6
Tuesday, October 16, 1973
University Daily Kansan
Walker Goes First Class
KU Athletic Director Clyde Walker Recalls Football-Playing Days
By JIM KENDELL Kansas Staff Reporter
"I think when you're involved in any type of job, you're certainly looking to get to the job."
Getting to the top is important for Walker, the new athletic director at the University of Oklahoma.
He often says that KU is a first class University and that it needs a first class athletic program to match the stature of the University.
His appointment 10月 mect a step up for him, from his old job as assistant athletic director at the University of North Carolina.
The past three months have given him time to look over the program and prepare it for release.
Walker faces two serious problems. The department is saddled with an operating deficit of over $250,000 and its facilities badly need overhauling.
HIS DAYS AND NIGHTS and weekends are filled with those problems. Athletics "is really taking up all my life," he says, and it's been that wav for wav some time.
He was a star player on his high school football, basketball and baseball teams. Of course that wasn't very hard in his high school days. He graduated with 30 students graduated with him in 1947.
"That's about all there was to do," he says. "From that point I never really considered doing anything else or even wanted to do anything else."
High school sports was his first exposure to organized athletics.
So college meant playing more football, basketball and baseball and afterwards, 16 years of coaching high school football in North Carolina.
His football teams did well: 113-38-9 in 1966 he was named North Carolina's high school coach of the year. So, it was time to move on.
IN 1967 HE became the head football recruiter for the University of North Carolina and administrative assistant to the athletic director. He also was the school's assistant athletic director.
His new job at KU is keeping him busy, and he expects it to keep him busy for quite
"Really, there aren't enough hours in the dav." he says.
Friday morning he checked with his staff to make sure everything was in order for the homecoming game Saturday with his team. He also visited his office and the stadium.
He attended a meeting with the chancellor and other executive staff members in the afternoon and caught a few minutes of the freshman football game.
That evening he attended an alumni meeting in Kansas City and Saturday morning an Endowment Association meeting.
HIS SCHEDULE doesn't let up. Even on Sunday.
He enjoys tennis and golf, but says, "I haven't had any time for any of that, and it
doesn't look as if I'm going to have time for a while."
He lives quite close to Alvamar Hills Golf Course, but he isn't even sure what hole he likes.
Walker's entire family is sports-minded. Cody Jr. is a freshman at Florida State University.
Both Ginger, a senior at the University of North Carolina, and Kim, a junior at the University of Florida, will graduate.
Walker's wife, Ruby, never misses a football game and she accompanies him to
One of the athletic department's major problems at the moment is financial—a debt accumulated over the past three years, before Walker began his administration.
To put the athletic program on an even keel financial, Walker aims to collect the amount of money necessary each year to pay for the athletic scholarship program.
THAT'S NO SMALL sum~$46,110 to pay for scholarships for 220 athletes, their rooms in Jayhawker Towers and their meals at the training table.
He's looking to three sources for the money; the state legislature, donations and fundraising.
Most of his time is going to secure greater donations to the athletic program—speaking to supporters and asking for more money and asking other people to become
we isn't interested in cutting back the program and justifies expenditures like tutoring, which often appear questionable to students.
The department invests lots of money recruiting athletes, Walker says, and can't afford to lose them when they flunk out of school. The government gets tutors for the athletes need them.
"I would assume that many, many students on this campus have tutors. The difference is that we pay for them," Walker says.
WALKER'S OTHER MAJOR problem is that the field house and stadium need overhauling. He's pleased with the basic structures, but not with what he finds in
At the field house the roof leaks, the building looks shabby from the outside, the lighting is bad, and cleaning, painting a floor and more restrooms are needed.
At the stadium the roof of the press box leaks, the dressing rooms are in bad condition, the sewer doesn't work well and the seats need upgrading.
Still, by painting the concession stands, cleaning the rest rooms and some general cleaning and painting, Walker says, "I'll just give great strides in what little time we could."
recruit first-class player," Walker says. On his right hand Walker wears a large gold ring with a green stone, an Atlantic Coast Conference championship football
Above: Clyde Walker, new KU athletic director, watches the jachawks beat the Minnesota Golden Golphers, 34-19. Left and below: Wilkinson watches a film of the KU Tennessee game at a quarterback Club meeting in Allen Field House annex. The Vols won 28-27. Right: Walker sits with his wife, Ruby, and daughter, Kim, a junior at Florida State University. He is also a freshman at Florida State University in Tallahassee, and his daughter, Ginger, is a senior at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
"I'm going to wear it," he says, "until I can replace it with a Big Eight champion."
K
Alat becam reign yester drope 11th Califo
The yester Monday for Sa in Lin