After discussing everything from marketing to athletic successes to the student body, Northwestern athletic director Jim Phillips closes out this conversation looking ahead to the immediate future and beyond, as well as offering his parting words of advice to the Class of 2011 and a call to arms for the Class of 2015. North by Northwestern finishes the trifecta with the third and final installment of a conversation with Jim Phillips.
On the NFL Draft through a Wildcat lens…
It’s a positive reflection and a great credit to those young men and like last year, we had Corey Wootton and Mike Kafka and Sherrick McManis, who got drafted and stuck with their teams and are off to great careers. Same could be said for [Quentin Davie] and Corbin [Bryant], if they were fortunate enough to be selected, and if they’re not, maybe they go as an undrafted player and maybe select a team. I think it goes hand in hand with the success of the team and that kind of production, and it’s been a few years like that. If you look at from ‘95 on to the last 15, 16 years, for the most part Northwestern’s had some good players develop – like Trai Essex and others that are in the NFL right now – and I think that’s an example and we hope that Corbin and Quentin are the latest examples, certainly not the last. And we don’t think so, with the group we have coming back and with our young student-athletes that we think can develop, so we hope it’s a regular thing and it doesn’t surprise people that Northwestern have folk being drafted. Just like Amy Jaeschke – we certainly don’t want her to be the only women’s basketball player drafted – we hope that, as we go forward, this becomes a regular thing.
On the athletic facilities renovations…
We’re halfway through that study. It’ll probably be done in June or July, and it’s a strategic and comprehensive facility master plan, but it’s not only athletics, it’s athletics and recreation. So for the athletics piece, yes, I want to know what we should do with the students and where we should sit them and where we should position them, for all of our venues, but mostly for football and basketball, obviously. But equal to that, we need to find out more about recreation, like SPAC. Do we need another facility somewhere else on campus? Do we need to have more facilities in the residence halls? How did people recreate 10, 15 years ago and how is that different from today? It seems like there’s more satellite facilities and about convenience and being able to roll out of bed and go get a workout somewhere that’s not a hassle to get to. So we’re doing all that; we sent out a massive questionnaire to all the students, faculty and staff, so we’re getting all of those results in. Because, in the end, we all want to build facilities that the students and faculty and staff want. I’m not the expert in that area, I really defer to what they want. And so that’s all part of that thing, and I can’t tell you how excited I am about doing this. This is the first time we’ve been able to do such a comprehensive plan. The next step, we’re going to go on some site visits, go see some other places around the country, some other college campuses to see who’s got some of the best athletic facilities and who’s got some of the best recreation facilities and what can we learn from those and how do we put that together with some of the land issues that we have over here and some of the challenges we have. And again, we look forward to getting those final results and seeing what the experts come up with.
Looking to next year’s goals…
Am I pleased with what has been accomplished? I am, but I’m not satisfied, and I think those are two completely different mindsets. We have a long way to do, we have a lot of work to be done. I would hope that next year we could have even a better year than we had this year, even though we had a really, really, really good year. And it’s not over yet, but I think you have to continue to try to move up in your expectations and your results, and I don’t think that any of us are satisfied and none of us can be. Do I feel like we’ve given our student-athletes a good experience that I hope they’ll be able to take out of here and learn and grow from? Yes, but if you talk about athletic success, I’d like to hopefully see us progress there. If you talk about fan success, with people coming to games, you certainly don’t want to stop where we’re at now, I want us to continue. If you talk about facilities, and the need to continue to support and build on the infrastructure, I hope we’re gonna make some progress there. So, anybody that knows me personally or in any sort of way, knows that I’m never one to be satisfied with where things are at, I always think that there’s a better day and there’s a better moment when there’s more to be accomplished and there’s more to get done. And that’s what drives me each and every day, and that’s what drives our staff and our coaches and our student-athletes. So I would hope that if you and I sat down and did this same interview next year, I would hope that, as we look at this year, that our benchmark was raised even further for next year with season that we had.
What the Class of 2015 should expect to see in their time in Evanston…
First of all, before I tell them what to expect, I would have a call to action: We need you. We need you to get involved. These are your teams. These are your Northwestern teams. And we need you to support them and participate and come out and enjoy games and enjoy being with other Northwestern students and supporting some of your classmates. As far as expectations, we want no different than what the expectations are in the classroom, to be a place of excellence that’s committed to doing things the right way, and hopefully that translates into success athletically. And where we’re at with all of our teams, we hope that we’re a step – two, three or four – ahead of that come 2015. But it’s a process, there’s no overnight fixes. And so, I think your [class of 2011's] experience has been one that where you came in and where it’s at now are two different places, and I would [hope] that the same trajectory would happen with the next group.
Parting words for the Class of 2011…
I would say two things. One, I would tell them, sincere thanks and gratitude for what you’ve done, for what you’ve invested, for the support you’ve provided our teams because I do believe it goes hand in hand. Support, whether it’s resources, or facilities or student support or fan support, that helps you get to the point where we’re at today. So I would say really, a hearty thanks to all of the class of 2011.
[Secondly], I would say, follow your dreams. I know that that’s sometimes overused, but I really believe it. Go do something that you’re passionate about. Go make a difference in the world, whether it’s sports or something far different. We need you, you could make a difference in this world. You’re equippednto do those things. You’re the best and brightest, and we all look forward to watching you accomplish some wonderful things as you turn the page of this chapter and you start a new one in your life. I think it’s an exciting time. I know some seniors are getting worried about what the next chapter looks like, but you’ll figure it out. They’re too smart. They’re too well-prepared not to figure it out and they will. You’ll be right with them.