April 24, 2012
UCF Athletics Social Media Directory
By John Denton, Knights Insider
UCFAthletics.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Like most new hires in an athletics program, UCF Vice President and Director of Athletics Todd Stansbury spent the bulk of his first fan event talking about the need for a culture change.
Only this time, Stansbury talked about changing a mindset, not UCF's already highly successful winning ways in just about every one of its sports.
"When softball beats Florida, when baseball is No. 7 in the country and women's track is No. 12 and cheer is No. 3, those are viewed as upsets. We're not upsetting anybody; we're that good," Stansbury said emphatically during the first UKNIGHT Tour stop of 2012.
"We need to change the way that we think on this campus. We need to connect the dots and look at our success across the board. Having two 20-win seasons in men's basketball, winning two Conference USA titles in women's basketball, beating USC in volleyball ... we're no longer upsetting anybody. We are this good."
Stansbury's 20-minute pep talk was one of his first in front of UCF fans. More than 200 turned out to Bright House Networks Stadium on Monday to hear from Stansbury and several members of the UCF coaching staff. Door prizes, such as tickets to UCF's football game at Ohio State and helmets autographed by George O'Leary, were given to fans in attendance.
The UKNIGHT Tour moves to Seminole County and Orlando-Sanford International Airport from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday. The tour ultimately makes stops in Melbourne on May 1, downtown Orlando on May 7, Tampa on May 8, The Villages on May 9, West Palm Beach on May 23 and Fort Lauderdale on May 24. For more information on the entire tour and to RSVP, call the Golden Knights Club at 407-882-1289 or visit www.ucfathletics.com/uknighttour12.
The common theme of Monday night's first tour stop was welcoming Stansbury and celebrating UCF's success in a variety of sports. Since arriving at UCF in March, Stansbury has breathed life into UCF's athletics program with his enthusiasm and drive to be great. He said that UCF already has plenty to be proud of with its dazzling facilities and its string of athletic and academic success stories, and those accomplishments are only going to grow as the Knights move into the BIG EAST in 2013-14.
"There are a lot of programs that are a one-trick pony. One team is successful, and they bet the ranch on that one team," Stansbury said. "But we are a broad-based program of success. Look across the board, and every one of our programs is successful. This is an amazing place."
O'Leary told Knights fans about his football team, which just wrapped up spring practice, and took several questions from fans. O'Leary said that he hopes to make a decision this week on the fate of quarterback Jeff Godfrey, who led the Knights to 11 wins in 2010 but left the team in December before seeking a return. O'Leary said regardless of what happens the Knights are in good hands with the return of quarterback Blake Bortles and the entrance of Tyler Gabbert, a University of Missouri transfer.
"It's Blake Bortles' football team right now," he said. "Gabbert is coming in with some grass under his feet having played at Missouri and won't be a true rookie."
Terry Rooney, head coach and architect of UCF's blossoming baseball team, spoke on the heels of the Knights rising to No. 7 in the country in the USA Today/ESPN Top 25 coaches poll. The Knights tied for their highest national ranking in school history, equaling the mark in 2001.
UCF swept Tulane on the road last weekend and will host Memphis this weekend, beginning with Military Appreciation Night at 6:30 p.m. Friday.
"We're excited about our season, but it's not done yet," Rooney said. "We have a core group that is part of our first recruiting class that was ranked fourth in the nation. It's been fantastic to see their growth and their movement upward for this program."
Stansbury stressed that accomplishments such as UCF cracking the Top 10 in the country in baseball shouldn't surprise anyone considering UCF's enormous potential. He said Knights fans should revel in the success on and off the field and the potential for the future.
In the classroom, UCF student-athletes have achieved an overall GPA of at least 3.0 for each of the last eight semesters. UCF Athletics' 83 percent graduation success rate is tied for the top rating among Florida's public universities. And 221 student-athletes qualified for the Conference USA Commissioner's Honor Roll with GPAs of 3.0 or better. That total ranked first among all of C-USA's public institutions and second overall behind Rice.
"I am extremely proud to be a part of this program, and my goal is that this program will be defined by the success of our student-athletes," Stansbury said. "We've got a new, national platform in the BIG EAST, and we're going to make the most of it.''
John Denton's Knights Insider appears on UCFAthletics.com several times a week. E-mail John at jdenton@athletics.ucf.edu.