---

This summer, when the University of Iowa football program saw 18 current or former players arrested for everything from sexual assault to public intoxication in a period spanning just over one year, Athletic Director Gary Barta and Head Football Coach Kirk Ferentz had no choice but to address the matter. Barta and Ferentz started searching to fill a newly created position titled Director of Player Development, and in September, hired alum Chigozie Ejiasi from a pool of over 100 applicants.

Ejiasi was a defensive back for the Hawkeyes through 2004, and for the past two years had been serving as an administrative assistant with the football staff. Barta and Ferentz were aware they would be charting new waters with the position, but also knew something had to be done.

"We created this position to assist our student-athletes in the transition from high school to college and to help make their experience at Iowa as positive as possible," Ferentz said in a statement. "We're venturing into new territory with this position and we all expect it to change and evolve as we move forward ... [Ejiasi] has the respect of our student-athletes and he shares the vision of our coaching staff regarding expectations of the position. We're all looking forward to what Chigozie brings to our program."

Since his hire, Ejiasi seems to be settling in well. His focus has been on first-year players since the transition to college life isn’t always easy for student-athletes. Ejiasi spoke with The Gazette in October about his new job.

"The guys can come into my office anytime. I'm located in the players' lounge," Ejiasi said. "I'm really here for these guys and just these guys. That's academically, socially, football, they can come and talk to me about anything. That's what I'm here for … Four or five years from now, one of the players comes back and tells me I really helped him going from high school to college, that would be the success I'm looking for."

Iowa isn’t the only Big Ten school to start taking a more active role in policing its football players’ off-field activities. An article appearing in the Des Moines Register indicates similar positions are already in place in at least six other conference schools.

And other institutions across the country have taken action as well. Rutgers University Men’s Basketball Coach Fred Hill was forced to suspend two seniors in September after they violated team rules, and this year hired a Director of Player Development. At the University of Colorado, eight current or former football players were involved in police-related incidents in 2008, and now freshmen are required to take a one-credit course called “CU Experience” upon entry to the school. The Colorado Daily offers more information about the course in this article.

Complete with reading summaries, service hours, interview assignments, drafted resumes and a final paper, the course aims to help develop and hold student athletes to a degree of excellence in athletics, academics, personal development, career development and community service learning, according to a fall 2007 syllabus.

"It's to prep you for every aspect of school," said sophomore quarterback Cody Hawkins. "People come in from different departments to talk about majors, we went over how to spend money in college and the Boulder PD came in to give us the ins and outs of the city."

For more on helping college freshmen make the transition from high school, check out this Athletic Management article titled “From Recruits to Frosh.”

Abigail Funk is an Assistant Editor at Athletic Management.