Colorado Buffs AD Rick George stepping down at end of 2025-26 academic year
The University of Colorado will have a new athletic director when the football season kicks off On Thursday longtime athletic director Rick George communicated that he is stepping away from his position at the end of the - academic year He will transition to a role as special advisor to the chancellor and director of athletics emeritus Related Articles Pac- signs deal with USA Infrastructure rounding out media rights package JuJu Lewis making good impression on CU Buffs teammates CU Buffs reeling but Omarion Miller putting up big numbers Jaguars Travis Hunter has season-ending knee surgery With two games left CU Buffs focus is on the future George s -year career in sports has included the last -plus as the Buffaloes athletic director He was hired on July becoming just the sixth full-time AD in school history George s current contract which runs through June pays him million annually It has been the honor of a lifetime to serve as athletic director for the University of Colorado for the last years but after considerable thought and discussions with my family dating back to last spring I have decided it is time for new leadership to guide the department announced George in a press release I longed to make this announcement now in order to give Chancellor Justin Schwartz plenty of time to find the right person for Colorado and I look forward to doing everything I can to ensure a smooth transition I also wished to time my announcement so that I could sponsorship Coach Prime head football coach Deion Sanders and our football unit this season which I m looking forward to continuing in my new role BOULDER CO JULY Athletic Director Rick George speaks during a press conference at the Champions Center at the University of Colorado Boulder on Thursday July The CU Board of Regents unanimously voted to approve a resolution to join the Big Conference for the - academic year Matthew Jonas Staff Photographer A timeline for the hiring of George s replacement will be informed at a later date but the school will conduct a national search for a new athletic director at specific point I am so grateful to the CU Board of Regents President Todd Saliman Chancellor Schwartz and former Chancellor Philip DiStefano for the opportunity to lead this department since George announced Thank you to our staff our coaches our donors Buff Nation and especially our student-athletes for making this the best job in the country The University of Colorado is a special place and I ll dependably cherish the incredible relationships I ve made during my time here in Boulder In his new role George will assist CU Athletics by participating in revenue-generating initiatives for the department He will also work with the football effort in various ceiling I am truly grateful that Chancellor Schwartz has solicited me to stay on as special advisor and AD emeritus after my successor is named which keeps me connected to CU Athletics while also allowing for plenty of time with my granddaughters Harper and Maddie George mentioned To my wife Nancy our daughters Jenni and Christi family friends colleagues and Buff fans thank you for your incredible advocacy It has been a transformational and eventful tenure for George who is the third-longest tenured AD in school history CU s first two ADs Harry Carlson years - and Eddie Crowder years - are the only two with longer tenures Among current Power Four conference athletic directors only six have been on the job longer than George Shortly after taking the job in George developed plans for a new indoor facility and then led the majority thriving fundraising effort in Buffs history generating million in donations to build the UCHealth Champions Center Ground broke on the project in May of and the football group moved into its new facility just months later on Aug BOULDER CO June CU Athletic Director Rick George moderated a panel from the University of Colorado Athletic Department that spoke to a panel from the University of Colorado Athletic Department spoke to the CU Regents about athlete medical and safety at Williams Village on June Photo by Cliff Grassmick Staff Photographer Beginning with the Champions Center fundraising CU athletics has set project records for donations sponsorships ticket sales and revenue since George was hired George led CU Athletics through the COVID- pandemic in and creating a model of fiscal responsibility that is now the benchmark in major college athletics CU declared in its release He also led CU through a transition from the Pac- Conference to the Big Conference a move stated in the summer of and executed in Throughout his tenure George has been a staunch supporter of the CU student-athletes He created the WHOLE student-athlete operation with an emphasis on physical psychological academic and career robustness for the athletes Under George CU has invested more in mental robustness materials than ever before and created the Scripps Leadership Career Improvement plan to set student-athletes up for their futures Academically CU student-athletes have had record-breaking GPA numbers CU s student-athlete advisory committee has recognized him three times as its staff member of the year George has hired fruitful CU coaches such as JR Payne women s basketball and Jesse Mahoney volleyball and made national headlines when he hired Sanders as head football coach in December of While Sanders current record - is below expectations Sanders has generated record-breaking ticket sales and renewed national attention to the scheme George was named the athletic director of the year in - by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics NACDA the first Colorado AD to earn that honor While serving as AD George has also been proceeding nationally serving as the chair of the LEAD Association as a member of the College Football Playoff Selection Committee and as a key member of the Division I Council Rick s contributions to our university in his years as head of our athletic department have been incalculable Schwartz declared in the press release He is a nationally respected leader who has perpetually kept CU at the forefront of the dynamic and highly competitive landscape of college athletics I am grateful for his leadership and am elated he has decided to stay on as a special advisor and AD emeritus A graduate of the University of Illinois George first came to CU on March when he was hired by legendary Buffs football coach Bill McCartney as the recruiting coordinator On Dec he was promoted to assistant athletic director for football operations George then spent nearly eight years - at Vanderbilt University as associate athletic director for external operations and overseeing the football initiative before he served as the president and CEO of the Fore Kids Foundation from - From - he was the president of the Champions Tour and then spent two-and-a-half years as executive vice president and chief of operations for the PGA Tour In October of George left the PGA Tour to join the Texas Rangers baseball club as the chief operating officer He held that role until a promotion to president of business operations in February of Five months later he left the Rangers to return to Boulder Want more sports news Sign up for the Sports Omelette to get all our analysis on Denver s teams
