That is also when the Big Ten is set to enter a new era with the addition of USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington.
At a press conference Wednesday morning, Smith said he always sought to exit when the department was on stable ground, and he feels that is the case at this time.
However, the search for his replacement will follow Ohio State’s efforts to hire a new university president, which are already ongoing.
A Cleveland native, Smith is in his 19th year at Ohio State after also heading the athletics departments at Eastern Michigan and Arizona State.
The Buckeyes have won 32 team national championships, including football in 2014 and wrestling in 2015, during his tenure and 115 team conference championships, and Smith was among the highest-profile leaders in college athletics during his tenure.
That includes his serving as chair of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Committee and the College Football Playoff committee.
Smith also oversaw many high-profile coaching changes, including the hire of football coach Urban Meyer in late 2011 and the decision to elevate current head coach Ryan Day from offensive coordinator when Meyer opted to retire in late 2018.
Both basketball teams also had high-profile coaching changes, first with Kevin McGuff replacing Jim Foster as the women’s coach in 2013 and then Chris Holtmann taking over for Thad Matta on the men’s side in 2017.
Foster and Matta are the all-time winningest coaches in their respective program histories.
Smith also had to deal with multiple NCAA infractions cases during his time at Ohio State, including at the time he was hired in the wake of a men’s basketball recruiting and extra benefits scandal that marred the end of the tenure of his predecessor, Andy Geiger.
In 2011, Ohio State had to deal with a major case involving the football team that led to coach Jim Tressel being forced out and the team being barred from postseason play in 2012.
In 2017, the swimming and diving teams were penalized for recruiting violations, and the fencing, women’s golf and women’s basketball teams were found guilty of infractions in a combined case that was wrapped up last year.
As far as potential successors, Smith has developed a large family tree of pupils who have gone on to be Division I athletics directors, including Heather Lyke (currently at Pittsburgh), Martin Jarmond (UCLA), Pat Chun (Washington State) and Diana Sabau (Utah State).
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