The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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22 ■ THE WOLFPACKER BY MATT CARTER N C State finished No. 27 in the Learfield Sports Directors' Cup standings released June 25, mark- ing a new standard for Wolfpack sports. NC State's previous best-ever fin- ish in the competition was 32nd in 1995. The Directors' Cup is a competition that measures the overall competitive success of collegiate athletic departments. At the end of a successful campaign on and off the field, NC State director of ath- letics Debbie Yow sat down with The Wolf- packer, and here is that Q&A. In your Wolfpack Unlimited strate- gic plan, released in July 2012, the goal this year was to be 45th or better in the Learfield Cup Standings and 25th or better in 2017. You are close to being there. "Two years ago we finished 34th, and then the next year we dropped back down to 41st. The fact of the matter is that once we are competing at this level, we are com- peting against schools with amazing re- sources, talented coaches and good ADs. It gets harder and harder. "I actually set the bar at top 25 in June of 2010 — we just didn't get the strategic plan together until 2012. It would have been easier to say top 25 public universities and any variation, but we said top 25, including all the privates that have all the money and all the publics. "I still think it's doable, and once we ever reach it then the next step will be how consistent we can become in doing that." How do you maintain that success? "The how you maintain it doesn't change from how you do it the first time. You have to have the right coaches in the right leadership roles. Everything rolls back from them in terms of whom they hire as assistant coaches and whom they recruit as student-athletes, neither of which administrators can do. "What we have to do as administrators is hire the right coaches, and retain and sup- port the ones that are very talented, some of which had already been here when I came back home. NC State is on track to achieve Yow's goal to become a top-25 athletic department year in and year out, after finishing 27th in the 2014-15 Director's Cup. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE MEDIA RELATIONS SucceSSful campaign Athletic Director Debbie Yow Discusses A Memorable Year In Wolfpack Athletics, On And Off The Field