Rick Dickson made lasting impact at Tulsa

To say Rick Dickson's imminent departure as TU's athletic director is the end of an era is an understatement.

When he retires, this time for good, as Tulsa's AD at the end of June at age 70, it will be 50 years since he first came to TU as a football player from Bishop Kelley.

Dickson was at TU as a student athlete football player at the time of legendary TU athletes Steve Largent, Willie Biles and Nancy Lopez, to name a few. He exits from the era of first round NFL draft picks Zaven Collins and Tyler Smith.

After being coaxed out of retirement when TU needed an Athletic Director in September of 2020, Dickson was charged with the responsibility of finding new men's and women's basketball coaches, and a new football coach.

What was supposed to be an interim stop as AD turned into almost 4 years.

"Nine months turned to 45 months," Dickson joked at a Tuesday afternoon press conference, where he talked about his time at TU and other stops like Washington State and Tulane.

While trying to get TU to go with other candidates in 2020, he reluctantly took the reins of the Tulsa athletic department for the second time, where both stints started as interim AD.

His first time was in 1989 at 35-years-old, and he became the official AD in 1990. And then, 26 years later after leaving for Washington State in 1994, Dickson returned as interim AD, only to get a 3-year contract in 2021.

"Brad Carson convinced me to stay longer, and then trapped me into a three-year contract, that I didn't even know was a three-year contract until he announced it," Dickson joked about the TU president's role in getting the interim title removed.

"So thankful that I was given the opportunity. There wouldn't be anywhere else where that would be a consideration."

Dickson is confident that the TU athletic department is better off than when he took over, with better fundraising and more stability.

Perhaps the best hire he has made has been that of Angie Nelp, the TU women's basketball coach who has a 59-34 record in three years at TU, including a 25-10 season where they won the conference championship and advanced to the third round of the WBIT, where Tulsa hosted three games in the tournament.

Nelp was with Dickson at the press conference to announce a contract extension through 2030. Having three consecutive winning seasons was a first for Tulsa women's basketball since 2003-2006.

Dickson said that hiring Nelp was part of a decision to make women's basketball the flagship program for TU women's sports.

"In three short years, Angie has transformed our women's basketball program into American Athletic Conference Champions," Dickson said. "She has developed an exciting brand of play while the program's support has dramatically increased during her tenure.

"Angie has recruited well and ingrained a strong culture that has laid the foundation for further success."

Dickson's two most prominent hires – Eric Konkol for men's basketball, and Kevin Wilson in football – are a work in progress, and it is too early to tell how successful they will be. But good signs appear for both programs.

Konkol's 16-15 record in 2024 marked the first time in four seasons that TU men's basketball had a winning record. The program looks to be on the upswing. And after a 4-8 season in 2023, TU football had a highly ranked recruiting class.

The new landscape of NIL money, unlimited transfers without sitting out a season, and a lawless nature in college sports has made being an AD a difficult situation to navigate.

"There is no governance from the NCAA," Dickson said, basically saying anything goes now.

Still, Dickson is confident that TU, the smallest university that plays D1 football, will do well under good leadership. A search firm will be hired to replace Dickson, and Dickson may have a small role in determining his successor.

Although Dickson won't be the guy doing the search, he certainly won't hesitate to give his opinion if asked.

"This is a unique place," Dickson said. "It takes unique people, people that get it, who know the kind of symbiotic thing that exists between the two Tulsas – the University and the city – that’s always been the key," Dickson said. "The ones that have excelled here have understood that."

Dickson did a lot of reminiscing about his time at TU. He said the highlights of his first stint as AD at TU were the 1991 Freedom Bowl team, and the 1994 Sweet 16 men's basketball team. He lit up when talking about the approximately 20,000 Tulsans being in Anaheim and making the upper deck of the stadium there shake.

As for taking over as interim AD in 1989 the first time, and then becoming the official AD, Dickson didn't have any master plan. He was learning on the fly.

"It wasn't my dream. It was more reacting to life," Dickson said of his first tenure at TU.

In addition to his own retirement, Dickson talked about longtime Tulsa Sports Information Director - Senior Associate AD for Communications, Don Tomkalski, who is retiring as of the end of May after 40 years as SID at TU.

Dickson said he couldn't believe that DT was leaving before he left.

Overall, the most important thing about being AD at TU and his other stops has been being entrusted with guiding thousands of young athletes.

Dickson's impact at TU will be felt for a long time.