by David Chapman
Staff Writer
Sellout streaks. A Super Bowl. Sustained growth.
Tim Connolly has been an architect for all of those things throughout his 15-year career in the front of an NFL team. He has been with the Jaguars since 2003, serving as senior vice president of business development since 2004.
For a smaller-market team with soft ticket sales and the threat of television blackouts a constant headline, Connolly’s front office position that encompasses all things tickets – sales, marketing, operations and customer service – might seem daunting. But he has the knowledge, experience and passion to help the Jaguars recapture the financial success of the team’s early years.
Breaking in
Being involved with sports is a longstanding memory for Connolly.
“I remember wanting to work in sports when I was 8 and 9 years old,” he said.
As a business graduate fresh out of George Washington University in 1971, Connolly went about looking for a job with an NFL team the old fashioned way. He sent letters to the each of the then 28 teams in the league, hoping to grab someone’s attention.
His attempts were met with no response the first year, but he tried again the next year and was surprised when he received a letter from Jim Murray, general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles.
“I saw a little bit of me in it,” said Murray. “I’m an idealist and at the time, I saw the fact that nobody sees me or takes a chance. I can relate to a guy who says ‘How do I penetrate this impenetrable circle?’”
Connolly said he considers Murray his mentor and learned much from the general manager in a voluntary role before he jumped into the business world. Even there though, he kept his face in front of NFL personnel by representing drafted college players in contract negotiations with teams.
“It began as just one guy who was a late round pick and pretty much had a ‘boiler plate’ contract,” said Connolly. “But the next year, the player had teammates who graduated and asked me for help. They ended up getting drafted by Philadelphia.”
When Connolly walked in the room with the players, he said Murray had a surprised look on his face.
Negotiations were smooth, remembered Murray, who was impressed with Connolly’s persistence in staying in tune with the NFL while maintaining a strong business career with IBM Corporation.
In 1986, Connolly was named president and CEO of Bell Atlantic’s Cellular Phone Company but he wouldn’t stay long.
Connolly’s friendship with Murray and other Eagles executives paid off when Carl Peterson, then a talent evaluator with the team, moved to the Kansas City Chiefs in 1989 and wanted a business-minded, yet sports-centric executive to handle the business and sales side of the organization. Connolly was his man.
Changing a culture
When Connolly arrived with Peterson in 1989, the Chiefs were a team that had fallen on hard times both on and off the field.
On the field, the team had only one winning season in 15 years and that resulted in a dwindling fan base.
“We had some major issues when Tim arrived with the others in 1989,” said Chiefs Director of Public Relations Bob Moore. “The fan base and ticket sales shrunk as a whole.”
A stadium that held 79,000 wasn’t drawing close to that with only 26,000 season ticket holders. Not all of them were coming out either, with some games drawing as few as 11,000 people.
Upon Connolly’s arrival, a front office marketing overhaul started taking place, remembered Moore.
Gone were yearly themes, the familiar Native American mascot and the overall philosophy of the department to set realistic goals.
“Tim’s philosophy then was about under-promising and over-delivering,” said Moore. “It was very efficient. He linked everything involved in the organization with ticket sales and it really helped take advantage of the down situation.”
His first year, the team went 8-7-1, its first winning season in quite a while and the success on the field coincided with the success in the ticket office that continues today.
“It’s safe to say that Tim was the most innovative marketing guy we’ve had here,” said Moore. “It was important he was here when he was or the changes probably would not have come as soon as they did.”
The Chiefs sold out the stadium in 1991 and have carried on the consecutive sellout streak to the present day.
“He loves sports,” said Moore. “He could have worked in any profession he wanted to.”
Connolly left the team in 1995 after six years of service and returned to the business world, but his passion for the business side of pro football would eventually lead him back.
To the great, purple, North
In 1998, Connolly once again left the corporate business community and returned to football; this time with the Minnesota Vikings as executive vice president and general manager.
“Those were some fun years and really good teams,” said Connolly.
The Vikings during the 1998 and 1999 seasons were an explosive – and well-supported – team that fell short of the Super Bowl in 1998, but Connolly enjoyed the experience.
He left the team following the 1999 season, citing general burnout and returned to the business community. But, years later would find himself with an offer he couldn’t refuse.
Heading South
In 2003, with Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville just two short years away, the Jaguars called Connolly and offered him a contractual position to help with the game.
“It worked out almost perfectly,” said Connolly. “I was looking to come to the Southeast and it was a great opportunity to get here and back in the game.”
Hired as vice president of development, Connolly was head of the Super Bowl project to help fund capital improvements on then Alltel Stadium for the 2005 game. When the game was over and all the confetti had been swept to the dumpster, Connolly was again the benefactor of good timing.
“My job was done, but they had an open position and wanted me to stay,” he said. “I was happy to continue.”
Happy, because he’d be closer to his grandchildren who lived here and he’d be living in an environment where he’d get to fish, golf and enjoy spending time outdoors.
Connolly was hired to his current role in October 2004 and said that with his children grown, Jacksonville will be his last stop.
His excitement is palpable about the team as it gets ready for the 2008-09 season.
“The Jaguars are a hot property,” he said. “It’s a well-liked team in the community.”
He doesn’t compare the Jaguars’ current culture to the one in Kansas City in the early ‘90s, but the continued success of the team on the field is leading to the largest season ticket renewal rate since 2003.
It’s one of the reasons he’s seen the increase, and though sales aren’t at an all-time high, Connolly is seeing a slow-but-steady improvement.
“We have a lot of hard working people here,” he said. “The staff here cares. (Owner) Wayne Weaver is the biggest sports fan in the building and (head coach) Jack Del Rio and his staff are doing a phenomenal job.”
For now, Connolly will plug away and continue to perform with the determination he’s had since sending those inquiry letters to NFL teams 37 years ago.
“He’s always had what it takes to succeed,” said Murray. “I’m just glad I responded to the letter and had the pleasure and opportunity to give him a chance.”