Evans puts in long hours as he works to trim senior staff

ATHENS, Ga. - When Damon Evans took over as Georgia's athletic director July 1, there were a 14 associate or assistant athletic directors on staff.

That total, which included Evans' former position as a senior associate athletic director, already has been cut by two. The number is going to continue to drop as Evans makes the reduction of senior staff a top priority.

Evans, who marked his two-week anniversary on the job Wednesday, says the changes are coming "sooner than later."

"I've been upfront in saying I'm going to make some changes, so there's some uncertainty in the staff," Evans said.

"I know that people are waiting for that time to come so we can just move forward, and so am I. You don't want people to be always worried about whether they're here. You want people to be comfortable."

On Tuesday, Evans announced the resignation of associate athletic director for development Kit Trensch, who said Wednesday she will continue to work in a fund-raising position for one year.

"I can only imagine that after the announcement about me was made that others might be wondering what's next," Trensch said. "I feel for everybody but I feel that Damon is doing things in the best interest of the athletic association. I thought giving him my resignation was probably the best thing for me."

Evans trimmed another senior staff position when he promoted Frank Crumley to serve as his replacement as senior associate athletic director for finance and administration. Crumley had been assistant athletic director for business operations, and that position won't be filled.

"There is an individual who will assist Frank but will not be at that level," Evans said.

Evans said he will hire someone to fill Trensch's duties but said the new position would have a different title.

Evans won't say how many cuts are needed.

"I am looking for a smaller senior staff," he said. "I'm not going to say significantly smaller. I don't want to have an overloaded senior staff."

Evans said he has been working nights, weekends and even the July Fourth holiday as he has settled into the job and office previously held by Vince Dooley.

On Wednesday, there were still some unpacked boxes in Evans' office, but that's not a reflection of a lack of time spent in the office.

"I'll tell you this, I'm keeping some hours," said Evans, who says he usually leaves about 7 p.m. to see his wife, Kerri, and two children. He says he sometimes returns to the office after putting the children to bed.

"I've been in the office as late as midnight maybe three or four occasions so far," he said. "I've been in here some on the weekends. We were closed on Monday, July 5. I came in like a normal day. Oh boy, it was a blessing. No one was here. The phones weren't ringing. That's what the evenings are for."

While Dooley has promised he won't interfere, Evans says it would be natural for his former boss to have "some feelings" about the staff cuts.

"I think coach Dooley is a very loyal individual," Evans said.

"With regard to personnel, I'm sure he'll have some feelings. At the same time, I feel very strongly he will keep those to himself. He knows these are my decisions. He said before, he's not going to get in the way. I believe him when he says that. I'm not worried about that."