Eric Kaler
- In many ways, Mark is coming home. Worked at the U before. He's from Waterloo and wife is from Cedar Rapids.
- He has strong, diverse, and demonstrated experience. He's worked in programs that have had success on and off the playing field.
- I have very high experience for Mark. He is a proven talent and we are investing in him.
- It's been a tough week for the men's basketball program and we're disappointed in the off-the-court issues that have occurred. I trust Mark's judgement and leadership.
- Mark brings an easy-going and accessible personality that we wanted.
- I'm confident Mark will energize our effort, and we will hit our fundraising goals.
- Our goal is to make the athletics department a net contributor to the University financially.
- Thankful for Beth Goetz. She's been an incredible partner and know she has a bright, bright future. We're glad to have her with us.
- Gopher athletics is a touchpoint for many, many Minnesotans.
- With Athletes Village, we won't have many excuses. It's realistic and expected that we start to compete for Big Ten West titles in football and Big Ten titles in basketball.
- It's my hope that Beth will stay. She has an incredibly bright future in front of her.
- It was very important to bring on board an experienced power five AD. It is a challenging time right now for Gophers. We've had such success in the non-revenue sports. We've been successful in a couple of the revenue sports, but not enough. The icing on the cake is the wonderful person that Mark is.
- In the past, we've been in the lower level of competition for Big Ten athletic directors, but Mark is in a different class and will be compensated as such.
- We actually met very, very briefly at the NCAA convention in January. I was aware of his connection to Minnesota.
- *Recognizes family first* Can't tell you how excited we are to be back near the family.
- I want to give my thanks to Beth, and I appreciate everything she did, and I look forward to working with her in the future.
- I regret the timing with Syracuse. They're a first-class institution. I hope they know how much they did for me and my time at my time at Syracuse.
- Why Minnesota? I've been in this for a long time, and we love this place.
- I remember when Gracie turned 3 and Goldie came over.
- This is a special place, and I can't wait to work here.
- Our top priority is our students.
- A big part of my job is to develop relationships. I need to be transparent and provide stability that we need.
- On hoops program: I think it's my job to create accountability. I look forward to creating that culture for all of our programs.
- I was very happy at Syracuse and had a wonderful Chancellor there. Turnkey (the search firm) reached out and we went from there.
- Realistic goals for basketball/football: All the pieces to the puzzle are here, and we need to talk about it. Our expectations are to compete at a high level. We have the wow factor.
- I had a great meeting with Beth this afternoon, and I hope she stays.
- It's important to develop genuine relationships. (Boosters) are invested in the program, and you need to be invested in them.
- I'm forever grateful to Joel and his wife. He provided me with unbelievable opportunities to learn and grow. When I left the University of Minnesota, it was one of the hardest things I did. He is one of the people I respect most.
- These are very visible jobs. I've learned to not lose sight of what's important, and that's the students.
- We will be very visible. My kids will tell you that I attend a record-setting amount of sports events. I remember going to Mariucci and I love the atmosphere at Mariucci. I want to be around our fans and supports and make sure they know how appreciative I am of their support.
- We have a great fanbase here, and we have to continue to earn their respect. I get the Vikings, and the Wild, and that's awesome. If we do it the right way, people will want to be a part of what we're doing -- there's no doubt in my mind.
- When I was at Boise State, I had the opportunity to go through the coaching search process and learned a lot from it. Didn't use a search firm for either.
- Not going to dial in on the basketball program. I look forward to meeting with the coaches and players and figuring out how we can improve.
- There was one place I was going to leave Syracuse for, and it was Minnesota.
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