Island Boy
September-8th-2004, 08:29 AM
http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-74685sy0sep08,0,7254620.story?coll=dp-sports-local
Holland takes ECU job
Not quite ready for retirement, Terry Holland, 62, takes over as the Pirates' athletic director.
BY DAVE JOHNSON
247-4649
Published September 8, 2004
Terry Holland's days of unemployment didn't last long.
Less than two months after leaving his job as special assistant to the president at the University of Virginia, where he had spent 25 years of his professional life, Holland was announced Tuesday as athletic director at East Carolina.
Holland replaces Mike Hamrick, who resigned nearly a year ago, and is expected to be introduced at a press conference this morning in Greenville, N.C.
Holland announced he was stepping down from his special post at U.Va. on July 15 but made it clear he was not interested in retirement. He said he wanted to see if there was "something out there." Holland mentioned consulting as a possible path, and it was in that area that he first hooked up with East Carolina.
"The more we talked, the more apparent it became to me that I have done my best work (with lots of good help) in building or re-building programs both as a coach and an AD," Holland said in an e-mail Tuesday. "It also seemed that I function best under challenging circumstances with clear-cut objectives that require full-time attention.
"I believe ECU as an academic institution is a well-kept secret because of its location. ... I was impressed with every aspect of what I saw, with the only hurdle being that we would have to relocate. Greenville is close to a lot of family, so that helped us make the final decision."
A native of Clinton, N.C., Holland agreed to a five-year contract and will begin work on Oct. 1. His salary was not disclosed.
"His credentials are impeccable," school chancellor Steve Ballard said. "And I have no doubt that he will make a difference at ECU."
East Carolina is a member of Conference USA, where it has obvious geographic issues. Once Charlotte leaves for the Atlantic 10 after this season, ECU's closest neighbor will be Army - in West Point, N.Y., a 563-mile drive. Six of the Pirates' conference opponents are in the Central time zone.
ECU's two flagship sports, football and men's basketball, are on hard times. The football team went 1-11 last season, beating only Army. The basketball program has finished below .500 in each of its three seasons in CUSA. The baseball team, however, went 51-13 last spring and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals before losing to South Carolina.
Holland sees potential.
"The main attraction of East Carolina University is spirit, pride and determination of its students, faculty, alumni and fans," Holland said in a statement released Tuesday. "Even though the latest conference realignments have disadvantaged the East Carolina sports program, everyone seems determined to rise above these setbacks.
"A casual observer might quote Yogi Berra while evaluating East Carolina as 'an insurmountable opportunity.' However, my earlier experiences convince me that East Carolina is ideally positioned to restore a long and proud athletic history."
Holland takes ECU job
Not quite ready for retirement, Terry Holland, 62, takes over as the Pirates' athletic director.
BY DAVE JOHNSON
247-4649
Published September 8, 2004
Terry Holland's days of unemployment didn't last long.
Less than two months after leaving his job as special assistant to the president at the University of Virginia, where he had spent 25 years of his professional life, Holland was announced Tuesday as athletic director at East Carolina.
Holland replaces Mike Hamrick, who resigned nearly a year ago, and is expected to be introduced at a press conference this morning in Greenville, N.C.
Holland announced he was stepping down from his special post at U.Va. on July 15 but made it clear he was not interested in retirement. He said he wanted to see if there was "something out there." Holland mentioned consulting as a possible path, and it was in that area that he first hooked up with East Carolina.
"The more we talked, the more apparent it became to me that I have done my best work (with lots of good help) in building or re-building programs both as a coach and an AD," Holland said in an e-mail Tuesday. "It also seemed that I function best under challenging circumstances with clear-cut objectives that require full-time attention.
"I believe ECU as an academic institution is a well-kept secret because of its location. ... I was impressed with every aspect of what I saw, with the only hurdle being that we would have to relocate. Greenville is close to a lot of family, so that helped us make the final decision."
A native of Clinton, N.C., Holland agreed to a five-year contract and will begin work on Oct. 1. His salary was not disclosed.
"His credentials are impeccable," school chancellor Steve Ballard said. "And I have no doubt that he will make a difference at ECU."
East Carolina is a member of Conference USA, where it has obvious geographic issues. Once Charlotte leaves for the Atlantic 10 after this season, ECU's closest neighbor will be Army - in West Point, N.Y., a 563-mile drive. Six of the Pirates' conference opponents are in the Central time zone.
ECU's two flagship sports, football and men's basketball, are on hard times. The football team went 1-11 last season, beating only Army. The basketball program has finished below .500 in each of its three seasons in CUSA. The baseball team, however, went 51-13 last spring and advanced to the NCAA Super Regionals before losing to South Carolina.
Holland sees potential.
"The main attraction of East Carolina University is spirit, pride and determination of its students, faculty, alumni and fans," Holland said in a statement released Tuesday. "Even though the latest conference realignments have disadvantaged the East Carolina sports program, everyone seems determined to rise above these setbacks.
"A casual observer might quote Yogi Berra while evaluating East Carolina as 'an insurmountable opportunity.' However, my earlier experiences convince me that East Carolina is ideally positioned to restore a long and proud athletic history."