OUR TIME TO SHINE
FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS , Earl Edwards has been a fixture at UC San Diego . Part champion , part cheerleader , he ’ s the Tritons ’ No . 1 fan , and you ’ ll often find him in the crowd or on the sidelines . His career at UC San Diego started in 1986 as associate athletic director for six years before leaving the university to become the athletic director at his alma mater , East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania . He returned to UC San Diego in 2000 as the director of athletics , replacing his former supervisor Judy Sweet , and has been on campus ever since . A scholar-athlete himself , Edwards played basketball ( point guard ) at Staten Island Community College and then at East Stroudsburg .
With the tenacity of an athlete , he thoughtfully stewarded UC San Diego ’ s move from Division II to Division I in 2020 . As we approach the end of the required four-year reclassification period ( more on that later ), we asked Edwards about the impact of the pandemic , the impressive nature of our scholar-athletes , and what this all means for UC San Diego going forward .
Tell me about the Big West . Was this always our goal ? The Big West was our goal for two reasons : It is a nonfootball conference and 10 out of the 11 schools are in California so it was the right fit for us geographically . Additionally , almost half of the schools in the conference are also University of California schools .
What was it like to enter Division I during the pandemic ? What did you learn from this ? When things were basically shut down , we wholeheartedly supported NCAA recommendations , such as competing without fans in attendance and regularly testing athletes , so we could compete . But it was crazy . There were times when we were going to play , but then we didn ’ t have enough athletes because they had COVID- 19 . It was challenging across the board .
During the pandemic , we didn ’ t focus as much on wins and losses because a number of games just weren ’ t played — and that was true throughout the conference . But in the last two seasons ( last year and this year ), our record has been more of a focus because there ’ s been a regular schedule . Fortunately for us , we have been doing quite well .
What did you learn about yourself as an athletic director during the pandemic ? One of our core values is resilience . And clearly , during that time period , we were tested quite a bit . I think the experience united us . There were a lot of growing pains that took place during that time that were positive and helped us with the future . For example , we implemented several programs that amplify the voices of scholar-athletes to ensure they have a positive experience .
What is the impact of Division I sports at UC San Diego ? Our scholar-athletes are ambassadors for the university . For their fellow students , I think the move to DI will mean a lot . For a campus like ours , with eight colleges , each with a different focus and theme , there are a lot of distinct and separate experiences . I believe Division I Athletics will unify the campus and inspire more blue and gold school spirit for the university as a whole .
Athletics is a community builder . We ’ re getting the word out about UC San Diego , sharing our sporting competitions — locally , regionally and nationally — through our partnership with ESPN . Alumni are coming together across the country to watch these games and cheer for the Tritons . And we are also connecting more with others in the San Diego community who attend and watch our competitions .
UC SAN DIEGO MAGAZINE 21