Shawn Eichorst was presented to the media as the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s new Athletic Directory on July 7 during his introductory press conference.
Following former Athletic Director (AD) Christ McIntosh’s departure from Wisconsin in April to become the Big Ten’s deputy commissioner for strategy, UW-Madison launched a search committee made up of former badgers and executives to fill the position.
Eichorst formerly served as University of Nebraska and University of Miami Athletic Director and most recently as the deputy AD at the University of Texas.
Interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots spoke first at the press conference, sharing his excitement at the idea of a former badger returning to the dairy state.
Eichorst is a Lone Rock, Wisconsin native who served as a Deputy AD under Berry Alvarez from 2006 to 2011. During those years, Wisconsin’s football program played in the 2010 and 2011 Rose Bowls.
Restoring Wisconsin’s football program back to its former glory may be the biggest task Eichorst will face.
Wilcots spoke on Eichorst’s success at the University of Texas-Austin (UT-Austin), noting similarities between the two institutions. UT-Austin and Wisconsin are big state schools that are renowned for both their sports and academics, and both universities are located in the capital of their state and home to some of the country’s most passionate sports fans.
Eichorst was part of a powerhouse at Texas where he won the Learfield’s Director’s Cup in four of the last five years. It’s undeniable that the Longhorns might have the best athletic program in the country, dominating college athletics in many Olympic sports as well as football and baseball. However, replicating that success will be a true challenge for Eichorst in this age of Name Image and Likeness, as Texas has a notably bigger budget than Wisconsin.
Eichorst said he was proud to be back in his home state and will prioritize the care of student athletes and education. In the coming weeks, his mission is to meet and identify the needs of stakeholders and coaches across Wisconsin’s athletic programs.
“I want to have deep relationships not only within the athletics department but across the aisle in academics. I really want to lean into the educational piece of what we’re doing,” Eichorst said. “I want to get to know our stakeholders, ticketholders, donors, student athletes and head-coaches.”
Eichorst’s failed stint at Nebraska was not brought up. He spent four seasons with the Cornhuskers from 2013-17 and his tenure there is the biggest gap on his resume. He was criticized for firing successful football Head Coach Bo Pellini and hiring Mike Riley as a replacement, who went 19-19 in the 2015 to 2017 seasons with the Cornhuskers.
Ultimately, Eichhorst is getting a new shot at an AD position in a new era of college athletics. Badger fans are getting an experienced executive across all four college power conferences who will try to bring that swagger back to Wisconsin athletics.
“There is swag in Texas, and we got swag too, but we have a little humility with that deal,” Eichorst said.
