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Danny White (athletic director)

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Danny White
Current position
TitleAthletic director
TeamTennessee
ConferenceSEC
Biographical details
Born (1979-10-28) October 28, 1979 (age 45)
Morehead, Kentucky, U.S.[1]
Playing career
Basketball
1998–2000Towson
2000–2002Notre Dame
Position(s)Guard
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2005–2006Ohio (assistant)
Administrative career (AD unless noted)
2004–2005Ohio (dir. of basketball ops.)
2006–2007Northern Illinois (assistant AD)
2007–2009Fresno State (associate AD)
2009–2012Ole Miss (senior associate AD)
2012–2015Buffalo
2015–2021UCF
2021–presentTennessee

Daniel J. White[2] (born October 28, 1979) is an American university sports administrator. He is the athletic director for the Tennessee Volunteers. White held the same position at the University at Buffalo from 2012 to 2015 and the University of Central Florida from 2015 to 2021.[3][4] Prior to his tenure at Buffalo, he was the senior associate athletic director for Ole Miss.

Early life and college career

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Danny has been heavily surrounded by college athletics throughout his life. Born in Morehead, Kentucky when his father Kevin was a track coach at Morehead State University, he moved many times during his father's later career as a coach and athletic director—to Cape Girardeau, Missouri (Southeast Missouri State University),[5] Dubuque, Iowa (Loras College), Orono, Maine (University of Maine), New Orleans (Tulane University), and Tempe, Arizona (Arizona State University).[1] After Danny's graduation from high school, his father went on to become AD at the University of Notre Dame, and now holds the same position at Duke University. His brother Mike White is the head coach of the Georgia Bulldogs men's basketball team,[6] while his other brother Brian is athletic director for the Florida Atlantic Owls,[7] and his sister Mariah Chappell is assistant athletic director for the SMU Mustangs.[8]

White attended Towson University for three years (1998–2001) and was on the basketball team, but saw limited playing time and also suffered from major knee problems, missing all of the 1999–2000 season and playing only one game in 2000–01. He transferred to Notre Dame, playing there for one season.[1][9] He graduated from Notre Dame in 2002, majoring in business administration, and from Ohio University, receiving master's degrees in both business administration and sports administration. He completed his doctorate from the University of Mississippi in 2016.[2]

Administrative career

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Non-AD positions

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Prior to his first athletic director position, White was the senior associate athletic director at the University of Mississippi, worked on development (fundraising) at Fresno State, and worked as an administrator at other Mid-American Conference schools, Ohio University and Northern Illinois University.

University at Buffalo

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White's first athletic director position was for the Buffalo Bulls, where he was at the forefront of Buffalo's rebranding to become "New York's big time athletics department".[10][11][12] He initiated a long-term capital funding project to develop Buffalo's athletic facilities, notoriety, reputation, and stature to represent the State of New York.[13] During his time as Athletic Director, White restructured Buffalo's athletic department through its management and coaches. His most notable change was the replacement of Reggie Witherspoon for Bobby Hurley, a former 2-time NCAA champion with Duke University and son of star coach, Bob Hurley.[14]

White's coaching hires also included Lance Leipold and Nate Oats at Buffalo.

His coaching hires drew national attention from Andy Staples, citing him as the best AD in hiring [15]

His tenure at UB was a rousing success. [16]

University of Central Florida

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In November 2015, White was hired as the athletic director of the UCF Knights,[4] replacing interim AD George O'Leary (who replaced previous AD Todd Stansbury).[17] In the position, White also was the executive vice president for the University of Central Florida Athletics Association, the private non-profit corporation that is responsible for the administration and financial management of the UCF Knights athletic programs. As UCF's director of athletics, White oversaw the hiring of a new head football coach, Scott Frost, and was given responsibility of raising over $70 million in athletic facility construction and upgrades.[18] In addition to Frost's hiring, White's administration also oversaw the hiring of current men's basketball coach Johnny Dawkins,[19] baseball coach Greg Lovelady, and Frost's successor Josh Heupel.[20]

In 2016, he and South Florida Bulls AD Mark Harlan oversaw the creation of an official "War on I–4" competition series, rebranding the long-running unofficial rivalry between the two schools.[21][22]

UCF had a record 25-game win streak during White's tenure. Among the highlights in Orlando included...[23]

UCF football national championship claim

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See also: 2017 UCF Knights football team and UCF Knights football § National championships

White generated significant media attention, both positive and negative, for himself and UCF by declaring the 2017 UCF Knights football team national champions in a January 1, 2018, Twitter video published moments after their Peach Bowl victory over the Auburn Tigers,[24] reinforcing the claim the following day with national champions branding on UCF's verified accounts and plans to hold a Disney World parade, hang a national champions banner at Spectrum Stadium, and pay the assistant coaching staff bonuses for their performance.[25] The claim[a] came in response to UCF not being selected for the College Football Playoff despite an undefeated season and conference championship. The claim sparked debate over whether the College Football Playoff should be expanded to include teams such as UCF that are not in Power Five conferences.[29][30][31] Still, the supposed championship was celebrated with a Disney World parade, coaches' bonuses[32] and national champion rings.[33] Reactions to White's claim extended past the sports world to the Florida state legislature,[34] with Florida governor Rick Scott signing a resolution declaring UCF national champions on January 8, 2018.[35]

University of Tennessee

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On January 21, 2021, White was hired as athletic director at the University of Tennessee. One of his first acts as AD was to hire Josh Heupel away from UCF to become the Volunteers' new head football coach.[36]

Tennessee won its first SEC All-Sports Trophy in 2022.

Tennessee's success across the board earns honors for 2022-23 athletic season.[37]

The Vols captured their second SEC All-Sports Trophy in 2023.[38]

Off the field, Tennessee athletics eclipsed the 200M mark in revenue for the first time under White's leadership. [39] [40]

Dubbing UT as the "Everything school", White's broad-based approach has led to success across the board in Knoxville.[41]

The 2022-23 athletic year included the best finish in Tennessee history in the LEARFIELD Directors' Cup, as UT finished No. 6 nationally.[42]

Record fundraising has become the norm under White as well on Rocky Top.[43][44]

A new strategic plan was announced by White on Rocky Top as well with Rise Glorious.[45]

Tennessee led the SEC in football attendance in 2023.[46]

Notes

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  1. ^ The NCAA recognizes the Alabama Crimson Tide as the 2017 national champions, with the final AP and coaches polls ranking UCF no. 6 and no. 7, respectively. However, UCF was ranked no. 1 by the Colley Matrix, a selector of national champions. However, the NCAA does not officially recognize any other selector of national champions.[26][27][28]

The NCAA does recognize the Knights as a National Champion for 2017 per pg. 117 of the 2019 Official NCAA Record Book.[47]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Dellenger, Ross (January 21, 2021). "Danny White and the First Family of College Athletic Directors". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  2. ^ a b "DR. DANIEL J. WHITE". ucfknights.com. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  3. ^ "Daniel J. White Named University at Buffalo Director of Athletics". UB News Center (Press release). May 8, 2012. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  4. ^ a b Wolken, Dan (November 17, 2015). "Buffalo's Danny White to be new AD at UCF". USA Today. Retrieved November 17, 2015.
  5. ^ "Kevin White". Duke Blue Devils. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  6. ^ Bianchi, Mike (March 23, 2017). "High-flying White brothers having a Garden party for Gators, UCF hoops". Orlando Sentinel.
  7. ^ "Florida Atlantic hires Brian White as athletic director". The Washington Post. March 3, 2018.[dead link‍]
  8. ^ Schiffer, Alex (January 5, 2018). "The Missouri-Florida matchup is hard on this college sports family". The Kansas City Star.
  9. ^ "Danny White". Sports-Reference CBB. Retrieved January 21, 2021.
  10. ^ "Buffalo AD in 'NY State' of Mind". Niagara Gazette. July 4, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  11. ^ "UB or not UB, Part II". Buffalo News. May 25, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  12. ^ "UB Floors It". Buffalo News. May 29, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  13. ^ "Blue and White Fund". Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  14. ^ "Buffalo hires Bobby Hurley as coach". ESPN. Associated Press. March 27, 2013. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  15. ^ Staples, Andy. "The man with the 'Midas touch': How Danny White hired Leipold, Heupel, Frost". The Athletic. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  16. ^ "Danny White's Buffalo Highlights". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  17. ^ Whitley, David (October 12, 2015). "UCF's George O'Leary Resigns AD Job, but Is Still Football Coach". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 17, 2015.
  18. ^ "Staying on Offense: $70M Sports Projects" (Press release). University of Central Florida. July 14, 2013.
  19. ^ Glenn, Shannon (March 24, 2016). "Johnny Dawkins aims to make meaningful change at UCF". orlandosentinel.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  20. ^ "Hello Heupel - UCF". UCF Athletics (Press release). December 5, 2017. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  21. ^ "USF & UCF ESTABLISH "WAR ON I-4" RIVALRY SERIES". University of South Florida. September 21, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  22. ^ Seeley, Andy. "UCF, USF Debut Rivalry Series – UCFKnights.com | UCF Knights". ucfknights.com. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  23. ^ "Danny White's UCF Highlights". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  24. ^ "@UCFDannyWhite didn't stutter..." @UCFKnights. Twitter. January 1, 2018.
  25. ^ McPherson, Jordan (January 4, 2018). "Is Florida home to the college football champs? One school thinks so — and others agree". Miami Herald. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  26. ^ "2017 Rankings, Week 17". Colley Matrix. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  27. ^ "Football Bowl Subdivision Records" (PDF). NCAA. p. 109. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  28. ^ Seeley, Andy (January 10, 2018). "Knights Ranked No. 1 - UCF" (Press release). UCF Athletics. Archived from the original on March 22, 2018. Retrieved September 13, 2018.
  29. ^ Sparks, Matthew (January 7, 2018). "Knights' success should mark new day for CFP". The Daily Independent. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  30. ^ Gleeson, Scott (January 6, 2018). "Nick Saban, Kirby Smart both OK with UCF's national title claim". USA Today. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  31. ^ Adelson, Andrea (January 7, 2018). "UCF honors 'national championship' with parade at Walt Disney World". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  32. ^ "Unbeaten UCF celebrates self-proclaimed national title at Disney World". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. January 7, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2018.
  33. ^ Adelson, Andrea (April 21, 2018). "UCF AD sees promise fulfilled as Knights unveil championship banner". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 22, 2018.
  34. ^ Gillespie, Ryan (January 3, 2018). "UCF national champs? Florida lawmakers could declare it so". Orlando Sentinel.
  35. ^ Scott, Rick (January 8, 2018). "National Champion University of Central Florida Knights" (PDF). FLGov.com.
  36. ^ Lowe, Chris (January 27, 2021). "UCF's Josh Heupel named Tennessee Volunteers football coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 30, 2021.
  37. ^ "Best in College Sports: Tennessee's success across the board earns honors for 2022-23 athletic season". CBSSports.com. July 24, 2023. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  38. ^ "Tennessee repeats as SEC All-Sports champion. Here's the final tally". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  39. ^ Rexrode, Joe. "New data shows Tennessee's surge into top financial tier of college athletics". The Athletic. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  40. ^ "Tennessee athletics raked in record $200 million in revenue, led by football. Here's how". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  41. ^ Jarreau, Caleb (August 22, 2023). "How UT athletics director Danny White turned Tennessee into an 'everything school'". The Daily Beacon. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  42. ^ "Tennessee earns its best finish in Directors' Cup". Knoxville News Sentinel. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  43. ^ "Vol Nation Propels Tennessee Fund to Record Fundraising Year". thesportsledger.com. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  44. ^ "Back-to-Back Record-Setting Fundraising Years for Tennessee Athletics and the Tennessee Fund". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  45. ^ Ray, Matt (July 7, 2022). "Tennessee Announces 'Rise Glorious' Strategic Athletic Plan". Sports Illustrated Tennessee Volunteers News, Analysis and More. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  46. ^ Ramey, Grant (December 1, 2023). "Tennessee led the Southeastern Conference in average attendance this season". On3. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  47. ^ "Football Bowl Subdivision Records" (PDF). Retrieved June 22, 2024.
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