The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
A Letter From UAB AD Mark Ingram
4/30/2025 5:53:00 PM | General
Dear Blazer Nation,
I hope this letter finds you doing well and enjoying spring. I'd like to begin by congratulating Andy Kennedy and our men's basketball team on another terrific season. During Coach Kennedy's tenure at UAB, we have averaged 25 wins per season and played in the conference championship game four years in a row, winning it twice and taking his team to post-season play each of those years. Season tickets for 2025-26 are already on sale, and we hope you will continue supporting this team as he re-loads the roster for another terrific year.
Our spring sports are winding down, and I encourage you to support our programs that are still competing. Coach Casey Dunn and our baseball team had the best start through 15 games since 2010 and swept Auburn in their two-game series this season. Softball and first year head coach Taylor Smartt won their final regular season home series this past weekend against East Carolina and now travel to Charlotte this week. Track & Field is gearing up for their conference championships and men's and women's golf have recently completed their seasons. Bowling finished with their best season in school history, and beach volleyball just completed their first 20-win season in program history. Both men's and women's tennis have completed their competition seasons, and our women's tennis team finished 14-9.
Spring football practice concluded this weekend with a new defensive staff and several exciting new roster additions. We hosted our Spring Showcase event at Legacy Pavilion this past Saturday, which allowed fans to take pictures and interact with players and staff while previewing the 2025 UAB Football team. UAB Football season tickets have been on sale, and we just completed the 2025 priority seat selection process. Be sure to become a member of Blazer Boosters to help us support our programs and ensure you get access to the best seating and parking in the house. Contact the UAB Athletics Ticket Office today or click here to be sure you are ready for next season.
By now you have heard a lot of information about the House vs. NCAA lawsuit, and what is commonly referred to as the House Settlement. This settlement has two elements to understand. The first is ten years of backpay to P4 football, men's and women's basketball players who did not have the ability to profit from the use of their Name, Image or Likeness. As a member of the NCAA, UAB will be required to participate in that settlement annually for the next ten years. The second element of the settlement is the ability to "opt in or opt out" of revenue sharing. As a member of the American Athletic Conference, we agreed to opt in. What does this mean? It means that we (UAB) can directly pay a student-athlete monies that are over and above their current scholarship. To plan for this new revenue sharing model we have been working closely with our coaches to prioritize investments and position our teams for success. This revenue sharing model will be critical in recruiting and retaining talent and assuring that we maintain our competitiveness in the AAC. Many of you have asked how you can help in this effort. We are currently establishing funds for gifts to be directed to support all of our sports. We will provide more information on this effort in the coming days. Also, it remains important for our fans to continue supporting Blazer Boosters and purchasing season tickets.
In addition to redirecting operating dollars to the revenue sharing model, we have begun charging sales tax for ticket purchases. Other schools have added other fees to their tickets, but we felt that this would be the most practical. In the past, we absorbed those costs internally, but this will yield a fair amount of money annually to be used for player acquisition and retention. We are also establishing new revenue streams, including accounts for each team so that fans can direct gifts to each sport. Gifts to be used for player support will become a tax-deductible gift that can be spent starting July 1, 2025.
Fundraising for the Bartow Arena Renovation project continues to go well, and we are grateful for the efforts of our basketball committee, Blazer Boosters staff, and administration. This facility serves as the front porch of UAB and UAB Athletics, and apart from UAB Hospital, no other building on campus attracts as many visitors annually. This renovation will provide our coaches, student-athletes, and community partners with modernized amenities to enhance the experience while also generating additional revenues.
Your support helps position our 18 programs at UAB Athletics to compete for championships and provide a world class experience for our student-athletes. Thank you!
Go Blazers!!
Mark Ingram
Director of Athletics
I hope this letter finds you doing well and enjoying spring. I'd like to begin by congratulating Andy Kennedy and our men's basketball team on another terrific season. During Coach Kennedy's tenure at UAB, we have averaged 25 wins per season and played in the conference championship game four years in a row, winning it twice and taking his team to post-season play each of those years. Season tickets for 2025-26 are already on sale, and we hope you will continue supporting this team as he re-loads the roster for another terrific year.
Our spring sports are winding down, and I encourage you to support our programs that are still competing. Coach Casey Dunn and our baseball team had the best start through 15 games since 2010 and swept Auburn in their two-game series this season. Softball and first year head coach Taylor Smartt won their final regular season home series this past weekend against East Carolina and now travel to Charlotte this week. Track & Field is gearing up for their conference championships and men's and women's golf have recently completed their seasons. Bowling finished with their best season in school history, and beach volleyball just completed their first 20-win season in program history. Both men's and women's tennis have completed their competition seasons, and our women's tennis team finished 14-9.
Spring football practice concluded this weekend with a new defensive staff and several exciting new roster additions. We hosted our Spring Showcase event at Legacy Pavilion this past Saturday, which allowed fans to take pictures and interact with players and staff while previewing the 2025 UAB Football team. UAB Football season tickets have been on sale, and we just completed the 2025 priority seat selection process. Be sure to become a member of Blazer Boosters to help us support our programs and ensure you get access to the best seating and parking in the house. Contact the UAB Athletics Ticket Office today or click here to be sure you are ready for next season.
By now you have heard a lot of information about the House vs. NCAA lawsuit, and what is commonly referred to as the House Settlement. This settlement has two elements to understand. The first is ten years of backpay to P4 football, men's and women's basketball players who did not have the ability to profit from the use of their Name, Image or Likeness. As a member of the NCAA, UAB will be required to participate in that settlement annually for the next ten years. The second element of the settlement is the ability to "opt in or opt out" of revenue sharing. As a member of the American Athletic Conference, we agreed to opt in. What does this mean? It means that we (UAB) can directly pay a student-athlete monies that are over and above their current scholarship. To plan for this new revenue sharing model we have been working closely with our coaches to prioritize investments and position our teams for success. This revenue sharing model will be critical in recruiting and retaining talent and assuring that we maintain our competitiveness in the AAC. Many of you have asked how you can help in this effort. We are currently establishing funds for gifts to be directed to support all of our sports. We will provide more information on this effort in the coming days. Also, it remains important for our fans to continue supporting Blazer Boosters and purchasing season tickets.
In addition to redirecting operating dollars to the revenue sharing model, we have begun charging sales tax for ticket purchases. Other schools have added other fees to their tickets, but we felt that this would be the most practical. In the past, we absorbed those costs internally, but this will yield a fair amount of money annually to be used for player acquisition and retention. We are also establishing new revenue streams, including accounts for each team so that fans can direct gifts to each sport. Gifts to be used for player support will become a tax-deductible gift that can be spent starting July 1, 2025.
Fundraising for the Bartow Arena Renovation project continues to go well, and we are grateful for the efforts of our basketball committee, Blazer Boosters staff, and administration. This facility serves as the front porch of UAB and UAB Athletics, and apart from UAB Hospital, no other building on campus attracts as many visitors annually. This renovation will provide our coaches, student-athletes, and community partners with modernized amenities to enhance the experience while also generating additional revenues.
Your support helps position our 18 programs at UAB Athletics to compete for championships and provide a world class experience for our student-athletes. Thank you!
Go Blazers!!
Mark Ingram
Director of Athletics
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