Matt Jones goes 1-on-1 with J Batt, Kentucky's new AD - On3

Kentucky has its new athletic director (and CEO of Champions Blue), J Batt, and one of the first media members to speak to him was our founding father, Matt Jones.

Matt and Batt met up via Zoom this afternoon. The conversation lasted just under 15 minutes (Batt is a busy man today), but covered several topics, including what fans should know about Batt, why he took the job, his impressions of the University of Kentucky, and why he believes the school could be set up for success in this new era of college sports. Batt has a strong reputation for fundraising, and money was a big topic, with Batt preaching the importance of maximizing revenue streams. As his new title suggests, that’s one of the most important parts of the job.

Batt said he met with Mark Pope and Will Stein earlier on Monday and believes both basketball and football can be great under his watch, pointing to Alabama’s success in both sports during his tenure as deputy AD. Speaking of Alabama, Batt has moved around a lot — at just 44 years of age, this will be his fourth job in the past five years; however, he insists he is at Kentucky to stay.

“[My wife] and I have talked, and this is where our boys will graduate from high school. They’re nine and 11, so we’ve got a long runway here. This is a destination job for us. This is a place we want to be. This is a place we want to be for a very long time. And so I appreciate the question, but at the end of the day, we’re 100% locked in.”

Enjoy their conversation below, followed by a full transcript.

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Matt Jones: Well, nice to meet you. You know, I’ve been doing this 21 years, and it occurred to me while walking today that this is the first time I’ve had a new athletic director at Kentucky, so I would say for me and BBN, just as an extension for the fan base as a whole, if there were one or two things that they should know about you, what would they be?

J Batt: Well, can I start with a few things? One, I think what you just said, it’s incredible to be here. This is an incredible place, and it’s incredible to follow Mitch. I’m humbled to follow in his footsteps, and to have been here for that long, and have made such an impact on Kentucky athletics for so many years is incredible.

I think, second, you know, Matt, congratulations to you, and the, I’d say, the enterprise that you’ve built around KSR, it’s impressive, the voice of the fan base that you’ve built, and I’m just glad that we can connect, and that hopefully we’ll look forward to doing this lots of different times.

But I’d say, for me, listen, I’m incredibly excited to be here. Our family is incredibly excited to be here and be part of Big Blue Nation, you know, this this place is so attractive because of the championship standard that’s been built here over so many years by Mitch and others, and I think part of it is this place is built for the future, and I think that’s part of what is so, so exciting, so attractive about the University of Kentucky athletics is that as college athletics continues to evolve, we are built for this moment. We are built to take ground through this change, and so I think for me, what you’re going to find is someone who’s going to embrace that change, embrace that opportunity, that’s going to give 110% every day to Big Blue Nation to work and make good on the promise of what Big Blue Nation and what Kentucky athletics means to the Commonwealth.

Matt Jones: When you say that Kentucky is built for this change, I mean, I assume to some extent you mean the change in college athletics in general. Why do you think Kentucky specifically is built for it?

J Batt: Yeah, two things I think: one, all of the work that’s already been done around the Champions Blue setup, right? I think creating the LLC setup to be commercial, to take advantage of opportunities that arise, right, it’s going to be a continuing evolving landscape, and so the need to be nimble is incredibly important. Think the second part of that, Matt, is that Big Blue Nation is this differentiator, it’s a separator, the amount of kind of uncommon passion around our place in this program, and not only will it have the structure to excel, it also has the scale, the passion of a fan base, that when it takes more, right, and I think we all know that college athletics, as it evolves, will take more, right, whether that’s more fans to show up, more fans to invest, more donors to step forward, all of that matters, and so I think we are built for this moment, and that we have the structure, and ultimately we’ll be able to capitalize.

Matt Jones: Let me ask you about the last one of those points. I mean, you know, Kentucky, unlike some schools in the SEC, while we do have a big fan base, it’s not a state with a ton of — you know, it’s not a rich state, it’s not a state necessarily, even with a ton of huge boosters. Where does the revenue come from beyond commercial enterprises? I mean, do you think one could look and go, Kentucky’s never gonna have Texas or Texas A&M or even Ohio State’s donor alumni base? How do they compete against that?

J Batt: You know, every single opportunity in college athletics is different, and Kentucky is separated by the fact that our fans care so much about this place. Now, to your point, listen, we’ve got – we’ve got to each, and every one of us has to do more, because we are – we’re in this place where college athletics is changing, and the environment is changing, and so we are in a, we are in a place where we’re all going to have to dig deeper together.

Matt Jones: Okay, I don’t want to just talk about money, but when you say that, a fan would might look at that and go, I don’t have much deeper I can dig. What do you mean by that?

J Batt: Well, that’s a great point. You know, the way I always frame it is that all we need is everybody to do one more, right? And so what that might mean is come to two games instead of one, buy five season tickets instead of four, and you know what? Raise your flag up one notch higher, wear your hat one more day, put your bumper sticker on a little bit, shine it up, everybody doing one more notch, or whatever they can do, it matters, and so I mean, that’s a message that I hope to share with Big Blue Nation, whenever I get the opportunity, every single person doing what they can makes a difference, and so to your, to your point, right, maybe, maybe financially isn’t the spot that someone can contribute. That’s okay. We need everybody to do their part, and we’re going to have to keep raising that game. This standard of championship excellence is not going to go down. We will continue to deliver on that promise.

Matt Jones: Kentucky is a unique place because I saw a quote from when you were at Michigan State, where you talked about how football is so important about driving the bus, and that’s true at Kentucky as well, but it’s also a school where basketball is extremely important. I’ve kind of looked through history at various times, and really, except for like a four or five-year period at Florida in the mid 2000s and then very, very recently with Michigan, it’s been very difficult to see a program that was ever good at both sports really good at the same time. Do you think that can happen, and specifically at Kentucky?

J Batt: Absolutely. So, what I’m telling you is, I had a chance to be a part of a program that did it, both right when I was in Tuscaloosa. There was the rise of basketball and the continued success of football, so it can be done, and the reality is that Kentucky basketball has set the championship standard. That is not going to change in any way, shape, or form, but football is important, and building off of the revenue that can be driven through football is essential.

And at the end of the day, Matt, you’ll learn about me, I’m a hopeless romantic for college athletics, right? I still believe, and believe to my core, that the opportunity mission of college athletics matters, and so both of those drive revenue to protect the opportunity mission of college athletics, and we’re going to do that. So, the answer to your question is, I do think we can do both. I think one supplements the other, and as this continues to evolve, success around both also leads to success in our other sports.

Matt Jones: I had an AD at a different school a couple of years ago say to me, look, whether athletic directors want to say this or not, going forward, you’re gonna have to pick 2, 3, or 4, sports to be really good and get your primary investment. You just will not be able to just fund them all at an elite level. Do you agree or disagree with that statement?

J Batt: What I would say is that you’ve got to have the ability to maximize and optimize all available revenue streams to deal with the changing landscape, and will there be spots where you invest more deeply? For sure, you’re going to need to do that, as the demands of the sports have changed, but you’re going to continue to see this evolve over time, Matt. It is not going to be stagnant, and so reality today different than reality tomorrow, and different than the reality in five years.

Matt Jones: I look at your resume, and obviously, I’ve heard really good things about you from people who know your career. I don’t know.

J Batt: Don’t tell my wife!

Matt Jones: She was the one who texted (laughter), but one thing we’ve seen is that you have moved a lot for a Kentucky fan who says, okay, are you going to be in three years if Greg Byrne leaves Alabama? Like, are you going? Is this a job? Is this your job? And what would you say to them on that?

J Batt: Yeah, so I’d go back to my previous statement, which is, have you met my wife? And no, in all sincerity, she and I have talked, and this is where our boys will graduate from high school. They’re nine and 11, so we’ve got a long runway here. This is a destination job for us. This is a place we want to be. This is a place we want to be for a very long time. And so I appreciate the question, but at the end of the day, we’re 100% locked in.

Matt Jones: Let me ask you just a couple of questions about basketball, for a second. Well, first of all, you mentioned football, Will Stein, I mean, you’re gonna, even though you didn’t hire him, you’re gonna be starting with him. What do you know about Will Stein? I mean, what are your thoughts? Obviously, I’m sure you like him, or you wouldn’t have taken the job, but what do you, what do you know about him?

J Batt: Well, you know, I had a chance to connect with him earlier today. I know he’s had some incredible early success in recruiting. Seems like we’re in a great place. I look forward to diving in with him and learning more, and learning more about the program, but feel really good about where we are and where we’re headed.

Matt Jones: Basketball, so this is obviously a school that you know has had a ton of success, not been what it’s wanted to be in the last few years. What do you see is the way for Kentucky basketball? Like, from the outside, you look in and go, okay, obviously it’s been amazingly successful historically. What do you think it needs to do? Now, to kind of take a step forward, or have you gotten a chance to look at them yet? No,

J Batt: I’d say I mean the brand of Kentucky basketball, there’s none better and none bigger. And so, from the external side, this is an incredible program, and one that I can’t wait to be a part of. I’ll tell you, I had a chance to visit with Coach Pope this morning, I feel great about what we’re doing, but I’ve got to get here and dig in, and that’s listen, that’s part of this role is to is to get here, listen, learn, see how I can help, see where I can provide, whether it’s resources or helping with, you know, different, different things that he needs from from me, I’m all in for that, and these are partnerships, right? These are partnerships where the athletic director and coaches, all of our coaches, we’re working together shoulder to shoulder to drive to the same end. I

Matt Jones: Over the last few years, the thing I hear the most complaints about in the last seven or eight years has been fan experience at the games, or even sort of feeling a connection with the athletic department, that kind of thing. The university as a whole, I think that’s most people would say that’s the thing the fan base needs the most. What are your thoughts? I know you don’t know about what’s happened here, but just in general on those issues.

J Batt: Well, I’d tell you that first and foremost, the fan base is going to be tired of seeing me, because I’m going to be out every day, and that, that is how you know I’m going to be as best I can, and so, whether it’s, you know, walking down the street or at a game, I’d just say any member of Big Blue Nation, like, say hello. I want to meet you. I want to get to know you.

And then the second part, game day experience is essential, right? And so I think take a look at all that as when we get here and get to games, you know, the environment at Kroger Field, the environment in Rup and Memorial, all those certainly reputationally incredibly good, but take a look at all that. We’ve got a great team here, and what a team. I can’t wait to be a part of it. Right, I met with the senior staff, the whole staff, earlier today. They have done an incredible job building this place, and I’m just excited to be joining that team.

Matt Jones: Sort of last thing, if I’m a fan, like a lot of my audience are not people who even get to go to the games, right? Who, even a lot of them have never been in Rupp Arena, some of them may get to go to football, but not, not a lot, and they.. I hear this a lot about modern college sports. I know we need to get money, I get it, like they accept that, but also like, I can’t do it. What’s your message to those fans who, I think, sometimes look at the new era and go, I don’t feel as connected to this? And what would you say to that group that is probably all over the rural parts of the state?

J Batt: Yeah, I’d say they matter a ton, Matt. They matter a ton. Big Blue Nation is not defined simply by those who show up at games, donors, or even season ticket holders. The differentiator for Big Blue Nation is it’s everybody, and so I said it earlier, whether it’s raise that flag a little higher, wear the hat to the grocery store, put that bumper sticker on, and shine it just a little bit, so it gets in somebody else’s view. All of that matters, and so I would tell you, that’s my message to every member of your audience of this fan base, is you matter, and what you do to support Big Blue Nation, support our athletes, is important.