UGA president says he plans to stay

By Laura Diamond

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

University of Georgia President Michael Adams repeated Thursday his commitment to remain with the college and not become the next president of the NCAA.

Several media outlets have speculated that Adams is a leading candidate for the job, and rumors resurfaced last week after Adams resigned as chairman of the NCAA's executive committee, the group that will choose the next president.

Myles Brand, the past NCAA president, died in September from pancreatic cancer. Adams dismissed the idea that he would replace Brand, his close friend.

“If the regents are kind enough to let me stay here, that is what I plan to do,” Adams said during a regularly scheduled briefing. “I plan to be here.”

Adams, who has been UGA's president since 1997, said he stepped down as chairman of the executive committee six months early because every other key position was changing. The move guarantees that the people who choose the next president will be the ones who work with that person, Adams said.

The new NCAA executive committee chairman, Oregon State University President Ed Ray, will head the presidential search committee. A decision is not expected for months.

Jim Isch, a senior vice president and the chief financial officer of the NCAA, is serving as interim president.

Adams said he never talks publicly about jobs or money and doesn’t plan on changing that policy. He said it's time for him to focus on campus matters.

“I hope the regents don’t find out how much time I spent in ’09 on NCAA matters,” Adams said, joking.

At the end of Thursday's nearly 30-minute briefing, which touched on others issues, Adams was again asked whether he wanted the NCAA job.

"I've been about as clear on that as I can be," Adams said, repeating his plans to stay at UGA. "I don't know what else I can say."