Jim Mcelwain As Head Football Coach on Dec
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DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI THIS IS COLORADO STATE COACHES & STAFF SEASON OUTLOOK & ROSTER BIOGRAPHIES PLAYER 2013 SEASON REVIEW RECORD BOOK Greg Myers, 1995 Jim Thorpe Award winner and 2012 College Football Hall of Fame inductee, is pictured with defensive backs DeAndre Elliott (left) and Trent Matthews (right, holding Myers’ Thorpe Award). After graduating from CSU, Myers went on to become a successful anesthesiologist. Caleb Hanie, NFL Quarterback, Dallas Cowboys Becky Hammon, WNBA player, San Antonio Silver Stars Becky Hammon John Howell, Super Bowl Champion, Tampa Bay Buccaneers WNBA Superstar Colton Iverson, NBA player, Boston Celtics Raymond Jackson, player development, Pittsburgh Steelers Greg Jamison, former president & CEO, San Jose Sharks Floyd Kerr, director of athletics, Morgan State University Mark Knudson, former Major League Baseball pitcher Martin Laird, PGA Tour Casey Malone, 2004 Olympian, sixth place in discus Felix “Tippy” Martinez, former Kansas City Royals player Thurman “Fum” McGraw, Pro Football Hall of Famer Joey Porter Keli McGregor, former president, Colorado Rockies Former All-Pro Linebacker Mike Montgomery, former college & NBA head coach (G.S. Warriors; HISTORY Cal, Stanford, Montana) Greg Myers, College Football Hall of Fame inductee, 2012 MISCELLANEOUS Milt Palacio, former NBA and international player Jason Smith, NBA player, New Orleans Pelicans Erik Phillips, former athletic trainer, Phoenix Suns Joey Porter, Retired NFL player, former All-Pro and Super Bowl champ Amy Van Dyken, six-time Olympic gold medalist Jason Smith Bradlee Van Pelt, winningest QB in CSU history, former NFL player NBA Player 2014 COLORADO STATE FOOTBALL 21 DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS JACK GRAHAM JACK GRAHAM Director of Athletics | 3rd Year at CSU | Colorado State ‘75 GRAHAM AT A GLANCE Education • Bachelor’s degree, U.S. history; Colorado State, ‘75 Personal • Played quarterback for CSU from 1973-74 • Drafted by the Miami Dolphins • Successful 30-year career in the international insurance and reinsurance markets • Founded ICAT Managers, a leader in catastrophic risk insurance products • Advisory board member of the National Center for Atmospheric Research • Married to wife, Ginger Graham "We expect, at Colorado State University, that the excellence of our athletic programs will mirror that of the excellence that has always been the academic foundation at this great university." -- Jack Graham As Jack Graham moves into his third year as Director of Athletics in 2014, the “Bold New Era” of Colorado State Athletics has matured into the “Be Bold” era. The vision, direction and accomplishments of Graham’s fi rst two years have laid a foundation for the ambitious and achievable plans he brought with him on Dec. 1, 2011. A successful business leader and former Rams quarterback, Graham was chosen by CSU President Tony Frank to lead the institution’s athletic programs, and more importantly to apply the vision and drive necessary to produce excellence in every aspect. “In Jack Graham, we have the perfect combination of dedicated Ram fan, stand-out athlete and experienced business leader with the skills and business acumen to energize and advance our overall athletics program,” Frank said upon announcing the hire. “I am excited about the enthusiasm he will generate among our students, coaches, alumni, donors and fans. He brings high standards, high expectations and a passion for winning that is infectious.” Graham immediately went to work re-shaping the department, beginning with the hire of Jim McElwain as head football coach on Dec. 13, 2011, from his offensive coordinator position at Alabama, which was on its way to a second national championship victory in a three-year span. That move provided the fi rst glimpse of what the Bold New Era would mean for Colorado State, and was followed by the high-profi le hire of former national coach of the year Larry Eustachy in men’s basketball, and the hire of Ryun Williams to lead the women’s basketball program. “We have the same expectations for excellence in our sports program that we have for all areas of the university,” Frank added. “With Jack’s leadership, I see no reason why CSU athletics cannot and should not compete at the highest level. To get there, we have to dream big, work hard and settle for nothing less than excellence.” Immediately upon his appointment, Graham also announced he would drive a process to secure approval to build an on-campus football stadium at Colorado State to replace then-44-year-old Hughes Stadium, located several miles from the school’s campus. Graham succeeded in leading an ambitious process that by early October 2012 secured the unanimous recommendation of Colorado State’s Board of Governors to Dr. Frank to allow the Athletics Department to begin the fundraising process for the CSU President Dr. Anthony Frank (background) introduced Jack Graham as the Rams’ 17th Director of Athletics on Dec. 1, 2011 22 2014 COLORADO STATE FOOTBALL DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS JACK GRAHAM THIS IS COLORADO STATE COACHES & STAFF stadium. It was another major achievement in just Graham’s 10th month on the job. More illustrations of Colorado State’s Bold New Era came in the COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY form of two signifi cant business deals brokered by Graham and his senior leadership team in November 2012. The fi rst was an an- nouncement that Colorado State’s athletic programs were entering into a partnership with Under Armour to provide apparel and foot- wear beginning in July 2013. The second came four days later when Graham announced a fi ve-year partnership with 105.5 ESPN Radio What We Expect From a CSU Student-Athlete to be the radio home for the Rams’ football and men’s and women’s Character: Represent our university as an exceptional basketball games and coaches’ shows. person. Be courteous and respectful, act with integrity In January 2013 the decision was made by Graham to add the in all that you do, and support and serve others. Follow sport of women’s soccer for the 2013 season. The addition drew the rules. widespread praise for recognizing the popularity of the sport not just in Colorado, but nationwide, and veteran coach Bill Hempen Academics: Embrace your education, pursue academic was named the program’s fi rst head coach. excellence and graduate (optimally in four years). Be Graham also has set forth a clearly-defi ned set of standards for well rounded prepare yourself to serve our country and Colorado State’s student-athletes, to go along with his commitment the world as a productive citizen. SEASON OUTLOOK & ROSTER to providing the absolute best student-athlete support. His motto Win: Through commitment, discipline and hard work, for all Rams is to “Do it All.” The three key expectations are to be be an outstanding athlete and teammate who wins. people of great character, succeed academically and graduate, and to win. Achievement in anything less than all three areas doesn’t DO IT ALL meet the expectations for a Colorado State student-athlete. CSU’s athletics department supports approximately 400 stu- DREAM BIG ... WORK HARD SETTLE FOR NOTHING LESS THAN EXCELLENCE dent-athletes competing in 16 varsity sports. Evidence of Graham’s impact has shown quickly. CSU ranked 49th nationally--and second among Mountain West schools--in the Fall 2013 Learfi eld Sports “He’s a really rare athletic director. Not many BIOGRAPHIES PLAYER 2013 SEASON REVIEW RECORD BOOK Directors Cup. Those standing take into account all of the fall sports people know all the work he puts into this fi nishes, which included one MW title (volleyball), two NCAA Cham- athletic program. I think there’s nothing but pionships appearances (volleyball, men’s cross country) and a win in the New Mexico Bowl. It is CSU’s highest ranking in the Director’s good things in store for CSU.” Cup since 2003-04. --Weston Richburg “Athletics play a critical role at CSU,” Graham said at the time New York Giants 2014 2nd-round draft choice of his hire. “Our teams can and should be leaders in defi ning our university’s traditions, and they can be catalysts that unite our stu- dents and community. I am honored to return to CSU and believe our success in athletics can and will send a signal about the overall quality of CSU’s leadership, our standards and our talent. We are committed to winning while maintaining the highest level of integ- rity and student success.” Graham played quarterback for the Rams from 1973-74 and graduated from Colorado State in 1975 with a bachelor’s degree in U.S. history. He was drafted by the Miami Dolphins. Graham went on to a successful career of more than 30 years in the international insurance and reinsurance markets, where he was known as an innovator and effective leader. In 1998, Graham founded ICAT Managers, a leader in cat- astrophic risk insurance products. He sold ICAT, including its Lloyd’s of London business, in 2010. Prior to ICAT, Mr. Graham spent 21 years with E. W. Blanch Co. (now Benfi eld Group) as a reinsurance intermediary. At E. W. Blanch Co., Mr. Graham was an Executive Vice President with responsibility for the Western Region of the US. He served as a member of the Board of Directors of E. W. Blanch Co., Paragon Reinsurance Risk Management Services, Inc., and Blanch Capital Risk Solutions, Inc. Graham was a co-founder of E. W. Blanch Co.’s San Francisco offi ce. Under his leadership, Blanch became the largest treaty re- HISTORY insurance intermediary on the West Coast, placing in excess of $1 billion of reinsurance premium into the marketplace. Graham was E. W. Blanch Co.’s project leader for the placement MISCELLANEOUS of the California Earthquake Authority’s $3.5 billion reinsurance program, the largest reinsurance placement in the history of the market.