Athletic director at UNM to step down as scandal grows
Krebs’ 11 years on the job marked the fourthlongest tenure for an athletic director in the school’s history, following only Roy Johnson, Pete McDavid and Rudy Davalos.
Given all the distractions we’ve had recently, it became apparent that it was time to leave. I think we both recognized the distractions had become an issue.” Paul Krebs, athletic director of The University of New Mexico
UALBUQUERQUE niversity of New Mexico athletic director Paul Krebs said Friday that he will step down at the end of the month, ending an 11-year tenure amid growing controversy over revelations that the department spent public money on a $65,000 international golf trip that included himself and school boosters.
Both the State Auditor’s Office and Attorney General’s Office have announced they are investigating the athletic department’s spending. Krebs submitted his letter of resignation to acting UNM President Chaouki Abdallah on Thursday.
Krebs initially said more than $39,000 for the Scotland golf trip was spent on himself, then-head basketball coach Craig Neal and Lobo Club Executive Director Kole McKamey.
It was later learned that the department also spent about $24,000 to pay for three boosters’ trips on the junket, an action that may have violated the state constitution’s anti-donation clause. Krebs said in a statement after the spending was first revealed by KRQE-TV that the school had expected to be reimbursed by donors for travel, but a review of documents showed that never happened.
Krebs also came under fire in recent months for other questionable decisions but was not publicly admonished by the school. He said his decision to step down was a mutual agreement between himself and the school, and that it came after months of discussions between he and Abdallah.
“We have been in discussions almost a year, but I stayed on to help with the transition to the next administration,” Krebs said in an interview Friday. “Given all the distractions we’ve had recently, it became apparent that it was time to leave. I think we both recognized the distractions had become an issue.”
Abdallah, in a statement, thanked Krebs for his “outstanding leadership of UNM athletics. His tenure will go down as the most productive and successful in school history.”
Krebs’ resignation follows a messy dismissal of the men’s basketball coach in late March, one that required the school to shell out $1 million over the next two years to buy out the remainder of the coach’s contract. It further stresses an already tight athletic budget that has failed to meet annual projections in eight of the previous 10 years.
Krebs became UNM’s 12th athletic director in 2006 and has overseen extensive improvements to the university’s sports infrastructure, namely a $60 million renovation to The Pit as well as complete overhauls to several facilities, such as baseball, softball and tennis.
Krebs also guided the athletic department to unprecedented suc-
cess: UNM won 64 conference titles, and the women’s cross country team won an NCAA title in 2015. But the high-profile men’s basketball program struggled over the last four years and endured a protracted negotiation with Neal before he was let go March 31.
The football program also endured a three-year stretch in which it went 3-33 under former coach Mike Locksley before hiring Bob Davie in 2011, who turned the program around and guided the Lobos to consecutive bowl appearances the past two seasons.
For whatever success or struggles Lobos teams endured on the field, however, the department’s finances were a continual source of consternation, producing deficits in eight of the past 10 years to the tune of more than $4 million. The men’s basketball program also dealt with the misuse of purchase cards by then-director of basketball operations Cody Hopkins, as a UNM internal audit claimed he embezzled $63,000 from the program during the 2015-16 season.
Krebs also has been publicly criticized for bad hires, such as Locksley, Neal and women’s basketball head coach Yvonne Sanchez. Attendance dipped to an all-time low for men’s basketball under Neal, a big reason Krebs approved his firing in March.
“I think if you look at the history of the [basketball] program since I’ve been here, there are going to be ups and downs,” Krebs said. “There’s no question we’ve scuffled the last few years with the program, but fans have reason to be optimistic. If you look at the men’s basketball program in general, I think it’s in excellent shape.”
The disappointment of the men’s basketball team, coupled with diminished returns at the ticket booth for football and men’s and women’s basketball, led to a financial shortfall and failure to meet annual projections for the athletic budget.
Krebs attempted to cut costs this spring by eliminating the skiing program, a move that backfired in a matter of weeks when the school’s board of regents voted to reinstate it on a limited basis. The ski team has produced one of the school’s two national championships, and it has consistently been one of UNM’s top athletic programs.
Krebs said his biggest regret will be leaving the school before realizing a master plan he set in motion shortly after his arrival 11 years ago. He crafted a 20-year strategic goal of transforming the athletic facilities into the modern age, one that saw The Pit’s drastic upgrade, as well as improvements to every part of the infrastructure on the South Campus.
The football stadium was improved with a jumbo replay board, a new turf field, renovated coaches’ offices and a new public address system.
What remains of that original vision, he said, are two projects he can only hope will continue to move forward under his successor. One was an Olympic sports weight room that’s already on the drawing board. The other would bring aesthetic improvements to University Stadium.
“It was my goal to further enhance the fan experience, not necessarily through expansion of seating but by improving the conditions for the fans,” Krebs said.
By that, he meant expanded walkways, handrails, chairback seating and an overhaul of the press box. In other words, increasing the curb appeal of a stadium whose appearance hasn’t changed much in 50 years of service.
“We’re competing with 60-inch TVs, high-def and the comfort of a fan’s living room,” he said. “We need to give people a reason to be here.”
When the dust settles and the memories of his tumultuous final days with UNM begin to fade, Krebs said, he hopes fans remember his time as a period of unprecedented growth and achievement, not scandal and financial woes.
“I can’t speak to how people will remember me, but I can say I am proudest of the significant improvement of our student-athletes’ graduation rates,” he said.
Krebs noted in his resignation letter to Abdallah that the athletic department’s graduation rates were the highest in its history under his watch, numbers that were significantly higher than the overall student body. There were 43 academic All-Americans in that time, and the entire department’s cumulative grade-point average was 3.0 or better in 27 of the last 28 semesters.
The fundraising arm of the school, the UNM Foundation, raised $98 million the last 10 years, or an average of $26,850 per day for an entire decade. The foundation’s totals exceeded $13 million in the last year.
Krebs’ 11 years on the job marked the fourth-longest tenure for an athletic director in the school’s history, following only Roy Johnson (29 years), Pete McDavid (18) and Rudy Davalos (14).
A native of Canfield, Ohio, Krebs received an undergraduate degree from Bowling Green State University and a master’s from Ohio State University. He later served both schools as an athletic administrator before coming to UNM in 2006.
He didn’t say if he would return to the Midwest once his time is up.
“I love New Mexico, and my family has made great friends here,” he said. “I can’t sit here and say we’ll stay here indefinitely or go somewhere else. For the time being, I’m here and I’ll support the Lobos in any way I can.” Tripp Stelnicki and James Barron of
The New Mexican contributed to this report.