Incoming AD Steve Newmark looking forward to the future
The new leader of Tar Heel athletics has a clear idea of how he wants to move Carolina forward while preserving the department’s storied tradition.
Like many young Tar Heel fans of the 1980s, Steve Newmark grew up with two posters hanging in his room: one of James Worthy, the other of Michael Jordan.
That young Tar Heel fan is now set to be Carolina’s athletic director, leading the athletic department into a new generation of college sports. Newmark and Bubba Cunningham are completing their yearlong transition in the upcoming days.
While watching Cunningham, Newmark observed significant financial realities at the top of a major college athletic department that expects to compete for national championships across a deep roster of 28 sports. But he’s also realized his job isn’t entirely about finances.
“We still have to lean in on what has made us so special,” Newmark said in a new Carolina Insider podcast interview. “I don’t want this to become just an economic analysis. We are different than professional sports, and we sometimes forget that. When you interact with our student-athletes and show up at the academic luncheons or attend the Rammys, you see that there’s still a purity to what these student-athletes are going through. They’re leaving home for the first time without their families and tackling academic challenges and thinking about what their career is going to be.”
Newmark is realistic that his department could struggle to provide the services student-athletes need or the competitive rosters Carolina’s coaches require without prioritizing revenue. That means finding new ways to capitalize while also giving student-athletes the opportunity to utilize the nationally coveted Carolina brand.
“We’re going to have to get out of our comfort zone,” Newmark says. “We have to evolve while still staying true to what makes Carolina so special. We’re going to have to unlock different sponsorship categories. We will continue to look at how to bring in corporate partners. The NCAA is allowing jersey patches and different naming rights. How can we monetize our content? We have 750 athletes and we have a great history and tradition, so we have a leg up because we don’t have to establish who we are. We will use what we have and continue to upgrade our facilities to give fans different amenities and choices, whether that’s premium seating or a different experience. It doesn’t mean we will get rid of our current seating structure, but we will provide more options for people who are willing to pay extra dollars to support the athletic department.”
Newmark at the annual Rammys, honoring Carolina student-athletes. (GoHeels/Submitted photo)
Newmark’s indoctrination into an executive role in college sports has involved watching Cunningham closely — keeping up with the outgoing athletic director‘s schedule, who is often the last person to leave any sporting event or networking activity. He’s spent time at the Blue Zone training table introducing himself to current Tar Heel student-athletes (and only once with disastrous results, he described during an interview with the Carolina Insider podcast).
“Data analytics has become way more important in the success of programs than it has ever been,” Newmark said. “We’re looking at creating cross-functional sports sciences programs that recognize we have unbelievable advantages at Carolina. It’s not just the athletic department. We have a world-class hospital system with cutting-edge medical capabilities and a great exercise and sports science program. We are a top-10 research university. We want to bring all those folks together and create a sports science program that uses data analytics for performance, recovery and injury prevention. And then we can also use it for talent evaluation, in-game strategy and improvement for our student-athletes.”
His first 11 months have included big wins, like Seth Trimble’s game-winner against Duke and multiple conference championships. But it’s also featured some challenges, most notably the men’s basketball coach transition. His close involvement with that process was a reminder that he wants to make sure he utilizes the resources available to a national organization like Carolina Athletics.
The moments that stick with Newmark aren’t powered exclusively by finances. He’s still thinking about how senior women’s lacrosse player Sarah Gresham suffered a torn ACL in the quarterfinals but wanted to find a way to help her team in the national championship game.
“She’s a draw specialist, and by the way also on the All-ACC Academic Team,” he says. “Despite what most would assume would have been a season-ending injury, I’m watching the NCAA finals and noticed she’s running on the field to take the draws because she didn’t want to let her team down. She plays most of the game on a torn ACL and wins 14 of 24 draws, sprinting on and off the field with this big, bulky brace. Her toughness and resilience exemplify our mission which is to educate and inspire through athletics. I’m constantly amazed at how often our student-athletes teach and uplift all of us through their actions and make us proud to be associated with the entire University.”
