Purdue Athletic Director Tommy McClelland Addresses Viral Comment

"I made an off the script, off the cuff remark about an in-state rival as a joke that didn't land well." Tommy McClelland wants to put Thursday's mistake behind him.

A man in a gray suit and yellow tie speaking at a podium with "Purdue University" branding visible behind him. — Source: N/A / n/a

Purdue Athletic Director Tommy McClelland Addresses Viral Comment

On Thursday, Purdue University announced Tommy McClelland as its next Athletic Director once Mike Bobinski’s officially retires at the end of the year.

McClelland, 44, heads to West Lafayette after spending the last three years at Rice University as the vice president and director of athletics. He’s also had stops at Vanderbilt, Louisiana Tech, and McNeese State.

During his introductory press conference, McClelland said a lot of good things about his vision for the Boilermakers and building up the football program. However, he went off script and it went viral.

“In the midst of that great day, I made an off the script, off the cuff remark about an in-state rival as a joke that didn’t land well. I knew it immediately as it came out of my mouth. The thing that bothered me probably more than anything, is it becomes a distraction to what the focus is.” Tommy McClelland to Jake Query on Friday afternoon.

McClelland went on to say that his comment yesterday has become a distraction from what he was trying to achieve in his first public appearance.

“We have the ability and the resources, we’ve got incredible coaches, and our student athletes are remarkable. We have the fan base to do great things and trying to raise the bar and raise the horizon of what’s possible for us. What I don’t want is this is I got to take the focus off me as much as I can, because that’s not the intention, that’s what happened, and put the attention back on our student athletes, which is where it belongs and it’s not about another program, And It’s not about me, it’s about who we are and where we are headed with that.” McClelland stated.

To listen to Jake Query’s and conversation with Tommy McClelland, download the podcast containing the conversations! You can always listen and watch Query & Company from 10am-1pm on 93.5/107.5 The Fan. You can also watch and interact with the show by going to the 107.5 The Fan YouTube Channel.

Purdue Athletic Director Tommy McClelland Addresses Viral Comment was originally published on 1075thefan.com