CLEVELAND, Ohio – The 2025 recipient of the Homer Rice Award, presented by Onrise, is Florida’s Emeritus Athletic Director Jeremy Foley. This prestigious honor from the FBS Athletics Directors Association will be presented June 10 during the NACDA & Affiliates Convention in Orlando, Fla.
Foley handled virtually every aspect of the University of Florida’s athletic program during his athletic administrative career – which began with an internship in the Gator Ticket Office in 1976. He was named UF’s Director of Athletics in March of 1992. He was the second-longest tenured athletic director among Autonomy Conference schools before his retirement in October 2016.
As CFO for the University Athletic Association (UAA), Foley spearheaded $307 million in capital improvement projects since 1999 and outlined a $100 million master facility plan before his retirement. Foley’s commitment to the overall athletics program included a plan of increased opportunities for women, as three women’s sports were added under his tenure – soccer, softball, and lacrosse. Also, in an era when many Division I schools were losing money on intercollegiate athletics, the athletics department under Foley contributed more than $76 million since 2006 to help fund UF academic endeavors.
UF was equally successful on the field of play and in the classroom under Foley. The UF athletics program was the only school in the nation to be ranked among the top-10 for 33-straight years, according to national all-sport rankings. UF also became the first program in history to earn both the men’s basketball and football national titles in the same calendar year in 2007. Overall, UF won 27 NCAA titles and 130 SEC titles under his watch. Florida was first to sweep Southeastern Conference (SEC) All-Sports Titles (men, women, overall) in 1991-92, a feat the Gator program accomplished 15 times under Foley.
During Foley’s tenure, UF student-athletes were honored 107 times as Academic All-Americans, which was the highest total among sitting athletics directors and fifth best in the nation since 1992 before he stepped down. Foley was named the 2006 Sports Business Journal National Athletics Director of the Year.
Foley was inducted into Florida Athletics Hall of Fame as an honorary letterwinner<https://floridagators.com/news/2022/3/31/general-2022-uf-athletic-hall-of-fame-class-announced.aspx> in October of 2022.
They Said:
“”I am truly humbled to receive the Homer Rice Award. To be recognized by my peers and to be associated with the legacy of Homer Rice is a tremendous honor. I have always believed in the power of college athletics to change lives, and I am grateful for the opportunity I had to serve the University of Florida and work alongside so many outstanding student-athletes, coaches, and colleagues.”
Jeremy Foley, University of Florida Emeritus Athletic Director
“Jeremy Foley’s impact on college athletics is nothing short of extraordinary. His visionary leadership, commitment to student-athlete success, and relentless pursuit of excellence set a standard for all of us in the profession. We are thrilled to honor Jeremy with the Homer Rice Award and celebrate his remarkable legacy at this year’s meeting.”
Heather Lyke, President & CEO of the FBS AD Association
About the Homer Rice Award:
The Homer Rice Award, named after the legendary former Georgia Tech athletics director and founder of the Division 1A Athletic Directors’ Association/LEAD1 (now the FBS AD Association), is presented annually to a retired FBS athletics director who has served for at least 10 years and made significant, lasting contributions to college sports.
Onrise, the presenting partner of the 2025 Homer Rice Award, offers customized solutions for athletics departments of all sizes and budgets. Their programs range from comprehensive turn-key solutions to external athlete-specific resources to supplement on-campus mental health services that comply with NCAA Mental Health Best Practices.
About the FBS Athletics Directors Association:
The Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Athletics Directors Association, founded in 1986, represents the athletics directors of the 134 member universities of the FBS, encompassing 42 states, 55,000 student-athletes, and more than 25,000 athletics administrators. Key to the FBS Athletics Directors Association’s mission is to bring together FBS athletics directors to advocate and drive results on key issues that focus on the success of student-athletes and the advancement of college athletics.
Jeremy Foley bio<https://floridagators.com/staff-directory/jeremy-foley/15>
