Keating announces retirement from Kansas Athletics

LAWRENCE, Kan. – Larry Keating, special assistant to the Athletics Director at the University of Kansas, has announced his retirement after a career of five decades in intercollegiate athletics.

Keating joined the Kansas Athletics staff in August, 2003. During that span he served as Senior Associate Athletics Director and as Special Assistant to the Athletics Director.

For the past 16 years he has overseen the KU’s men’s basketball schedule, which has consistently ranked among the nation’s best.

“Larry Keating is known throughout college athletics, and has been serving universities, conferences, athletic departments, student-athletes and coaches for 50 years!” said KU Athletics Director Jeff Long.  “Larry and his wife Jaime will be greatly missed throughout the university, athletic and Lawrence communities. Everyone who knows Larry – and that’s a lot of people – has a great story to tell about him.  I want to thank Larry, on behalf of myself and the previous two KU athletics directors he worked with, for his service to KU, our student-athletes and coaches. We wish him nothing but birdies on the golf course and happiness in whatever he and Jaime choose to do next.”

He is among the nation’s most respected athletics administrators, having served on the NCAA Council, the Men’s Basketball Issues Committee and other NCAA committees. He served two terms on the NCAA Men’s Basketball Rules Committee, which he chaired for a total of four years; he also served on several NCAA sports committees.

Keating came to KU from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC), where he served as Assistant Commissioner for Basketball/Football. At the MAAC, Keating was responsible for conference scheduling, the MAAC Basketball Tournaments, officiating and television coordination.  He served as Tournament Director of the 2003 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball East Regional in Albany, N.Y.

Keating was Athletics Director at Seton Hall University for 12 years, during which time the Pirates participated in six NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournaments. That included Seton Hall’s first-ever appearance (1988), and the Pirates’ run to the championship game of the 1989 NCAA Final Four. While at Seton Hall, Keating served terms as chair the Big East Executive, Television and Championships Committees. Prior to Seton Hall, Keating was Athletics Director at Adelphi University (Garden City, N.Y.) for six years.

After military service, including a tour in Vietnam, Keating began his athletics career as an assistant basketball coach for 10 years, first at his alma mater, Stonehill College (North Easton, Ma.), then at Hofstra University (Hempstead, N.Y.), which made its first-ever NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball appearance during that time.