By John Shinn
CNHI News Service
June 20, 2007 12:56 am
—
It only took a handful of questions before outgoing Big 12 commissioner Kevin Weiberg was asked what it took to sit in the seat he kept warm since for the last nine years.
Weiberg, who announced Thursday he was leaving the Big 12 to join the newly formed Big Ten Network, didn’t give a short list.
“I think it requires a unique combination of skills,” he said, “but I think a lot of people will be interested in the job.”
There’s no doubt that’s the case. The Big 12 commissioner is one of the most powerful jobs in collegiate sports. Weiberg earned over $500,000 this past season.
But the question swirling through Oklahoma circles is whether OU athletic director Joe Castiglione is one of those interested.
Castiglione declined to comment on the situation, and hasn’t made any statements concerning whether or not he’s interested in leaving Norman for Dallas’ Big 12 office.
But he has the credentials to run the conference.
Castiglione forever indebted himself to OU fans by making Bob Stoops his first major hire in December of 1998. The football success has locked the national spotlight on the Sooners.
During his nine seasons at OU, the athletic department has reached unseen heights. Every sport has seen facility improvements and success on the field has increased as well. The Sooners have become a mainstay in the Director’s Cup standings, which measure athletic success in every sport.
They have won 26 conference titles in sports other than football during Castiglione’s tenure. The school’s success away from the gridiron has been the athletic director’s biggest achievement.
Facilities have undergone nearly $90 million in renovations over the last eight years and an athletic department that once operated in the red is now in the black. The athletic department currently runs with a budget of over $60 million.
The revenue streams have opened at OU under Castiglione. Keeping the conference’s tap flowing will be a big issue with the Big 12.
The Big 12 distributed $106 million to its member schools over 2006-07. Most of that revenue comes from television contracts and bowl agreements that are locked in through for the next two seasons.
Weiberg said his replacement will should be well versed in the world of college athletics.
“You need somebody that knows the intercollegiate sports business, obviously,” Weiberg said. “It’s possible for someone to come from outside the sports community and do it, but there’s quite a learning curve there. The issues are very unique and the governance side of it is very complex.”
Castiglione has served on several NCAA committees and been president of the National Athletic Directors Association. He also has a long history with the conference. Castiglione was the athletic director at Missouri before coming to OU.
He’s far from the only candidate.
Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson, Conference USA commissioner, and OU graduate, Britton Banowsky and Big 12 associate commissioner Dan Beebe have also been mentioned a possible successors to Weiberg. Each has ties to the conference and their experience in conference administration is something Castiglione doesn’t possess.
Other names will likely emerge before Weiberg officially vacates the post in mid-July.
The Big 12’s board of directors will make the final decision. No timetable has been set for the hiring of a new commissioner.
But few doubt the Sooners’ athletic director should be atop the list of candidates.
John Shinn writes for the Norman Transcript.
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