St. John's Hires Ex-Fordham Athletic Director Ed Kull to Position

St. John’s employed former Fordham athletic director and New York native Ed Kull to function its new athletic director, the non-public Catholic college introduced Wednesday.

Ed Kull graduated with an M.B.A. from St. John’s Tobin School of Enterprise in 2005

“Ed Kull has demonstrated a dedication to excellence on and off the sector of competitors,” stated St. John’s President, the Rev. Brian J. Shanley.

“This is a crucial rent at a crucial time within the shifting panorama of faculty athletics, and I’m happy to have Ed rejoin our crew.”

Kull grew up in Queens, not removed from St. John’s, and was a star baseball participant at Stony Brook College on Lengthy Island. He graduated with a B.A. in 2003. Kull labored as a graduate assistant in Carnesecca Area as nicely. Two years later, he graduated with an M.B.A. from St. John’s Tobin School of Enterprise.

Excited to welcome Ed Kull again to Queens as the brand new Director of Athletics! 🔴🌩

🗞️ https://t.co/Fi3gSLtUfb pic.twitter.com/riRKF7YMi0

— St. John’s Pink Storm (@StJohnsRedStorm) September 11, 2024

“To say that is the distinction of my skilled life can be an understatement,” Kull stated. “I perceive the work that now we have forward of us is not going to be straightforward, however I wholeheartedly imagine that we are going to commit each useful resource mandatory to revive St. John’s to its pure place atop the collegiate athletic panorama.”

St. John’s has been with out an athletic director since Mike Cragg, and the varsity mutually agreed to half methods after he spent six years on the Huge East college. Kull was named as one in all SJU’s high candidates to supervise basketball coach Rick Pitino’s workers.

Kull had beforehand labored at Fordham since April 2020

He left faculty sports activities for a number of years, earlier than returning to St. John’s from 2011 to 2017, together with a stint as vice chairman of athletics the place he labored on income initiatives for the college president.

“I’m blissful to welcome Ed again dwelling to St. John’s,” stated Joseph Oliva, Senior Vice President and Chief Working Officer. “We loved an awesome working relationship prior to now. Ed has the expertise and drive to attain athletic targets. His ardour and love for St. John’s… will assist to remodel our athletic division.”

Kull had been at Fordham since April 2020. He took over the full-time publish in February 2021. Below Kull, Fordham’s men’s basketball program discovered some success underneath the 2 coaches he employed, Kyle Neptune and Keith Urgo. Neptune left after one season to return to Villanova and substitute Jay Wright as head coach.

Earlier than Kull employed Neptune, the Rams had gone 45-95 over the earlier 5 seasons, together with a 2-12 mark in 2020-21. In his lone 12 months on the helm, Neptune led the Rams to a 16-16 report and an look within the Atlantic 10 Quarterfinals for the primary time in 15 years.

Urgo led the Rams to their finest season in three many years in 2022-23. Fordham’s soccer crew made the FCS playoffs in 2022. Moreover, the Rams have earned convention titles and NCAA berths in water polo, males’s soccer, softball, and girls’s tennis underneath Kull.

Kull additionally benefitted Fordham Athletics’ fundraising. The Rams concluded their third straight fiscal 12 months with a report fundraising complete, together with a $7.6 million determine in 2023-24. It was greater than $2.5 million greater than the earlier 12 months’s mark.