Sadly, many FSU fans don't know. Yes, Bobby Bowden made FSU a national brand, but it was Dave Hart who built FSU athletics. Many don't know that the results they see today are still the left overs of the program Dave built.
TK Wetherall was the demise of FSU athletics and set the failed tone of FSU presidents hiring weak ADs while they played part time AD. If only FSU woke up one day and fixed the mess they are in. Sadly, the connected insiders would rather fully control a train wreck than give up control.
But, this is about Dave Hart and how he built FSU athletics:
Sue Semrau (Women's bball)
Dwayne Hultquist (Tennis)
Leonard Hamilton (Bball)
Bob Braman (T&F) - Won multiple National Titles
Trey Jones (Golf)
Jennifer Hyde (Tennis)
Mark Kirkorian (Soccer) - Won multiple National Titles
Jimbo Fisher (Football) - Won national Title
| Directors Cup | ACC Rank | AD | Facility Improvements | Coach Hires |
| 1993-94 | 25 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 1994-95 | 24 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 1995-96 | 24 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 1996-97 | 49 | | Dave Hart | | Sue Semrau (Women's bball) |
| 1997-98 | 46 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 1998-99 | 39 | | Dave Hart | | Dwayne Hultquist (Tennis) |
| 1999-00 | 46 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 2000-01 | 35 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 2001-02 | 39 | | Dave Hart | | Leonard Hamilton (Bball) |
| 2002-03 | 38 | | Dave Hart | 9.2 | Bob Braman (T&F). Trey Jones (Golf) |
| 2003-04 | 22 | | Dave Hart | 1 | Jennifer Hyde (Tennis) |
| 2004-05 | 30 | | Dave Hart | 12.5 | Mark Kirkorian (Soccer) |
| 2005-06 | 17 | | Dave Hart | | |
| 2006-07 | 15 | | Dave Hart | subtotal 22.7 Million | Jimbo Fisher (HC in waiting) |
https://www.tallahassee.com/story/sports/college/fsu/2019/09/19/florida-state-fsu-soccer-mark-krikorian-secret-success-formula-consistency-seminoles-tallahassee/2337690001/
After stints at Franklin Pierce, the University of Hartford and with the Philadelphia Charge of the now defunct WUSA professional league, Krikorian arrived at FSU ahead of the 2005 season.
He saw shortly upon his arrival that FSU was a place that would give him the administrative support that can be tough to find across collegiate women's soccer.
"I was so impressed with Dave Hart when I met with him, at the time the athletic director. It was clear to me that their vision was comprehensive excellence. They said it, but it was clear to me that not only were they talking about it, but they were prepared to support it," Krikorian said.
"I think that we've had a lot of administrative teams have been very supportive of our program and I would say that we've been successful because of those three elements all work together."
All Krikorian has done with the opportunity is shape FSU into one of the titans of college soccer.
He took over a program that had one season with 16-plus wins in its 10 years of existence before his arrival and has impressively led the Seminoles to 16 or more wins in 12 of his 14 seasons.
https://www.nydailynews.com/os-xpm-2007-12-20-fsuhart20-story.html
Dec 20, 2007
Dave Hart, the Florida State athletic director, was somewhere else.
His absence wasn't a surprise. Almost two months earlier, Hart had walked into the same room to announce that Dec. 31 would be his last day here. Months before, FSU President T.K. Wetherell informed Hart his contract, which was to last through January 2009, would not be renewed.
Since he announced in October the date of his resignation, Hart's presence has faded. He stopped attending the FSU booster luncheons with Bowden every Monday in football season, for instance. And he didn't attend perhaps the most anticipated FSU press conference in years -- the one that announced Fisher, the Seminoles' offensive coordinator, will eventually take over when Bowden retires as head football coach.
In some ways, Hart's appearance mirrors the kind of department he has worked to create: organized, professional, tidy. It's a stark contrast to the program he inherited at FSU.
The women's soccer team, for instance, played on a ramshackle field with a telephone pole rising from one corner. FSU had earned notoriety in few sports besides football, baseball and softball. And the Seminoles lagged behind their ACC rivals in facilities, success and exposure.
Hart pushed grand visions: massive facilities improvements; increased TV exposure; increased budgets and fund-raising drives.
"It was a pie in a sky," Hart said. "And that's how it was received by a lot of folks. . . . Any time you're trying to impart a vision and get a buy into that vision, it takes some time."
The facilities came -- a new soccer and softball complex, the modern Moore Athletic Center. He helped raise $75 million for the facilities improvements. He negotiated $175 million worth of contracts, including ones with Nike, which clothes all FSU teams, and Sun Sports, which puts the Seminoles on TV. The salaries of FSU coaches are now in the top half of the ACC.
Hart became influential in the power structure of collegiate athletics. He received a lifetime achievement award in his profession. The FSU athletic department, with an operating budget of about $45.8 million, has never been richer. The facilities never better. And the teams, overall, never more competitive.
D'Alemberte's departure from FSU in 2003 marked the beginning of Hart's end at FSU. Wetherell, in his first days as president, hired a consulting firm to study the athletic department. The findings, released in June 2003, issued 48 recommendations.
https://www.savannahnow.com/article/20070710/SPORTS/307109933
FSU recently finished 15th in the national Directors Cup standings, which measure the performance of overall athletic programs. It was the Seminoles’ highest finish in school history.
