Kansas chancellor Douglas Girod provides update on Big 12 Conference commissioner search

LAWRENCE — It’s been about two and a half months, since the Big 12 Conference announced commissioner Bob Bowlsby would step down from his position later this year.

It was a decision that marked the impending end of a run as commissioner, for Bowlsby, that started in 2012. It led to the Big 12 retaining a search firm, TurnkeyZRG, as the conference looked for Bowlsby’s successor. And this week, during a Kansas Athletics Board of Directors meeting, Kansas chancellor Douglas Girod provided his take on how the process has unfolded.

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“That process is moving along nicely,” Girod said, “and hopefully by end of summer we’ll have a new commissioner to be announcing and discussing to lead us through what certainly will be a very dynamic time in the Big 12 as we transition two universities out of the Big 12 and four universities into the Big 12.

"So, it’ll be a very dynamic shift for the next couple of years. And then we have our media rights contracts coming up in ’24, ’25, for renegotiations. So, really important to get that new commissioner on board.”

Earlier this month, The Associated Press reported Texas Tech president Lawrence Schovanec said the goal was to announce the conference’s new commissioner at its football media days. Those are scheduled to be held July 13-14 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. Girod did not mention any specific date or event, as Schovanec did, but his comments appear to be on track with Schovanec’s timeline.

According to the Big 12 release that revealed Bowlsby’s upcoming departure back in April, once the new commissioner is appointed, Bowlsby will transition into an interim role with the conference. That, the release stated, is “subject to the mutual agreement” of Bowlsby and the Big 12’s new commissioner.

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The release didn't outline what Bowlsby’s responsibilities will be in that interim capacity, other than to say he will be a resource.

“In preparing for the search, what the firm realized was that there was a great alignment among our conference in terms of the vision and the strengths that we need,” Schovanec, speaking to the candidates being considered, said in the AP report. “So that pool reflects a diversity of candidates in their professional experience, some from the more traditional athletic administrative roles and then others.”

Jordan Guskey covers University of Kansas Athletics at The Topeka Capital-Journal. Contact him at jmguskey@gannett.com or on Twitter at @JordanGuskey.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas' chancellor updates Big 12 Conference commissioner search