Central Florida didn't look too far to find an interim athletic director.
UCF announced Tuesday that football coach George O'Leary, 68, would be the school's new (temporary) athletic director. Previous athletic director Todd Stansbury recently left to take the same position at Oregon State.
"George's leadership and knowledge of athletics - which includes programs beyond football - will keep UCF moving forward academically, competitively and in the community," UCF president John Hitt said in a statement. "His national connections will also help us continue building the Knights' reputation around the country."
O'Leary has been UCF's coach for the past 11 seasons. He has a career record of 81-60 at the school. He became UCF's coach in 2004 after he was an assistant coach in the NFL. He had been hired at Notre Dame from Georgia Tech following the 2001 season but resigned shortly after his hiring because of a master's degree inaccuracy on his resume.
"First of all, I appreciate President Hitt's trusting me with this interim job. I love UCF and want to help us get better across the board," O'Leary said. "I have a great interest in the total package as far as UCF is concerned."
Earlier this spring, O'Leary advocated for more weeknight games for Central Florida. UCF has three weeknight games in 2015 and he said that he was not happy with his team's schedule, a comment that contradicted what American Athletic Conference commissioner Mike Aresco had said previously.
His interim athletic director appointment also comes less than a year after a report surfaced that O'Leary was considering retiring after the 2014 season. He countered the reports by saying he didn't know where the report came from.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
