After Joe Castiglione: Oklahoma seeks visionary leader for college sports’ most complex chapter yet

As the University of Oklahoma prepares to close one of the most remarkable chapters in college athletics history with the eventual departure of longtime athletic director Joe Castiglione, the search for his successor begins under the weight of both legacy and uncertainty.

With nearly three decades of transformational leadership under his belt, Castiglione's fingerprints are indelibly etched into every corner of OU Athletics, from hiring championship-caliber coaches to orchestrating the Sooners’ move to the SEC. But as President Joseph Harroz made clear this week, the next athletic director must be ready for a new frontier.

“This may be the most important hire we’ve made in the modern era of Sooner Athletics,” Harroz said. “It’s not just about continuing success, it’s about navigating a landscape that’s being redefined in real time.”

A Job That’s Changing by the Day

The role of an athletic director in 2025 bears little resemblance to what it was just five or ten years ago. From NIL and athlete compensation to the consolidation of conferences and legal uncertainties surrounding employment status, the job now demands not only vision but the ability to adapt quickly.

“We’re not structured the way we should be yet,” Castiglione said. “But we’re still expected to keep athletes engaged, build programs that thrive, and do it all while pushing through a period of disruption most industries never face. The next leader has to be someone willing to dive into the tidal wave, not just wait on the beach and hope to survive it.”

The Skill Set for Success

What will it take? Both Castiglione and Harroz emphasized the need for a leader who blends strategic foresight with deep emotional intelligence. It's not just about understanding TV rights and revenue models, though that’s a given. It's about knowing how to sustain relationships, mentor staff, attract elite coaching talent, and unite an athletic department behind a vision.

"You better be a change agent," Castiglione said. "You better be a leader worth following."

“You have to be a visionary,” he said. “But this moment requires more than values. It takes a change-agent mentality and a leader worth following, someone who will dive into the tidal wave, not wait for it to hit.”

The university’s recent innovations like a professionalized general manager model within athletics and a football front office boasting 60 combined years of NFL experience, signal to prospective candidates that OU isn’t waiting around. It's leading.

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Who's Leading the Search?

Randall Stephenson, the former CEO of AT&T and a longtime OU supporter, has been tapped to head the search committee. His background in navigating seismic change in the tech and media sectors makes him uniquely suited to identify a candidate who can do the same in college sports.

“Randall’s experience, especially with the PGA of America and complex media rights deals, gives me every confidence,” Harroz said. “He understands disruptive change. And he understands what this hire means to the University of Oklahoma.”

The committee will work deliberately but without urgency, thanks to Castiglione’s runway of June 2028, his official retirement date. He will serve as an advisor in the process but won’t have a direct role in naming his replacement.

The Stakes for College Athletics

Castiglione didn’t sugarcoat the challenges ahead. He believes college athletics will be fine—eventually—but only if structural change arrives with intention and collective will.

“The mesh point between the athletes and the sports they play has to be addressed,” he said. “That includes compensation, but it also includes education, opportunity, and values. We need a structure, not just a free-for-all.”

“It's not about throwing out tradition,” Castiglione said. “But we do have to adapt without losing the essence of what makes college athletics matter.”

In his eyes, the future of college sports must retain its heart: development, mentorship, and relationships. The next OU athletic director will inherit the responsibility of holding onto that soul while building for a very different tomorrow.

Castiglione’s Final Projects and His Next Chapter

Before stepping away, Castiglione will stay on to oversee several major initiatives. That includes the West Side Stadium renovation, ongoing facility upgrades, and exploring the creation of a comprehensive sports management and sports medicine academic program within OU’s Price College of Business and OU Health.

Even as he prepares for a transition, his passion hasn’t waned.

“I still have a high motor,” he said. “Whatever I do next will be about helping people grow. I’ve always believed that if you help others be the best version of themselves, you’re doing what you were called to do.”

When the day comes, Castiglione will leave behind not just a legacy—but a living blueprint for what college athletics leadership can be: authentic, visionary, grounded in values, and unafraid to lead through uncertainty.

And that’s exactly what OU hopes to find next.