Joe Manhertz outlines his four keys to success at St. Bonaventure

By CHUCKIE MAGGIO

A piece of wisdom Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith imparted to Joe Manhertz while Manhertz was a director of development on Smith’s staff was to “never miss a moment to shut up.”

Manhertz said he often utilizes that saying in closing his remarks, but he wasn’t ready to leave the Doyle Conference Center podium on Thursday morning.

“I’m gonna go for a bit longer here,” Manhertz said, “because this is awesome. This is just truly awesome.”

The Fairport, N.Y. native transferred the focus from his credentials at powerhouses like Duke, Ohio State and Syracuse and instead emphasized the excitement he felt after being selected for the vacancy. He invited Fairport basketball coach Scott Fitch, thanking Fitch for teaching him the values of a good family man, and football coach Don Santini, expressing his gratitude for the confidence Santini instilled in pregame speeches.

Manhertz expressed gratitude to Smith and retired Duke Director of Athletics Kevin White, noting that he is the 31st of White’s former employees to become an athletic director and vowing to bring some of White’s “savvy” to the role.

Acting president Joseph Zimmer stated his belief that Manhertz is the administrator to take SBU’s athletic department to “the next level.” To Manhertz, who will now oversee a potentially nationally-ranked men’s basketball team and upstart men’s lacrosse team along with 15 other programs, that means elevating each squad’s standing, whether in the Atlantic 10 Conference or nationally.

“If we’re finishing sixth in the Atlantic 10, let’s get to third. Once you do that, let’s get to first,” Manhertz explained. “Let’s look and evaluate every program and see what they want to do, where they want to be, and have an honest conversation on what it takes to get to that next level. So if you’re finishing 10th in the Atlantic 10, the next level means let’s get to fifth, let’s cut it in half.

“I won’t tell you we’re gonna win all the NCAA championships, but again, let’s be realistic. Let’s start winning where we are now.”

In order to achieve those goals, Manhertz outlined four essential pillars of a successful athletic department: value, compliance, fiscal responsibility and daily improvement.

The Bona women’s soccer team provided Manhertz an early opportunity to convey his message, attending the press conference ahead of preparation for their 5 p.m. kickoff at the Marra Athletics Conference. Manhertz spoke directly to the players, who welcomed him with a jersey upon his arrival to campus, and added some humor akin to his career background.

“I want to make sure that we value the student-athlete, your experience,” Manhertz remarked. “Experiences not just athletically: academically, athletically and how you prepare and transition to become residents of the world, once you leave here. Prepare you to be successful academically and athletically once you leave this place, so you can come back and donate money. Never forget that.

“Secondly, one thing we’ll represent, we’ll be compliant. We’ll do it the right way, we won’t cut the corners, and if there’s a mistake we’ll own it. We’ll make sure that we have a nature and a culture where we just talk and we make sure we do it the right way. I think that’s really important.”

Zimmer identified future renovations to the Reilly Center as an area Manhertz’s experience in securing athletic donations will be of service. The arena “needs some TLC,” Zimmer said, adding that Manhertz will advocate for those facility upgrades.

The continued financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic pose university-wide fiscal challenges, but Bona still hopes to earn donations.

“I think the one thing, a lot of people don’t give because they’re never asked,” Manhertz acknowledged. “I’ll never be afraid to ask anyone for money; I’ll never be afraid to ask anyone for their support in whichever way they can do it. Getting out and asking and stating a case, outlining how that case can affect student-athletes’ careers, because at the end of the day that’s what we’re here for.”

As for on-field performance goals, including the men’s hoops team’s run at NCAA Tournament success, Manhertz believes in “getting better every day,” but also knowing when to stay out of the way.

“My role as an athletic director, as an administrator, or as a fundraiser has always been, let coaches coach and let’s try to tackle problems so they can focus on the student-athletes and playing,” he noted. “We can focus on the other stuff…

“My role as an athletic director, as an administrator, or as a fundraiser has always been, let coaches coach and let’s try to tackle problems so they can focus on the student-athletes and playing,” he noted. “We can focus on the other stuff…

“My success is based on relationships. Relationships matter; it’s about people. I think at the end of the day, if you have a relationship you make deposits and withdrawals in the relationships like a bank account. Just like anything else, if you make more deposits than withdrawals, you grow.”

Manhertz has enjoyed his initial contact with Bona fans, including a conversation with an astute alumnus who told him he needed to update his LinkedIn profile to reflect his new position. Moving from Durham, N.C. to the Southern Tier has consumed most of his time over the last several weeks, but he promised to log on to the networking site eventually.

“My passion for this has been growing by the day, and the Bona Nation, the Bonnie Nation, is just awesome,” he expressed. “…I’m proud to be here. I’m proud to stand in front of you.”