Five things to know about Wichita State’s firing of athletic director Darron Boatright
There will be a change of leadership in the Wichita State athletic department, as university president Rick Muma fired athletic director Darron Boatright on Wednesday.
Boatright has served as the AD since 2016 and has been with the WSU athletic department for 12 years. Sarah Adams, an associate athletic director, will serve as interim AD with an “experienced search firm” leading a national search for a full-time replacement.
“While there were certainly achievements and successes during Darron’s tenure, there were significant, ongoing concerns that became acute in recent weeks, ones that I did not believe could be addressed,” Muma said in a press release.
Here are the five things to know about Boatright’s departure:
1. Boatright’s last contract extension drew criticism
In February, a Kansas Open Records Act filed by The Eagle revealed WSU had given Boatright a two-year contract extension through June 2024 that was never publicized by the university when signed in October 2020.
The secretive nature of the extension, which also gave Boatright a 37.5% raise in salary to $275,000 annually at a time when the athletic department was strained in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, drew the ire of fans.
Sources have told The Eagle that Boatright tried to decline the raise, but was overruled by Muma, and that the decision not to publicize the contract extension was also out of his control.
2. Criticism fell on Boatright for WSU’s slow approach to NIL
It’s been no secret that Wichita State was lagging in the rapidly evolving world of name, image and likeness. The issue was brought to the forefront when the lack of NIL money in Wichita played at least a role in several prominent players on the men’s basketball team entering the transfer portal this spring.
Boatright told The Eagle he took a cautious approach to the NIL world, which backfired when the NCAA was unable to enforce the regulations it initially told schools to follow.
Because schools are not allowed to facilitate NIL deals for its own student-athletes, Boatright couldn’t single-handedly form a NIL collective. But coaches and other NIL collectives have told The Eagle that it should have been the role of an athletic director to make sure the donor base was aware of the changes and the importance of NIL.
3. Boatright was in charge during the Gregg Marshall saga
Boatright navigated WSU through controversy back in the fall of 2020 when verbal and physical abuse allegations were made against men’s basketball coach Gregg Marshall and an independent investigation was launched.
Ultimately, WSU’s most successful men’s basketball coach reached a $7.75 million settlement to resign on Nov. 17, 2020 and Boatright, who was in charge of the athletic department during many of the alleged incidents, remained in power and signed a contract extension weeks before Marshall resigned.
Many fans have been frustrated about WSU’s lack of transparency regarding the tumultuous end of the Marshall era. A group of disgruntled fans even raised enough money through a GoFundMe titled “Save Shocker Sports” to pay for two billboards that debuted in Wichita earlier this week with Boatright’s picture and a hashtag calling to fire him.
All parties in the Marshall settlement have signed non-disclosure agreements.
4. A disappointing men’s basketball season added to frustration
Boatright attached himself to men’s basketball head coach Isaac Brown when he decided to lift the interim tag and give him a five-year contract to become the long-term coach, a move that was widely praised after Brown led WSU to its first American Athletic Conference championship in 2021.
But Brown’s follow-up season failed to build on the momentum: WSU sputtered after a strong start to the season and finished with a 15-13 record and a mediocre conference finish with a first-round exit in the conference tournament. It was the first time the Shockers had not reached the postseason since 2008.
While Brown took plenty of heat from the fan base, Boatright also received criticism for the downward trend of the men’s basketball program.
Boatright’s other prominent hire, baseball coach Eric Wedge, which was also universally praised at the time, has struggled to immediately turn around the program. The Shockers are in the midst of a 15-30 season, on pace for the fewest wins by WSU in a full season since the program was revitalized in 1978.
5. Boatright’s successes also part of the story
Boatright’s legacy at Wichita State will undoubtedly be remembered as the athletic director who guided the Shockers from their transition from the Missouri Valley Conference to the American Athletic Conference.
Another notable accomplishment was that he oversaw the fundraising efforts for the Eck Stadium renovations and the $13.8 million Student-Athlete Center that opened in 2020.
Boatright was also the athletic director that oversaw record academic success by student-athletes in the classroom and numerous NCAA postseason appearances from men’s basketball, volleyball, softball, men’s golf, men’s tennis and women’s tennis.
This story was originally published May 4, 2022 at 3:23 PM.
.jpg)