By TIM BOOTH
| Posted: Thursday, September 18, 2008 12:00 am
The Associated Press
SEATTLE - As the days ticked by and Scott Woodward became more entrenched in the University of Washington athletic department, he realized he wanted the interim tag removed from his athletic director title.
Even if being the guy in charge means Woodward will ultimately be taking responsibility for fixing the Huskies' downtrodden football program and leading the charge for a needed renovation of deteriorating Husky Stadium.
Woodward, 45, was hired as Washington's athletic director Wednesday, ending a nine-month search to fill the position he's held on an interim basis. Woodward was intended to be a stopgap between Todd Turner's sudden resignation last December and the filling of the position, overseeing the athletic department while still fulfilling his duties as the university's vice president of external affairs.
"This is a special place. We're down a little bit because everyone views your fortunes on your win-loss record of football," Woodward said.
"(But) we're doing a lot of things right.
"There are those things that we need to fix and those frankly are exciting opportunities."
Even though university President Mark Emmert asked Woodward to withdraw his name from consideration for the permanent position in May, Emmert ultimately decided Woodward was the obvious choice, in part because of his relationships already established inside the university.
"When it was all said and done, this was a very easy choice," Emmert said.
Woodward's contract is not finalized, but Emmert said it would likely be a five-year deal.
One of Woodward's first tasks will be determining the future of football coach Tyrone Willingham, who has an 11-28 record in his four seasons at Washington, and has started 2008 with losses to Oregon, BYU and Oklahoma, all ranked in The Associated Press Top 25.
Woodward attends practice every day and said he has developed a strong relationship with Willingham.
"It is exciting to now have a leader and a direction for our department," Willingham said in a statement. "Scott's passion for football is clearly evident but his dedication extends to all our athletic teams. He has experience with some outstanding programs, which have benefited from his leadership and high level of expectation."
In a recent interview with the AP, Emmert said fans needed to be patient with the football program. Woodward reiterated that stance Wednesday, saying no moves would be made during the season and that Willingham would be evaluated when the season is over.
Willingham attended Wednesday's announcement, along with some other Washington coaches and athletes.
"Your warts show when you're losing and when you're winning they go away kind of, or you don't look at them," Woodward said. "But we've got to win some ball games. That's crucial."
Willingham was retained for a fourth season last December, amid heavy criticism from fans, some of whom e-mailed Emmert tying future donations to the school to the firing of Willingham. Soon thereafter, Turner suddenly resigned, a move that Emmert said had to do with the "fit" between Turner and what the school wants accomplished inside its athletic department, a $60 million business with 23 sports and about 650 student athletes within the Pac-10.
When Turner left, Willingham lost his staunchest supporter in the athletic department. Woodward indicated Wednesday that some type of decision would need to be made with Willingham after the season - either a contract extension or a new coach. Next year would be the last of Willingham's five-year contract that pays him $1.4 million a year.
Woodward's other major task is overseeing the push to renovate Husky Stadium, now in its 89th season. The facility needs significant work in the lower bowl to meet health and safety, seismic and Americans with Disabilities Act requirements.
The school is pushing for a proposed $300 million renovation of the stadium, hoping $150 million can come from state tourism taxes already in place to help pay off the bonds on Qwest Field and Safeco Field. The remainder would come from premium seat charges, private donations and the athletic department.
The Washington Legislature would have to approve the funding package and give authority to the King County Council to redirect those taxes toward paying off the stadium renovations.
While there were issues between Turner and Emmert, there should be no problems with Woodward. He was specifically brought by Emmert from Louisiana State to Washington in 2004 when Emmert was hired as Washington's president. Woodward served as liaison between the university administration and the athletic department at both institutions.
The two have a strong relationship, but Emmert made Woodward go through the same interview process every other candidate for the position had to face. When the search committee came away impressed with Woodward, Emmert knew he had the person he wanted already in place and didn't offer the position to anyone else.
"I could have just as easily gone back and been happy being vice president," Woodward said. "That being said, I'm excited about this new challenge. … This is something new, it's an evolution in my career, something I have a passion for and something I believe in."