Arizona State athletic director Ray Anderson receives vote of confidence from Michael Crow
Arizona State University President Michael Crow gave ASU athletic director Ray Anderson a vote of confidence on Tuesday telling ESPN's Pete Thamel that the school is committed to him as the AD.
"Ray is our VP for University Athletics," Crow told Thamel. "We are in the thick of making things work here and Ray is moving things forward."
Arizona State president Michael Crow tells ESPN that the school remains committed to athletic director Ray Anderson. “Ray is our VP for University Athletics. We are in the thick of making things work here and Ray is moving things forward.”
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 25, 2022
Speculation has swirled around Anderson's future as the athletic director and it appeared to reach a boiling point on Tuesday before Crow's statement to ESPN.
Some chatter on social media Tuesday speculated that Anderson was close to being fired.
Crow's statement appeared to quiet that chatter, at least for now.
Reaction: Arizona State football fans call for Ray Anderson to be fired after Herm Edwards firing
VOTE: Should Ray Anderson be fired as the #ASU Athletic Director? (Michael Crow comments: https://t.co/2aNQec3cFb) @azcentral #ForksUp #SunDevils
— azcentral sports (@azcsports) October 26, 2022
Anderson was hired as ASU's Vice President for University Athletics and Athletics Director on Jan. 9, 2014, and made several notable hirings and firings of coaches during his tenure.
The most notable? In 2017, Anderson fired football coach Todd Graham after six seasons in Tempe, and replaced him with Herm Edwards, who was an analyst for ESPN.
Anderson had previously spent time as Edwards' agent.
Anderson is under contract through February of 2026. Anderson himself had been ambiguous about his role in hiring ASU’s new football coach, saying he’d be involved but didn’t know “the structure” of how the process would work.
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 25, 2022
Edwards went 26-20 during his time at ASU before being fired earlier this season after an embarrassing loss to Eastern Michigan.
The Sun Devils had been mired (and continue to be) in an NCAA investigation into recruiting allegations under Edwards.
In a news conference announcing Graham's firing, Anderson made some lofty proclamations about the ASU football program, as well as other ASU athletic teams.
Comparison: Did Herm Edwards leave Arizona State football in better shape than Todd Graham?
"We want to compete for championships and we want to win consistently across the board in all of our sports," he said. "In football, we have not done that in the four years that I have been there. Not consistently. We have been average. (A record of) 7-5 and second place in a riddled Pac-12 South is not our aspiration. We deserve more.”
He added: “There should be no question in anybody's mind that the things we have here can attract. ... We should be top 3 in the Pac-12 in my opinion every season. There's no reason we shouldn't be every year top 15 nationally, if we do what we're supposed to do here.”
He also said: “Some folks are OK with going to the Cactus Bowl and even the Sun Bowl, which is the fifth-ranked bowl among the Pac-12 contracted bowls. That means you're the fifth-best team in the conference. It's good for the experience of going and getting those extra practices, but if anyone here is satisfied with that, I don't understand it. I'm not.”
Anderson and Arizona State announced Herm Edwards' hire as the new Arizona State coach not long thereafter.
In a statement announcing Edwards' hire, Anderson said "our goal for this football program is to reach unprecedented heights."
They were not able to do that during Edwards' time in Tempe and the program has arguably even taken a step back with the recruiting and coaching issues now surrounding it.
Other notable hires for Anderson at ASU include men's basketball coach Bobby Hurley, swim coach Bob Bowman and wrestling coach Zeke Jones.
He also hired former ASU baseball coach Tracy Smith, who was fired after leading the Sun Devils to a 201-155 mark over seven years and replaced with former ASU player Willie Bloomquist.
Smith went just 87-93 in Pac-12 play during his tenure.
ASU has taken some steps forward under Anderson in other sports, with men's tennis being reinstated in 2016 and with the addition of the men's hockey program, which now has a new venue in Tempe.
He also helped lead a huge renovation project of Sun Devil Stadium.
Next coach?: Arizona State football fans sour on Shaun Aguano as permanent coach after loss to Stanford
Reach Jeremy Cluff at jeremy.cluff@arizonarepublic.com. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona State's Michael Crow gives Ray Anderson vote of confidence
