On this Monday, July 18, 2016, file picture, Huge 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby addresses attendees throughout Huge 12 media day in Dallas. Bowlsby has introduced his intention to retire. Tony Gutierrez, Related Press
The Huge 12 Convention introduced Tuesday afternoon that commissioner Bob Bowlsby will probably be stepping away from his put up.
A precise timeline was not given, however the convention mentioned it is going to occur “later this yr.” Bowlsby will stay within the place till the appointment of a brand new commissioner is made, the convention mentioned, after which will transition to a “new interim position with the convention.”
Bowlsby, who turned 70 in January, has been the Huge 12 commissioner since 2012, and final fall was a central determine within the convention including BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF after Texas and Oklahoma introduced they have been going to go away the Huge 12 for the SEC.
“After greater than 40 years of serving in management roles in intercollegiate athletics, together with the final 10 with the Huge 12, and given the most important points that faculty sports activities usually and the Huge 12 particularly will tackle within the subsequent a number of years, I've reached a pure transition level in my tenure as commissioner, in addition to in my profession,” Bowlsby mentioned in a press release.
“The Huge 12 will quickly herald our 4 new members and negotiate a brand new grant of rights and media rights agreements. I actually imagine the Huge 12 and our member establishments are in a powerful place now and as we glance into the longer term.
“As such, that is an applicable time for me to step away from the commissioner’s position in order that the subsequent chief of the convention can take the reins on these important issues that can come to the forefront earlier than the top of the time period of my employment settlement in 2025 to set the stage for the Huge 12’s future ongoing success.”
The convention mentioned it is going to use the assistance of a search agency to seek out Bowlsby’s substitute, a course of it mentioned it is going to begin “within the subsequent few weeks.”
To offer some context as to the varieties of individuals the Huge 12 might determine as Bowlsby’s substitute, the Pac-12 employed George Kliavkoff from MGM Resorts Worldwide final yr, whereas the ACC employed Northwestern athletic director Jim Phillips.
Bowlsby had most lately been the athletic director at Stanford when he was employed as Huge 12 commissioner.
Apprehensive about increasing the Huge 12 when it grew to become a scorching subject in 2016, Bowlsby’s hand was pressured final fall when Texas and Oklahoma left, however as lately as February, he mentioned, “BYU has been distinctive in athletics for a really very long time. They convey super credibility to our league.”