Syracuse, N.Y. -- Syracuse athletic director John Wildhack will not return to the school next year.
ESPN reporter Pete Thamel reported on Wednesday that Wildhack is retiring but will remain at SU through July 1.
Brought in largely to help heal wounds after Syracuse was spurned by its previous athletic director after less than a year, Wildhack's tenure was marked by handling the exit of Hall of Fame men's basketball coach Jim Boeheim after 47 years, navigating the upheaval of the NCAA's amateurism rules and overseeing the renovation of SU's two primary athletic buildings.
Wildhack's departure comes amid Syracuse University's search for a new chancellor to replace Kent Syverud, who hired Wildhack. He said in September that he hoped to remain in his position while acknowledging new chancellors will often pick their own leadership teams.
Wildhack's contract status with the school has not been made public. The last comment from the university was that Wildhack had been extended through mid-2025.
Syracuse brought in former Pittsburgh athletic director Heather Lyke to serve as a special advisor to Syverud and Wildhack in July of 2025.
Wildhack, 67, was hired in July of 2016, replacing Mark Coyle, who departed Syracuse after less than a year to take the same job at Minnesota.
Before taking the job, Wildhack spent more than three decades working for ESPN, rising to the position of executive vice president.
The hiring of football coach Fran Brown, who had never been a head coach or a coordinator, represents one of the biggest risks Wildhack took during his tenure.
It resulted in one of two 10-win seasons for the school's football program during Wildhack's tenure. He leaves behind a feeling of cautious optimism about the school's most important athletic program despite a dismal end to Brown's second season.
Sustained football success has remained elusive under Wildhack, but SU's record in football improved during his 10 seasons (55-68) from the previous decade (48-75).
That improvement came as the Orange adjusted to playing in a more difficult conference, switching from the Big East to the ACC.
Wildhack has often hired Syracuse alums for the school's most prominent coaching jobs, leaning toward unifying choices that would be appealing to former athletes and boosters.
The most high-profile example has been a bust.
The decline of the men's basketball program has been highlighted by an awkward departure from Boeheim and poor performances near the end of his tenure and under his replacement, long-time assistant coach Adrian Autry.
Autry has been unable to stop the program's slide and Syracuse is now in danger of missing the NCAA Tournament for the fifth consecutive season, its longest drought since a five-year stretch from 1967 to 1972. Back then the tournament invited fewer than 30 teams.
Despite two Sweet 16 appearances, the men's basketball program has a winning percentage of .558 (178-141) during Wildhack’s 10 years leading the athletic department. It had accumulated a mark of .737 (263-94) the previous decade.
Other hirings where Wildhack leaned on Syracuse ties have been more successful.
Men's lacrosse coach Gary Gait replaced John Desko and returned the program to the Final Four last season, although he is still seeking the powerhouse program's first national title since 2009.
Kayla Treanor failed to get Syracuse over the hump and secure a national title in women's lacrosse, but she did keep the program operating at a high level before giving way to first-year coach Regy Thorpe, another coach with Orange ties.
Women's basketball coach and SU great Felisha Legette-Jack hasn’t hit the highs of former coach Quentin Hillsman, but she stabilized the program after Hillsman’s resignation and appears poised to make her second NCAA Tournament in four years.
Those results have come against a back-drop of major changes to the college sports industry, including the ability of both boosters and schools to pay players directly.
Syracuse has repeatedly been behind the curve while adjusting to an era of college sports in which athletes can be paid. It’s fair to question exactly how much of the blame should fall directly at the feet of the athletic director. Syracuse is a private school with a smaller alumni base than most major-conference athletic programs.
Still, the school’s boosters were slow to form outside collectives to pay players.
Coaches from both basketball programs said they were hampered last season by an inability to pay players as much as their competition and dealt with the absence of a general manager focused on scouting the transfer portal when building their rosters.
Recently, Wildhack has spoken out about the future of college sports, following Syverud’s lead in declaring a desire for collective bargaining with athletes to create enforceable rules.
Syracuse teams and athletes won three national championships under Wildhack.
The men's soccer program won a national title in 2022. The team was led by Ian McIntyre, a long-time SU coach hired by former athletic director Daryl Gross.
Runner Justyn Knight won individual titles in cross-country in 2017 and indoor track in 2018. He was coached by Chris Fox, who was also hired by Gross.
The Orange has won five ACC postseason championships in four programs during the time Wildhack led the department. Two were in cross-country, with one each coming in women's rowing, men's lacrosse and men's soccer.
Syracuse also won two conference titles in women's hockey, which the ACC does not sponsor.
Among the 18 ACC schools, those with fewer postseason titles over that timeframe include newcomers Cal and SMU (one each), Boston College (two), Miami (four) and Georgia Tech (four). Louisville is tied with Syracuse at five.
The Orange has also won five ACC regular-season titles under Wildhack, taking two each in men's and women's lacrosse and one in men's soccer.
During Wildhack's tenure Syracuse endured the high-profile resignation of Hillsman following allegations of mistreatment and bullying of athletes. Hillsman was initially hired by Gross; some accusations of poor behavior came under Wildhack's watch.
Wildhack's most clear successes have come in areas where administrators have more control than in winning games.
Syracuse has reported record fundraising efforts multiple times, and his relationships with donors have helped the school modernize its facilities.
Wildhack helped cultivate the school's relationship with John and Laura Lally, the biggest donors behind an upgrade to its football complex and athletic facilities that was accomplished with a fundraising effort of more than $150 million.
While a decision to renovate the JMA Wireless Dome (then Carrier Dome) was made before Wildhack arrived, he was the athletic director while those improvements were made.
Wildhack and Coyle are the only two athletic directors who have spent their entire time at Syracuse leading an ACC program.
Wildhack also helped the SU athletic program navigate and compete in sports during the coronavirus pandemic, a time when schools in New York faced stricter restrictions than much of the country.
Among current ACC athletic directors, only North Carolina's Bubba Cunningham and Virginia Tech's Whit Babcock have held their position with their schools longer.
Miami's Dan Radakovich has been an AD in the league since 2006 with three different schools. Clemson athletic director Graham Neff has been at his school since 2013 in multiple roles.
Wildhack is currently a member of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee. He recently did a stint as the ACC's Chair of Athletics Directors.