by Christopher Sanchez
Daily Lobo
UNM athletics director candidate Jim Schaus said if you're going to put the logo of a school across your chest, you want to be the very best at everything, not just the popular sports.
"You do not want to settle and say, 'Hey, I'm going to put a focus on football or men's basketball.' It's not that significant," Schaus said.
Schaus, athletics director at Wichita State University, was the last candidate to answer questions at a news conference Tuesday. Candidate Rick Hartzell was interviewed Friday, and candidate Paul Krebs was interviewed Monday.
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Schaus said UNM's athletics department holds a high benchmark, but the program can achieve a higher level of success with the right vision and revenue generation.
In order to take UNM athletics to another level, the department has to continue to build facilities and take academics to a higher level.
Schaus secured private funding for a $25 million athletics facility at Wichita State University. He also raised $35 million for the construction of facilities during his six years there.
Schaus said quality facilities play a role in academics, and an academic center for student athletes is something UNM needs. An academic center would have computer labs, a study hall and tutoring.
Schaus said a student athlete program at Wichita State University focuses on the athletes who are failing their classes. The students in the program provide coaches with a syllabus, and the department hires students to check if the athletes are attending class, he said.
"It's amazing the results that have taken place by planning out what they are doing," he said.
Student athletes at Wichita State University had a combined GPA of 3.0 during Schaus' tenure. UNM student athletes have a combined GPA of 3.4.
Schaus addressed the issue of UNM athletes getting in trouble with the law.
UNM football player Aleem Harris was arrested Friday and charged with four counts of aggravated battery and one count of kidnapping after fighting with his ex-girlfriend.
Schaus said quality student athletes start with the recruiting process.
It is important to hire coaches who will address important issues during the recruiting process and will educate student athletes as best as possible, he said.
"When they come in, you want to make sure that not only academics and their ability on the field are important, but their character is important," he said.
Schaus said it is vital to remember that athletes are students, and there are going to be issues that any student athlete will encounter.
"College is a tough time, and you need to try and educate the student athlete about trying to avoid those things as much as possible," he said.
Schaus said there are solutions for filling more seats at games like men's basketball. The average men's basketball attendance at The Pit this season is 13,344. Last season the average was 14,309.
"Having a quality a team is always going to be an important factor, but you have to be aggressive in terms of how you expose your product in getting people to try your product," he said.
The athletics program has to be involved in the community to sell more tickets, he said. It is important to get people interested in attending games, and ticket promotions early in the season help bring them in, he said.
The UNM Board of Regents will select the athletics director at its March 13 meeting. The candidate who is chosen will replace Athletics Director Rudy Davalos, who will retire in August.
