Bill Moos has been a Division I athletic director for 26 years, but only for the past 15 months at the University of Nebraska. Now he faces rumors that his use of alcohol has affected his job performance with the Huskers.
This week, Moos denied those rumors, defending his occasional beer drinking as part of his accessible approach to the position.
"I've heard the rumors and started seeing the stuff last night," Moos told the Lincoln Journal Star, as reported Tuesday. "It's disgusting and obviously it doesn't have merit."
Nebraska hired Moos from Washington State in October 2017, after he served as AD at Oregon and Montana.
"I think my performance in 36 years in this business — 26 as a Division I AD — speaks for itself," he said. "I'm a man of the people. One of my goals when I got here was to be accessible to you guys, the media, but also to the fans. I want to be out with the people of Nebraska and be a regular guy with them and promote the program, and that's what I've done since I've been here.
"The irony is I get labeled because I have a beer with some guys in Valentine or Beatrice or Alliance or Scottsbluff. That's what I've intended to do, and in my opinion it's endeared me to folks. I'm not stuffy. I'm a cattle rancher and a former college athlete, and I love what I'm doing and I love people."
On Tuesday morning, Nebraska's president and chancellor issued a joint statement supporting Moos. "In his first 15 months, Bill has done a great job guiding our athletic department. He has our full support, and we look forward to his continued strong leadership," the statement read, as reported by the Omaha World-Herald.
"That was nice," Moos told the Journal Star. "But the rumors are harmful. If I deserved it, I'd take it like a man."
