I stopped in to interview Mike Buddie on my recent HEA Road Trip. Buddie’s wisdom is on full display in this interview as he covers practical things like how to get to work by knowing who should be on the list to contact when you get a new AD job. Mike shares his thought process on leaving Army for TCU, who he reached out to for counsel, and how he kept close to the challenges facing ADs outside the academies so that he could speak intelligently and truthfully in an interview. He gives his thoughts on outside industry trends and what traditional administrators like himself can do to stay ahead of the changes to college athletics. Texas is crowded with FBS schools seeking corporate deals and Buddie shares TCU’s approach to make Fort Worth and its surrounding communities purple. Mike talks about how ADs care about their former schools and help their successors years after leaving the chair.
- 0:00 Critical. Urgent. Important.
- 1:08 Introduction
- 3:25 Adjusting from One School to the Next
- 6:40 Aligning with Chancellor Pullin
- 7:47 Mike’s Approach to Donor Briefings and Lists
- 12:20 Texas is a Busy and Big State for FBS Schools – TCU’s Strategy
- 14:40 Mike’s Decision Process for Leaving Army
- 17:30 How Past Athletic Directors Help their Successors
- 19:10 Outsiders Coming Into College Athletics
Thank you to the following HEA Sponsors
AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Learn more: https://www.athleticdirectorvantage.com
PILYTIX is an A.I. technology company dedicated to solutions that generate revenue, save time, and reduce costs for universities and sports & entertainment organizations. More Money. Less Time. Lower Costs. Learn more: https://pilytix.ai/
Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. Learn more: https://onrise.care
Game One is the apparel company that can outfit your teams in Adidas, Nike or Under Armour. Learn more: https://www.game-one.com/