This edition of the Life of Fitz podcast features host Tim Fitzgerald calling Kansas State's Director of Athletics, Gene Taylor. Taylor was named the Director of Athletics at K-State in April 2017. During his tenure K-State has seen the football program qualify for three bowls, the men’s basketball team win a Big 12 Championship, earn an Elite 8 appearance and advance to two NCAA tournaments and the women’s track and field team win back-to-back Big 12 Outdoor championships. Additionally, Taylor and staff have fundraised and begun to implement a department-wide facility master plan that will benefit all Wildcat teams including the newly completed baseball and soccer projects in addition to Building Champions, a $105 million initiative focused on the South End Zone of Bill Snyder Family Stadium, a new volleyball arena, an Olympic Training Center and a football indoor practice facility. As Athletics Director at North Dakota State, Taylor immediately spearheaded a comprehensive evaluation of the Bison athletic department in 2001, all while successfully guiding the athletics program through the unpredictable waters of reclassification to NCAA Division I from Division II and securing conference affiliations for all 16 sports. In 2014, Taylor accepted the role of deputy athletics director at Iowa where he has been responsible for the administrative oversight of the department’s day-to-day operations. Taylor is a 1980 business management graduate of Arizona State, and he received his master’s degree in sports administration in 1985 from St. Thomas University in Florida. Taylor and his wife, Cathy, have one daughter, Casey, and a son, Jared.

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Tim Fitzgerald is a sports journalist who writes, does TV, radio and is a long-time podcaster. He has served as publisher of GoPowercat.com, a website that focuses on Kansas State sports, for nearly 25 years. Fitz also has stage four prostate cancer, so during the initial stages of the pandemic, his doctors have advised him to stay home and lay low. Now, Fitz is healthy and in remission, but his podcast lives on. Welcome to his life and the Life of Fitz podcast.

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