The official minutes of the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees are maintained by the Secretary of the Board. Certified copies of minutes may be requested by contacting the Board of Trustees’ Office. Electronic or other copies of original minutes are not official Board of Trustees' documents.
The Intercollegiate Activities Committee of the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees met on Friday, October 4, 2002, at 2:05 p.m. in the Carolina Plaza Board Room.
Members present were: Mr. Toney J. Lister, Chairman; Mr. Arthur S. Bahnmuller; Mr. Miles Loadholt; Mr. John S. Long; Mr. Michael J. Mungo; Mr. Othniel H. Wienges, Jr., Mr. Mack I. Whittle, Jr., Board Chairman, and Mr. Herbert C. Adams, Board Vice Chairman. Trustees absent were: Mr. Alexander English and Mr. M. Wayne Staton. Other Trustees present were: Dr. C. Edward Floyd; Mr. Samuel R. Foster, II; Mrs. Helen C. Harvey; Mr. Robert N. McLellan; and Mr. James A. Shuford, III.
Others present were: President Andrew A. Sorensen; Secretary Thomas L. Stepp; Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Jerome D. Odom; Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Richard W. Kelly; Vice President for Human Resources Jane M. Jameson; Vice President for Student and Alumni Services and Interim Vice President for Development Dennis A. Pruitt; Vice Provost and Executive Dean for Regional Campuses and Continuing Education Chris P. Plyler; Legal Counsel Walter (Terry) H. Parham; Director of Athletics Michael B. McGee; Executive Director of the Office of Foundations and NCAA/SEC Representative Susie H. VanHuss; Chairman of the University Athletics Advisory Committee Harold Friedman; Director of the Department of Internal Audit Alton McCoy; Assistant Athletics Director for Development, Department of Athletics, Brad Edwards; Director of the Office of Public Affairs Russell McKinney; and members of the media.
Chairman Lister called the meeting to order and invited those present to introduce themselves. Mr. McKinney introduced members of the media who were in attendance. Chairman Lister stated that notice of the meeting had been posted and the press notified as required by the Freedom of Information Act; the agenda and supporting materials had been circulated to members of the Committee; and a quorum was present to conduct business.
Chairman Lister recognized President Sorensen who thanked him for his leadership as Chairman of the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee during the past two years.
President Sorensen was also pleased to announce that Sports Illustrated Magazine had ranked the University of South Carolina as the 5th "America's Best Sports Colleges" in the nation. He believed that this achievement was a testament to the breadth of athletic excellence at this institution particularly because of the current emphasis on gender balance in sports; comprehensiveness of offerings; and balance between athletics and academics. President Sorensen saluted Dr. McGee as well as the individual coaches and their support staffs for this accomplishment.
At this time, Dr. McGee also added his words of appreciation to Chairman Lister. Dr. McGee noted that the University had certainly not achieved a Sports Illustrated ranking when Mr. Lister had assumed the chairmanship of this Committee. For the past four years, they had developed a positive working relationship and had communicated frequently.
Dr. McGee believed that the arena project had progressed well; no major problems had been encountered. A budget overage of approximately 4.4 percent would be funded through athletics sources. Dr. McGee noted that those individuals in the Athletics Department were anticipating the opening of "one of the truly finest facilities in college athletics."
Dr. McGee also referenced the Sports Illustrated article commenting that the Athletics Department was grateful for this recognition because it acknowledged the outstanding efforts of the University's coaches and student athletes. Dr. McGee also saluted Coach Lou Holtz as the best football coach and Coach Ray Tanner as the best baseball coach in America.
Dr. McGee announced that according to one report, the NCAA was investigating rumors originating from websites and media sources related to University recruitment and matriculation violations. He firmly stated that "there is nothing at this point that will rise to the level of a major violation or even a secondary violation." As a cautionary measure, Dr. VanHuss and Mr. Parham were also carefully analyzing the information.
Within the past several weeks, two key individuals had been hired in the Athletics Department. Ms. Marlynn R. Jones, who had been the Assistant Commissioner for Compliance and External Affairs for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC), had now been named Assistant Athletics Director of NCAA Compliance at the University; she replaced Craig Curry who assumed the Athletics Director position at Arkansas-Pine Bluff last month. Dr. McGee commented that Ms. Jones would report to the Athletics Department and, independently, to President Sorensen.
The Athletics Department had also hired Mr. Jeff Talent, a graduate of the University and a CPA (Certified Public Accountant), who had served in various audit positions within the University; he will assume the Athletics Department budget director position and will report to Mr. Brad Edwards who handled financial and other matters for the department.
Dr. McGee commented that the football team was looking forward to the Homecoming game with Mississippi State University which was scheduled for the following day. For the season, of the five games played, the team had won two of those games which ranked as one win and one loss in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).
The Men's Soccer Team was currently positioned in fifth place; the team was scheduled to play Clemson University's soccer team later this day. The volleyball team had won three of the four games played for a 3-0 ranking in the SEC. And, the Women's Soccer Team had improved from the previous season to an 8-2 record.
Dr. McGee explained that he had been privileged to accompany President Sorensen with the Women's Track Team, which had won the 2002 national championship, to The White House on Tuesday, September 24, 2002 for a special recognition ceremony. He congratulated Coach Curtis Frye for accomplishing the first national championship award in the history of the University.
Dr. McGee addressed the area of sports medicine noting that Dr. Angus McBride had been named the Director of Sports Medicine for the athletics operation; several orthopedic doctors were associated with the department through the University's medical school. This arrangement would more easily facilitate the Athletics Department's needs in that particular area.
Dr. McGee reported that the goal for Men's Basketball season tickets had been recently surpassed; 11,200 tickets had been sold which exceeded the arena pro forma projection. In addition, between 3,300 - 3,500 seats for students had been reserved. In the past, reserved seating in the Coliseum had not exceeded 8,200 for basketball games; therefore, Dr. McGee was very pleased with the response to the new arena. There had also been a tremendous interest in seat priority among Gamecock Club members, which had caused a considerable increase in Gamecock Club memberships and contribution levels.
Dr. McGee indicated that the Athletics Department had been involved in the development of the North End Zone Project, also referred to as the stadium expansion project. A feasibility study had been conducted to explore overall design concepts and the financial implications of this expansion. At this time, no formal proposal would be presented to the Board of Trustees and the Athletics Department would continue to research this possibility with President Sorensen and other University officials.
Dr. McGee remarked that the $3 - $3.25 million project will be financed totally with private donations. Construction would not begin until a significant portion of the funds had been committed or collected; an amount of $300,000 had already been pledged to this project and would be collected within one year.
The building will encompass approximately 28,000 square feet and will be constructed in an area under the South End Zone, an area which was no longer available for parking because of security concerns. The two-story facility would accommodate weight, strength, and conditioning areas and a track on the lower level; meeting rooms and a recruiting area would occupy the second floor. He believed that this facility would considerably increase the attractiveness of the athletics program at the University. Dr. McGee also presented several preliminary architectural drawings of the proposed facility.
The current locker space will be utilized to expand the Athletics Department training room; part of the area will remain as a weight room. Dr. McGee commented that many of the Olympic Sports' athletes trained there. Some of the area will be renovated to create improved rehab and hydrotherapy sections and an updated training room.
In the near future, Dr. McGee will request Board approval to establish a fund in the amount of $250,000 to begin the selection process for an architect and other related activities. Responding to Mr. Mungo's question about the duration of pledges, Dr. McGee indicated that completion of the building construction should influence the duration; it was anticipated that the length of construction would span approximately a two-year period. Dr. McGee suggested that a pledge should not extend beyond 3 years.
Mr. Mungo also inquired about the status of the sale of the arena boxes. Dr. McGee stated that currently 10 of the boxes had been sold "upfront". The Athletics Department had received the revenue from the sale of these boxes for 10 years, or $250,000 per box, with a 12-year usage guarantee. The sale of an additional 4 "upfront" boxes was anticipated in the near future for a period of 5 years with a 6-year usage guarantee.
Dr. McGee further explained that the revenue from the sale of these boxes had contributed toward the capital financing of the arena as established in the original pro forma. Overall, the arena housed 41 boxes, 4 entertainment suites each holding 48 seats, and the McGuire Club, which encompassed 4,500 square feet of space for premium seat purchasers and rental opportunities.
Mr. Whittle inquired about the Master Facilities Plan for the Athletics Department which had been requested during a prior Intercollegiate Activities Committee meeting. He believed that formulating this plan in conjunction with the University's bonding capacity would serve as a valuable tool in the future. Dr. McGee remarked that the potential University acquisition of the Farmers' Market area had currently impacted Athletics Department master facilities planning activities.
In response to Mr. McLellan's inquiry about a potential arena naming opportunity, Dr. McGee indicated that in today's business market commercial enterprises were apprehensive about investing capital expenditures in this manner.
Dr. Floyd asked the amount of additional revenue which could be attributed to the arena in comparison to the Coliseum. From the standpoint of basketball season tickets, Dr. McGee explained that an additional 3,200 season tickets had been sold in the arena at a cost of approximately $250 each as compared to the Coliseum rate of $175 one year ago. Gamecock Club revenues had also experienced a $1.9 million revenue increase. Dr. McGee announced the addition of 75 new Silver Spur members who had accepted distant seating in the stadium during the football season because they had been offered prime seating in the arena during the basketball season. However, advertising revenues had been less than originally anticipated as had annual suite sales. The Athletics Department had also received less parking revenue from the University than had been projected in the pro forma.
Beginning the following week, basketball ticket sales would be opened to the public. To date, only captive market ticket sales had been available. Group and Women's Basketball ticket sales had also been very successful. During the previous season less than 100 Women's Basketball season tickets had been sold; this year, it was hoped that the number would increase to 450.
Responding to Mr. Mungo's inquiry about the Athletics Department's debt structure, Mr. Kelly stated that $28 million of the debt had been committed to 30-year bonds associated with the arena; an additional $7 million of University BANS (Bond Anticipation Notes) totaling $18 million had been associated with the arena. Mr. Mungo also recapitulated his and Mr. Bradley's specific request during the bond approval process that any additional revenue received would be applied toward the reduction of this debt rather than the construction of other athletics facilities. Dr. McGee indicated that the Athletics Department had accelerated the BANS payment schedule for a projected termination date by the end of the 8th year. He hoped to pay the 30-year bonds in less than 20 years, possibly within 15 years.
Dr. McGee also assured Mr. Mungo that funding for building maintenance had been significantly increased so that a request for capital improvement money would not be forthcoming every ten years as had previously occurred.
Mr. Bahnmuller commented that the economic impact of the arena in the community was substantial. Dr. McGee noted that this figure exceeded $60 million annually. Mr. Whittle referred to an article in the Moore School of Business's most recent publication of Economic Review which discussed the $37 million economic impact of Carolina football in the community. He suggested that Secretary Stepp distribute this article to Board members.
Chairman Lister stated that this report was received for information.
On behalf of the entire Board of Trustees, Mr. Foster offered a hearty congratulations to Dr. McGee and his staff for his great success at the University and especially for the ranking in the Sports Illustrated magazine.
Chairman Lister thanked everyone for allowing him to serve as Chairman of the Intercollegiate Activities Committee during the previous four years.
There were no other matters to come before the Committee, and Chairman Lister declared the meeting adjourned at 3:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Thomas L. Stepp
Secretary