Hello Huskie Fans and Friends!

For this month's edition of Frazier's Corner, let's dive into a little Q&A session.   

With the conclusion of the 2017-18 basketball season earlier this month, give us your assessment of both the men's and women's programs.
While the seasons did not end where we had hoped for either the Huskie men's or women's basketball teams this year, there were positives to take out of 2017-18. I believe the building blocks for success are in place moving forward, and I have confidence in the coaching staffs on both the men's and women's sides.

The women's team finished 15-15 despite playing short-handed much of the season due to injuries to key players. I love the direction Lisa Carlsen and her staff have given this program. There is a lot of talent returning, led by Courtney Woods who could wind up one of the Huskies' top scorers all-time by the time she leaves NIU. They play an exciting brand of basketball and I encourage fans to come check them out in 2018-19. We know the MAC is a very good women's basketball conference, as proven by the league advancing two teams in the NCAA Tournament field this year.  

On the men's side, on a team that did not have any seniors in the rotation, the Huskies played well at home in 2017-18, including a win over MAC Champion Buffalo, which demolished national powerhouse Arizona in the NCAA Tournament. Mark Montgomery has done a good job putting the pieces in place to succeed in the MAC, and I expect to see significant improvement in our results next year, especially given the talent and athleticism we have returning.  With each of the top nine scorers from a year ago back, led by dynamic guard Eugene German, we are poised to turn our home success into wins on the road and in the MAC Tournament.

In addition, the program Monty has established recorded the highest APR (Academic Progress Rate) and GSR (Graduation Success Rate) in NIU men's basketball history, which becomes more and more challenging with transfers becoming a way of life in Division I men's basketball these days 

What have you seen this winter that has put a smile on your face?
How about Jehvania Whyte, the first women's indoor track & field All-American in school history! That gives the Huskies a track and field All-American in back-to-back seasons, as Jehvania followed Hope Schmelzle's achievement in the NCAA Outdoor Championships a year ago. Our wrestling team continued an unbelievable streak as NIU has now sent at least one wrestler to the NCAA Championships in 47 straight years. Congratulations to Brock Hudkins and Bryce Gorman on that achievement. I keep seeing our gymnastics team raise the bar on its high scores and look forward to seeing them close out the season strong at the MAC Championships and at NCAAs.

Also, I want to welcome our new women's soccer head coach, Julie Colhoff. Julie is a Chicagoan who will bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the program. She stood out among a great group of candidates.

What areas are you and the staff focused on right now?
Right now, the focus is on revenue generation and all things fundraising for NIU! I cannot overstate the significant need we have right now for our fans, friends and all Huskies to support our student-athletes. Whether that's through purchasing season tickets, attending the Victor E. Ball or supporting the VEB online auction, making a donation to your favorite Huskie team through the Huskie Athletic Fund, or contributing to one of our Campaign to Sustain initiatives, now is the time.
 
It's not about our coaches, it's not about our administrators, it's about the NIU Huskies and providing the best possible experience for these very deserving 400 young people so that we can sustain and maintain NIU's great athletics tradition. The budget struggle is REAL. Some of you might be tired of hearing about our budget challenges. We apologize, but feel it is important to be transparent with this issue we deal with every day. Over the last three years, we have had to cut more than $2.7 million out of athletics' operating budget. That's due to many factors beyond our direct control on both the state and institutional sides. We are preparing for another round of significant cuts for 2018-19 that will undoubtedly impact our operation, making it more important than ever to bring in revenue. On the bright side, these cuts have made us extremely appreciative of our success both academically and athletically, and of those who have contributed to the cause to date.

While experiencing these budgetary hardships, we must continue to look forward and within the next few months, we will be developing the department's Strategic Plan for the next three years. We are coming to the end of the plan instituted for 2015-18, as we detailed in the 2016-17 Annual Report. It is energizing for our staff to plan, and to look at the bigger picture of what NIU Athletics can become in the future.    

The third Victor E. Ball is coming up shortly, why is that event so important?
The Victor E. Ball is our premier fundraising event and as detailed above, our fundraising efforts are critical right now. I believe that this Victor E. Ball has a chance to be the best one yet. Start with the all-star panel – Dan Hampton, Bill Buckner and Bill Wennington, and hosted by NIU alum Barry Rozner! You don't even have to be a Huskie fan to want to come out and hear those guys talk sports! We've got one of the top catering companies in Illinois providing dinner, a great Naperville location, and really my favorite part, a chance for you to hear from and meet some of our outstanding student-athletes. The live auction items this year are on point! Wow! We're talking resort vacation getaways, private islands, a New York Yankees experience, not to mention traveling to BYU or FSU with the Huskies in 2018. This is a charity function, so I hope people will step up and attend, sponsor a student-athlete to attend or at the very least participate in the silent auction, which goes live online April 1. See all the details, and get the link to register here. 

What is the latest news on the Campaign to Sustain and any of the projects that are under that umbrella?
The Campaign to Sustain initiative continues to make steady progress. Most recently, we received another commitment of $75,000 to endow a Cost of Attendance Scholarship. Along those same lines, thanks to a generous estate gift from M. Joan Popp, a long-time NIU professor in the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education, we are set to receive $100,000 in scholarship support for the women's tennis program. This was a wonderful gesture and certainly fitting given Joan's great passion for the sport of tennis, both as a player and spectator. We have seen significant support and interest for the nutrition center project, and through a generous contribution, the Nelson Club is undergoing a redesign in hopes we can improve the fan experience as well as generate additional revenue. For information, or to support, any of these initiatives, please contact the Huskie Athletic Fund Office at 815-753-1923 or find out more at HuskieAthleticFund.com. We will have a comprehensive recap of the Campaign to Sustain progress to date before the start of the fall semester.   

We've seen reports of a new scoreboard to be installed at the Convocation Center?  When can we expect to see that?
Yes! We're happy that the Board of Trustees approved our request to install a new scoreboard in the Convocation Center. The current scoreboard has reached the end of its life-cycle to the point that parts to fix the unit are no longer made. We are looking to have the new scoreboard in place in time for the 2018-19 school year. Having flexibility and functionality with the board will enable us to upgrade the NIU home game operations, and will have just as much impact on the hundreds of other events in the facility, from concerts to graduation and more.    

The non-conference football schedule this year is one of the toughest in the nation with games at Iowa, Florida State and BYU and the home opener versus Utah.  Anything to report on upcoming games or series? 
I'm really excited that for the second year in a row, we have a "Power 5" team coming to Huskie Stadium for the home opener as Utah becomes the first PAC 12 team to ever play in DeKalb. Our home schedule is strong and I hope fans will respond by purchasing season tickets. It is $60 for one East Side season ticket this year.  If you prefer the West Side, partner up with some friends and get four tickets in the Family Pack for $55 each – that's not for a single game, that's for the SEASON! Believe me, even if you only make it to two or three games this year, season tickets are the way to go! There is no better value for the entertainment dollar in this region. For all of the ticket options and pricing, click here.

The football scheduling process never ends.  Our latest completed contract takes the Huskies to Kentucky on September 24, 2022 where NIU will face the Wildcats for the first time in school history. More to come! Stay tuned! 

Last year you initiated the Huskie Fan Advisory Board, what has that group been up to and will we see any changes to the fan experience based on their input?
I love the energy, the passion and the dedication of the members of the Huskie Fan Advisory Board.  They have presented numerous ideas and suggestions during our quarterly meetings and remain engaged through the subcommittees that have been established. The names of the HFAB members, as well as minutes of the quarterly meetings, are posted online and can be viewed here. In order to keep the momentum of this group going, and so that they can bring to fruition some of their ideas, I have extended an offer to the current group to roll over their terms for another year. I believe this will enable the progress to continue. I want to publicly thank all the Huskie Fan Advisory Board members for their commitment to NIU Athletics. 

What are you looking forward to seeing when spring football gets underway here in late March?
Here we go with the start of a new football season!  We're selling football tickets for 2018, the coaching staff is set, the schedule is out and we get our first look at what the team looks like without last year's seniors starting March 27.  Of course, there will be an influx of newcomers in August as well which is always exciting, but there can be so much growth over spring as younger players vie for those open starting positions. 

Sutton Smith – leading the way to one of the best defensive seasons in recent history - made his mark in 2017, who will it be next year?  Well, the spring has a lot to do with that.
 

One more note, as you may have heard, longtime Huskie Brad Hoey, a fixture at NIU for decades, has moved over from special projects to join the staff of the Huskie Athletic Fund. With his many years of dedication to NIU and his connections in our community, Brad will certainly enhance our level of fan and donor engagement, while also assisting in other areas, including premium sales. One of Brad's primary areas of focus will be to help us re-invigorate the Varsity Club, while also continuing the outstanding work he has been a part of with the NIU Athletics Hall of Fame. We're excited to welcome Brad to this new role with NIU Athletics.

Here on campus, spring break is over and the weather is breaking, which means it's time to catch at least some of our spring teams in action in person. Baseball has played a challenging non-conference schedule in preparation for the MAC slate, which starts at home this weekend, and softball is celebrating its 65^th year, as well as the 30^th Anniversary of the 1988 College World Series team. They open their home schedule March 30^th.  League play also gets underway for our tennis teams this month.  Men's golf has opened its spring campaign and on April 20-22, the MAC Women's Golf Championships come to Naperville as NIU will host the tournament at Naperville Country Club.

I hope you've got April 28 marked on your calendar for the 2018 Huskie Bowl, which is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Huskie Stadium.  It's always a fun day and a great reason to come back to campus during the spring semester.

Thanks for reading and Go Huskies!





Sean T. Frazier
Associate Vice-President and Director of Athletics