What does Crouthamel’s departure mean for the future of Orange Football? Talk about it on The Daily Orange Football Forum

The announcement was so unlike every other from Jake Crouthamel. Not just because of the message – that he would resign as the director of athletics at Syracuse, effective June 30, 2005 – but because of the nature of his speech.

It was fitting that perhaps his last public address as athletic director seemed to be his most genuine, sprinkled with humor, self-deprecation and candidness not normally seen from the stoic athletic director.

Crouthamel, the director of athletics at Syracuse since 1978, announced his retirement yesterday in a packed cafeteria at the Iocolano-Petty Football Complex. The room was lined with media organizations as well as Syracuse coaches and members of the athletic department, many of whom clapped boisterously as their boss took the podium and shed tears as he walked out of the room.

‘From a small-town boy from Perkasie, Pa.,’ Crouthamel said, ‘this is rather overwhelming, and I must say, embarrassing.

‘I have spent the last 40-plus years on a college campus, and it is going to be difficult to leave that environment. I will continue to go to football games on Saturdays and basketball games near Cape Cod. That is what I do – it is my life.’

The university did not announce a successor. A committee has been assembled to search for a replacement, said SU Chancellor and President Nancy Cantor. She said she hopes to have a new athletic director in place as soon as possible to ease the transition after June 30.

‘I can’t imagine that we’re going to be able to replace Jake,’ said Syracuse women’s lacrosse head coach Lisa Miller with tears streaming down her face. ‘I know we’re going to be able to replace the position. But to replace him? It’s not going to happen.’

During his 20-minute speech, Crouthamel said he planned his retirement two years ago, but despite the forewarning, the announcement was still a shock to his co-workers. A memo circulated around the athletic department on Tuesday calling for a meeting between Crouthamel, his senior staff and all the SU coaches. The meeting, at which Crouthamel informed his staff of his decision, took place yesterday morning at Manley Field House.

Soon after the first meeting, Crouthamel called a meeting with the entire athletic department, where he announced his retirement to his staff in the auditorium at the football complex. After the meeting, which ended in a thunderous applause, the coaches and staff streamed into the press conference.

‘We knew it was coming, and it was just a matter of when,’ said SU men’s lacrosse head coach John Desko. ‘Now it’s here.’

The 66-year-old Crouthamel will leave an indelible legacy at Syracuse when he steps away in June. He’s credited as one of the founders of the Big East Conference. Under his leadership, Syracuse has won a men’s basketball national championship, nine men’s lacrosse championships and 22 Big East Conference championships. SU has also participated in 14 football bowl games.

But his tenure has been soured by the Big East-Atlantic Coast Conference dealings in 2003 and the recently mediocre performance of the SU football team. Crouthamel insisted he made his decision two years ago, and the recent struggles didn’t play into his decision.

There’s much controversy about the state of the football team, particularly the job status of football head coach Paul Pasqualoni. Cantor insisted that the football program would be evaluated after its season-ending game at Boston College on Nov. 27.

‘I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish,’ Crouthamel said, ‘but with the understanding that we could have done more. As I have said before, we are not finished yet.’

Crouthamel said that once a replacement is hired, he will still be involved in department decisions, specifically in regards to the football program. Once his successor is named, Crouthamel will assume an advisory position within the department until his formal retirement in June.

‘While people may want to focus on the last couple years,’ said Rob Edson, associate director of athletics, ‘they ought to remember all the great things that he’s done here.’

Before he was hired in 1978, Crouthamel was a football star at Dartmouth. After his playing days for the Big Green, Crouthamel was the first player signed by the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys in 1960. He was cut during training camp and moved into coaching.

Crouthamel bounced around the football coaching ranks, from Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy to Dartmouth. He became head coach of his alma mater in 1971. He spent seven seasons as the head coach of Dartmouth, going 41-20-2, before being hired as the director of athletics at Syracuse.

In 1979, Crouthamel, along with St. John’s John Kaiser, Georgetown’s Frank Rienzo and Providence’s Dave Gavitt, helped establish the Big East basketball conference. The conference grew to include all sports.

He oversaw the construction of the Carrier Dome in 1980 and later the football wing in 1991, as well as other athletic facilities. During his tenure, Crouthamel’s been involved in many national issues, including sitting on the men’s NCAA Tournament Basketball Selection Committee and chairing the NCAA Football Issues Committee.

‘Jake is a giant in the business,’ Big East Commissioner Michael Tranghese said. ‘People in Syracuse don’t understand what he means to college athletics all over the country. I don’t know that I have the words to describe him. He is one of our founding fathers. Jake has been part of every major decision over the last 26 years.’

After his official retirement, Crouthamel said he and his wife Carol will live in Hyannis, Mass., off Cape Cod. He has two daughters, Christine and Lisa. He’ll leave behind a university that has seen only eight athletic directors in its 134-year existence.

‘He is so humble,’ said Associate Director of Athletics Janet Kittell, wiping away tears. ‘Nobody could have done what he did. He’s such a man of integrity. It’s a pleasure.’

What does Crouthamel’s departure mean for the future of Orange Football? Talk about it on The Daily Orange Football Forum