Garrett Klassy probably had the last days of June and opening days of July circled on the calendar as some of the most consequential, certainly of his two years at the University of Nebraska and perhaps of his 20-plus in athletics administration so far.
And that was long before he knew he’d be named interim athletic director in the wake of Bill Moos’ sudden departure from the school’s top post.
Klassy has been involved in some way, shape or form in most of the athletic department’s big undertakings since Moos hired him in July 2019 as a senior deputy athletic director in charge of external operations, but two of the biggest were the school’s preparations for athletes to be able to profit off of their own name, image and likeness, and the transition from a longstanding partnership with Learfield/IMG to a fully in-house media rights operation.
People are also reading…
The go-live date on both: July 1.
Then, Moos’ retirement — one that came with a nearly $3 million buyout agreement — was announced June 25, and July 1 also became the day Klassy technically assumed the interim AD title as well.
“I would say this is definitely the busiest week of my professional career,†Klassy told the Journal Star last week. “Launching the Husker Radio Network, NIL launching and adding some additional responsibilities, it’s busy. But you know what? I love a great challenge and we have a great staff. It’s not just Garrett Klassy being busy, it’s the whole department.â€
The 44-year-old was a logical pick to serve as the interim by UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green because he already had substantial management of the department’s day-to-day operations under Moos. Klassy and John Johnson, the deputy AD for administration, were hired by Moos as part of his departmental restructure and Moos was fond of saying he preferred a department akin to a restaurant kitchen that could run even when the chef was not present.
For Klassy, that means overseeing the big swath encompassed by external operations — from ticketing to marketing and HuskerVision, the Husker Athletic Fund and more — and he also had a hand in devising NU’s policies around COVID-19 and returning athletes to campus last year after the coronavirus pandemic sent everybody home for much of the spring and summer.
All of which leads to a relatively simple question: Is Klassy more than an interim? Is he the long-term answer Green and the university’s search committee are looking across the country for? Klassy wasn’t willing to discuss that possibility, but at the very least, his interim tag is different from in 2017 when Husker great Dave Rimington relocated from New York and held the position almost ceremonially for a few weeks while the search for Shawn Eichorst's replacement made its way to Moos.
Intentional or not, Klassy’s stint as the interim at such a busy moment on the calendar looks like a test drive for the big job.
“He would have my most confidence, but it’s not my call,†said University of Illinois-Chicago Chancellor Michael Amiridis, who hired Klassy to be the Flames’ athletic director in 2017. “I know Nebraska’s chancellor very well and I suspect (Klassy) is trusted at Nebraska as well. He’s been trusted with the interim position, and that’s an important position.
“He was a great catch for us, and the fact that Nebraska stole him from us proves it. His experience was needed and he had the skills and the personality to be an excellent athletic director.â€
There are differences, of course, between a school like UIC and Nebraska. UIC’s athletics budget is in the $20 million neighborhood. In fiscal 2020, NU had $133.6 million in revenue. Nebraska might have long-term coaching options in place in football and men’s basketball with Scott Frost and Fred Hoiberg, though neither has won enough to say that with too much comfort at this stage.
“There is a difference, no question about it, but at the same time, I think some of the issues dealing with personnel are the same,†Amiridis said. “Some of the issues he faced with the administration, the Chancellor, the board of trustees, the alumni are the same. The scale is different.â€
Then there’s fundraising. Klassy has oversight on the Husker Athletic Foundation, but credit for the actual money raised toward the $100 million campaign NU’s new football training facility mostly goes to associate AD for football Matt Davison and former NU president Hank Bounds.
Pat Kilkenny, a high-profile Oregon booster and one-time athletic director at UO, knows well that fundraising is a big part of the job. He at one point wondered if Klassy, a New Glarus, Wisconsin, native who grew up on a dairy farm, had those kind of chops.
“I never really thought about Garrett a lot as that fundraiser because the skill set, at least traditionally, was somebody that was a quick closer,†he said. “But when I spent a fair amount of time talking to him about what his approach is, it’s the right way to do it. It just requires a little more patience. … Everybody’s style is different and Garrett is from the Upper Midwest, he’s more relationship-driven. I don’t think he’s going to have early successes, I just think he’s going to have a lot of successes given time and opportunity because he’s a high-character guy that resonates with people that are thoughtful.
“He does make those investments in time, which is really hard. It’s much easier to just go do an ask immediately and then move on, but I’m going to guess that two, three, four, five times he’ll meet with people and then ask. There’s no doubt that that serves itself better for secondary gifts, too.â€
Kilkenny has known Klassy and Moos both for more than a decade, dating to their days at Oregon. Kilkenny, in fact, reportedly paid most of Moos’ buyout as athletic director and then briefly served as his successor. He had particular praise for Moos’ decision to bring Nebraska’s media rights operation in-house and for Klassy’s job overseeing the project. He made the same move more than a decade ago in Eugene, but undid the work when he left the position because, he says, university leadership wanted the steady guarantee payment from a third party.
“I don’t think people that work in that business are wired to deal with risk or change and he clearly is,†Kilkenny said of Klassy. “He actually seems to embrace it.â€
Klassy’s seen a lot of change in his own career. He’s been at Tulane (2000-01), Alabama (2001-05), Oregon (2005-13), George Washington (2013-17) and then UIC before stepping out of the top spot to get high-level administrative experience at a Power Five school.
“Garrett’s ambitious, he’s a student of the game and he’s been willing to take on those growth opportunities,†Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said. “Sometimes that’s difficult. That means moving, that means going to different levels to prepare yourself for this opportunity. Obviously I have a tremendous amount of respect for somebody that’s willing to take the risk, at times, to go learn and help build things at other places.
“Then, also someone who’s aggressive enough to look for the next growth opportunity when it presents itself.â€
Whether the next growth opportunity means a move down the hallway on the third floor at Memorial Stadium remains to be seen, but Kilkenny says Klassy is ready, not despite all the change in college athletics with the dawn of the NIL era, increasing transfer rates, potential College Football Playoff expansion and more all happening at once, but rather because of it.Â
“Garrett is uniquely qualified to do the job,†he said. “Timing is everything in life and I think his time has come to do something special. Most of the guys my age that grew up in the business, they’re not going to deal with (all the change) very well. They’re not going to like it, but you have to embrace it. It sucks, but it’s a new paradigm and if you want to succeed, you have to pivot.
“It’s funny, for someone who grew up on a dairy farm, you wouldn’t think that would necessarily be their nature, but it is his. … He’s very comfortable with it.â€
What Husker fans are saying about Bill Moos' retirement
Great - all we need is more drama right now. Can we just play ball already???
— Mark Winter (@markoGpolo)
— Rob Rocarek (@RobRocarek)
— R. Scott Clark (@RScottClark)
Bad call. Something fishy is up
— Joel Poppe (@nefb24)
Uhhhhhh what?
— Greg (@GNiss50)
Nebraska announcing the Bill Moos firing.
— Zach ACE CPT, ISSA CPT, PN1, CF-OL1 (@ZSJRE5)
Me:
I have no idea what to make of Bill Moos being out as AD.
— Erik Burkhart (@HuskerInsanity)
This is going to get mixed reviews but I loved Bill Moos and what he’s done in his time here. I am genuinely disheartened to see his time at Nebraska come to an end so abruptly.
— Cornhusker Cole (@CornhuskerCole)
It does seem weird. But since it's a "retirement" I'm assuming if there are other reasons they will not be public. I shouldn't speculate on here, I respect Moos for what he's done at Nebraska and I trust Carter and Green to hire a good replacement.
— Josh Fischer (@jdfisch6)
Welp there’s gotta be like a zero percent chance moos is just suddenly retiring for no particular reason right? Like we might not find out about it outside of rumors in typical Nebraska athletics fashion but there’s gotta be literally no way he’s just retiring out of the blue
— millennial falcon (@CassidayErrday)
Oh, Moos retired? Effective immediately? Cool. Cool.
— HuskGuys (@HuskGuys)
For all that’s on Twitter right now, I will say that I’m thankful for Bill Moos, what he represented, and what he accomplished at Nebraska. I’ll withhold judgment and believe the best.
— James Pruch (@jamespruch)
Oh and I’m not owed an explanation for ppl’s personal decisions. I’m not that important.
I have been a husker fan ever since Bob Devany came to Nebraska. I have always liked Bill Moos and think he did a great job at Nebraska. I wish him and his family nothing but the very best for the rest of their lives.
— James Dean Aten (@JamesDeanAten)
Bill Moos has been a supporter of our cause from the time he got to Nebraska. We are truly grateful for his help in the fight. Mr. Moos, we wish you the best in your retirement and thank you for your support of Team Jack. (Photo from the 2018 Team Jack Foundation Gala)
— Team Jack (@TeamJack)
I have thoughts about Bill Moos' departure from Nebraska, those thoughts will follow:
— Matt Burnell (@mdburnell)
It's fine.
End of transmission.