William J. Weidner Last College: Springfield College, 1979; Stanford, 1984 Position: Deputy Athletics Director

William J. Weidner was named the Deputy Athletics Director at the University of San Francisco in November of 2008 and brings a multifaceted wealth of experience to the Hilltop. His over 26 years of experience in NCAA intercollegiate athletics includes having served as Director of Athletics at three NCAA institutions. Weidner's role focuses on providing administrative and management oversight for all activities, programs and services as they relate to USF Athletics internal operations.

Prior to his arrival at the University of San Francisco, Weidner served as the Deputy Athletics Director at the University of Central Florida. At UCF, Weidner was responsible for the day to day operations of an athletic program which had an operating budget of $22 million dollars and was the immediate supervisor of the senior management team, sport administrators and their respective head coaches. While serving at UCF, the Knight athletic program operated as an NCAA compliance driven program while the student-athlete cumulative GPA rose to just over 3.00. In its first year of membership in Conference USA, the UCF athletic program's on-field success was highlighted by the football team hosting the inaugural conference championship game as Eastern Division Champions and earning the first bowl bid (Hawaii Bowl) in the program's history. Externally, Knight athletics set attendance records for football, raised $1.6 million dollars by the Golden Knights Club and conducted a $300 million dollar facility expansion project for athletics.

Before arriving at UCF, Weidner served as the Director of Athletics at Weber State University. During his stay, the Wildcat athletic program continued to excel in both the athletic and academic arenas during which time the WSU women's programs earned the Big Sky Conference All Sports Trophy while the overall athletic department earned a high ranking in the Big Sky Conference for academic achievement with a program wide G.P.A. above 3.00. Wildcat athletics also experienced significant overall season attendance increases as the women's basketball program set a school record and the men's basketball program led the Big Sky Conference. Under his watch, the athletic program also launched a football season ticket marketing campaign that resulted in selling out all 26 luxury suites and all club seating at Stewart Stadium.

In a six year stint (1998-2004) as the Director of Athletics at the University of Texas Pan American, Weidner helped the program receive full NCAA certification after developing a compliance-driven program that addressed past NCAA probation issues. Under his leadership, student-athlete performance in the classroom became a top priority as team G.P.A.s improved significantly and 74% of all scholarship student-athletes who completed their eligibility graduated with a degree. In addition, the UTPA athletic program earned an inaugural USA Today/NCAA Foundation Award for Academic Excellence. He was also the catalyst that led to a near 800% increase in athletic fund raising revenue which resulted in a 64% increase in the athletic department budget and a 90% increase in athletic scholarships for women during his tenure.

During his stay, the attendance for UTPA athletic contests improved significantly which was highlighted by a 127% increase for the men's basketball program from the year preceding his arrival and featured some of the largest home crowds in the history of the program. The Bronc athletic program reached new heights on the field of play under his watch, as both the women's basketball and women's volleyball programs set school records for victories. In addition, the men's basketball program received NIT consideration as an NCAA Division I Independent after posting a 21-9 record during the 2001-02 season, which completed a turnaround from the three win season that preceded Weidner's arrival at UTPA.

The rise of UTPA athletics was greatly assisted by a number of facility improvements during Weidner's tenure that included new locker rooms, team rooms and office suites for a number of programs. Also completed during his stay as Director of Athletics was the establishment of the UTPA Student-Athlete Learning Enhancement Center, the opening of the athletic department's first ever Strength & Conditioning Facility and a $6.5 million dollar baseball stadium complex.

Prior to his arrival at UTPA, Weidner served as the Director of Athletics at Ashland University for three years (1995-1998). AU claimed three consecutive Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference All-Sports President's Trophys as the top athletic program in the conference during his tenure. Overall, the athletic program earned 18 conference championships and had 171 All-Americans, 30 Academic All-Americans & 12 national champions while being ranked 11th, 16th and 22nd nationally in the USA Today/Directors Cup NCAA Division II standings under his watch as the AU Director of Athletics.

Prior to being named as the Director of Athletics at AU, Weidner spent seven years at Southern Methodist University (1988-1995) where he served as an Assistant Athletic Director. Having arrived at SMU in 1988, shortly after the Mustang football program had received the NCAA "Death Penalty", for numerous major NCAA violations, Weidner was part of the athletic administrative team that rebuilt the entire athletic department. During his stay at SMU, the athletic program restored its reputation and developed into an NCAA compliance driven program that experienced impressive results in the classroom and on the playing field. SMU Athletics were ranked as high as 23rd nationally in the Directors Cup standings for overall athletic excellence with many programs earning high national rankings and NCAA berths. SMU was also recognized by the College Football Coaches Association as one of only five NCAA Division I programs to graduate over 90% of its student-athletes.

In addition to his career in athletic administration, Weidner has also served on the football coaching staffs at Ohio State University, Stanford University, Murray State University, Southern Connecticut State University and the University of New Haven. Weidner graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education from Springfield College in 1979 and earned his Master of Arts degree in Physical Education from Stanford University in 1984.