Expect to Win: The Stewardship of Chet Gladchuk

I've been hearing "Is this the year?" for at least five years now, and it's understandable why. Gladchuk has been Navy's athletic director since 2001— an extraordinary tenure by today's standards. For comparison, Air Force went through five ADs in that same span. Army went through four. He's seen players graduate as midshipmen and retire as O-5s after full careers.

Fans knew it had to happen eventually, and the question always carried a sense of apprehension. When Gladchuk stepped down, it would mark the close of a defining stretch in Navy Athletics.

Today, the answer is yes. On Monday, Gladchuk announced his retirement.

"Since the day the opportunity to represent the United States Naval Academy was extended to us over 24 years ago, Kathy and I have remained committed to its mission without reservation and with the greatest sense of responsibility and privilege," Gladchuk said in a statement. "In addition, the many men and women who are or will be alumni have motivated us every day to not fall short on the expectation of pursuing excellence in every dimension of our service. Our association has been our passion, and to have made a dedicated personal and professional investment of our lives to what this Academy stands for has been a vocation we will always cherish. Our sincerest gratitude to so many coaches, staff, associates, and friends who have made our journey at the Naval Academy the finest days of our 50-year career in athletics."

It would be difficult to overstate the transformational impact Gladchuk has had in Annapolis. In many ways, NAAA feels like an entirely different organization from the one he inherited.

For most of modern history, Navy Athletics straddled the line between what college sports should be and what they were becoming. There was a scrappy charm to it, but it wasn't built for success. In 2001, the stadium felt like a 50-year-old concrete government building— because it basically was. Varsity coaches doubled as PE instructors; I took a basketball class from Joe Sanchez, the women's head coach. (Great for me, probably not for him.) Assistant coaches were getting spot commissions to help make ends meet. Fans could park wherever they wanted on football Saturdays— no permits, no passes. A national TV game was an event. "Recruiting coordinator" was a collateral duty.

There was a sort of blissful naïveté about where college sports was headed. But Gladchuk knew changes had to be made for Navy to survive what was coming— and he started with football.

Football is the long pole in the Naval Academy tent, both in terms of visibility and revenue. It pays the bills for everybody. Because of this, overhauling football was the first priority. Georgia Southern head coach Paul Johnson was Gladchuk's pick to lead the program. Hiring Johnson wasn't as simple as offering the job— Gladchuk had to recruit him, and Johnson had conditions. He expected to be paid like the national championship coach he was. He wanted a larger budget for his assistant coaches as well. He wanted player schedules adjusted to spend more time with the team through things like zero-block cruise and summer school to lighten in-season academic loads. Johnson and Gladchuk essentially made a pact: Navy would commit the resources and latitude needed to build a winner, and Johnson would deliver results.

The result was the longest stretch of sustained success in program history. Over the last 25 years, the Mids have gone from a winless independent to a regular conference contender and perennial bowl participant. Navy football has accomplished things that most people believed would never happen again. They've finished in the top 25. They've had multiple 10-win seasons. They've been in the conversation for major bowl games. Navy had a player finish in the top five in Heisman Trophy voting. Two bowl games were created simply out of the hope of being able to invite the Midshipmen. They've beaten Notre Dame four times. Imagine going from watching Georgia Tech score their tenth touchdown of the afternoon— to all of that.

But while Navy's football rebirth was the most visible evidence of the athletic department's ascent under Gladchuk's stewardship, it was only the beginning. The same mindset that brought football success was applied across the board, with incredible results. Over the last 17 years, Navy has finished no lower than second in the Patriot League Presidents' Cup, awarded to the athletic department with the best overall performance in the conference. They've won the last ten in a row. In Gladchuk's tenure, Navy teams have won 84 Patriot League championships, 46 more than the next-best school in that span. Gladchuk's mantra was simple: "Expect to win." What started with football became a culture shift that touched every program.

But while on-field success is the most important measure of any athletic department, it doesn't tell the full story of Gladchuk's impact. His tenure was also marked by strategic moves that reflected a sense of responsibility— to people, pride, tradition, and the physical mission of the Naval Academy. That sense of responsibility showed up in ways that weren't always flashy, but were every bit as meaningful. A few, in particular, stand out.

The rise of women's sports: Under Gladchuk, Navy added six new varsity sports, bringing the total to 36. Five of those added were women's sports. This was by design. Over the last 15 years, the Navy has sought to increase the percentage of women within the Brigade of Midshipmen, and they've done this in large part through varsity sports.

But these sports weren't just added to check a box. From the beginning, they were given the resources they needed to succeed. And they have. The three Patriot League sports added— women's lacrosse, golf, and tennis— have all won conference championships. Women's lacrosse made the NCAA Final Four. Women's tennis has ten 20-win seasons in only 15 years as a varsity program. It was a deliberate, mission-aligned expansion— one that paid off competitively and institutionally.

Winning on the field is vital to accomplishing the Naval Academy's mission. The military is traditionally thought of as a male-dominated environment, which can make young women hesitant to consider applying to USNA. For a school responsible for providing the bulk of the Navy's career officer corps, that is unacceptable. The Naval Academy cannot afford to lose out on half of the available talent pool for admission. Athletic success is a tangible and relatable way to demonstrate to young women that the Naval Academy is a place where they can not only survive, but thrive. Under Gladchuk's leadership, they have.

Facilities: Gladchuk believed that renovating Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium was vital to the football program's resurgence. When he arrived, the stadium was beloved by Navy fans but woefully out of date. The multi-phase renovation plan executed by Gladchuk gave new life to the venerable grounds, modernizing the experience without losing sight of what the place stood for. Today, NMCMS is a multi-use facility that is equal parts memorial and athletic arena, providing a unique fan experience that ranks among the finest in the country.

But while the stadium is the most outwardly visible facility improvement at Navy, it is hardly alone. Soccer, baseball, squash, track and field, volleyball, tennis, rugby, golf, lacrosse, football— nearly every program has received new or upgraded facilities, with more still in the pipeline. That's not even counting the Terwilliger Center for Student Athletes, Ricketts Hall renovations, and others. The capital projects undertaken over the last 20 years have transformed both the Yard and the student-athlete experience.

Football joining the American Athletic Conference: Gladchuk was proactive in positioning Navy football for the changing landscape of college sports. Rather than waiting until independence became unsustainable, he moved while Navy still had leverage—as a consistently successful, nationally relevant program with a strong television following.

That timing mattered. It allowed Navy to negotiate on its own terms: preserving traditional rivalries, maintaining the Army–Navy Game's end-of-season slot, and protecting what makes football Saturdays special in Annapolis. Gladchuk — and by extension, Navy— have been leaders in the conference and a driving force behind its success.

AAC membership has also elevated Navy's standing on the national stage. Competing for conference championships against the likes of Houston, UCF, and Cincinnati put Navy in the spotlight. The Midshipmen have competed against nationally-ranked teams— not just on the road, but at home. High-stakes wins over ranked teams like Houston and SMU gave Annapolis fans memories they will still be talking about decades from now.

By leading the move to the American, Gladchuk made sure the program stayed relevant, competitive, and in control of its own future.

Strategic partnerships: Gladchuk's approach made it clear he thought Navy athletics— and football in particular— were a big deal. That mindset shaped the partnerships he pursued, and he expected those partners to see Navy the same way he did. In 2005, ESPN was interested in the rights to Navy football home games. But in the ESPN portfolio, Navy football would have been treated as filler for ESPNU or buried on ESPNews. Instead, Gladchuk partnered with CSTV, an upstart network that wanted to make Navy the centerpiece of its Saturday programming. That relationship continued as CSTV became CBS College Sports, and eventually CBS Sports Network. It's extended to other Navy programs as well.

Navy's relationship with Under Armour is a similar story. Nike treated Navy respectfully, but they never made Navy a priority in their portfolio. Under Armour has. Unlike Nike, UA committed to outfitting all Navy sports and provided a unified design language and branding. They've committed to giving Navy a bespoke look, not something off the shelf. Navy is one of the flagship programs in the Under Armour umbrella, and they are treated accordingly.

Gladchuk didn't just find partners— he found people who believed in Navy as much as he did.

Handling the pandemic: The COVID-19 pandemic hit college sports hard, as athletic departments saw their revenue streams cut off. According to a tracker by Business of College Sports, as of July 2021, 35 Division I institutions had cut a total of 77 sports programs, with a few later reinstated. Additionally, a report by ESPN in November 2020 indicated that, across all NCAA divisions, approximately 352 sports programs had been eliminated since March of that year, the majority of them Olympic sports. Those losses came alongside widespread layoffs across athletic departments.

Navy didn't follow that path. Despite the financial strain, no staff were laid off, and no programs were cut. In fact, Navy added three new varsity sports since 2020: women's triathlon, and men's and women's rugby. Men's rugby went on to win the national championship in 2023.

Even with everything else Navy accomplished during his tenure, Gladchuk's handling of the pandemic stands out as one of his greatest achievements.

Chet Gladchuk didn't just keep Navy Athletics afloat— he helped it thrive during one of the most challenging eras in college sports history. Twenty-four years is an extraordinary run by any measure, and the program he leaves behind looks nothing like the one he inherited. That's not just a credit to his longevity. It's a credit to his vision, his consistency, and his belief in what Navy could be. His successor will inherit a program with high expectations, a proud legacy, and a clear standard to uphold.