Newman gives athletic director Vic Trilli another five-year deal

The question posed to Vic Trilli seven years ago struck him as odd.

Interviewing for the athletic director job at Newman, Trilli, then the athletic director at Garden City Community College, answered in the best way he could.

“They wanted to know, if I took the job, if I was even going to move to Wichita full-time,” Trilli said. “And I think that kind of was indicative of the state things were in at the time (at Newman).

“I just said ‘Hey, if I’m here, I’m in. Like, I’m all in.’”

Trilli has been that and more since he took the job at Newman in Sept. 2008, overseeing the school’s transition to NCAA Division II and a run of success from the school’s signature progams — men’s and women’s basketball — that has spread to other sports.

For his efforts, Trilli was rewarded with a second, five-year contract that begins July 1 with the added position of Vice President of Student Affairs. It follows similar deals struck at Wichita State for Eric Sexton and at Friends for Carole Obermeyer.

Before Trilli was hired, Newman went through five athletic directors in six years.

“There wasn’t a lot of trust between the coaches and the athletic director,” Trilli said. “And that was understandable.”

The new contract comes after — and in part because — Trilli applied for the open athletic director spot at Hutchinson Community College this spring, which triggered a social media movement among student-athletes using the hashtag #AthletesForTrilli.

“That made me a little nervous, because I didn’t understand quite where it was coming from,” Trilli said. “And ultimately, I have to answer to (Newman President) Noreen Carrocci about my job and anything that has to do with me. The Hutch job was intriguing because of the construction on the Sports Arena, hosting NJCAA Tournament and the support of the community … that’s big-time.

“As far as being the Vice President of Student Affairs, with about half of our student housing being student-athletes, I think it makes sense.”

Trilli, who made his name as an assistant men’s basketball coach at Texas and as the coach at North Texas, will be 67 years old at the end of his new contract. Which means it could be his last job before retirement.

Maybe.

“That, or it could get me pretty close,” Trilli said, laughing. “I’ve still got a lot of stuff I want to get done, though.”

Trilli’s major project on the horizon involves turning the soccer practice fields into a tennis center and putting a soccer practice field next to the soccer stadium. He’s also bringing wireless internet to both the baseball and softball stadiums in order to stream games online.

“My main job is as a fundraiser, that’s the main hat I wear,” Trilli said. “And with that, you have to understand that you can’t fix everything at once. Little by little, you get things done.”

Trilli said his relationship with men’s basketball coach Mark Potter has been key to the athletic department’s success. Trilli managed to keep Potter, who is in his 17th season, after overtures from several schools, including Emporia State.

The Jets made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2013, following the women’s team’s first appearance in 2012. Potter has several high-profile transfers on his roster next season in Missouri State forward Gavin Thurman and Denver guard Jalen Love, both Wichita natives, and could be nationally ranked in the preseason.

“In my opinion, (Potter) is the face of the athletic department, he’s the one who has been out front for us,” Trilli said. “I like to be behind the scenes … I feel like I’m at my best when the chips are down. When our teams are winning, everybody’s telling them how great they are and they don’t need me. When things aren’t going great, I want to be the one that’s there for them, that brings them back up.”

This story was originally published June 17, 2015 at 5:26 PM with the headline "Newman gives athletic director Vic Trilli another five-year deal."