ORLANDO, Fla. — At one emotional moment during his introductory news conference Wednesday, Terry Mohajir paused, tried to gather himself, choked up and then cried when talking about leaving his beloved alma mater of Arkansas State to become the new athletics director at UCF.
In another comical moment, Mohajir pseudo-solemnly got down on one knee as the goofy mascot Knightro nobly placed a rubber sword on his head and officially “Knighted” him as UCF’s new AD.
In another priceless moment, his two daughters, Maria and Molly, busted out laughing when Dad tried to explain away being recorded multiple times doing TikTok dances with them.
In another inspirational moment, Mohajir had a message for those in Knight Nation who continually lament that UCF is not in a big-boy conference: “Don’t worry about what level we are — Power 5 or Group of 5. Our level is a state of mind. Only we can stop our growth.”
In another candid moment after the official news conference was over, Mohajir chit-chatted with reporters and broke ranks from the previous regime when he said that, yes, he would consider scheduling a two-for-one football series with the Florida Gators if the situation is right.
Danny who?
I never thought I would say this, but UCF president Alexander Cartwright has hired a new athletics director with the personality, passion and pizazz to make Knight Nation quickly forget about the recent departure of beloved former AD Danny White.
If …
And this is a big if ...
If he can do what O Danny Boy did so well.
Mohajir must hit the ground running and hire a football coach who will not only win, but win BIG.
At Arkansas State, the Red Devils have lost four games or more for eight straight years. That won’t cut it at UCF, where a suddenly spoiled fan base was ready to run Heupel out of town after ONE four-loss season in the middle of a pandemic.
Let’s be clear about one thing: great athletics directors are undoubtedly important to the success of a college sports program, but great football coaches are vastly more important.
White was considered a great fundraiser at UCF, but guess what? It’s much easier to be a great fundraiser when Scott Frost and Josh Heupel are posting back-to-back undefeated regular seasons and compiling a national-best 25-game win streak. It’s not that difficult to get boosters and donors to open up their pocketbooks, billfolds and Venmo apps when the team is unbeaten and ESPN’s College GameDay is in town.
Former Florida Gators athletics director Jeremy Foley became one of the legendary ADs in history and built one of the best overall athletic programs in the country, but he was able to do it only because season-ticket sales skyrocketed and booster money started pouring in when Steve Spurrier began winning SEC and national championships.
Make no mistake about it, Mohajir’s first hire will be the most important hire he ever makes at UCF. There’s no question he is going to move quickly and will likely have a new football coach in place by this time next week, and that coach will be integral in reigniting the post-pandemic UCF fan base.
Don’t kid yourself, there is a massive concern throughout college athletics that, even when the pandemic is over, fans and boosters will not come back and fill the stadiums and coffers like they once did. Now, more than ever, Mohajir needs to hire a coach who can lure reticent fans back to the Bounce House.
Mohajir wouldn’t commit to what type of coach he is looking for even though I asked him about UCF promoting his hiring as the new AD by sending a message to donors that included this passage: “He is known for hiring innovative, offensive-minded coaches.”
Does this mean he will hire someone like former UCF quarterbacks coach Jeff Lebby — now the offensive coordinator at Ole Miss and seemingly the fan favorite to get the job?
“Not necessarily,” Mohajir said when I asked him before the news conference if he will hire a head coach who has built his reputation on the offensive side of the football. “I had a really good meeting with the football team’s leadership committee and I told them, ‘Don’t limit your thinking to one particular candidate.’ And then I asked them what they felt the team needed to get better at. Instead of being married to a certain type of coach, whether it’s offense or defense, we have to find the right fit.”
When I asked him if he is concerned about the last two UCF head coaches — Heupel and Frost — using UCF as a “stepping stone” to the Power 5, Mohajir didn’t flinch. He pointed to Arkansas State, which at one point had five head coaches in five years. It just so happened that three of those coaches — Hugh Freeze, Gus Malzahn and Bryan Harsin — won conference championships in their first year and quickly bolted for bigger jobs.
Said Mohajir: “The first thing I told our players when I talked to them was, ‘Change is inevitable. The one constant in life is change. If you look at all the programs — whether it’s Power 5, Group of 5, FCS, Division II or whatever — it is conceivable that a coach isn’t going to be there by the time you graduate.’
“That’s why we must embrace change. I’m not so worried about whether a coach stays, but if we’re building the program [the right way]. We don’t build seasons. We don’t build teams. We build the program. And then, no matter who we hire as the head coach in any sport, they’re going to be successful.”
I’m not so sure about that. I believe football coaches make football programs; not vice versa. The University of Texas has the largest budget in all of intercollegiate sports and has one of the best overall athletic programs in the country, but its football team has been mediocre for years. Why? Because the Longhorns haven’t found the right coach.
I absolutely love the hire of Terry Mohajir as UCF’s new athletics director, but make no mistake about it:
His own success as AD will be determined in a matter of days by whom he hires as the next head football coach.
