C of C athletic director Baker stepping down

Citing a desire to pursue other opportunities, College of Charleston athletic director Jerry Baker announced his resignation Wednesday effective at the end of June.

"I have some exciting opportunities available to me and my family inside and outside of athletics, and I think the timing is perfect for me to hand the reins to someone else," Baker said. "I would like to thank (former athletic director and men's basketball coach) John Kresse and (former president) Alex Sanders for giving me this wonderful opportunity to serve my alma mater as director of athletics."

School president George Benson was out of town and unavailable for comment, but Tony Ciuffo, the school's assistant athletics director for media relations, said the search for Baker's replacement would begin immediately.

"Jerry Baker did a very commendable job in his years at the College and is a very good friend," said Kresse, who still serves in an advisory capacity in the athletics department. "He is very talented and I wish him great success in his future endeavors."

Basketball coach Bobby Cremins and baseball coach John Pawlowski both expressed appreciation for the job that Baker did as Charleston's athletic director.

"Jerry was very supportive of me, and we got along fine," Cremins said. "I'm very appreciative of everything he did for me and I wish him nothing but the best."

Pawlowski voiced similar thoughts.

"I'm very thankful for Mr. Baker because he gave me an opportunity to be part of this program," he said. "This athletic department has come a long way under his direction. He did a wonderful job."

Pawlowski and Cremins both said they hope Charleston will seek someone with experience at a larger school to replace Baker.

"I'd like to see us go after somebody from the big power conferences because they have been at that next level," Pawlowski said. "They know how things work at the highest level, someone who can help us take the next logical step in Division I, maybe an associate athletic director or someone along those lines. We need someone who can go out and fund-raise. Financially, we need to shake some new trees and generate some interest. We've already got it going in the right direction. We need someone to help us keep it moving."

Cremins said he'd like to see the Cougars hire someone from either the Southeastern Conference or the Atlantic Coast Conference.

"It's going to be a very important hire," he said. "I would hope they would maybe go after an associate AD from the ACC or the SEC."

Citadel athletic director Les Robinson had high praise for his crosstown colleague.

"Jerry Baker is one of the most outstanding athletics directors in the country and just a class individual," Robinson said. "The biggest compliment I can pay Jerry Baker is to say that if I were at a school where I needed an AD, I'd hire Jerry Baker in a heartbeat."

A 1974 graduate of the College of Charleston, Baker has directed the Cougars' athletic program for the last 15 years. The Charleston native helped lead the Cougars' transition from NAIA to NCAA Division I and oversaw a budget of less than $1 million in 1992 to a current budget of more than $8 million.

Baker also has had an impact on improving Charleston's facilities, including the Cougars' $45 million basketball facility under construction and the renovations to the Patriots Point athletics complex.

Under Baker's guidance, the Cougars moved from the Trans America Conference to the Southern Conference.

Baker came to the College of Charleston in 1976, after earning his Masters in Education from the University of South Carolina, and served two years as a student affairs staff member.

He then moved to Spartanburg where he was an administrator and coach at what is now USC Upstate from 1978-84. He assisted with the Rifles' basketball program from 1978-79 and softball squad from 1979-84.

Baker returned to the College of Charleston in 1984 and served as an assistant athletic director under Kresse, succeeding him in the AD position in 1992.

"I leave here feeling very fortunate about the progress and successes we've been able to achieve," Baker said. "I only wish the very best for the Cougar nation."

Reach Charles Bennett at cbennett@postandcourier.com or 937-5588.