Big West’s Haney Resigns to Run Coaches’ Group

Jim Haney, commissioner of the Big West Conference since 1988, is resigning to become executive director of the National Assn. of Basketball Coaches.

Haney, who was head basketball coach at Oregon from 1978-83, was named to the NABC post Thursday, and will succeed Joe Vancisin, who retires July 31 as executive director.

“It’s a marvelous selection and we at the NABC look forward to Jim Haney taking us to higher levels,” said George Raveling, who was considered likely to be named to the position if he chose not to return as USC basketball coach. Raveling was a member of the NABC committee that selected Haney.

Haney, 43, helped bring about the Big West’s decision to change its name from the Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. in 1988, and oversaw television negotiations that put Big West teams on ESPN’s Big Monday broadcasts. He will continue to work with the Big West through the end of June.

“It’s a good opportunity,” said Haney, who will head a group of more than 4,000 men’s and boys’ basketball coaches from the NCAA, as well as the NAIA, junior colleges and high schools. “They are kind of shifting their efforts in terms of putting more dollars into creating a stronger organization. It was an opportunity I felt good about, something I felt I should get involved with.”

Haney leaves the Big West in a year during which some conference schools, including Cal State Fullerton and UC Irvine, have dropped some sports because of budget problems.

The Big West football conference is also in transition. After losing Fresno State to the Western Athletic Conference and seeing Cal State Long Beach drop football, the Big West has taken in Northern Illinois, Louisiana Tech, Arkansas State and Southwestern Louisiana for next football season.

In another move designed to enable the conference to sponsor championships in certain sports, the Big West has formed a link with Pacific 10 and WAC schools to compete in men’s and women’s soccer, men’s volleyball, men’s water polo and men’s gymnastics, among other sports.

“These are very serious times,” Haney said. “I think we find ourselves doing things we really don’t want to do, cutting sports, dropping sports, reducing sports. It’s no fun to say no to people. These are the obstacles and hurdles our people are facing. Hopefully, down the road will be brighter times.

“Our response at the conference office is to try to encourage and and hope things get better. Also, we’re . . . working on concepts that will be new and unique by helping reduce expenses such as travel costs.”

Cal State Fullerton Athletic Director Bill Shumard called Haney’s move “obviously a great loss for the conference but a wonderful opportunity for a very, very good man.”

Nevada Las Vegas Athletic Director Jim Weaver said he is sorry to see Haney leave, but happy for him on a personal level.

“I’m very pleased and happy for Jim, because as we all know he has a basketball background,” Weaver said. “I don’t think there is any correlation between the conference and what we’ve been through or where we’re headed, and what this opportunity meant to Jim.”

As executive director of the NABC, Haney will oversee the organization’s move from its offices in Branford, Conn., to Kansas City, close to the NCAA headquarters in Overland Park, Kan.

“One of the ideas with the move to Kansas City is to become increasingly involved with the President’s Commission and the NCAA council and be active in helping frame the future of college basketball in the ‘90s,” Haney said.

Haney said his office will be concerned with influencing or reforming NCAA legislation such as rules reducing coaching staffs and scholarships, as well as limits on numbers of telephone calls to recruits. He also said he will seek to improve what he perceives as the somewhat negative image of Division I coaches.

The Big West council, which includes presidents or chancellors, faculty representatives, athletic directors and senior women’s administrators from member schools, has not decided how it will proceed in replacing Haney.

Dennis Farrell, associate commissioner of the conference and one of five finalists for the commissioner’s position when Haney was hired in 1988, said he is interested in the job and will seek to talk to the council about the position.