When UAB shuttered its football program back in December, it was the first FBS program to do so in nearly 20 years. However, the decision to close down the football program appears to have been made before the season even started, according to AL.com.
PR firm warned UAB not to announce end of football until after season
The school apparently knew the football program would be shut down before the 2014 season even started.
Shanna Lockwood-USA TODAY Sports
The University worked with public relations firm Sard Verbinnen & Co. to prepare plans to shut down the football, rifle, and women’s bowling programs in September 2014, but ultimately pushed back the announcement until after the end of the football team’s season, according to the report. However, on numerous occasions UAB president Ray Watts maintained that the decision to shut down the programs wasn’t made until November.
Alabama state rep Jack Williams, the publisher of Rivals.com’s UAB website, is now calling for Watts to step down.
The original plans called for staff members, including head coach Bill Clark and athletic director Brian Mackin, to be notified on Sept. 17, and an official public announcement be made on Sept. 30. A memo from Sard Verbinnen recommended they push it back until December. Via AL.com:
That memo offers “our basis for opposing a mid-season announcement.” It suggests the potential for “a critical mass of immediate transfer requests ... where students refuse to finish out the season” or “a full team boycott.”
“If not effectively managed,” the memo says, “it is conceivable that UAB would not be able to field a competitive team - or any team.”
The memo also suggests the possibility that UAB football players “may react very badly if an announcement is made during the season.”
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