Memphis interim AD Jeff Crane 'good busy' as he helms stadium, NIL projects and vies for job

Jeff Crane, as busy as he has become recently, has a clear and unwavering game plan as University of Memphis interim athletic director: maintain momentum.

“There is good busy and there’s bad busy,” Crane told The Commercial Appeal. “This is good busy.”

The school's senior deputy athletic director, Crane was put in charge of the school's athletic department last week after former AD Laird Veatch's departure for the same position at Missouri. It was only days earlier that FedEx announced a landmark partnership with Memphis that will provide $5 million a year for the next five years in name, image and likeness (NIL) funds to Tigers athletes. That deal came on the heels of an updated plan for large-scale, $220 million renovations to Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

On Wednesday, Crane addressed a number of topics during an interview with The Commercial Appeal: how much stadium-renovation money the school has raised toward its goal; the response to the FedEx deal and related fundraising efforts; conference realignment; and his candidacy to be the permanent athletic director.

Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium update

On March 18, university officials announced the project was being split into three phases, and it is expected to be completed before the start of the 2026 football season.

Crane said Wednesday that work on the first phase remains on track to begin this month, though a first start date has not been established.

The project is being funded by $120 million from the state, $50 million in a challenge gift from FedEx founder Fred Smith and his family, and another $50 million that the university plans to raise. Six weeks ago, Veatch said Memphis had raised approximately $17 million.

Crane said the school recently crossed the $20 million threshold, adding that once it hits the $25 million mark, work on Phase 2 (demolition and rebuilding of the west side of the stadium and the planned revamp of the halo area around the stadium) would begin as soon as possible.

"We anticipate to raise the rest (of the $25 million) by the end of this summer," Crane said. "We are still on track for completion of Phase 2 by the summer of 2026."

FedEx NIL deal

Similar to the funding component of the stadium renovation project, part of FedEx's NIL agreement with Memphis includes a $2.5 million NIL fundraising campaign by the school.

Crane did not disclose how much, if any, money has been raised toward that goal.

“We do anticipate some progress being made on that in the coming months, but nothing new to report there in terms of the fundraising efforts,” he said. "We've had great conversations with a number of our donors who have supported our NIL efforts in the past."

Crane reiterated that which Tigers athletes will receive NIL money from the partnership — and how the money will be divvied up among eligible programs — will be at the discretion of FedEx. The initial agreement stipulates that the opportunities are earmarked for the football, men's basketball, women's basketball and other women's programs.

Conference realignment

During his time at Memphis, Veatch never shied away from the fact that these efforts were largely driven by a desire to get out of the American Athletic Conference and into a power conference.

Crane said that although the top of the athletic department has changed, the mission has not.

“We think more change is coming,” he said. “It’s hard to predict what may come, but our goal has been and will continue to be to remain aggressive. We know with the work we’re doing, we’re putting the university in the best possible position.”

LIBERTY STADIUM: Memphis unveils new timeline, plans for Liberty Stadium renovation: See the new details

Athletic director candidacy

Crane, who has served as an interim athletic director before (for three months in 2018 at USC Upstate), came to Memphis in 2019.

In addition to other responsibilities, he is the sport administrator for football and has been a key figure in the Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium project.

In a statement last month, university president Bill Hardgrave said he and others will "explore our options in the coming weeks" as they work toward naming a new full-time athletic director.

While Crane admits he wants the job on a permanent basis, that is not what is most important to him right now.

“We have so much in front of us at the moment, I don’t want to get distracted by that,” he said. “We’re in a time of change in college athletics and I want to keep our eye on the opportunities in front of us.”

Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or follow him @munzly on X, the social media app formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis interim AD Jeff Crane wants the job. But focus is stadium, NIL