James Schaus is a retired sports administrator who most recently served as commissioner of the Southern Conference (SoCon). Before taking the SoCon position, he served as athletic director at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio and Wichita State University in Wichita, Kansas.[1]
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Commissioner |
| Conference | Southern Conference |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 1999–2008 | Wichita State |
| 2008–2019 | Ohio |
| 2019–2023 | Southern Conference (Commissioner) |
Early years
editJim Schaus is originally from Morgantown, West Virginia.[2] In his later youth, after sixth grade, he grew up in West Lafayette, Indiana where he received his Bachelor's degree from Purdue University in 1983.[3] He earned a Master's degree in athletics administration from West Virginia University where he was named a distinguished alumnus.[4][5]
Career
editPrior to his long career in administrating college athletics Schaus worked in the NFL where he was first an intern with the New England Patriots and later as the director of marketing for the Washington Redskins. He also worked for the LPGA Tour as publicity assistant.[1] Before receiving an athletic director position he worked in the athletic departments at the University of Oregon, the University of Cincinnati, the University of Texas at El Paso and Northern Illinois University.[6][7]
Wichita State
editSchaus was athletic director for Wichita State from 1999 to 2008 during which he hired Gregg Marshall as the men's basketball coach.[8] Marshall would later lead the Shockers to the 2013 NCAA Final Four and a #1 seed in the 2014 NCAA tournament.[9] He was awarded the Division I Central Region AstroTurf AD of the Year in 2007.[10] During the 2007 season the Shockers won Missouri Valley Conference titles in women's cross country, and women's indoor and outdoor track and field, women's tennis and baseball.[4]
His coaching hires included Chris Lamb as volleyball coach, Tom McCurdy as women's golf coach, Steve Rainbolt as track and field coach, Mark Turgeon and Gregg Marshall for men's basketball, Jody Adams for women's basketball, and Tim Walton for softball. All of these hires guided Wichita State to NCAA tournaments.[11]
Ohio
editFrom 2008 to 2019 he was the athletic director at Ohio. Under the leadership of Schaus and Head coach Frank Solich the Ohio football program was bowl eligible every season during his tenure.[12] Ohio played in 10 bowl games[13] and won the 2011 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the 2012 Independence Bowl, the 2017 Bahamas Bowl, and the 2018 Frisco Bowl.[14][15][16][17] Ohio won the MAC East division title in 2009, 2011, and 2016 but failed to win the MAC Championship Game each time.[18][19][20]
Ohio's 2010 men's basketball team defeated 12th ranked Georgetown in the first round of 2010 NCAA tournament.[21] In 2012 they won the MAC tournament and made the sweet sixteen in the NCAA tournament while defeating Big Ten regular season co-champion Michigan in the first round and South Florida in the second round.[22][23][24] Ohio finished 2012 ranked #25 in the Coaches Poll.[25]
Schaus hired Bob Boldon as the head coach of the women's basketball team in 2013. Under Boldon Ohio had one of the best stretches of success in program history. Ohio had winning seasons each of the final six years of Schaus' tenure at Ohio. They won the MAC East in 2015, 2016, and 2019. Ohio won the 2015 MAC tournament and qualified for the NCAA tournament.[26][27] In 2019 Ohio won a school record 30 games.[28]
Ohio's volleyball team won seven MAC Championships while Schaus was AD and appeared in five NCAA Regionals.[29] The baseball and softball teams each won two MAC Championships.[30] Ohio's graduation rate for athletes during his tenure was 88%.[31] Schaus inherited a $2.3 million budget deficit upon arriving at Ohio but balanced the budget during every year of his tenure.[32]
In 2015 he began a term as one of the 10 members on the selection committee for the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament.[33] In January 2017 the NCAA began looking to replace the Rating percentage index as the rating system used as the primary team sorting tool by the selection committee.[34] Schaus and Dan Gavitt, the NCAA's senior vice president of basketball, met with Jeff Sagarin, Kevin Pauga (KPI), Ken Pomeroy, and Ben Alamar (ESPN BPI) to begin the process of considering a new alternative.[35] The eventual result was the NET Rankings.[36]
Southern Conference
editOn July 1, 2019, Schaus was hired as Commissioner of the Southern Conference.[37] Southern Conference Basketball has performed at its highest level in decades both in terms of the quality of top teams and conference depth.[38] Schaus implemented a new scheduling model to enhance the chances of success for Southern Conference programs.[1] In 2019 the Southern Conference finished 10th in the NET rankings.[1] Wofford finished the season ranked #19 and defeated Seton Hall in the first round of the NCAA tournament.[39] UNC Greensboro and Furman both qualified for the NIT[40]
During the COVID-19 pandemic he announced that 2020 Spring Conference sports were cancelled[41] and before the 2020-21 FCS Football Season, like most FCS conferences, the Southern Conference would play in the spring.[42] The Southern Conference was the only FCS conference to have all teams compete during that season.[43]
In February 2023, Schaus announced his retirement effective June 30. Michael Cross, a veteran college sports administrator who had most recently served with the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics, was named as his successor.[44]
Personal life
editHe is the son of former Los Angeles Lakers, Purdue and West Virginia head coach Fred Schaus.[45] He and his wife Priscilla have three adult children.[2]
References
edit- ^ a b c d "JIM SCHAUS". Southern Conference.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "Jim Schaus following in father's footsteps". Times West Virginian. 23 April 2008.
- ^ "Purdue, West Lafayette remain special to Jim Schaus". Journal & Courier.
- ^ a b "Jim Schaus". Lead 1 Association.
- ^ "Schaus, White named to DI men's basketball committee". NCAA.
- ^ "JIM SCHAUS". UNC Greensboro. 7 June 2019.
- ^ "Athletic staff filled with hire of Schaus". NIU Northern Star. 23 September 1992.
- ^ "Who Is New Southern Conference Commissioner Jim Schaus and What Does He Need To Do?". 5 June 2019.
- ^ "Florida, Arizona, Wichita State, Virginia earn top NCAA seeds". USAToday.
- ^ "Search Firms Partner to Find New Commissioner for Southern Conference". Hunt Scanlon Media. 14 June 2019.
- ^ "Schaus Hires Set Up Shockers for Success". Wichita State Athletics. 8 September 2023.
- ^ "Ohio AD to become commissioner of SoCon". Footballscoop. 4 June 2019.
- ^ "Southern Conference Names Jim Schaus As Its Ninth Commissioner". The Chattanoogan. 4 June 2019.
- ^ "Ohio scores in waning seconds to upend Utah State, earn 1st bowl victory". ESPN.[dead link]
- ^ "Tyler Tettleton, Beau Blankenship spark Ohio in Independence Bowl". ESPN.
- ^ "Ohio beats UAB 41-6 in Bahamas Bowl". ESPN.
- ^ "Ohio rolls to 27-0 win over San Diego State in Frisco Bowl". ESPN.
- ^ "LeFevour leads Central Michigan past Ohio, to MAC crown". ESPN.[dead link]
- ^ "Northern Illinois erases 20-point halftime deficit to win MAC title". ESPN.[dead link]
- ^ "MAC Championship 2016: Western Michigan vs. Ohio Live Score and Highlights". Bleacher Report.
- ^ "NCAA BASKETBALL: No. 14 Ohio upsets Georgetown". Daily Breeze. 19 March 2010.
- ^ "Akron Vs. Ohio Final: Bobcats Tip Zips, Win MAC Championship". SBNation. 10 March 2012.
- ^ "Ohio holds on to shock fourth-seeded Michigan". ESPN.[dead link]
- ^ "2012 NCAA Bracket, South Florida Vs. Ohio Final Score: Bobcats Prevail 62-56, Head To Sweet 16". SBNation. 18 March 2012.
- ^ "Men's College Basketball Rankings". ESPN.
- ^ "Ohio Women's Basketball Picked To Win MAC East". WOUB. 27 October 2015.
- ^ "Ohio Bobcats are No. 1 seed for MAC Women's Tournament". Cleveland. 5 March 2016.
- ^ "Southern Conference Names Jim Schaus New Commissioner". The Citadel Athletics. 5 June 2019.
- ^ "Former Ohio University director of athletics will assume role July 1". Wise Sports Radio. Archived from the original on 2022-02-01. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
- ^ "Southern Conference names Jim Schaus new commissioner" (PDF). Charleston Visitor Bureau.
- ^ "Jim Schaus, Commissioner, Southern Conference". Rotary Club of Greensboro.
- ^ "Southern Conference hires Ohio AD Jim Schaus as commissioner". Seattle Times. 4 June 2019.
- ^ "NCAA picks Schaus, White for next year's selection committee". Yahoo Sports. Archived from the original on 2022-02-01. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
- ^ "NCAA officials to consider new metric in tourney selection process". ESPN. 13 January 2017.
- ^ "NCAA officials to consider new metric in tourney selection process". ABC News.
- ^ "New ranking system developed for NCAA tournament, replacing RPI". ABC News.
- ^ "New SoCon Commissioner Jim Schaus Introduced". WSPA Spartanburg. 5 June 2019.
- ^ "2020 NCAA Tournament: Two Bids for the Southern Conference is a Campaign Worth Endorsing". Athlonsports.com | Expert Predictions, Picks, and Previews. 2 March 2020.
- ^ "Magee sets record, Wofford tops Seton Hall for 1st NCAA win". CBS Sports. 22 March 2019.
- ^ "Furman, UNCG earn at-large NIT bids". Southern Conference. 17 March 2019.
- ^ "Commissioner Jim Schaus delivers State of the Conference Address". ETSU Athletics.
- ^ "Spring Football, But For Real This Time". The Old Gold and Black Wofford College.
- ^ "After a COVID-troubled spring season, SoCon tries to get back to normal". The Post and Courier. 26 July 2021.
- ^ "Michael Cross Named Southern Conference Commissioner" (Press release). Southern Conference. May 30, 2023. Retrieved June 22, 2023.
- ^ "Staying on the right track". GoUpstate.