UGA Athletic director wows Bulldog Club at Rock Eagle

By Brent Martin

They came out in droves once again and boy, did they leave Rock Eagle satisfied.

Tuesday night’s Lake Country Bulldog Club at the Rock Eagle pavilion in Eatonton was a raucous success as a capacity crowd of eager Bulldog faithful came out for a night of delicious food, family fun and a chance to hear the words and wisdom of UGA’s humble and proud Athletic Director Damon Evans.

The capacity crowd began mingling early as the Rock Eagle staff began preparing a hearty buffet table of roast beef, ham, pasta salad, spinach salad with slivered almonds, corn casserole and many other delicious surprises including a full-blown dessert table with peach cobbler with vanilla ice-cream.

Evans soon arrived, and those in attendance quickly became giddy as this gracious 40-year-old took the time to shake hands and take in oodles of warm and cozy Bulldog hugs. He then took some time to meet with the media for a quick round table discussion before the feast.

Evan’s was then quickly asked about future athletic expansion projects that are in the works for the University of Georgia.

“Currently, what we have going on, and some may know and some may not know, we are expanding our football facilities, being the Butts-Mehre Building, which will include a new training room, a new weight room, new coaches offices, and partly a new lounge for our student/athletes and a multi-purpose area,” said Evans. “That project is somewhere between $35 to $40 million and should be done in around 18 months — and it’s already under construction. We are really excited about that.”

Georgia’s storied football program isn’t the only sport that will undergo improvements under Evan’s leadership.

“We also have a track project going on that should be completed soon. In addition, the two next projects in line are the [Stegeman] Coliseum, in which we will be widening the concourses, installing new restrooms and new concessions. And on two of the outer walls we will have a glass facade, which will allow us to expand the concourses, bringing the glass facade out to the edge of the roof. In addition to that we will be changing the overall look of the Coliseum,” said Evans. “If everything goes as planned and if it’s improved by our board at our upcoming meeting, then we hope to start that project in May and finish by the beginning of the next basketball season.”

The annual Bulldog Clubs around Georgia work diligently year round to make sure members of the UGA athletic department, as well as the fans make their rounds in the most comfortable fashion, and they also provide a leisurely platform in which people can come out and have a little family fun with their red and black brethren. Evans illustrated the importance of these clubs and how much he enjoyed being able to spend direct time with the Bulldog Nation — like the ones that came out Tuesday night.

“All Bulldog Clubs are extremely important because I think this is the grass-roots level. These are the people that are truly our fans. They are avid Bulldog fans that support us each and every single day. I don’t believe we’d be who we are without these types of groups,” said Evans. “I’ve gone around the country and there aren’t a lot of institutions across the country that have as many clubs as we do at the University of Georgia. This one here is extremely important because it’s close to Athens and it helps to continue the vibe that goes on around our program. I know a lot of the people here and it’s great to see the support and a lot of close friends here.”

Evans then described some of the goals he really wants to achieve during his tenure as athletic director at UGA.

“First and foremost I want people to know that I’m about education and graduating student/athletes. I want to see our graduation rates continue to increase. When we take a young man and a young woman and they come to our institution, their parents have entrusted their kids to us,” said Evans. “The most important thing we can do is help them graduate so they can use that degree and go out and be successful in any endeavor they choose.”

Evans also had some serious goals in mind when discussing the athletic department, and how they measure up against other top universities around the country.

“As far as from an athletic perspective, I want Georgia’s brand to grow and I want people to recognize who we are. And what I mean is the ‘G’ that we all love to not be mistaken with Green Bay or Grambling or what have you, but to know that that stands for the University of Georgia,” said Evans. “And I want our program to be an elite program — and a nationally known program in all of our sports. When people talk about the University of Georgia I want them to say that’s an athletics department (plural) and not just football, not just basketball or baseball — but good at everything we do.”

When asked about what he’s accomplished during his tenure, Evans was hesitant to give himself too much credit, and stated there was lots of work to be done to get the UGA athletic department to the level he’s hoping to achieve.

“I don’t know if I’ve really accomplished anything. We’ve done a lot of things that we’ve done collectively as a group. I like the fact that our graduation rates are moving in the right direction. I also like the fact that we’ve handled the resources that have been given to us, from a fiscal perspective — our finances are in great shape,” he said. “And I like the fact that we’ve been able to start building some facilities that will allow us to compete at a very high level. And overall, I think we’re developing an atmosphere within our program that will allow us to continue to grow and develop, and ultimately get to where we want to be — and that’s the best in the country.”

The AD took several questions regarding the football and basketball programs, and spoke very highly of new Georgia football defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, who was previously with the Dallas Cowboys.

Evans also spoke highly of first-year head basketball coach Mark Fox and the excellent job he was doing, and also highlighted other programs such as equestrian and gymnastics.

Lake Country Bulldog Club president Peddy Parker was pleased with the turnout Tuesday night and felt that Evans made a positive impression on those in attendance.

“Well, I thought we had a good crowd. Damon was very positive about what is going on there. He indicated he would be willing to spend whatever it takes to get the right coaches, and that was good,” said Parker.

The next big Lake Country Bulldog Club event is scheduled for April 20 — and you can expect a lot of big name UGA coaches to be there.