New Athletic Director Corey Goff & His Strategic Plan for Jefferson Athletics

By Kristine Guenther

In 2024, Thomas Jefferson University named Corey Goff as the new Athletic Director after former AD Tom Shirley stepped down from the position after 31 years. Tom Shirley changed the athletic program in many ways by adding women's volleyball, men’s and women’s cross country, women’s rowing, men’s and women’s track and field, and women’s golf. Shirley feels confident about handing over the position to Corey Goff while remaining the head coach of the women’s basketball team. Goff, a Pennsylvania native and a former student-athlete himself, is excited to be here at Jefferson and is committed to academic and athletic excellence at the Division II level.

Source by Faith Eckley

Jefferson Athletics' mascot Phil the Ram

Showing support towards the mental health of student-athletes.

I interviewed Corey Goff with the goal of scoping out his ideas regarding the future of the athletic department. One of the first things he noted was his plan to better aid student-athletes and their mental health in and out of season. From a survey I took of 20 current athletes, he recognizes that 33% of athletes feel their mental health is overlooked, and he wants to add sports psychologists to the department. He talked about working with the company Onrise, which is known for specializing in mental health care for athletes. Goff also hopes to work with the Jefferson Counseling Center as he strongly believes mental health is important for both academic and athletic achievement.

Ensuring the coaching staff at Jefferson is equipped with the proper resources to lead the programs here to further success.

A keynote that Corey mentioned was his goal of finding full-time coaches for each program. This will increase overall stability and ensure that athletes receive full commitment from coaches. He also hopes to find the necessary number of positional coaches for each sport, ensuring athletes get better attention. His goal is to create a staff that is fully committed to his idea of a more professional program while also including athletes in the search.

Planning to help student-athletes with getting the proper nutrition as well as the proper strength and conditioning attention.

Corey wants to add fueling stations to the gym, providing athletes convenient access to snacks during workouts. He believes this will improve student-athlete nutrition, an area where he feels the department could offer more support. He recognizes that student-athletes have extremely busy schedules, and it can be hard to find time in the day to eat the proper foods to fuel. He plans to bring in nutritional coaches and full-time certified strength and conditioning specialists. Each team should be prepared to enter a season, being not only physically ready but also mentally and nutritionally.

The importance of investing in social media, sports photography, or media day/roster photos.

One thing that stands out to me about the athletic department is its social media presence. Goff believes having an active social media presence attracts potential recruits, current athletes, and alumni to our page. Currently, some Jefferson sports teams have social media managers, and some teams run their social media accounts themselves. While team camaraderie and online presence are both valuable, balancing social media demands with the commitment to being an athlete can be challenging.

I mentioned to Corey that I believe many students on campus would love to run social media accounts for sports as a potential work study. Having a strong social media presence will contribute to the more professional program Corey hopes to create. Along with social media, he wants to invest in a better media day and sports photography in general. Corey mentioned that he has communicated with a few photographers who will standardize our current roster photos and create a consistent image. He plans to advocate for more funds to meet this aspect of his strategic plan.

Community engagement for Jefferson Athletics.

Another aspect that Goff believes Jefferson struggles with is giving back to the community. In the past, he remembers athletes reading to local schools as a form of community engagement. One of his main goals as he continues in this position is to commit to giving back, as he believes we aren't doing enough of that currently. He feels it is the department's obligation to engage with the community and create positive environments.

End remarks.

I ended our interview by telling Corey that 100% of student-athletes feel appreciated and a part of a family here at Jefferson. While I agree with a more professional approach, I know the nature of Jefferson athletics should remain. During my time here, I felt proud to represent the school through sports, and I hope that future student-athletes want to continue that. Corey plans to invest in and support this program as he wants to see the teams here succeed in our conference and Division II national play.