Dear Furman Athletics Family:

I hope that this note finds you and your families in good health and in good spirits during these challenging times. I'm looking forward to welcoming our student-athletes, coaches, staff and you—our passionate supporters—back to campus to cheer on the Paladins.

I am writing to you today regarding the difficult but necessary decisions announced a few minutes ago by President Elizabeth Davis (link). For those of you who have not yet read her message, President Davis announced numerous cost-saving measures across the university to help mitigate the significant financial challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the immediate measures is a reduction in the number of varsity sports that Furman Athletics will sponsor as well as a reduction in the overall number of scholarships that we award annually. In addition, head coaches Clay Hendrix and Bob Richey and I will take a voluntary 10% reduction in pay for the next year, while other members of our department have volunteered for salary reductions or will be placed on furlough for varying lengths of time. President Davis has volunteered to take a 20% reduction in her pay for the same time period.

Before I arrived at Furman last summer, university leadership was in the late stages of developing a comprehensive long-term strategy for Furman Athletics. These discussions considered fiscal sustainability, the student-athlete experience, the competitiveness of our programs and the university's continued investments and focus on its academic programs. Furman could not continue to sponsor 20 varsity sports programs and support the number of current student scholarships with the ever-increasing costs of intercollegiate athletics and still continue to provide a competitive, world-class experience for all of our students-athletes. Furman, which has the third-smallest enrollment of the 10 Southern Conference schools, had the highest number of varsity sports, student-athletes and athletics scholarships in the conference.

While we were in the final stages of deciding on a path forward, the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and the necessity for more immediate action was clear, as revenues for both the university as a whole as well as for the athletics department have already – and will continue to – decline significantly. The university retained national consultants, including athletics finance experts, to advise us on how best to move forward. In the end, the decision was made to no longer sponsor Baseball and Men's Lacrosse, and to reduce the number of athletics scholarships offered from 200 to 155 over a five-year period, which will save the University up to $5 million annually in future years but continue to allow our remaining 18 athletic programs to be competitive. The Board of Trustees, President Davis and I all support this decision.

My heart breaks for those student-athletes and coaches impacted by today's decisions. Furman will honor all of the impacted student-athletes' scholarships through their undergraduate careers at Furman. Should a student-athlete seek to continue his athletics career at another institution, Furman will assist in any way possible.  And we will do all that we can to help our affected coaches and staff transition to another institution to continue their careers.

This is a difficult day for Furman Athletics. We are all proud of our rich history and tradition and of every student-athlete who has worn a Paladin uniform and coach who has led a Furman team. The legacy of Furman Baseball and Men's Lacrosse will be remembered and celebrated in the future. Although our immediate focus is on supporting our student-athletes and coaches impacted by today's decisions, we will push forward together with a strong, 18-sport Athletics Department that demonstrates academic excellence, financial stability, gender equity and sustainable competitive success with an emphasis on revenue generation and philanthropic support. 

Thank you all for your understanding and for your continued commitment to Furman Athletics. Together, we will not only make it through the challenges ahead, but we will thrive.

Please stay well.

Sincerely,


Jason Donnelly