New Ball State AD Jeff Mitchell talks facility upgrades, transfer portal, NIL, fans & more

MUNCIE, Ind. — Now more than a month into his new job as Ball State director of athletics, Jeff Mitchell has been busy.

While he's still in the beginning stages of developing plans and strategies to improve Cardinals athletics, Mitchell sat down with The Star Press to discuss what he's learned so far and some goals for the future.

Here's a 1-on-1 conversation with BSU's new sports leader:

NOTE: Questions and answers have been edited for length and clarity.

More: 'We're going to thrive': Jeff Mitchell introduced as new Ball State Athletics Director

You had about a month-long orientation before officially taking over athletic director duties on March 20. What was that process like? What have you determined in your evaluation of Ball State Athletics?

"The first several weeks after I was announced, I was really focused on finishing up my responsibilities at Southern Miss. I was beginning to engage in phone calls and meetings with our staff, with some donors, so I was really doing two jobs at once. And then as I transitioned to being up here, obviously, it was full on Ball State.

"Once I got here, it has been since I've started a pure evaluation of our operations. My task now is to organize our staff to better serve our student athletes and our coaches. That's one of the primary focuses right now is just organizational health and development. So that's what I've been focused on in addition to meeting constituents, both on campus and off campus. I had several donor meetings and phone calls and (have been) attending games and meeting with other staff on campus."

Have you set or proposed any plans of action yet? Anything on the horizon you want to work on?

"With regard to staff, our biggest need, what I've discovered, is depth. In a sports team, you win with depth, and it's the same thing in healthy organizations. So I've got a couple of ideas that I'm working on to create some depth, to add some personnel within the department to help us be more effective and efficient in what we're trying to do ... I have pitched the proposal to the president's office just to gain his support. I don't necessarily have to do that. It's just that that's part of my collaborative style, though, is to share what I'm thinking.

"As it pertains to other areas, we're looking at everything from our operating budgets to financial aid to our sports-specific marketing budgets, trying to figure out what we want to do going into the next academic year. We're wrapping up a current fiscal year now and budget planning for next fiscal year."

More: Jeff Mitchell announced as new Ball State athletic director

Speaking of marketing, multiple people have expressed a desire for more fan connection or athletics promotion. BSU Football and men’s basketball averaged about half capacity at their respective venues in the last year. Football has been one of the lowest-drawing FBS teams for several years and has not met the minimum-fan attendance requirement to stay in the division. Men's basketball head coach Michael Lewis had to offer free student vouchers to generate buzz. Southern Mississippi drew better-by-comparison crowds during your tenure there in all of the major sports. Are there any tactics, either from previous experiences or new ones, that you plan to employ to get more fans at games?

"Yes. We're going to be very intentional about it and it's going to happen as a result of some very strategic planning. We've got some ideas in place for football that center around student engagement. We've got some ideas centered around general fan engagement, just to create an atmosphere that's energetic, that is fun.

"That goes back to the notion of creating depth in our staff is to be able to execute plans. We can think of ideas all day long, but if we don't have the bandwidth to actually go and execute, then it really doesn't mean much. I think once we get our staff in place and once we begin outlining our plan and what we want to do, then we have a chance to execute it. (I recently spoke) with Ro-Anne Royer Engle, who is our vice president for student affairs, and we had a really productive meeting talking, primarily, about football student tailgating and student involvement. So there's certainly conversations that are being had on campus right now that will contribute to the atmosphere that we envision, not only in football, but at basketball and volleyball as well."

Any specific ideas you can point to, or is it still early in that process?

"It's still kind of early in that process, but it will center around tailgate location, primarily, and engagement of students in-game and and prior to the game. And that's football-specific. And then some other ideas on the basketball front that we can get to later."

You assisted with $7.5 million in facility upgrades at Southern Mississippi. The men’s basketball team didn’t accept its CBI tournament bid, which theoretically saved the university tens of thousands of dollars in travel expenses. Multiple sources have also expressed a desire to improve Worthen Arena's weight room, training rooms, locker rooms and nutrition. Is there a commitment or plan to put some of that saved money or additional funds toward improving those facilities, especially considering the success of both men’s and women’s basketball and volleyball teams this season?

"I think there's a commitment to creating a facility that will cater to those needs. I'm not sure today that I'm prepared to comment on it, but there's a plan in place that is timely that will address those needs in terms of a new facility."

If it's still early in that process, more broadly speaking, is it a priority for you to take advantage of the positive momentum that the men's and women's basketball and volleyball teams have had? Especially since they've been really strong in the last year or so.

"Yeah, absolutely. I think that even prior to my arrival, I think there has been discussion about creating some facilities or enhancing some facilities in order to better serve the needs of our student athletes. I think there's some momentum there. I've had a series of meetings about them already. I think we'll be in a position soon to be more specific about what we're talking about. But yes, I think the energy around that type of action coincides with the success that we've had, and the opportunity to continue to build and provide greater opportunities for our student athletes — we're primed for that right now. Building facilities takes a little time and we've got to go through several action steps before we get there. But I think the wheels are in motion right now, so I'm really optimistic about it. I realize I'm being cryptic a little bit, but there's positive momentum on that front, particularly in areas of strength and conditioning and sports medicine."

Fans have also expressed a desire for some facility improvements. Someone mentioned the west grandstand of Scheumann Stadium being an issue, and others feel Worthen’s lighting system and some other features could use upgrades. Have you identified any facilities that need upgrades?

"I've toured all of our facilities and I certainly think that, over time, some of those concerns will be addressed. I have no specifics today about what that is. I'll also say, though, that many of our facilities relative to places that I've been in are in good shape. But yeah, part of the attraction is always to continue to improve our facilities, particularly in facilities that are aging. But I think right now the focus is going to continue to be on some of the in-game experience. We'll address things as they show up, but that's part of the broader evaluation of what I'm doing right now. We just can't do it all at once."

Ball State fans have, understandably, fixated on the transfer portal. It's a popular conversation in college sports. How do you view its prevalence in the context of an athletic department and a mid-major like Ball State?

"It's part of the daily life right now for our coaches and for our student athletes. I think that our coaches, from what I can tell, have chosen to view it in an optimistic way. They understand that from time to time, a student athlete may enter the portal and may opt to go elsewhere. But at the same time, they're using the portal to their advantage as well. I think that when you're successful, it's easier to take advantage of the portal when you do have someone that leaves. When you're less successful, it becomes a little bit more of a challenge ... because you're not as attractive.

"We're in a new age of athletics administration. It's changed tremendously in the last five years … I'm certainly supportive of our coaches and how they're navigating it, and certainly, I'm of the opinion, professionally anyway, that it can be an advantageous tool if we use it the right way ... I think that we can choose to have a negative opinion about it or we can choose to have a positive opinion about it, and I've been really impressed with our coaches that have chosen to have a positive opinion about it, and so I support that."

The NIL is also a major topic of discussion in college sports these days. Is there any NIL focus from Ball State? Can a mid-major like BSU be competitive?

"I think so. We have a collective, it's called Feed The Bird Foundation, that has started over the past couple of months. I was a part of the ... start of a collective at Southern Miss and engaged in some early conversations here about what our efforts were. I think that at this point in time, the Feed The Bird Foundation is arguably one of the most sophisticated collectives in the Group of Five. I have to be at arm's length. It's just kind of the way that athletic directors and coaches have to be with regard to the collective. There can be some connection, but we have to stay away in terms of the operation of it just to be compliant with NCAA rules and so forth. But I'm very pleased with the fact that we have this foundation, this collective, and we've got I think 14 student athletes that have been a part of it. From what I understand, through our compliance office, we have other student athletes that are engaging in NIL activity. We're certainly supportive of student athletes engaging in NIL activity. But when it comes to the nexus between NIL and the transfer portal, I don't see any reason why Ball State cannot continue to be competitive in that space and have that translate to success competitively.

"I want to be clear, though, that this thing has been set up in a very structured way. It's permissible. The group has had outside attorneys. They've been in touch with our compliance office and it's aligned with the ideals of the institution, the ideals of the athletics department and fits within the governance of and oversight of the NCAA. Indiana doesn't have state law on it, but it's legal. It's structured well ... and based on what I know about the Sun Belt and what I know about the MAC, and that's 40% of the Group of Five, it's arguably the most sophisticated."

What do you value most in coaches? What do you encourage? What won’t you tolerate?

"I look at three things, really when hiring a coach, but also from an evaluative standpoint. The first thing is competence. I want coaches that really know their sport. And it's not just the X's and O's, but how to recruit and how to put together a practice plan, how to watch film, how to break it down, how to teach it. Certainly ... being a great recruiter, but somebody that in-game, too, can make an adjustment and help his or her team win.

"The second part is the connected piece, somebody that's connected to a community, that can be engaged on campus, that is easy to work with within the department, that loves student athletes, loves the concept of coaching, understands his or her role as an educator ... It's just a constant learning environment within a competitive spirit.

"The third thing is competitiveness. So somebody that doesn't want to lose ever, always wants to win and has that drive in everything that he or she does. So they're aggressive in recruiting, they're aggressive in scheduling, they're aggressive in how they practice and practices are competitive. There's empirical data that suggests who should be playing on game days and then you go out and play.

"I think that coaches have to be great teammates, too, within the department, on campus. They need to be supportive of their student athletes. They need to understand that the student athletes have a complex life in terms of what they're trying to accomplish academically, certainly socially and now in the heightened expectation of Div. I athletics, what competitive success looks like and to be able to balance all of that and grow them to be prepared for life as they leave the college space. A lot of that is pollyannish in a sense, but it's real if our coaches are committed to the development of the human being. From what I can tell here, I think we've got that and that our student athletes are having a good experience … When that culture is right, then the success has a chance to really flourish."

Last one. What is your overall vision for Ball State Athletics? How might it look different 5 years from now?

"I want to dominate the MAC. That's the initial way to describe what my vision is. I think we can be really competitive across the board. I want our programs to be easy to cheer for. I want it to be a department that our community can be proud of. And I want us to be visible. We've got some work to do in terms of expanding our brand. I think the brand's strong, but hiring the new assistant AD for communications in Kevin Messenger, who's got great ties in the Indianapolis market, in this region, certainly nationally as well. I've got some national ties. And so for us to continue our exposure, I think that's part of this vision for us to really celebrate our wins when we have them, and we win a lot, but it's to promote it in a little bit of a different, more creative way. It's to rally the local community to really encourage them to be involved with what we're doing, come to our games, buy season tickets, contribute to the Cardinal Varsity Club, and to be proud of Ball State. So I think we'll do some initiatives that promote that and encourage that.

"For us to be nationally relevant, we first have to be relevant on the conference scene, and we're competitive now. I want us to get from maybe third gear, fourth gear, to fifth gear, and that starts internally. So that's a message that the staff has received and will continue to receive about, 'Let's make sure that we're operating in a way that is consistent with the expectations of being successful.' If we go through the motions, that's inconsistent with being highly competitive. So we have to work diligently, we have to work smartly and expect success, but we've got to do things that will actually trigger that success, too."

Gus Martin is a sports reporter at The Star Press. Follow him on Twitter @GusMartin_SP, and contact him at gmartin@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Muncie Star Press: New Ball State athletic director Jeff Mitchell discusses future plans