By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Change is coming to the University of Hawai'i athletic department, where outgoing director Hugh Yoshida is moving to the third floor and what has been his ground floor office for nine years is being readied for AD-designate Herman Frazier.

But while some of the furniture has been rearranged for the beginning of this new era, the familiar budget struggle, looming as a bigger challenge than ever, will be there to greet Frazier upon his arrival Thursday.

Contract commitments and coaches' requests suggest the possibility of the biggest budget in the school's history — potentially $1 million or more above last year's record $16.5 million — even while there are concerns whether UH can hope to match last year's revenues of approximately $15.2 million.

Frazier says his first order of business this week will be to meet with staff and coaches to assess needs and priorities and begin restructuring the department. But hanging over the transition is finding — and funding — a workable 2002-03 budget for the 19-sport program.

"Somehow," Frazier said, "we're going to have to find ways to bring the two ends together."

Herman Frazier, who starts as UH athletic director this week, must find, and fund, a 2002-03 budget. Advertiser library photo

Some coaches say that after years of tight budgets and cutbacks, they have asked for more money this year. And Frazier says, "We're gonna try to be responsive to the coaches' (requests). But we need to be conscious of how we grow (the budget)."

A 46 percent drop in what had been a guaranteed $1.3 million K5 television rights fees contract on top of higher costs in other areas, including freshly negotiated salaries for administrators and coaches, and gender equity mandates have raised bottom line concerns.

This even as the department is preparing to dip into its $1.5 million reserve fund to pay off a deficit of $1 million or more blamed on the financial fallout from Sept. 11.

Frazier says it could be December before UH has a definitive budget from which to work. Although the UH fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30, traditionally the athletic department has waited until the conclusion of football season ticket sales in August to write its budget numbers in ink. (Non-renewal season ticket sales begin tomorrow morning).

This year, the budget process has become more unsettled for reasons beyond just the change in ADs. Between the Board of Regents delaying approval of the new football season ticket surcharges until June, the finalizing this month of the television contract, a first try at pay-per-view telecasts and questions about how the plunge of the stock market impact revenues, the situation is more fluid than usual.

"We'll see where the revenues are at the end of the football season and make the adjustments that we need to," Frazier said.

Frazier vows to hit the ground running this week. But even for a former Olympic track medalist, his first budget poses some daunting hurdles.