Following the 2013 season, the Knights were the trendy mid-major coming off a Fiesta Bowl victory with seemingly endless momentum toward Boise State-level highs ad potentially a spot in one of the power conferences.
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University of Central Florida football coach George O’Leary is relinquishing his job as the school’s interim athletic director. UCF hopes to fill the position no later than the end of the year.
The primary question going forward seems to be whether O’Leary will be involved in any capacity at UCF once the season is finished.
O’Leary has served as the head coach of the Knights since the 2004 season.
Chief financial officer Brad Stricklin will take over the AD job. With O’Leary reportedly more interested in furthering his career in the athletic director’s chair than on the football sidelines, after the 0-6 start, many expected him to forgo his football duties to concentrate on his role with the UCF administration, rather than the other way around. Stricklin has been with UCF since 2006, and this summer he was promoted to be the senior leader in athletics. He said he split his time between to offices putting in a few hours in the afternoon for his administrative duties.
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O’Leary replaced Todd Stansbury, who left to lead Oregon State’s athletic department this summer. Though the new person in charge will inherit significant challenges, particularly if O’Leary can’t get the football product back up to par, it’s better than the alternative.
