Speculation over the Terrapins’ search for the next athletic director has intensified following the resignation of Kevin Anderson last Friday.
Given that Anderson, the athletic director at the University of Maryland since 2010, had been on a professional leave of absence since last October, news of his resignation did not come as a surprise to some.
In his time at College Park, Anderson oversaw the university’s move to the Big Ten Conference and saw the Terrapins win six national championships. He also was an advocate for programs that increased academic success and career development for student-athletes.
Over the next few weeks, the university will launch a national search for the next athletic director. Executive athletic director Damon Evans has served as interim in Anderson’s absence and will continue to do so until a new athletic director is named.
Evans, who currently oversees the department and its operating budget of $94.8 million in fiscal year 2017, is considered a top candidate for the position. He served as director of athletics at the University of Georgia from 2004 to 2010, when he resigned after a DUI arrest and other conduct that made headlines.
A former college football player who earned a master’s degree in education, Evans left intercollegiate athletics for several years. He returned to join the Terrapins organization in December 2014.
Some wonder if Maryland will be receptive to another African-American athletic director and whether Evans will get the position. There are very few individuals of color in athletic director positions at institutions in the Power 5 conferences. The “2017 College Sport Racial & Gender Report Card” presented by Dr. Richard Lapchick and The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports (TIDES) reported just 22 people of color in athletic director positions out of 130 Football Bowl Subdivision institutions.
