Erika Barnes arrived at the UA in 1997 as one of the West’s best softball prospects.
It didn’t take long for her to learn The Arizona Way.
“There’s no walking in between the lines,” Barnes said. “You’re always running, you’re always moving, you’re always doing something to help yourself and help your program.”
And so Barnes hit the ground — what else? — running shortly after being named the Arizona Wildcats’ interim athletic director. She accepted the position Sunday night after word broke that Greg Byrne was headed to Alabama.
Barnes, 38, will start Feb. 1. What happens next is anyone’s guess: Barnes says she isn’t sure if she will pursue the job full-time, and it’s unknown if UA officials would consider her.
Arizona announced Monday that it has already begun a national search that’s bound to include a few sitting athletic directors: South Florida’s Mark Harlan and TCU’s Chris Del Conte both have deep Arizona ties, and Baylor athletic director Mack Rhoades is a Tucson native and UA grad.
For now, and perhaps for a while, Barnes will be in charge. She has been a senior associate athletic director since 2013.
Few know the athletic department better than Barnes, a onetime Wildcats first baseman and 2001 Women’s College World Series champion.
Barnes started in the UA’s marketing department in 2005 before moving to fundraising and major gifts. Barnes has sat in the Hillenbrand Stadium radio booth — she was Brian Jeffries’ color analyst for years — and has strode onto private jets. Those close to her say she’s equally at home at a women’s basketball game as she is serving alongside UA president Ann Weaver Hart on a Pac-12 board.
Barnes holds two degrees from the UA: a 2001 bachelor’s in communication and a 2010 M.B.A. from the Eller College of Management.
“She’s done a little bit of everything,” said Mike Candrea, the UA’s longtime softball coach. “She’s very well-prepared and very well-connected with our donors; I think, truthfully, that’s a big part of this job. They all know that she’s a Wildcat through and through.”
Barnes’ people skills, fundraising acumen and school spirit — she “wore the colors” on Monday — remind many of Byrne, her departing boss. UA basketball coach Sean Miller called her “very capable.”
Her organizational skills? Those come from Candrea.
Barnes lives one mile from the UA campus, the closer to work the better. Her children — daughter Tillie is 3, and son Blake turned 1 on Friday — accompany her to Wildcats games.
The young family outgrew its Sam Hughes-area home recently. Barnes looked at homes throughout Tucson before finding the perfect one … 1,000 yards east of the old place.
Same block, same grocery store. Close to campus.
McKale “is where our life is centered around,” she said. “Every hour of the day is really valuable. If we can cut down on my commute time, it means more time for Arizona or more time for my family.”
In Barnes’ case, Arizona is family. Her husband, Andy, is a former UA golfer and the caddy for PGA Tour pro Ricky Barnes, his brother and another ex-Wildcat. Barnes remains close friends with many of her former UA teammates, and has a mentor in Candrea. She and former Arizona deputy athletic director Kathleen “Rocky” LaRose traded text messages on Monday morning.
Barnes’ UA ties run so deep, the story goes, that she can help a UCLA Bruin see the light.
Barnes laughed Monday as she recalled setting up her sister, Vanessa, with former McKale Center IT specialist Greg Shaffer. Vanessa initially resisted her sister’s meddling, given that she lived in Los Angeles and Greg was in Tucson.
Erika found a way to get them together after all.
“They met at our wedding, fell in love,” Barnes said, “and the rest is history.”
Barnes’ new role will require a little more matchmaking, a lot of glad-handing and some serious steering. She talked to Byrne throughout the day Monday about some of the challenges of the position. Barnes and Byrne will travel to the NCAA convention in Nashville later this week.
LaRose, who served as the UA’s interim athletic director between December 2009 and March 2010, said the job requires a light touch.
“In some ways, you’re a healer. You’re trying to get everybody facing forward again,” said LaRose, who retired in 2013. “When someone leaves, it’s a shock to the system and a shock to the department. It goes from coaches to athletes to trainers. And when you’ve lost the leadership you’ve relied on for years, especially with someone of Greg’s caliber, it’s sort of stunning.”
LaRose’s advice?
“Keep doing it The Arizona Way,” she said. “I used to tell people, it’s not brain surgery. We’re here to educate young people. If you think about that, you’ll be OK.”
