Iowa athletics director Gary Barta announced he will be retiring on Aug. 1 after 17 years leading the Hawkeyes’ athletics department.
The University of Iowa is officially in the market for a new athletics director. Gary Barta announced he is retiring on Aug. 1 after 17 years overseeing the Iowa Hawkeyes‘ athletics department.
“It has been an absolute privilege and honor to serve in this role the past 17 years. I’m humbled to have worked beside and on behalf of so many student-athletes, coaches, staff, donors, fans, and community leaders over the past two decades,” Barta said in a statement.
UI President Barbara Wilson celebrated Barta’s tenure and the Hawkeyes’ accomplishments under his direction.
“Gary’s achievements at the University of Iowa are significant, and our coaches and student-athletes have enjoyed tremendous success on and off the field during his tenure. I’m grateful for his leadership as a Hawkeye and I wish him well in his retirement,” Wilson said.
Under Barta’s watch, the Hawkeyes captured four NCAA team championships and 27 Big Ten team titles. More than 160 student-athletes were recognized as first-team All-Big Ten athletes, multiple athletes captured National Player of the Year and Big Ten Player of the Year honors and there were Coach of the Year recognitions as well.
On the gridiron, the Hawkeyes tallied an overall mark of 137-79 (83-59 Big Ten) with head football coach Kirk Ferentz during Barta’s oversight. In men’s basketball, Barta hired Todd Lickliter to succeed Steve Alford who left for New Mexico in the spring of 2007. Lickliter compiled a record of just 38-58 (15-39 Big Ten) before being fired after just three seasons.
Barta’s next men’s basketball hire was a good one. Fran McCaffery has taken the Hawkeyes to seven NCAA Tournaments, including each of the past four. McCaffery holds a 261-176 (126-118 Big Ten) and is just 10 wins shy of tying and 11 wins shy of surpassing Tom Davis as Iowa’s all-time wins leader.
Meanwhile, women’s basketball is of course coming off a Final Four and national championship game appearance with the nation’s best player in Caitlin Clark. The Hawkeye women’s squad has won back-to-back Big Ten Tournament championships, too.
In wrestling, Barta orchestrated the hire of Tom Brands. Brands just completed his 17th season guiding the Hawkeye wrestling program. Iowa is a five-time Big Ten and three-time NWCA Coach of the Year. In 17 seasons as Iowa’s head coach, Brands has led the Hawkeyes to four NCAA and six Big Ten team titles, crowning 13 NCAA champions, 25 Big Ten champions and 100 All-Americans.
Before this past athletics year, Iowa’s athletics programs had won 11 Big Ten championships along with a Big Ten West division crown in football since the fall of 2020.
The fundraising and facility growth with Barta as Iowa’s athletics director was significant, too. Iowa totaled more than $380 million in facility upgrades and new construction projects.
Those projects included Kinnick Stadium’s North Endzone; the Hansen Football Performance Center; the Gerdin Athletic Learning Center; the Carver-Hawkeye Arena Howard Family Pavilion; the Goschke Family Wrestling Training Center; the Nagle Family Clubhouse and Hoak Family Golf Complex; the Iowa Soccer Operations Center; the P. Sue Beckwith Boathouse; and the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center among others.
The University of Iowa also raised more than $650 million in private support for athletics scholarships, operations, facilities and endowments. With Barta as Iowa’s AD, the athletics endowment grew from $31.6 million to $76 million.
Of course, Barta’s tenure at Iowa wasn’t without plenty of controversy. There were a series of discrimination cases, the latest of which resulted in a $4.175 million settlement to former players that sued the program for racial discrimination. It brought the grand total of settlements for the University of Iowa north of $11 million during Barta’s tenure.
After Barta and the University of Iowa initially asked for $2 million of taxpayer funds to cover the racial discrimination settlement, the University of Iowa wound up reimbursing the state to cover the costs. Rob Sand, Iowa’s State Auditor and a member of Iowa’s Appeal Board, called for Barta’s resignation after he and the University requested the $2 million in taxpayer funds.
There will be an interim athletics director announced next week and a search for the replacement should begin immediately. David Eickholt of Hawkeye Insider with 247Sports indicated that his top name to watch as a successor for the University of Iowa is Beth Goetz.
Goetz joined as Iowa’s Deputy Director of Athletics and Chief Operating Officer in September of 2022.
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