Vince Dooley: ‘I look forward to Bulldog Nation uniting under new leadership’
ATHENS – I just returned a short time ago from the UGA Chapel where Dr. Michael Adams’ announced he was retiring as the University of Georgia’s president after 15 years. It was a very brief and matter-of-fact affair where Adams essentially read from a prepared statement that he had handed out to reporters beforehand, greeted well wishers at the end and took questions for about five minutes.
One of the first calls I made afterward was to former Georgia football coach and athletic director Vince Dooley. Clearly Coach Dooley was expecting some calls as he spoke as though he might be reading from a prepared statement. Not surprisingly, he rebuffed repeated attempts to get him to engage in the his controversial relationship with Adams, who refused to extend his contract in 2003 and essentially forced Dooley into retirement.
Here’s what Dooley said/read:
“First of all, I commend President Adams on his retirement, his service and his contributions to the University of Georgia. I do believe it is time for a change and I look forward to the Bulldog Nation uniting under new leadership in the near future.”
I quickly followed by asking Dooley if he felt the “Bulldog Nation” — aka athletic association supporters — was divided under Adams’ leadership.
“I can’t say that,” he said, stepping away from script for just a moment. “Regardless of the situation, I think new leadership would be good. But I’m going to stick with my statement.”
I asked Dooley if he had some ideas of what type of leader the next president should be. He recently profiled every president in his new book, “History and Reminiscences of the University of Georgia.”
“I really don’t want to get into anything like that,” Dooley said. “If you look at the history of presidents, as you change presidents there’s a sense of renewal and unification under new leadership.”
Dooley did intimate that he thought the 13-month period before Adams’ actual retirement was excessively long. But otherwise he stayed clear of criticizing the man or the process.
Asked what he thought Adams’ legacy would be regarding athletics, Dooley let loose a hardy laugh. “I’m not going to say anymore publically,” he said.
– Chip Towers. The UGA Blog
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143 comments Add your comment
truedawg
May 3rd, 2012
4:01 pm
I’ll wear a Billy Payne for pres pin! Would be a great move.
Dawg Haus
May 3rd, 2012
4:01 pm
It makes good sense to me, Insider. I wonder if UGA could lure him away from that sweet gig he’s got in Augusta, though.
loon
May 3rd, 2012
4:02 pm
finally…
A good riddance indeed.
loon
May 3rd, 2012
4:03 pm
Billy Payne?
LOL…
LakeDawg
May 3rd, 2012
4:04 pm
Is Dooley a saint? No, but he is a man of integrity and old school class, unlike Adams , who represents the new breed of shameless leader/politician that is ruining this nation.
Doodaddy
May 3rd, 2012
4:09 pm
Adams is actually Newt Gingrich with less hair and maybe less hyperbole. He’s not retiring. He’s just “suspending” his reign.
THE Dixie Redcoat Band
May 3rd, 2012
4:11 pm
Actually, up in Columbus, ohio state is talking a Top 5 Finish, maybe #1.
DawginLex
May 3rd, 2012
4:17 pm
They can talk all they want
6-7 to #1?
No Tebow on the roster either
LOL
ATLcracker
May 3rd, 2012
4:20 pm
Adams is a little strange. Hard to figure how he held on this long and most of the press gave him a free pass. His 13 month retirement tour may be a mistake if people would start asking the right questions and demanding an answer. see article below:
http://www.newsouthbooks.com/pages/2009/04/10/controversial-uga-book-behind-the-hedges-receives-community-media-attention/
59bulldawg
May 3rd, 2012
4:21 pm
Vince will always be a gentleman . . . even when discussing that arrogant twit Michael Adams. Yes the University has moved forward under Adams but it could have done much more with much less division if he possessed just half the class of our esteemed ex-athletic director and head coach. It was a power play pure and simple to move Dooley out quicker than he would have preferred and it was all so unnecessary the way he treated him. A university should not be run like a Fortune 500 corporation or a third world dictatorship and if Herr Adams had checked he ego at the arch, a great deal more might have been possible and we might be celebrating one of greatest administrations in the history of the university. There are two ways to get things done . . . autocratically or cooperatively. Adams chose the former and alienated a large portion of those with UGA ties. So I will lift my cup high to celebrate his retirement and wish only he would go right now! Ding dong, the SOB is almost gone! Goodbye and good riddance!
Buckeye
May 3rd, 2012
4:22 pm
our coaches always leave in dishonor…Woody pecker Hayes – Jim I’ll cover you Tressel
Vulture
May 3rd, 2012
4:22 pm
Buckeye
May 3rd, 2012
2:35 pm
“Michigan State beat up your dogs recently if I recall. HA!”
Makes you proud, huh?
Tenn.Dawg
May 3rd, 2012
4:26 pm
Both Coach Dooley and Dr. Adams have served the University well in many ways.
The unfortunate rivalry between athletics and the University as a whole should dimimish over time
with enlightened new leadership.
Neither gentleman personifies UGA .
We should always remember that it was a unanimous Board Of Regents who truly called the shots.I believe that they felt that the athletic program generally was much too influential in the overall scope of the mission of the University and needed to be reigned in and relegated to its proper role.
To the extent that Coach Dooley was the longtime head of the Athletic Department that change would have been rendered ,in their collective mindset, much more difficult.
That being said “Long live UGA”. May it continue to prosper and thrive.
Tenn. Dawg
@Buckeye
May 3rd, 2012
4:26 pm
Hey, Ohio State did win one game against the SEC. Of course, half of the team (28 players) should have been ineligible. For the record, Ohio State lost 8 straight bowl games to SEC teams prior to the fiasco with Arkansas. Probably would have lost it also, if it hadn’t been for Bobby Petrino under the bleachers with a cheerleader. Heck, even UGA with Ray Goff beat the Buckeyes in the 93 Citrus Bowl. Hang in there Buckeye, now that you have a SEC coach, maybe you win a few.
DIT
May 3rd, 2012
4:27 pm
Vulture what you have to realize is that Buckeye can only live off others success against UGA because OSU has none. Cut him some slack…… kidding, lay into him!
bsg3003
May 3rd, 2012
4:46 pm
Hey guys I’m a young pup, inform me as to why Adams was a bad prez. I know he got dooley fired but what else did he do?
ERK
May 3rd, 2012
4:51 pm
Enter your comments here
ERK
May 3rd, 2012
4:51 pm
Vince, YOU SHOULD HAVE HIRED ME!
whiskey breath
May 3rd, 2012
4:53 pm
Why ask a old football coach from the 90’s about the president of a college?
Is this about football or a president of a academic institution retiring?
What would a football coach know about being the president of a university?
Don't forget, for you guys who did not know...
May 3rd, 2012
4:54 pm
…before being an Olympic guru and then Chairman of Augusta National, Billy Payne was a well respected practicing attorney at one of the largest law firms in Atlanta; so, what he may lack in “academas” he more than compensates with “knowledge” on who and how to smooze, which is really all a university president does.
That being said, why anyone would think that, at his age, he would want to give up his chairmanship in Augusta for the headaches of UGA, is beyond comprehension…
Don't forget, for you guys who did not know...
May 3rd, 2012
4:54 pm
“academia” – my bad
MattinStl
May 3rd, 2012
4:55 pm
a “hearty” not a “hardy” laugh.
Bama=home of the T-bag special
May 3rd, 2012
5:02 pm
whiskey breath , better question is what do you know about any damn thing you troll master you.
Buckeye
May 3rd, 2012
5:09 pm
For the record, I posted multiple times during the worst days of the scandal, took my lumps and lived to fight another day. Can’t wait until September and reveling in dog anguish.
Dawgdad (The Original)
May 3rd, 2012
5:10 pm
Dooley vs Adams, no competition, Dooley wins hands down. Both have unjustified super egos, but Dooley did represent the University and the SEC well. I heard someone, who liked Adams, list his accomplishments this morning. If that is it, he is leaving 15 years too late. Good riddance, no more penthouses in Buckhead, no more “research” facilities in Costa Rico.
AU in ATL
May 3rd, 2012
5:20 pm
Good Irish AU Catholic man in Dooley…I have many UGA relatives that say Adams gets way too much credit for the academic improvements at UGA, he can thank Zell Miller and the HOPE for that…When you can go to a state school for free, that makes more people apply..he didn’t do a damn thing with the HOPE
Old Alum
May 3rd, 2012
5:27 pm
The wonderful thing about UGA is she endures no matter who happens to be in charge. Dooley and Adams have had their day, and both did good things for our University. Change is inevitable and the time is right for new blood. I look forward to continued greatness from from Georgia’s flagship University.
cliff grant
May 3rd, 2012
5:29 pm
A “hardy laugh”? You can’t rely on spell check to catch goofs like that!
kingdaddy
May 3rd, 2012
5:30 pm
Who’s Michael Adams…Good riddance…
jlpate
May 3rd, 2012
5:47 pm
Dooly should keep his mouth shut!!! What has he done to talk about how to run the university? The usual arrogance of of the tail wagging the dog.
Joey
May 3rd, 2012
5:49 pm
What clown would come on a UGA sports blog and brag about a program on Major NCAA Probation? Answer? Little buckeye-balls. The truth that everybody but you idiots know is that your coach in ‘02 was a cheat – yeah a cheat before and during his osu tenure, and won your only title in 30+ seasons, with the ref’s assistance, and with an inelligible player.
Congrats on that you idiot.
Oh and congrats on that new coach, who everybody is now realizing was nearly as sleazy at UF as your former hero with the sweater vest.
Brian
May 3rd, 2012
5:50 pm
How is Dooly the best coach ever…take away Walker and he would have been a loser.
Joey
May 3rd, 2012
5:55 pm
Didn’t Adams hire Cynthia Tucker to teach a class (Race-Baiting 101?) at UGA?
For that idiocy, maybe he will have monthly root canals in his retirement . . .
Dr. Phil
May 3rd, 2012
5:59 pm
Adams was to UGA as Sherman was to Georgia. It will take him 13 months to load up art treasures and what remains of the Foundation.
Joey
May 3rd, 2012
6:05 pm
Brian, it’s called Google.
Look up Dooley’s accomplishments then report back you dumba$$.
Unlike the current era where the likes of Mark Richt need to have “administrative duties” lessened by his boss, the current AD, Vince Dooley did both – HC AND AD – and did them quite well, before and after Herschel. Just in case you cant spell google, UGA beat the undefeated, #2 team (Texas) in the country in the Cotton Bowl, THE YEAR AFTER HERSCHEL LEFT, IDIOT! He also won his first of 6 SEC Championships when Herschel was in diapers.
Uninformed dorks like you shouldn’t be allowed to post on sports blogs . . .
bubba4dawgs
May 3rd, 2012
6:07 pm
I thought a “Buckeye” was a worthless nut! Anyway, they certainly can’t rein in the SEC! Dooley is a legend in the hearts of UGA fans, loaded with character and principles! I’m so glad he was their during my lifetime with and without Herschel Walker! I now live in Tennessee, Knoxville to be exact, and I’m proud to follow his son Derek as he re-invents the Tennessee Vols! He too is loaded with character and good principles!! GO DAWGS and GO VOLS!!!!
Cats hav fleas 2
May 3rd, 2012
6:12 pm
What does cannabis and Ohio State have in common?
You can smoke both in a bowl.
What a ya got
May 3rd, 2012
6:18 pm
Barbara Dooley for Congress?
robdawg
May 3rd, 2012
6:36 pm
We need to build a statue of MA on the shoulders of PO’d fans on North Campus dunking his head in a portalet. This way we will always remember him when we are tailgaiting in the fall when North Campus is reopened to the people that pay the bills at UGA, the alumni/parents/fans.
The 2nd change is to get the Athens Police to back off and treat the alumni/fans with respect, not harrass them as soon as they open their trunks and wallets. These are the people that bring spend millions every saturday in the fall. Time to let the fans enjoy their trips to Athens. If you want to walk down the sidewalk to go visit another tailgate with a drink in a dixie cup, it should be ok. It should not be HARRASSMENT TIME for the Athens police dept.
Fair n Balanced
May 3rd, 2012
6:43 pm
No statues of Adams on campus, no fond memories either. He will be remembered only for “firing” Vince Dooley. He was never really a Dawg. He will always a Buckeye who came down south trying to make a name for himself. Well, he did. But nobody likes his name in the Bulldog Nation. Glad his term is over as far as the athletic dept is concerned.
Disgusted
May 3rd, 2012
7:09 pm
Good riddance to A-Dam-Sorry-Dog.
Worst person and school president in the country, he ruined GA football and this university.
Adams had no clue as to what the people of this state really wanted.
Big time?? Not
May 3rd, 2012
7:10 pm
Many bulldog legacies were lost …….including my families 150+ year history at UGA. He didnt care. Your children got in if they were connected financially. If not tough.
A generation of loyal bulldogs went to auburn, Alabama, south Carolina and Florida. No way to gauge the negative impact he had.
Don’t let the door…….
Disgusted
May 3rd, 2012
7:14 pm
Adams deserves a burning in effigy, any statue of Adams should be made of burnable paper mache.
He has been around 15 yrs too long and the Board of Regents suck
smyrnabob
May 3rd, 2012
7:45 pm
I am a big UGA football fan. But I do realize that there is a big separation between the University’s mission and that of the Athletic Dept. All in all, Adams left the football team alone until it started embarrassing the school or tried to run over the school as a whole. So his legacy should be judged by the school’s educational performance, not W-L records. Face it, Dooley had too much power toward the end. And we have seen repeatedly where that leads.
Sonny Clusters
May 3rd, 2012
8:19 pm
Did he really say, “publically”? We was noticing his bed grammar.
JOnkdawg
May 3rd, 2012
8:29 pm
Thanks goodness…he is gone!! is that for good?…i mean gone for good?
007
May 3rd, 2012
8:31 pm
I agree with Q.
007
May 3rd, 2012
8:33 pm
I also agree with SMYRNABOB.
Larry
May 3rd, 2012
8:53 pm
Dooley is a low rent scumbag. Ask his players from the 60’s and 70’s what they thought of him. He was, maybe still is, an selfish egomaniac without morals.
chavezravinedawg
May 3rd, 2012
9:09 pm
Heading quote says it all! Vince is CLASSY.