Ed Schilling. Katie Faulkner. Tyler LaTorre.
These three are the newest additions to the Pepperdine Athletics Department – all thanks to the work of one man: Athletic Director Tanner Gardner. Within two weeks of officially starting at Pepperdine, Gardner had hired three new head coaches in an attempt to take Pepperdine’s programs to the next level.
“I think you win with people, and having great people is a really good thing,” Gardner said. “We get people in the right place, then coaches coach a team and then we build community around them.”
Gardner said his vision coming into this new position was to build a community that supports the work the Athletics Department is doing.
“I think the community starts from the inside and goes out,” Gardner said. “It starts with the people in our Athletic Department, and then it extends to the students, the faculty and staff on our campus. It extends to the Malibu community. Ultimately, it extends nationally and internationally.”
Amanda Kurtz, associate director of Athletics and senior woman administrator, said Gardner started building his community before he officially started June 1. After Gardner was announced as the next AD on March 25, Kurtz said he reached out to members of senior staff to start working.
“We had some time leading up to June 1 just getting him up to speed as best we can,” Kurtz said. “So, when June 1 happened he already had a leg up.”
Aside from getting to know his current staff, Gardner also got to know how Athletics had been operating to find ways to perform at the elite level, said Sarah Otteman, associate director of athletics for marketing and communications.
“It’s been really great to see him learn from where we were coming but then also grow toward where we can be and how we can get better every day,” Otteman said.
Gardner said his transition into this new role has been fantastic due to its strong foundation from former Athletics Director Steve Potts.
“Potts had a great run here and really left our program in a really great place, particularly our sports,” Gardner said. “We’re coming off a year in which we had some of the greatest success that we’ve had.”
In the last 18 months, 9 of the 12 programs that Pepperdine Athletics fully funds have been in the top 25, Gardner said. However, team success isn’t the only success Gardner is striving for, Otteman said.
“Tanner wants us to be as authentic as possible and have a clear vision for success in so many different ways,” Otteman said. “Really, that goes into many different areas – student-athlete success, coaching success, making sure that we’re collaborating with departments on campus, our Malibu community, any other local communities that we can.”
Gardner’s vision for success is all based on Pepperdine’s Christian mission. Not many other universities are leaning into the Christian faith alongside academic excellence, which puts Pepperdine in a special position, Gardner said.
“We want to have a world class athletic program that’s built on the foundation of Christian faith, academic excellence and community,” Gardner said. “My vision is to live into that unique mission and that’s going to be our primary strategy to win.”
Kurtz said Gardner’s vision for the athletics program aligns with President Jim Gash’s vision for the university as a whole. The Waves want to win in the distinctive Pepperdine way, staying competitive in the ever-changing Division I landscape.
Success starts with the community. Gardner said one of his main priorities as the new Athletic Director is engaging with the Pepperdine family.
“It is really important to me that we are deeply integrated into campus as the athletic program,” Gardner said. “It’s important to me that we collaborate with students, and that we provide an opportunity for you to have fun and build community, and that you guys come out and support our student-athletes.”
Kurtz said Gardner has already begun reaching out to everyone involved in the wider Waves network.
“He’s already done a great job of engaging with donors, engaging with our student athletes and our coaches, and really just getting everybody up to speed on where he wants us to be,” Kurtz said.
Overall, Gardner is bringing a fresh face and new perspective to the Athletics Department.
“I think he brings a lot of energy and just a different thought process, a different take on athletics and how we integrate with Pepperdine,” Kurtz said. “Tanner is doing a great job at honoring the things we’re good at and helping us get better in the places that we need to get better at.”
Welcome to the new Tanner Gardner era, Waves.
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Contact Nina Fife via X: (@ninafife_) or by email: nina.fife@pepperdine.edu
