Donnelly named new AD at Middle Tennessee

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - James &#34;Boots&#34; Donnelly was hired Tuesday as athletic director at Middle Tennessee State, where he was the football coach for 20 years before resigning four years ago. <br> <br> He has been interim athletic director since Lee Fowler left in October 2000 for the top athletics job at North Carolina State. <br> <br> &#34;I want to make this pledge and I want to make this promise,&#34; Donnelly said. &#34;I have a passion and I have ability for this university. With those two, we&#39;re going to be successful.&#34; <br> <br> Donnelly played on Middle Tennessee&#39;s football team in the early &#39;60s and became head coach in 1979. While he was coach, the Blue Raiders had an overall record of 140-87-1, making Donnelly the eighth most successful head coach in NCAA Division I-AA history. <br> <br> His teams won four Ohio Valley Conference championships and made seven I-AA playoff appearances.<br>

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