A former Nebraska Athletic Director is returning to the conference. Shawn Eichorst, who led the Husker athletic department from 2013-2017, was named the athletic director for the Wisconsin Badgers today, replacing Chris McIntosh.
“I’m thrilled that Shawn was chosen to lead the Badgers in this transformational era of college athletics,” said Lauren Bishop, the AD search committee chair at Wisconsin said. “Through our process that began with listening, Shawn emerged as a leader who embodies the bold vision that we need to lead the Badgers in this new and transformational era of college athletics while staying grounded in the values of the Wisconsin Idea, and most importantly, the holistic wellbeing of our student athletes. I was particularly impressed by how Shawn innovated and modernized while at the University of Texas, while staying grounded in the holistic wellbeing of student athletes.”
It’s a return to his home state, as the native of Lone Rock, Wi. and former football player at Wisconsin-Whitewater held athletic administrative roles with the Badgers from 2006-2011.
He served as the athletic director at the University of Miami for a year before taking the AD position at Nebraka in 2012. During his tenure, the Huskers won three NCAA team national titles (Bowling 2013, 2015; Volleyball 2015) and 10 Big Ten Conference championships.
Eichorst’s tenure might be best remembered for his rocky relationship with Bo Pelini. Despite his 66-27 record with the Huskers seven seasons, Pelini was fired by Eichorst two days following an overtime win against Iowa in November of 2014. The firing was supported by UNL’s chancellor at the time, Harvey Pearlman, and the Board of Regents. The next month, leaked audio from a team meeting Pelini held with players after his firing had a profanity-packed statement about Eichorst.
Eichorst himself was fired in September of 2017, less than 10 days after a contract extension was given to Mike Riley, the head coach Eichorst would hire to replace Pelini.
“Shawn has led Nebraska Athletics in many positive ways, but those efforts have not translated into on-field performance,” Then-UNL Chancellor Ronnie Green said in a news release announcing Eichorst’s firing. “Our fans and our student-athletes deserve leadership that drives the highest levels of competitiveness, as well as excellence across all facets of Husker Athletics.”
Outside of Football, Eichorst’s other major hire within the UNL athletic department was Amy Williams as head women’s basketball coach, after Connie Yori resigned after an investigation into player mistreatment.
After being let go by the Huskers, Eichorst joined the athletic department at Texas in 2018, serving as their Deputy Athletic Director and Chief Operating Officer. In the release from Wisconsin, Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte said; “Shawn is an incredible leader and even better person, and I’m so happy he’s getting the opportunity to go home. What a blessing that is for him, Kristin, and their family. While we’ll miss him greatly, we couldn’t be happier for them. We were very fortunate that Shawn joined us eight years ago. He brought tremendous passion, dedication and vision to his role and helped our athletics department achieve record-setting success both athletically and academically. His leadership, insight, and tireless work ethic made a huge impact on Texas Athletics.”
Wisconsin currently is under shaky ground administratively. Jay Rothman served as the president of the University of Wisconsin system, overseeing 13 universities and multiple branch campuses, until he was fired in April of this year. Additionally, UW-Madison Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin resigned after the school year for the presidency of Columbia University. Eric Wilcots is serving as the interim chancellor.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Eichorst will begin with a $1.6 millon annual salary, along with incentives.
