Francois has been recruited as Missouri’s next athletic chief, the school declared Sunday. Reed-Francois, 49, will be the primary Hispanic lady to direct a Power Five Conference program. She additionally turns into the Southeastern Conference’s second female athletic chief. Vanderbilt employed Candice Lee in February 2020.
“This is a groundbreaking day for Mizzou sports,” UM System President and MU Chancellor Mun Choi said in an articulation. “Desiree Reed-Francois brings a fantastic energy for understudy competitors and striking, visionary abilities that will push a title culture at MU. As a pleased individual from the SEC, we are invigorated to go into the following time of Mizzou sports with Desiree Reed-Francois in charge.”
Reed-Francois has been UNLV’s athletic chief since April 2017. Her unique agreement went through 2022 with a yearly compensation of $350,000. That arrangement was broadened four additional years in April close by a raise to $420,000. In moving from Las Vegas to Columbia, Reed-Francois should remain to roughly twofold her yearly compensation.
Desiree Reed-Francois
Since 2017 at UNLV, Reed-Francois has recruited another head football trainer, previous Oregon colleague Marcus Arroyo, and another head men’s ball mentor, Kevin Kruger, in the past a player and collaborator mentor at the school. Likewise as a component of her residency, she supervised the structure of a $35 million football complex, something she will do again with the Tigers’ destined to-be-fabricated full-length indoor football training office.
“It is genuinely an honor to join Missouri’s lead establishment, and I am amazingly thankful to look through board of trustees seat (Jeff) Layman and individuals from the quest warning panel for this staggering chance,” Reed-Francois said in an articulation. “The University of Missouri is a top notch scholarly organization with a solid obligation to sports and a purpose to additional improve its games projects to accomplish world class public status in the entirety of our undertakings.
“We have a pleased and celebrated custom; we contend in the head athletic gathering in the nation; and, maybe in particular, we want to be incredible. My family and I are eager to join the Mizzou family, and I can’t hold on to begin.”
Missouri declared July 26 that Jim Sterk and the college “concurred together” he would venture down from driving the athletic division. Sterk will in any case be paid the rest of his agreement — $1.5 million consolidated over the course of the following two years.
Missouri put an accentuation all through its inquiry on recruiting a person with Power Five experience, preferably handling a sitting athletic chief from such a school.
Reed-Francois was a representative athletic chief at Tennessee from 2009-13, with one of her principle needs directing men’s b-ball. The Volunteers’ lead trainer for three seasons during that range was ebb and flow Missouri lead trainer Cuonzo Martin.
“Desiree carries an assortment of value encounters to understudy competitors as a pioneer on numerous grounds and in numerous gatherings,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in an articulation. “As she keeps on building the University of Missouri sports program, I anticipate working with her in her new job as we proceed with the advancement of the SEC.”
Reed-Francois worked at Cincinnati for a year, which included serving a spell as break athletic chief. She worked at Virginia Tech from 2014-17. While in Blacksburg and Cincinnati, she was on the staff of previous MU manager Whit Babcock.
Reed-Francois turns into the second successive Missouri athletic chief recruited from the Mountain West Conference. Sterk drove San Diego State’s athletic office prior to coming to Missouri.
“She is an extreme, dynamic, creative pioneer who can help expand upon Mizzou’s triumphs and position us to routinely vie for titles in the SEC and then some. The SEC is the hardest meeting in the country, and we are ready for proceeded with progress with Desiree as our chief,” Layman said in an articulation. “I’m obliged to individuals from the quest board of trustees for their colossal exertion. We had an uncommonly solid pool of competitors.”
The UM Board of Curators will meet on Tuesday to endorse Reed-Francois’ agreement, with a starting news gathering to be held in the coming days.