A Conversation with TL

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A CONVERSATION WITH Director of Athletics, Tim Leonard and SID Emeritus, Pete Schlehr

Pete Schlehr served as the Tigers' media relations director for 36 years before retiring in 2010—three years before Tim Leonard assumed command of the department in 2013. The opportunity to meet for an extended conversation finally came about recently, and the two were able to talk briefly about Tim's vision for the Tigers and Towson University Athletics. PS - Why is it so important to become Greater Baltimore's premier collegiate athletics brand? TL - We're the second largest institution in the state of Maryland, but we've never had a consistent fan base, preventing us from media attention, fund-raised dollars, corporate sponsorships - all of those things that we want. Everything we do has to be geared toward how we separate ourselves from everybody else in this market. It's not going to be easy because if it was easy, it would have been done by now. But we don't have to get 50,000 fans. We need 5,500 in SECU Arena and 11,000 in Unitas Stadium. That's the good news about all this. We're never going to be bigger than the University of Maryland. I get that. But we don't have to try to be as big as Maryland; remember, 5,500 and 11,000 - that's it. We do that we'll accomplish everything we want to accomplish – more media attention, generate more revenue, people talking about us and if the landscape changes, we're in a good position. PS - Towson is in its 17th year as a member of the Colonial Athletic Association. How close to the top are the Tigers at this point? TL - In my mind I think we're among the top three athletic programs in the CAA. That's obviously a biased opinion. But as I travel around, I see the facilities and resources of these other universities and I think we've come a long way, particularly on the facilities and coaching fronts. It takes a long time, particularly for a state university, to get the resources and the commitment that is needed. Pat Skerry has won more conference regular season games in the last five-six years than anybody else in the league. Now what we need to do is to get to the NCAA Tournament. But it's not easy and we were so far behind everybody else when Pat first got here. We were literally the worst team in the league. So we're headed in the right direction. Men's and women's lacrosse are the cream of the crop right now in this league. In football, we've shown that we can get there. PS - Facilities are key not only for attracting student-athletes but also prominently factor in when considering spectator interest and connecting with the fan base. We've come a long way from the bleachers at Burdick Field, Burdick Hall and even the Towson Center. Are Towson's facilities today a positive answer to those needs? TL - We have one of the better setups in the league, particularly in the court sports. We're in good shape from both a spectator venue to all of the support areas – lockerooms, sports medicine, strength and conditioning, coaches' offices – we're in good shape. Football needs some upgrades. Our stadium is good except for practice facilities. But from a spectator's standpoint what we really haven't done a good job with, and what we have to focus on, is our premium opportunities such as club seats and covered areas where fans can enjoy various amenities to where it's a much more comfortable experience than just sitting out in the stands. We started this past season to address this. We fixed up the terrace and the Green Turtle area in the end zone where the general fan can go. They can purchase beer and food that is different from what they get at the stadium concession stands. We need a lot more of that in Unitas Stadium. PS – The Tiger Club was formed in the mid-seventies and relied on a volunteer board of civic-minded people to bring in fund-raised dollars. It eventually morphed into the Tiger Athletic Fund. How goes the fundraising? TL - When I first got here, it just seemed like we were doing a lot of hand-to-mouth fundraising. If we needed something we'd have to go out and ask somebody for it: we'd be low on athletic tape, we needed championship rings, we need this, we need that. We were hitting somebody up three, four times a year. What we're trying to do now is to have an honest-to-goodness annual fund for athletics so that our donors understand we'll ask once a year. We also want to maximize those gifts. Ideally we'd like them coming in unrestricted so we can put those dollars into our overall operating budget. We're starting to see that but we have a long way to go until people understand the cycle. Our development team, the Tiger Athletic Fund, is staffed full-time and make a very positive difference for us. PS - What would you say to someone who has never experienced a Tiger Game Day? TL - We're constantly trying to make the game day a better experience for all of our fans. What we provide is the collegiate atmosphere. Again, Unitas Stadium is a great place to watch a game. We've got a tremendous setup for tailgating. SECU Arena is such a great environment, it's hard to beat from a spectator's standpoint. We have to put a good product on the court and on the field, and I think we've done that. We've got a football team that has played for a national championship. Our lacrosse teams are in the NCAA tournaments practically every year. Our court teams – basketball, volleyball and gymnastics, are very competitive especially at home. If you want that collegiate experience you don't have to drive to College Park. And if you want the best college experience in Baltimore, come to Towson.