In 1997, Michael F. Adams arrived in Georgia knowing the weight of the place, the loyalty it inspires, and the lines that should never be crossed lightly. Fast forward to January 25, 2026, the University of Georgia announced that its president emeritus had died following a brief illness. He was 77. For many in the Bulldogs community, the news landed with quiet sadness, layered with complicated memories.

“We are saddened to share that UGA President Emeritus Michael F. Adams has passed away,” UGA dropped the heartbreaking news on X with a heartfelt tribute. “We extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and loved ones. Over 16 years of service, he helped shape the University of Georgia’s trajectory and left a lasting mark on our institution.”

Michael Adams served as the university’s 21st president from 1997 to 2013, a stretch that coincided with one of the most aggressive periods of academic expansion in school history. Under him, enrollment grew, faculty ranks expanded, fundraising accelerated, and federal research dollars nearly tripled. By most national metrics, Georgia moved from a strong regional institution to a consistent top-20 public research university. 

What followed him everywhere, however, was one single decision that permanently altered his standing with a segment of Georgia fans. The defining rupture came in 2003, when Michael Adams chose not to renew the contract of legendary AD and former head football coach Vince Dooley. The move was received as an open challenge.

Alumni and boosters viewed it as a hostile takeover of the athletic association. One longtime faculty member later spoke out.

“It was a clash of titans,” he said. “Michael Adams wanted to be the sole face of the university, and in Georgia, no one outshines the football coach.”

The backlash was immediate and sustained. In 2004, the UGA Foundation commissioned an audit alleging misuse of donor funds and a lack of transparency in Michael Adams’ compensation. The Georgia Board of Regents stepped in, severed ties with the Foundation, and ultimately cleared the president of wrongdoing. The damage, however, was already done. 

Faculty in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences passed a vote of no confidence. Michael Adams remained in office, but the relationship between president, boosters, and parts of the fan base never fully recovered. Yet even amid the noise, the university kept moving. 

Under Michael Adams, UGA added 127 endowed professorships and 14 Georgia Research Alliance eminent scholars. Entire colleges came into existence, including the School of Public and International Affairs, the College of Public Health, the Odum School of Ecology, and later, the College of Engineering. The medical partnership with Augusta University laid the groundwork for what would become Georgia’s School of Medicine. These changes redefined what Georgia could claim to be. The transformation even extended well beyond the classroom.

Michael Adams’ fingerprints in Georgia’s development 

During Michael Adams’ presidency, total research funding more than doubled, with federal expenditures nearly tripling. The university invested more than $1 billion into construction, adding roughly six million square feet of space. Landmark projects such as the Miller Learning Center and the Paul D. Coverdell Center reshaped how students and faculty used the campus. 

Enrollment climbed from approximately 29,700 students to 35,000 by 2012, even as admissions became more selective. Michael Adams frequently framed those numbers in human terms. 

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“This is about more than numbers,” he said in his final State of the University address in 2013. “It is about people, about opportunity, about the power of education to improve both an individual’s life and the community in which he or she lives. It’s about transformation.” 

Study abroad programs grew into year-round residential sites in Oxford, Cortona, and Costa Rica while private giving doubled. The university’s endowment grew from $249.4 million in 1997 to $745.8 million by 2011. By the time he stepped down, his signature appeared on more than 110,000 degrees.

Michael F. Adams leaves behind his wife, Mary Lynn Ethridge Adams, their sons David and Taylor, and three granddaughters. His tenure will always be debated, particularly in football circles. But his impact on the University of Georgia’s academic identity is permanent. 

“We are here for a time, serving an enterprise that is owned by the people of this state,” he once said. For better or worse, he served it boldly.