INDIANAPOLIS --- The NCAA has invited 15 football coaches and 15 athletics directors to attend its NCAA Champions Forum in an effort to bring minority football coaches closer to the mindset of athletics directors who ultimately hire head football coaches on campus.

The NCAA Champions Forum will take place June 22-24 in Anaheim, Calif., in conjunction with the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Convention (NACDA).   The forum is the top tier of the NCAA’s Coaches Academy programs.

The goal of the NCAA Champions Forum is to link the coaches with athletics directors who can provide insight on their hiring philosophies and be a bridge to their colleagues who one day may have vacant coaching positions at their universities.  The 15 football coaches selected for the Champions Forum have been identified as some of the most experienced football coaches in the NCAA who have expressed an interest in one day being a head coach at an NCAA college or university in any division or moving to another division as a head coach. 

During the Forum, the football coaches and the athletics directors will have time to develop professional relationships in a one-on-one environment.   There will be mock interview sessions, keynote speakers, and opportunities for both the coaches and athletics directors to discuss key aspects of becoming a head football coach in a more informal, private setting.  

Through the NCAA Champions Forum, the football coaches will have an opportunity to gain a better understanding of the thought process of an athletics director and the intricacies of hiring football coaches for intercollegiate programs.   In turn, the athletics directors will have opportunities to meet, interact and become better acquainted with the football coaches; become “champions” by assisting with the coaches’ continued career growth; and broaden their outlook as athletics directors on potential minority head coaching prospects in the NCAA.    

“We received very positive feedback on the Champion Forum following its inaugural year, which let us know that the programming was extremely beneficial to the coaches in our membership,” said Charlotte Westerhaus, NCAA vice president for diversity and inclusion.  “The Champion Forum is also beneficial to the athletics director network because it helps that network become more familiar with talent in the membership.    Though we saw a promising rise in the number of minority head football coaches this past season, the opportunities for increasing the present numbers are plentiful and realistic. The NCAA and those who hire on campus will continue to work together to provide understanding on the hiring process and open doors to possible opportunities.”

The NCAA witnessed a gain in the number of minority head football coaches who were hired following the 2009 season.  Prior to the 2009 football season, there were nine head coaches of minority descent out of the 119 Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) schools.   There are now 15 minority head football coaches at the FBS level.   Additionally, of the coaches who have been invited to NCAA Coaching Academy programs, 18 have secured head coaching positions in college football.   However, out of a total of 582 football programs in Division I, II and III, only 5.7 percent of the head coaches are coaches of color, excluding the historically black colleges and universities.  

The NCAA National Office does not have the authority to mandate hiring decisions at its member colleges and universities, but it can provide coaches with opportunities to further enhance their skills and expose them to key decision makers at NCAA colleges and universities.  In addition to the Champions Forum, NCAA Diversity and Inclusion also directs the Future Coaches Academy for student-athletes, the Football Coaches Academy (less than eight years of experience) and the Expert Coaches Academy (eight years or more of experience).   The NCAA Football Academies are designed to assist football coaches with career advancement, networking and exposure opportunities.  The NCAA created its Coaching Academy programs in 2004.

The Champions Forum coaches were selected by a committee of former NCAA athletics directors and coaches.   The NCAA Champions Forum selection committee is Paul Dee (former athletics director at the University of Miami); Marino Casem (former athletics director at Southern University); Andy Geiger (former athletics director at The Ohio State University); Lloyd Carr (former head coach at the University of Michigan), C.M. Newton (former athletics director at the University of Kentucky); and Tyrone Willingham (former head coach at the University of Washington).

Football Coaches Selected for the NCAA Champions Forum are:

Robert Anae, offensive coordinator, Brigham Young University

Timothy Banks, defensive coordinator, University of Cincinnati

Marion Hobby, assistant head coach/defensive coordinator, Duke University

Aaron Kelton, head coach, Williams College

Curtis Luper, recruiting coordinator/assistant football coach, Auburn University

Garrick McGee, offensive coordinator, University of Arkansas

Tyrone Nix, assistant head coach, University of Mississippi

Heishma Northern, assistant head coach, Prairie View A&M University

Jay Norvell, assistant offensive coordinator, University of Oklahoma

Brian Norwood, defensive coordinator, Baylor University

Kenneth, O’Keefe, offensive coordinator, University of Iowa

Jason Phillips, offensive coordinator, University of Houston

Paul Randolph, senior associate head coach/co-defensive coordinator, University of Tulsa

David Shaw, offensive coordinator, Stanford University

Alexander Wood, defensive coordinator, Wayne State University

Athletics Directors Selected for the NCAA Champions Forum are:

Michael Alden, University of Missouri

Kevin Anderson, U.S. Military Academy

Craig Angelos, Florida Atlantic University

Mike Bohn, University of Colorado

Jon Carey, Western Oregon University

Greg Christopher, Bowling Green State University,

Cary Groth, University of Nevada