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Former LB tackles LTAC advancement Solomon Randle knows about adversity and what it takes to get better. As a Bulldog linebacker out of Mobile, Ala., he was a conference champ as a junior in 2011 and played for a 9-3 team that missed out on a bowl as a senior. “Even though we won a lot of ballgames, one thing that was a common thread both years was the concept of fighting through adversity,” said Solomon, new coordinator of athletic advancement for the Louisiana Tech Athletic Club (LTAC). “Whether it was starting 1-4 and running the table my junior year, injuries my senior year, or even the bowl mishap, you have to learn to pick your head up and keep pushing. Much of what makes me who I am today can be attributed to my time playing ball here.” With 159 tackles in 42 career games, Randle brings a solid mix of charisma and competitiveness to a position that became necessary to meet the growing demands for revenue generated from private donations for Tech Athletics through LTAC. The Davison Athletics Complex opened last year, and a new press box and suites will be ready for the 2017 season opener in Joe Aillet Stadium. Both projects were privately funded. “Everybody loves Solomon,” said Tech vice president for University Advancement Brooks Hull. “He worked hard as a football player and was a champion; he’ll be a champion with LTAC.” When he was recruited the first time by Tech – back in ’08 to play ball – what stood out to him was “how welcoming and inviting every person I met in Ruston was,” he said. “Everyone seemed to genuinely care to learn about me as a person and not just a football player. Also, Tech had a great reputation academically and our athletics program was starting to get back on the right track. A lot of the moves that have made our program as successful as it is today were starting to be put into motion even then.” A 2012 marketing graduate, Randle can be reached at Solomon@LATechAlumni. org and 318-497-7986; LTAC director Tyson Baldwin is at Tyson@LATechAlumni.org and 318-497-7265.
Athletics a winner in APR Four of Tech’s athletic programs – women’s cross country, soccer, bowling, and tennis – earned perfect scores, and all 16 of Tech’s athletic programs remained penalty-free in the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rates (APR) released in May. APR provides a real-time look at a team’s academic success each quarter and backtracks the academic progress of each student-athlete. These most recent scores are based on a multi-year rate that averages scores from the past four academic years. APR includes eligibility, retention, and graduation in the calculation to provide a picture of the academic culture in each sport. Each sport earns a single-year rate and then a multi-year rate, which is a four-year average of the single-year rates. LA Tech’s student-athletes recorded a Graduation Success Rate (GSR) above 80 percent for the fourth straight year and graduated at a higher rate than the student body. Tech’s GSR is second highest in the state among Division I football-playing schools and just one point short of matching the University’s all-time high set last year. Tech’s graduation success rate easily outdistances the state average of 73 percent among the other nine Division I football-playing public institutions in the state.
Meet Paul Kabbes: Associate AD for Development • Age 29 from Normal, Ill. • Pronounced CAB-us • I llinois Wesleyan University, business management, ’10; Illinois State, M.S., sports management, ’12 • Three-year letterwinner for IWU baseball; pitched for the 2010 Division III National Champions • Worked for UAB, Illinois State, and, since 2014, for the University of Illinois at Springfield as associate athletics director/external relations •F or the Foundation, Kabbes secures private support for the University’s athletic programs with an emphasis on major gifts, helps develop strategies to grow Tech athletics, provides oversight for the operations of LTAC and Lettermen’s Club activities, and coordinates alumni and donor events with the Alumni Association. •C ontact Paul at Paul@ LATechAlumni.org and 318-497-7987.
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