The last time Jerry Bovee was in Missoula, Mont., for a football game was in December. The Weber State Wildcats were in town to take on the Montana Grizzlies in the quarterfinals of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. He accompanied the team as the assistant vice president and the person who supervised compliance within the department.
This year, when Bovee travels to Missoula on Saturday, he will go as Weber State's athletic director.
"I definitely wouldn't have thought at that time I would be in this role," Bovee said. "I've worked in athletics my whole career, and I think if you ask anybody that's done that, they would say they aspire to be an athletic director."
Bovee has been the school's director of intercollegiate athletics for the past seven weeks on an interim basis, filling the role left by former athletic director Jerry Graybeal. On Thursday, vice president for administrative support services Norm Tarbox announced Bovee will serve in the position on a permanent basis.
"He knows the business. He has the trust of the university community and he has boundless energy," Tarbox said. "He will be able to quickly build on the solid foundation put in place by Jerry Graybeal."
Bovee attended his first athletic function as the athletic director Thursday night at the annual Purple and White game for the men's and women's basketball teams.
Bovee had worked at Weber State for two years before taking on the interim position, but it is a bit surreal for him to have the title of athletic director.
"In my wildest dreams I never imagined I would one day have the opportunity to be professionally involved with Wildcat athletics," Bovee said. "I took the interim job two days before the Wyoming game and sometimes you just gotta jump in with both feet. You have to swim [in that situation], and I hope I'll be swimming for a long time."
