Q&A: Southern Part commissioner Rob Wigod presents 'exit' interview on major topics

Unless the Dodgers offer you a coaching career, Southern Area commissioner Rob Wigod reported Wednesday he has manufactured no strategies yet for what his lifestyle will look like right after he ends his 12-12 months reign on Aug. 1, 2023.

“Offers can be approved,” he joked.

Wigod, a former baseball coach before he entered the administrative area, introduced on Aug. 2 that this would be his closing year as commissioner of the premier part in the CIF.

In a 20-minute interview Wednesday, he made available insights into his selection, spoke about his office’s achievements, his regrets and hopes for the challenges facing substantial college athletics. He’s fired up and fully commited to doing all he can in his ultimate 12 months to complete on a superior notice.

Why did you come to a decision to step down as commissioner?

“This is my 40th yr in schooling coming up. I’ve had remarkable chances to be included with training-based athletes and superior faculty sports for so lengthy and felt it was the right time. We bought as a result of the pandemic and bought through the most difficult times we have faced. This would be a good time to hang it up.”

What do you believe will be your best achievements as commissioner?

“There have been several issues I’m quite very pleased of, but it’s been a collaboration with member colleges, the executive committee and employees. The aggressive fairness playoff design has designed a key variance. Issues like our CIF House platform has revolutionized how directors do their do the job. The on-line ticketing motivation we made has created a enormous variance. I consider our money placement has been remarkable. We’ve been in a position to return membership dues and waive dues for 2022-23. Our 100th anniversary was a enormous celebration. There is nevertheless more to do.”

Any regrets about items you have not been capable to entire?

“There’s absolutely regrets. The changing weather, exactly where there are individuals making an attempt to make large university athletics into a small business, which has a big impression on the transfer scenario. I consider in purity of high college athletics. I really do not like looking at exterior forces have an effect of having away some of the innocence substantial university athletics should have.”

Ron Nocetti, the CIF govt director, is creating it a issue of emphasis this fall to talk about what large faculty sports is about and is not about. Your career has been to preserve the integrity of the superior faculty sporting activities encounter. But is the genie out of the bottle for superior in conditions of transfers and the focus on winning?

“If you search back in the archives, I wrote my 1st information as commissioner in 2011, and it was specifically that topic. We’re the training-dependent athletics surroundings. We’re the only ones that do this striving to educate the total student bodily, emotionally, socially providing the system for life classes that we imagine arrive from the large university athletics arena. Who we are not is a business enterprise centered entirely on school and skilled possibilities. That share associated is a incredibly little proportion. We believe that we’re exclusive and exclusive. However, there are outside the house forces and have observed a market place and discovered people who are willing to acquire individuals forms of expert services on what learners will do past their school a long time.”

How lots of instances has anyone been disciplined for undue affect?

“We’ve experienced various hundred. The types publicized are the types involving packages since the power of the Southern Segment business office is to sanction applications. A good deal of these involved personnel matters. The goal has been when instances are found out, the wrongdoers are punished. We never have the immediate electricity to sanction, self-control, deal with personnel concerns, but their supervisors do.”

“I will commit to you and all people out there we will do what we normally said we would do, at the end of the regular season, we will formulate divisions based on electricity rankings.”

Any suggestion for your eventual successor on how to prepare for the job?

“There’s no manual to go through, no action-by-move guidance how to turn into commissioner. It’s some thing you have to understand as you go. It’s a distinctive placement. It’s a thing you have to roll with following you get used to it. You want to listen and study and know the depth of the segment and comprehend the significant photo.”

Will you leave a be aware in your desk like presidents do for their successor?

“I absolutely plan to go away a notice, but it would be unfair to explain to you.”