By Nick Gerts - Sports Editor, DeKalb Daily Chronicle
Donna Turner knows replacing a walking Northern Illinois encyclopedia won't be an easy task.
The former Tulane Sports Information Director has the dubious task of taking over for Mike Korcek, who will become NIU's SID emeritus on Monday after retiring from 35 years of service. Turner takes over the reigns as the Assistant Athletic Director/Media Relations following seven years as the Green Wave's SID.
Turner, who was making her trek to DeKalb, took time out to answer some questions about her new job.
Daily Chronicle: What interested you about the Northern Illinois job?
Turner: I was very intrigued with the job. The more and more I researched Northern Illinois, the more and more interested and excited I was in the opportunity. This is a university on the rise. The location is great, being in the close proximity to Chicago. It's an appealing job. It is also a college town, and I grew up in a college town making the position more appealing to me.
I put a lot of thought into it. After talking with (NIU AD) Jim Phillips, (assistant AD) Glen Krupica and all the coaches, you could tell how happy they were about NIU, and I wanted to be a part of that.
DC: The past year has been an unpredictable one, especially living in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. What was it like being in that situation and how did you handle it after the hurricane?
Turner: You can say that again. It's been extremely unpredictable, and I hope no one has to go through what New Orleans had to go through again. It's so hard to explain, to the point that no one will truly understand it until they had to go through it. It's been sad to see what has happened to the town and Tulane. And on top of that Tulane just lost eight programs. It's a total unjust situation, one I hope doesn't happen again.
DC: What's it going to be like knowing you are going to replace a guy that has been here for well over 35 years?
Turner: That's one of the exciting parts of this job. I know Mike is still going to be around and will be a big asset here. I'm sure he's going to be helping out as much as he can. He has so much knowledge of Northern Illinois and will provide a huge link to the history of this university.
I also look forward to working with Jim Phillips and taking this to the next level. We want to take Northern Illinois to a state-wide level.
DC: How much of your experience running football programs like Florida State in the early 90s and Tulane the past seven years help in taking NIU to that level?
Turner: I have been blessed to have experienced being around players like Charlie Ward, Casey Weldon, Deion Sanders at Florida State and Patrick Ramsey and JP Losman at Tulane. Having done it before in the past definitely helps out. Things have changed so much since those days where television plays a big role in how a university is portrayed. Before you had to be gimmicky in how a university is showcased. Our goal is to get everyone in the nation to know who players like Garrett Wolfe and Doug Free are. One of the pluses has been the fact that I have dealt with so many of these people on a national level for the last 15 years.
DC: Talk about your staff and their role in your adjustment?
Turner: Mike has put in a solid staff and that was one of the main attributes to why I wanted this job. Jim Phillips has an awareness of what is going on and knows what he can offer. Steve Nemeth, Matt Brendich and David Brauer are a great asset and very talented in what they do. They are going to be an invaluable resource and I know we are going to make a great team.