coming out?
SPEAKER_01:That'll be something to watch. That's a good point. And and it's just such a popular activity here on the yard with the midshipmen. And it makes sense because it's hey, if you don't have much time and you can get out there and play in a hurry, and all these recreational courts right along uh inside our practice fields have kind of both converted to tennis and and and pickleball. So it seems to be very popular amongst uh the midshipmen. I know the club, uh, I've talked to the club uh coach and operators there that uh obviously it's very popular. So that's another sport to kind of watch what will happen long term.
SPEAKER_00:Fair. Uh final topic. You mentioned it a couple times, this idea of NIL. Um, you know, there there'll be some people out there that that will continue to worry about the fact that you know NIL is not really a a thing at the Naval Academy and you know, continuing to build, especially a football program that can compete. But again, as we're recording this, we're 3-0. We have Rice coming up this weekend. But for you as an AD at an institution that competes at a very high level, that can go and win the American Conference, that can compete against Power Five schools to do that without NIL, how vastly different is this experience for you in this era of NIL? And how do we stay competitive and recruit? Um I know you you know you kind of mentioned like our NIL is on the back end, but how do you approach this from again competing against power five-level talent without the ability to pay players?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah, and it's it's a it's just a reality that everyone's having to adjust to it on different levels. The the place I just left, we were finding creative ways to find every single ounce of uh revenue and funding sources we could pour into what we needed to facility-wise, and and also into creating uh the revenue that was necessary for for them. And and they're seeing some great success across the board uh there now with that strategy. Here, obviously, I think this the strategy is in terms of pointing out the story, in terms of you know, the NIL is on the back end. You've got the guarantee of a job that the other schools can't provide, you've got the ability for for uh um skills and and different things that you're gonna learn that you can't learn anywhere else. But that does take some obvious maturity and ability to look big picture, uh, which makes our recruiting that much more important. Um that's why it's important to have great coaches like we do uh and be able to tell that story and to be able to have the understanding of what that what that all means. Now, having said all that, I also think it also points out that we also, because a lot of the in this era, a lot of schools at the P4 level are almost admittingly saying that they don't even recruit high schools anymore. Uh that they they just kind of go and look to you know to different mid major kind of level conferences, take the best of them, and they've already had some training and they move on. Well, that creates you gotta, you know, a blue ocean theory, if you will, you gotta go to where well what what's what what's next and what's smart in doing that. And so that allows us, I think we are seeing across the board in all sports, probably a higher level, a higher rated recruit uh coming to the Naval Academy than we'd seen probably ever before in our history. And that's because they aren't being uh necessarily finding homes at some of the schools. And then when they find when they hear from our coach, uh and they kind of once you once you hear that first reaction, hey, cool, I heard from Navy, and then you look a little bit under the hood, and then you realize all the things that it kind of provides you, and then you take a visit to Annapolis, and then you're like, hey, this is different. This might be a little harder than what my colleagues are gonna deal at other schools, but this is this is what I'm all about, right? And so that that's where it's just been really interesting. Uh when you're a developmental program, I think a lot of kids see that and say, hey, this is a chance to play D1 sports with a real huge upside, albeit different, uh, that I can be a little bit you know, a little bit harder, a little bit uh opportunity for for future growth. Um, but I also think there's pride in in taking that development approach. And and when you can kind of look at like, hey, in all likelihood, if I do what I'm supposed to do, if I'm coachable, if I do everything I think I'm able to do to my fullest my capabilities, I'm probably not they're not gonna hire a linebacker, mercenary to come in and take my spot, my junior year, my senior year. And that, you know, people are looking when you when you have the maturity of the big picture and think that all the way through. And certainly parents do. That's where a lot of parents really get into. Hey, my son could come to the naval academy or my daughter could and have that kind of experience. Yes, sign me up. So again, it's a different message, it's a very genuine message, it's true, it takes a little bit more explanation. It takes, you still have to find that uh you know, the special young man or woman that would be willing to do that. But that's always been the case. We've always had to go sift a little bit deeper to find the young man or woman that want to do that. But then now I think the upsides are probably more prevalent than than ever before. So I think I think that's where we're that we're winning. And then when you look at it, then because of that, you know, you you play together for three or four years, and you especially with your expertise in basketball. I mean, gosh, five basketball players that have played together and strategized for a while can beat individual talent almost any day of the week, right? So and and the same thing can hold true here. There's you know, it's not without exception. I mean, obviously, there's a lot of P4 schools and even teams in the American, and they got 60 or 70 new football players on their roster this year. Now, they're all probably extremely talented, and sometimes you can get them to play together pretty quickly, and you've seen examples of that, but you see actually a similar number of experiences where, hey, they just don't gel together and that's not gonna work. Whereas our teams are gonna play together for three or four years with a logical secession plan, a logical developmental plan that we can recruit to. And it's probably the way college sports was originally intended to be, and we get the added wrinkle of uh, again, being one of the greatest late leadership centers in the world. Uh, we'll we'll find our fair share of great midship in the mood to move us forward.
SPEAKER_00:Heck yeah. Well, uh, sir, thank you so much for taking the time again. I felt like that was great. You mentioned, you know, our one advantage is we just have to recruit, we just have to recruit well, and now we get that direct access to almost an untapped pool, which is like directly from high school talent and finding, you know, the right opportunities there. So thank you so much for taking the time to come with us and discuss everything about the the Navy athletics program. I really appreciate you taking the time. Anything that I didn't ask or anything you kind of want to leave the audience with before we before we wrap up.
SPEAKER_01:Well, I just want to thank you for the opportunity to to share these thoughts and to explain some of the great things that are happening at Naval Academy Athletic Association and just to appreciate everyone listening to consider supporting us through attending games, through uh watching our games, listening about our players, uh, and and uh and certainly considering supporting us through uh uh you know with with the you know different sports that we offer. So Navy Sports.com, uh all the information you ever want there. We've got a great app that can allow you to follow everything as well and and just uh just appreciate it because we we we take great pride in representing not only the current brigade but the alums, but really anyone ever associated with the fleet and the corps, what uh uh what what the Naval Academy's uh sports are able to do, and we take great pride in that. So thank you for your support.
SPEAKER_00:Thank you. All right, everyone listening. I hope you enjoyed the episode. Thank you so much and have a great day. Thank you so much for listening to this episode of the Academy Insider Podcast. I really hope you liked it, enjoyed it, and learned something during this time. If you did, please feel free to like and subscribe or leave a comment about the episode. We really appreciate to hear your feedback about everything and continue to make Academy Insider an amazing service that guides, serves, and supports midshipmen, future midshipmen, and their families. Thank you.
