Before he was hired, J.C. Deacon made UF athletics director Jeremy Foley a promise.
The then-prospective men’s golf coach said he was going to win the Gators a national championship — its first since 2001.
So far that hasn’t happened. And with Foley set to retire on Nov. 1, it won’t happen during his tenure.
But that doesn’t matter to Deacon.
“He’s promised me that he’s gonna be there on the 18th green to give me a big hug when we do win it one day,” Deacon said. “So I’m holding him to that.”
That type of personal engagement, Deacon added, is what sets Foley apart from other athletics directors. When the golf team played a tournament in Nevada last season, Deacon remembers Foley calling ahead of the tournament to offer encouragement.
“Those are the little things that are really special to me,” Deacon said, “and that I’ll always remember.”
Foley will be replaced by Scott Stricklin, the now-former Mississippi State director of athletics. And when he takes over after Foley retires on Nov. 1, building relationships in the mold of Foley won’t be the only challenge he faces.
However, he thinks that part of his new job will be easy. At least as it applies to coaches.
“It’s just supporting someone you trust and believe in,” he said.
But Kahlia Warner, who was a diver at Florida from 2013 to 2016, said Foley’s relationships extended beyond the coaches, reaching the athletes as well.
Every year, she said, he hosts a barbecue at the beginning of fall where he tells all of UF’s athletes how special Florida’s athletic brand is before reeling off a list of individual accomplishments, ranging from national titles to academic All-America honors.
“I left that meeting thinking, ‘Wow, what I’ve gotten myself into is gonna be incredible,’” she said. “And so I kinda just took that with me for the rest of my four years.”
Former Florida gymnast Morgan Frazier also feels that Foley’s relationship with individual athletes made him special.
“He always makes a point to get to know every single one of his athletes,” she said, “which always left a great impression on me.”
Another attribute of Foley’s that former Florida athletes, coaches and even President Kent Fuchs brought up is his integrity.
Fuchs called his approach “doing the right thing the right way,” and he was confident that Stricklin will continue to embrace that attitude, as was Foley.
“Every time you make those phone calls, they come up aces," said Foley, who called several people close to Stricklin to vet his personality. "That’s who he is, and that’s what’s in his heart.”
Because of that, Foley said he’s not nervous about handing over the program he’s spent nearly 25 years building.
“I’m gonna be able to put my head down tonight and know they’re in good hands. They’re in great hands, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart.”
Warner agrees, but added that it won’t be easy to follow Foley.
“I definitely, definitely think he has big shoes to fill,” she said. “But I think he’s aware of that.”
Contact Ethan Bauer at ebauer@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @ebaueri.
Scott Stricklin (left) greets members of the UAA board on Sept. 27, 2016.
