What will Michael Adams’ legacy be in regard to UGA athletics?
UGA's athletic facilities saw dramatic improvement during the tenure of Dr. Michael Adams, seen here at the dedication of the expanded football complex in February of 2011. (AJC photo by Curtis Comption)
ATHENS – One of the most successful — and tumultuous — periods in the University of Georgia’s long history will come to an end when Dr. Michael A. Adams officially retires as the school’s president 13 months from now. Adams will make that decision public on Thursday, The AJC has learned.
The question I want to pose is, what will Adams’ legacy be with regard to Georgia’s athletics?
Certainly, Georgia’s athletic teams continued to fare well and maybe even improved during his tenure. He took over for Charles Knapp in 1997, which was coach Jim Donnan’s second year as the Bulldogs’ football coach.
It was only a short time later that UGA supporters witnessed Adams’ willingness to weigh in on athletic matters. After Georgia lost to Georgia Tech for the third year in a row in Athens in November of 2000, Adams — over athletic director Vince Dooley’s objections — made the decision to fire Donnan. It was several years later that we would find out that Adams had also promised Donnan $250,000 in a “secret deal” following the 1997 season.
That was the beginning of several clashes Adams would have with Dooley over athletic matters.
When the Bulldogs needed to hire a new men’s basketball coach, Adams added former UCLA and Rhode Island coach Jim Harrick to Dooley’s list of finalists. Harrick was eventually hired and, after a brief period of on-court success, the program had to vacate wins due to accusations of academic fraud involving basketball players. Harrick was forced to resign.
Around the same time, Dooley, who had been a member of UGA’s athletic association 40 years at that point, asked for a two-year contract extension as Georgia’s athletic director. Adams denied that request despite pressure from several influential members of the UGA Foundation, then the university’s primary fundraiser. Adams eventually granted Dooley a six-month extension, but only to assist in the transition to new athletic director Damon Evans. The controversy eventually led to the dissolution of the foundation.
“He’s been very divisive for the Georgia people,” one prominent UGA alumnus said of Adams. “There are important factions out there that would not come together for a wiener roast under him.”
But while Adams may have been divisive to the fan base, he has also been a beneficial to the teams they love to root for. Virtually every sport for which Georgia fields a team has seen dramatic facilities improvements during Adams’ tenure as chairman of the athletic board (that trend has been duplicated ten-fold on the academic side as he helped secure more than $1 billion for new construction projects). Adams’ tenure as chairman of the NCAA executive committee made him a powerful influence on national matters and in the SEC.
And, of course, because of Adams’ persistence, the Bulldogs ended up with Mark Richt as their football coach in 2001. They have since won two SEC championships after not having won one for 20 years and played in four SEC title games.
“I think he’s done one heck of a job for the university,” said longtime athletic association executive committee member Bob Bishop.
So I pose the question to you. What kind of job do you think Adams did as chairman of Georgia’s athletic board?
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124 comments Add your comment
Chip Towers
May 3rd, 2012
8:09 am
DBasham: No, not saying that at all. I’m saying UGA couldn’t have hired CMR without Adams’ decision to oust Donnan. Otherwise, Donnan would have stayed on another year and Richt would have ended up somewhere else.
DogWatcher
May 3rd, 2012
8:27 am
It seems to be very fashionable to dislike Adams. I don’t agree with every decision he made, but he did a very fine job overall. I liked his old-school, authoritative style. Then again, I liked Bowie Kuhn also. Regardless, Adams absolutely knew what he was doing and was good for UGA athletics and UGA in general.
John Withers
May 3rd, 2012
8:28 am
He did some good things but anyone who divides the house is not a leader. Arrogant is the best word I can come up with to describe Adams. He will not be missed, and Yes, I will now contribute again, but don’t call until he leaves.
uncle kirk
May 3rd, 2012
8:34 am
1953 Dawg
you gotta be the dumbest person on this blog. would you care to see where the football program was for 15 years before Richt got here. I guess the Dawgs were feared by all from 1983 til Richt got here…..Dumbass
collegeballfan
May 3rd, 2012
8:34 am
“What will Michael Adams’ legacy be in regard to UGA athletics?”
Your kidding, right?
Athletics does not matter. What matters is the academic side of the university. And Adams has made Georgia one of the nation’s finest public universities.
But if one insist on looking at athletics, just look at the number of conference and national titles under and Adams compared to all previous presidents since Abraham Baldwin.
UA Grad
May 3rd, 2012
8:36 am
All my UGA Alum friends tell me Adams was just a big Richard Head. Do you think your stadium will now rightly be called Sanford-Dooley Stadium? I hope so. Coach Dooley was a class act.
Roll Tide!
LakeDawg
May 3rd, 2012
8:36 am
MA can kiss me where the sun don’t shine. Good news and good riddance!
logical jacket
May 3rd, 2012
8:39 am
Word around the Capitol is Sonny Perdue had already begun the full court press.
dawgfan
May 3rd, 2012
8:49 am
Maybe he could have handled the Dooley thing a little better but people need to let it go. He was a great president. Its not all about the football team people. The rest of the university has thrived under him. And even if it is all about the football team, it would have been a disaster to keep Donnan around any longer. And cry me a freaking river about not being able to tailgate on North Campus. Maybe if you could conduct yourselves like adults and not trash the place like a bunch of children you’d still be able to tailgate there.
Thanks.
Moneyball
May 3rd, 2012
8:57 am
Newt for Prez!
bubba4dawgs
May 3rd, 2012
8:58 am
Bobby Petrino is available and I hear he really likes UGA coeds! Give him a new motorcycle and he’ll take the job! Seriously, don’t know too much about Adams, just hope UGA gets a good president! They sure have enough time to search! If politics is left out of the selection and the interest of UGA comes first, a better selection will be made! GO UGA, GO DAWGS!!!
Moneyball
May 3rd, 2012
9:10 am
@FlintstoneDawg, I was at that homecoming game as well. The crowd drowning him out with their boos was worth the price of admission.
truedawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:15 am
Adams was the driving force to get CMR. period!! Dooley was a great coach, but very arrogant as well, and was very happy being mediocre under Donnan. Dooley might have gotten a NT, but it was Buck Belue and L. Scott that talked Walker to coming to UGA, not Dooley. Without Walker, no NT!! Love him or hate him, UGA is a far better place to get a degree and with sports than it was before he came to Athens. Oh and before you say I’m crazy about 34, ask Buck..at a basketball game, walker was still thinking military. Week after the Belue and Scott visit, he signs with the DAWGS!!
Not saying Adams was perfect, but UGA is better now, than before him! GO DAWGS!!
Laurens SC
May 3rd, 2012
9:17 am
Donnan was the man who brought football back! Goff had run it into the ground and Donnan came in and made it respectible. Richts best years were with Donnans players.
MA is trash and I think he saw a great coach who could have challenged him in the battle of power so he fired him.
old dawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:18 am
good riddance. now let’s get that napolean bootlegger on the athletic board off and finish cleaning house of these megalomaniacs.
Big Dawg Daddy
May 3rd, 2012
9:19 am
Glad to see him go. Nothing good to say about the man except Bye!
Bobby B
May 3rd, 2012
9:24 am
The truth is ALWAYS somewhere in the middle. Hard to give him too much credit for the athletic facility improvements, that was a necessity to keep up in the SEC arms race….there are examples of needed improvements he has delayed or denied. And things like the the $250K secret deal with Donnan prove that he was all about M Adams wanting to do it his way, rather than properly through the system. Had any of the athletic directors made such a deal without approval and disclosure, he would have fired them….double standards? Read “Behind the Hedges” for more examples of his nature and similar double standards.
On the academic side, he certainly deserves much of the credit for the campus expansion and capital improvements. And some of the credit perhaps for the academic improvements during his tenure……but, his tenure pretty much paralleled the HOPE scholarship beginnings and the impact it had. That $$$ kept many of the best and brightest in state.
Pete Van Weird
May 3rd, 2012
9:28 am
Anyone who has been truly associated with the University, whether as an academic or athlete, will be glad to see the bean counter go. However, he did have his favorites; gymdawgs, but not block and bridle, for instance. Divisive is the perfect word for his tenure. I am glad to see it come to an end.
Dr. Phil
May 3rd, 2012
9:31 am
As has been mentioned here, Adams’ success was primarily due to the renorming of the SAT in 1998, which added about 80 points to scores. Adams immediately took credit for raising entrance scores by 80 points. Enrollment and academic preparation of admissions increased when the HOPE Scholarship encouraged top students to remain in GA. When Adams arrived, he promptly fired key administrators and replaced them with lackys. His chief of staff was a politician from the GA Legislature, empowered to write checks at Adams’ bidding from the Foundation. Adams constructed a Roman-like suite to entertain Sonny Perdue and other politicians at the stadium. After a number of academic and financial scandals, the College of Arts and Science gave Adams a no confidence vote of 74%. Adams should have been fired, but his patrons, Sonny Perdue and Regent Leebron coddled him, and Perdue’s hand-picked Board of Regents turned a blind eye. Tony Coles, Jim Harrick, and Damon Evans are testiment to Adams’ manipulating and tinkering. Richt’s program has been successful but made UGA a laughingstock with player arrests and misbehavior. In short, Adams has been an opportunist and self promoter. It will take years for the University to recover. I wonder if he will take his $500,000 desk with him when he goes. Probably.
Red Clay Hound
May 3rd, 2012
9:32 am
Who will we boo at Homecoming now?
THE Dixie Redcoat Band
May 3rd, 2012
9:32 am
We can just win a bowl game some year!
UGA Insider
May 3rd, 2012
9:34 am
Everyone can thank me and my friends now………… We have been tirelessly sending emails to the Gov for Adams to step down. While he has done some good he has brought many athletic programs have su
Ted Striker
May 3rd, 2012
9:36 am
Arrogant. Unpopular. Overpaid.
Brilliant. Effective. A visionary and a difference maker.
UGA has more prestige academically and athletically now than when he arrived. He has been good for my alma mater. And for those who say you won’t contribute just because he is there, then clearly you 1) put your dislike of one person over your love for the university and 2) probably are just using that as an excuse not to give
UGA Insider
May 3rd, 2012
9:38 am
suffered.
Sorry
crossdawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:43 am
Best news I ‘ve had in a while. VINCE DOOLEY FOR PRESIDENT.
JB
May 3rd, 2012
9:44 am
If you are a college coach and want a job forever for mediocre results, UGA is your place under Adams.
mcdaviddawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:45 am
It’s been overdue. It’s a day of celebration for the university. Maybe now we can get someone more interested in the university than themselves.
JB
May 3rd, 2012
9:48 am
What a buffoon. I will never forget how childish and unprofessional his “34 cent” commentary was that he directed at Herschel Walker.
HBTD!!!
UGA Insider
May 3rd, 2012
9:49 am
Billy Payne will be hired as the new GA Pres.
a.p. dawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:55 am
My biggest problem with Adams (and Knapp for that matter) is that it is too hard for in-state, qualified, students (unless you are from metro Atlanta) to get into UGA. Fred Davidson understood that as the flagship of the university system of Georgia, a degree from the university needed to be accessible and attainable to primarily in-state students (since their parents live in state and pay state taxes). Dr Davidson was an alumni of the university, loved the university, and bled red and black just like all of us alumni do. Why can’t we hire another alumni of UGA to be our president?
Jborodawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:57 am
Adams will probably go down as a very good “university” president. But, he had little to do with any athletics department success. Most of our success in athletics has been due to the AD’s and coaches. Most of the embarrassing moments in athletics has been his doing. His handling of Coach Dooley is unforgivable.
Old Dawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:59 am
He is now, and ever shall be known to UGA students, alums, faculty, staff and fans as Darth Adams, Dark Lord Sith.
In other words, a complete scumbag.
G-Dawg
May 3rd, 2012
10:04 am
Not sure what to make of the Adams situation! Seems academically was good for the university? Or was it all just smoke and mirrors? And being too involved in the athletic depts business decisions?
PAC
May 3rd, 2012
10:06 am
He has done a good job with the Educational aspect of the school, but what he did to Vince Dooley is unforgivable. Maybe now the school will finally add Dooley’s name to the stadium.
Alphare
May 3rd, 2012
10:08 am
Without Adams, Donnan would still be the UGA coach, Vince Dooley would still be the status quo until he chooses his day to retire while his secretary runs the Athletic Department.
Alphare
May 3rd, 2012
10:13 am
I am glad most UGA fans are not qualified to run a university, or the biggest university of my state would not be fixed until it’s all in a shamble.
BulldogBen
May 3rd, 2012
10:21 am
Besides all of the reasons people have posted, his legacy of destroying the tailgate culture on gamedays is a biggie for me. I started UGA the 2 years before he arrived and RV’s could still get in on Friday and park any just about any lot. People who got to campus early, got whatever spots they wanted. It was an all weekend festival atmospshere.
Cut to present day and any parking spot even remotely close to the stadium will cost you $1500+, most parking deck passes are gone in July, and you can set up anything until 5 hours before kickoff.
Crying shame and the next guy won’t reverse any of it because it’ll be viewed as being an enabler to “partying” when that couldn’t be further from the truth. I always viewed it as an expression of their passion for UGA football.
Don'tsufferfools
May 3rd, 2012
10:27 am
Like or dislike Adams and Dooley, giving Dooley 2 more years back in 2003 with the understanding that would be all could have avoided the nastiness. Evans still would have become AD. Adams would not tolerate Dooley because Dooley would not let Adams have athletic money for nonathletic spending. Plus Dooley was too popular with most of the Georgia people. Even those that did not like his coaching appreciated the way Dooley treated folks. The entire athletic program has become indifferent toward winning during Adams’ tenure. Coincidence, or not?
George Stein
May 3rd, 2012
10:35 am
I’m a bit surprised by the reaction here. I know he comes across as arrogant, but the University of Georgia has seen tremendous academic improvement during his tenure (HOPE clearly had something to do with that) and the athletics have been good, too. I guess the Dooley thing could have been handled a bit better, but in total, it’s difficult to find much fault in his work.
NC Dawg
May 3rd, 2012
10:42 am
I will never forget that moment when UGA VII was being introduced at mid-field. Adams wouldn’t wear UGA colors. Blue sportcoat and khaki slacks!! Do those colors ring a bell? Bye Adams!
http://projects.ajc.com/gallery/view/sports/uga/uga0830/8.html
JB
May 3rd, 2012
10:42 am
George, you are correct on all points. Dooley was not 100 % loved, but widely loved, and Adams did not do him right after all he had done for UGA. Few remember he turned down Auburn to go back home when he was a hot commodity.
My $.02
May 3rd, 2012
11:31 am
Cannot come too soon. Adams is an arrogant prick who should be going to jail, not retiring. I wonder if UGA will start calling me for money again? i told them to take me off the list until he was gone.
sr. citizen dawg
May 3rd, 2012
11:33 am
His legacy will always be “he rejected Dooley” ! Thats what he’ll be remembered for. For that reason, I reject Adams ! Selah !
Jesus christ
May 3rd, 2012
11:36 am
Stop admitting so many low class, redneck students.
Funny Bunny
May 3rd, 2012
11:37 am
Nominate Leebern and Yucolan, they can give free booze to players, and ” Shack-Up ” in the President’s House.
UGA Insider
May 3rd, 2012
11:38 am
What is the books name that the AJC journalist wrote about Adams then went missing? I never read that one.
Black Mountain Bulldog
May 3rd, 2012
11:51 am
The guy is a pompous jerk.
www
May 3rd, 2012
11:52 am
the question is how did he keep his job for as long as he did?
DawginTX
May 3rd, 2012
11:53 am
It’s a great day for the University of Georgia, at least it will be when that jerk steps down in 2013. He was supposed to be a great fund raiser, but instead was a great spender. Professors almost universally despise him but won’t speak out publicly for fear of reprisal from the dictator. And a university president should not be making athletic department decisions, regardless of how they turn out. He pushed out one of the most respected people in college athletics in the last 50 years and put in his puppet, a guy who made us a laughing stock. The university and individual college rankings have not increased since he came, and some college have declined. Georgia is where it is academically thanks to Chuck Knapp, not Michael Adams. June 2013 can’t come soon enough.
GaDawg_2004
May 3rd, 2012
12:18 pm
I worked at the UGA Library and was part of the evacuation during the fire in July, 2003. After a few hours from the start, Adams comes strolling down from across the quad and worked the crowd, shaking hands. Mysteriously he ends up with ash on his cheek clearly showing he was very involved with the disaster. He posed for a picture with a grim look on his face (which of course was the front page picture of the Herald/R&B the next day) and left after no more than 10 minutes. Always the politician!!!!