UNLV braces for more budget cuts

Jerry Koloskie's picture hangs on the wall near the athletic director's office, added recently alongside that of Mike Hamrick and UNLV's other former ADs.

Inside his new office, piles of papers are spread atop his desk, and Koloskie sits behind an open laptop.

Not even a month into his job as interim athletic director, and Koloskie has plenty in front of him. But that's little compared to what might lie ahead.

Already hit hard once by state budget cuts, UNLV's athletic department is bracing for possibly another round from Carson City -- perhaps $300,000 to $400,000 -- that would force program-altering decisions.

Koloskie and his team are planning for what could happen if a special legislative session is called.

Layoffs could occur. Some sports might not be fully funded. At least one sport could be eliminated altogether.

"Those would all be options, none of which are good," Koloskie said. "So, hopefully, we don't get to that point, but certainly another budget cut would be extremely difficult to overcome."

This job, with these kind of insomnia-creating decisions, is what Koloskie wants. He became acting athletic director last month when Hamrick left for his alma mater, Marshall.

Koloskie was elevated to interim AD on Aug. 27, meaning the athletic director's seat is his until at least spring, when the search for a permanent replacement probably will begin.

A national search will be conducted, and there is plenty of interest locally in the position. Koloskie, 52, is getting a good idea of what the job would be like if he lands it.

UNLV already took a $1.1 million cut from the state for this fiscal year. All sports reduced their respective operating budgets by 10 percent to 12 percent, and the department eliminated everything from complimentary coffee ($5,900) to primary insurance for walk-ons ($75,000).

Hamrick avoided layoffs and other such drastic measures, but the financial situation for UNLV remains tight even without further cuts.

"I've got to figure out how I'm going to get our spring sports to the end of their season because we've already cut their budget by 14 percent," Koloskie said.

These aren't the only tough decisions Koloskie could face.

He might have to hire and fire coaches without knowing if he is the next full-time athletic director. Koloskie said it would be important to make such decisions because, otherwise, the "expectation level would drop," and those in what's supposed to be a competitive environment could get "complacent."

The situation is more complicated with a high-profile sport where the permanent athletic director would prefer his own hire. But Koloskie said he would do what's needed in consultation with UNLV president Neal Smatresk if he had to make a call this year on fifth-year football coach Mike Sanford.

"I have all the confidence he's going to do a great job, and hopefully we won't have to worry about that," Koloskie said. "However, if it presents itself, then more than likely we'll have to make some tough decisions.

"The uncertainty of who the athletic director is going to be, I don't think you can take that into consideration because it has to be what's best for the department and how we're going to move forward."

Koloskie already has made some personnel decisions, promoting within the sports information office to involve director Andy Grossman in senior-level decisions and to better reach out to students, alumni, supporters and the community.

Christian Hardigree moved over from university administration to concentrate on fund-raising and special projects. UNLV would like an academic center and new basketball practice facility.

Koloskie said improving the track at Myron Partridge Stadium was a priority because the Mountain West Conference Championships are scheduled to be there in 2012. He wants to build public restrooms, concession stands and a press box to go with better seating.

"Those are all grandiose plans," Koloskie said. "Actually putting them in place in an economy right now where we've got (local) unemployment at 13 percent and some of our key donors and people in this community struggling financially, you've got to be realistic. But I don't think we can be complacent.

"Prospective parents and prospective student-athletes don't want to hear it's a tough economy, so we have to be positive. We've got to do the best that we can do."

So Koloskie has major decisions to make in the coming months that could affect UNLV athletics for years. Either he will accept prime ownership after this academic year, or someone else will be charged with living with those decisions, good or bad.

If the school hires someone else, Koloskie -- who has been at UNLV for 26 years -- also doesn't know what the future holds for him or anyone else in the department.

"I think all of us, collectively, are on notice," he said. "If you have a change in AD, we're going to be evaluated by that next person. If I am the athletic director, which I want to be, then I look at this as an evaluation period for me to determine how we move forward."

Contact reporter Mark Anderson at manderson@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2914.