Tanner Receives Contract Extension From BOT
April 21, 2017 COLUMBIA, S.C. ââ’¬” With the Gamecocks enjoying one of their most successful athletic seasons across the board, the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees today extended the contract of Athletics Director Ray Tanner for three years, taking him through the end of the 2021-22 academic year. Under Tanner’s leadership, South Carolina’s holistic formula of athletic, academic and personal development of its student-athletes has proven that success on the field, in the classroom and in the community, go hand-in-hand.
Tanner, who has served as South Carolina’s Athletics Director for the past five seasons, currently has the Gamecocks ranked 14th in the NACDA Learfield Directors’ Cup Division I standings, their highest mark ever after the Winter sports season. Buoyed by its first National Championship in women’s basketball and a Final Four run in men’s basketball, 13 Gamecock teams are currently ranked or finished the season in the nation’s top-25 in their respective sports.
The Gamecocks’ success has not been limited to the athletic venues, but has reached into the classroom as well. A total of 90 South Carolina student-athletes made the 2016 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll, placing second among SEC schools. Carolina student-athletes posted a combined 3.245 GPA for the Fall 2016 semester, marking the 20th-consecutive semester of more than a 3.0 GPA. A total of 33 student-athletes earned their degrees following the 2016 fall semester and another 86 are slated to graduate in May.
A dedicated community leader in his own right, Tanner places an emphasis on giving back to the community. Under his direction, Carolina student-athletes performed more than 9,000 hours of community service in the 2016-17 academic year.
With Tanner at the helm, the Gamecocks continue to be one of the nation’s leaders in attendance. South Carolina was one of only five schools in the country to be ranked in the top-25 in the nation in attendance for football and men’s and women’s basketball. It is the only school to average more than 10,000 in attendance per game for both basketball programs, and is one of only two schools in the nation to be ranked in the top-10 in attendance for both men’s and women’s soccer.
In September 2014, Tanner spearheaded the development of “The Gamecock Student-Athlete Promise: A Championship Experience,” a document that showcases the depth and breadth of the commitments the South Carolina Athletics Department has made to its student-athletes.
As part of the document, USC became the first school in the SEC to guarantee four-year scholarships for all qualifying sports. It also offers former student-athletes the opportunity to return back to campus to complete their undergraduate degree as part of the “Gamecock Degree Completion Program.” To date, over 30 former student-athletes have earned their degrees under this program.
As part of giving Gamecock student-athletes a “championship experience,” Tanner’s commitment to developing the finest facilities in the nation continues.
Since taking on the athletics director role, Tanner has overseen construction and facility renovation projects for virtually every sport, including Springs-Brooks Plaza and the Bignon Game Day Center at Williams-Brice Stadium, Jerri and Steve Spurrier Indoor Practice Facility, Football Operations Center, USC Soccer Complex, Sheila and Morris Cregger Outdoor Track, Wheeler Beach Volleyball facility, Carolina Coliseum, golf practice facility and locker rooms in Carolina Natatorium and Colonial Life Arena.
