Power 4 Athletic Director jobs don’t open too often. Baylor is one of only 4 current Power AD jobs open, with the others being Cal, Oklahoma and Colorado. This is the only one that appears to be a quick hire because it was unexpected. There have been 21 Power AD hires since 2024 with 8 of those hires coming from sitting Power ADs and 5 from deputy AD positions at Power schools.

Below are many names I think will be mentioned as potential replacements. Let me be clear, I think some of these ADs would simply say no, but I suspect they’ll get a call from a search firm about the opening.

I am not making a prediction on the next Baylor AD as I look to transition into executive search and I want to put more emphasis on the profile of the position and potential candidates for institutions to consider – not me making predictions on what I’d do. These mentioned names are simply based on my own research and understanding of situational factors. And for those curious, Eastman & Beaudine was the search firm they used last time.

Sitting ADs

Jeramiah Dickey, Boise State

Dickey is who ChatGPT thinks will be the next AD at Baylor. He’s also going to be the first person mentioned by any local sports reporter because of his time as the top deputy at Baylor prior to becoming the Boise State AD in January 2021. An interesting factor here is would Baylor look to one of Rhoades’ closest friends in the industry given his exit? And would that keep Dickey from even pursuing the job? I assume there’s some familiarity between President Livingstone and Dickey as she was still the president when Dickey was at Baylor. That type of relationship was apparent with the Rutgers president looking to Keli Zinn as his AD after they both worked together at LSU.

Dickey is an energetic AD that has made a lot of great decisions and changes to advance Boise State’s position in college athletics after making the CFP last year. The Broncos are entering the Pac-12 to help the conference rebuild and maybe that brings a good time to transition out and let the next AD take over. It’s also worth noting that the president who hired and extended Dickey in January 2025 is no longer at the institution and the university is currently searching for its next president. With all the changes to college athletics, I think familiarity and alignment with your president is a big deal – and he may still have that with Baylor’s Livingstone.

Wren Baker, West Virginia

Wren seems really happy at WVU and he now has arguably the coolest university president in America with President Benson. These two will do great things at WVU together but I don’t think that will keep Baker from being mentioned or contacted about the Baylor job. Baker has Texas ties as he came from North Texas after a successful fundraising run. I don’t think he’ll be at WVU forever and not sure going from one Big 12 job to the other makes sense for him. And assuming the Oklahoma native is going to be a top candidate for the Oklahoma job, he wouldn’t leave now for Baylor.

Jeremiah Donati, South Carolina

Donati is a highly unlikely candidate but I suspect he’d be contacted or mentioned in someone’s list. I doubt Donati leaves an SEC job to return to Texas. However, he did spend 14 years at TCU and several as the AD. He knows the Big 12 and he knows how to operate a major college athletic department at a Christian university.

Jared Mosley, North Texas

Mosley is an experienced AD in the state of Texas with his current job at North Texas and his 10-year career as AD at Abilene Christian University. I do think the Christian university element is a real consideration for Baylor, but would it be for Mosley? Another interesting nugget is that Mosley spent 2 years as the CEO of the Texas Sports Hall of Fame, which happens to be in Waco, TX. I think an interesting factor here could be the success North Texas is having with football this season. Mosley hired Coach Eric Morris and he has one of the most exciting offenses in all of football. This hire looks great for Mosley and Baylor, if they make a change in leadership, could look for a package deal with Mosley/Morris like Tennessee saw with White/Heupel.

Bryan Blair, Toledo

Blair will be on every list for a P4 opening because of the success he’s had at Toledo. I recently spent an entire football game day following Blair around on the sidelines, in the tailgate lots, and in the suites. He’s incredible at what he does and the people there love him. Blair just recently signed a contract extension and will likely have his choice for future P4 jobs if the timing isn’t right with this one. He did spend part of his career in Texas at Rice University. I think a consideration here could be the chance to reach a CFP with Baylor. Don’t get me wrong, Toledo is a really good football program and will annually compete for that G6 spot, but the margin of error is real. The same can be true about men’s basketball – Toledo is a really talented team, but Baylor basketball will regularly compete for Final Fours. I think a firm and/or the Baylor president will push hard for Blair.

Amy Folan, Central Michigan

Folan is now in her 6th year leading the Chippewas but spent over 15 years in the Texas athletic department as a top administrator. She is well-respected in the industry and if she has aspirations to be a P4 AD then this might be the right time and situation. Folan hired a new football coach this year, Matt Drinkall, and they’re currently bowl eligible at 7-4 and 5-2 in the MAC. That could be attractive to Baylor if they happen to be in the market for a football coach soon.

Hunter Yurachek – Arkansas

Yurachek is a name I think might come up on someone’s list, too. He has brief ties to the state of Texas as the AD at Houston from 2015-2017 before taking the Arkansas job. Yurachek is a busy man right now after taking over the CFP Chair position for Mack Rhoades while also trying to hire a head football coach. There had been news earlier in the fall

Deputy ADs

Ryan Peck, TCU Senior Deputy AD

Peck has strong ties to the state of Texas as a Horned Frog and previously spending 5+ years at North Texas with Wren Baker and Jared Mosley. I have heard great things about Peck and would not be surprised to see him mentioned for this opening. The current AD at TCU isn’t the one that hired Peck, either, that was instead Donati before he left for South Carolina. I think the Big 12 ties and Peck’s background in revenue generation will be attractive for a search firm or Baylor’s president, too.

Marcus Sedberry, Wisconsin Deputy AD/COO

Sedberry spent years at Baylor on the senior leadership team before leaving for Wisconsin. The Wisconsin AD is a former Badger football athlete and is unlikely to leave anytime soon. The Big Ten Conference hardly ever has AD openings it seems, either. This might be a good opportunity for Sedberry if previous ties to outgoing Rhoades isn’t a problem with the administration.

John Daniel, Cincinnati Senior Deputy AD/COO

I visited with JD when I visited Cincinnati’s campus a couple of months ago. I do not know if he’s interested in this job, but I do know he’d be ready for it. JD seems to have a hand in everything with the Bearcats athletic department and is the top administrator for one of the Big 12’s most dominant football teams. JD spent time earlier in his career in the state of Texas at both TCU and Texas A&M.

Brady Hart, Tennessee Deputy AD/CRO

Hart has been with Danny White at several stops and that has become a good recipe to land a FBS job recently. I don’t know if Hart would make the jump to a P4 job simply because he hadn’t been the top deputy while Ryan Alpert was still at Tennessee. Regardless, White is known for mixing up the responsibilities and it’s clear Hart has an impressive body of work to be on someone’s list for an open AD position.

Other Unlikely Names

Scott Woodward

Don’t be surprised if you see recently dismissed LSU AD Scott Woodward on someone’s list. Assuming he wants to still be an AD, Woodward had made high-profile hires, including stealing Kim Mulkey from Baylor to LSU.

Julie Cromer, LSU Executive Deputy AD/COO

Julie Cromer left her AD chair at Ohio for LSU only to see the boss that hired her get replaced just weeks later. I have no idea if Cromer is looking to leave that current situation but if I’m the president at Baylor or chancellor at Charlotte, both female leaders, I’m calling her to ask. Cromer is a great leader but I suspect she’ll remain at LSU for a while since they kept it an internal AD hire and they will need her expertise as the 2nd in command.

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