Lew Perkins stands to be a man who has managed to achieve enough in his life till now to make him famous and well known throughout the world. He serves the University of Kansas as the Director of Athletics, a post that he joined back in June 2003. He arrived at his current post after having acclaimed huge success at the University of Connecticut as the athletics director. Back then this had earned him national fame and recognition for his devotion and hard work. This also led to him topping the 2008 TIME magazine’s poll as the top sports executives globally, which was a public online voting process.
Achievements of Kansas Athletics during the term of Lew Perkins
- In 2009, during the fall, the athletic students in the 18 sport program made a record in the Athletics Department by achieving a total of 2.99 grade-point average. Another eight teams managed a 3.0 grade-point average or more and round two hundred and seventy four student athletes achieved a 3.0 GPA or more, along with thirty four such students who managed a perfect 4.0 GPA.
- The KU football team also achieved remarkable success by winning two consecutive games which were the 2008 Orange Bowl and the 2008 Insight Bowl. This marked as the first time ever that KU played in two bowl games that were held back to back. The team has now been eligible to play in five out of seven seasons till date.
- The 2008 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship was won by the KU basketball team they also managed to reach the 2004 Elite Eight, the 2004 NCAA Championships, and the 2009 Sweet 16. The team has also succeeded in receiving the Big 12 Tournament titles in the years 2007, 2008, and 2010.
- The softball team came into the limelight by winning the 2006 Big 12 Championship and also appeared in the NCAA Tournament in two consecutive seasons.
Lew Perkins boosts Women athletes in KU
- The women’s volley ball team and soccer team has made it to the three of the NCAA Tournaments where the volleyball team reached the second round in the years 2003 and 2004 and the soccer team reached the Sweet 16 in the year 2003.
- The Women’s Basketball team appeared in the 2009 Women’s National Invitation Tournament in the championship game where they managed to draw a crowd of more than sixteen thousand people. They also played in the WNIT’s in the years 2006, 2008, and 2010.