LSU's Alleva Turns Down UT Vols

Updated: July 26, 2011, 9:48 PM ET

Joe Alleva to remain LSU AD
ESPN.com news services

NEW ORLEANS -- LSU athletic director Joe Alleva has decided to stay put despite overtures from Tennessee and will be rewarded with a raise.

"This is not an opportunity that I pursued, and Tennessee is a wonderful place, but in the end I felt that Chancellor (Michael) Martin has a great vision for LSU," Alleva said in a statement released by the university on Tuesday. "He and the Board of Supervisors .... showed tremendous support."

Martin said a new contract would be drawn up and presented at a future board of supervisors meeting, but he did not provide details about what increases would be included in the new deal.

In April, the LSU Board of Supervisors approved an extension of Alleva's contract from June 2013 to June 2016, but other terms of his contract, including his minimum $550,000 annual salary, weren't changed.

Alleva had emerged earlier Tuesday as the Volunteers' top target to replace Mike Hamilton as AD, sources told ESPN.com, and Tennessee had wanted to move on a deal quickly.

"It was brought to my attention that the University of Tennessee was interested in Joe becoming their athletic director, and often good people -- both in academics and athletics -- attract interest from other institutions," Martin said. "We have been pleased with Joe's performance so, in concert with the leadership of the Board of Supervisors, we determined it was in the best interests of the university to make him a sufficiently fair offer. We are happy that he has chosen to keep Baton Rouge as his home."

Earlier on Tuesday, LSU officials said Martin was aware of Tennessee's interest in Alleva and that he cut short a trip to New Mexico and traveled back to Baton Rouge to deal with the matter.

Alleva has been LSU's athletic director since April 2008, when ended a 10-year stint with the same job at Duke.

Alleva said he wants to remain at LSU "for a long time to come."

Tennessee interim vice chancellor and athletic director Joan Cronan declined to discuss Alleva's candidacy, saying only that the university's search "is still in progress."

The next Tennessee athletic director will replace Hamilton, who announced June 7 that was stepping down. Hamilton was under pressure after a 26-month NCAA investigation and multiple coaching turnovers.

Alleva helped LSU retain Les Miles last winter while he was being courted by Michigan. He also lured former UCLA head women's basketball coach Nikki Caldwell to LSU in April, shortly after the resignation of Hall of Fame coach Van Chancellor.

Meanwhile, Alleva has overseen a compliance department that was recently praised by the NCAA for its work to uncover and report improper housing and transportation benefits that a former assistant football coach arranged for a former player.

Last week, NCAA officials cited LSU's aggressive approach to investigating itself when deciding on a relatively light punishment that left the Tigers with a full complement of scholarships in future seasons and the ability to participate in the postseason.

Information from ESPN.com's Chris Low and The Associated Press was used in this report.