THE SIDELINES : UConn Names Athletic Director

Lew Perkins, the athletic director at the University of Maryland, was named the University of Connecticut’s new athletic director today.

Perkins, a close friend of Connecticut basketball Coach Jim Calhoun, replaces Todd Turner, who accepted the job of athletic director at North Carolina State on April 20.

When Connecticut hired Turner in 1987, Perkins had been the university’s first choice for the job. However, he accepted the Maryland job instead.

Perkins was reportedly eager to leave Maryland because the school’s men’s basketball team has been placed on NCAA probation for three seasons. Perkins was not named in any of the violations, and former Maryland Coach Bob Wade was the target of much of the investigation.

Still, the NCAA report cited “a lack of institutional control” in the athletic department.

Perkins played basketball at the University of Iowa.