He ended his 40-year career at the University of Kansas (KU), having joined in June 2003, taking over for Al Bohl.

Under Perkins direction, the athletics program at KU had several successful seasons, including winning the 2008 Orange Bowl in football and the 2008 men's basketball championship.

Perkins was a native of Chelsea, Massachusetts, where he was inducted into the High School Athletics Hall of Fame.

Following high school, Perkins played basketball at the University of Iowa from 1965 to 1967, where he was coached by former KU great Ralph Miller, a member of the Naismith Hall of Fame.

Perkins was brought in by Maryland to clean up the program after the investigation into the death of basketball player Len Bias revealed foul play within the organization.

[3] From 1990 to 2003, Perkins served as athletic director for the University of Connecticut, earning nationwide recognition for his efforts.

[7] In 2009, $42 million in improvements for a new basketball practice and training facility, locker rooms, donor atrium, new concourses and other upgrades to Allen Fieldhouse were completed.

In March 2010, KU announced that it was conducting an internal investigation into the Athletics Department ticket office.

A separate investigation by the FBI and IRS ultimately resulted in federal charges against five employees of the Athletics Department and one consultant, alleging that they had stolen more than $2 million of KU tickets to be illegally resold during Perkins' tenure.

[15][16] Separately, in May 2010, Perkins was accused by a former Athletic Department employee of personally accepting exercise equipment in exchange for giving premium basketball tickets.

[17] As a result, Perkins was eventually fined by the State of Kansas Ethics Commission for violating rules against accepting gifts.

[19] However, Perkins soon accelerated this schedule, and one year early, on September 7, 2010, he announced his retirement would be effective immediately.