Baylor University has agreed to a 10-year contract extension with athletic director (AD) Mack Rhoades. As a private university, Baylor does not disclose the financial terms of contracts.
AD Rhoads has overseen Baylor football’s resurrection and men’s and women’s basketball championships.
Baylor president Linda Livingstone announced on Monday, April 4, after the school’s Board of Regents approved the contract. Livingstone stated that Rhoades’ name had been connected to other athletic director openings due to his success.
“Mack’s leadership has been nationally recognized over the past 5 and a half years, and his name has been connected to several opportunities as of late,” Livingstone said. “This new contract reaffirms that Baylor is where he wants to finish his career. We look forward to Mack’s continued success leading Baylor athletics over the next decade.”
Rhoades, 56, said he and his wife, Amy, are looking forward to spending the rest of his career in Waco.
“We are excited Baylor has given us the opportunity to finish my career as the university’s athletics director,” Rhoades said. “Amy and I have felt called to be at Baylor University and remain an integral part of Baylor’s future. It is a blessing to work with President Livingstone, who leads our university with great integrity and vision, and to continue to work alongside our championship coaches, staff and student-athletes for the next decade as we continue our mission of ‘Preparing Champions for Life.'”
Rhoades was hired as the Baylor AD in 2016 amid the fallout of a sexual assault and violence investigation that resulted in football coach Art Briles being fired. Rhoades made two successful head football coaching hires in the aftermath.
First, he hired Matt Rhule, who led the Bears to an 11-3 season in 2019 before he left to become the head coach of the Carolina Panthers in the NFL. After Rhule’s departure, Rhoades hired Dave Aranda, who led the team to a 12-2 finish in 2021 and a win in the Big 12 championship game over Oklahoma State. Aranda and the Bears completed the best football season in school history by winning over Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl.
In 2021, Baylor became the first school to win the Big 12 Conference championship in football, men’s basketball, and women’s basketball in the same year. The men’s basketball team won the national championship in 2021, while the women’s basketball team won the title in 2019. Baylor’s men’s and women’s basketball teams repeated as Big 12 Conference champions in 2022.
The school is also planning a new $185 million pavilion that will serve as the school’s basketball arena and a concert venue. The Foster Pavilion will replace the Ferrell Center, where the school’s basketball teams have been playing since 1988. The pavilion is expected to be completed by January 2024.
“We are humbled and appreciative of the confidence reflected in us by the board of regents, President Livingstone, and university leadership,” Rhoades said.
During Rhoades’ 6 years on campus, Baylor has won twenty-four Big 12 titles and six national championships across all sports. Rhoades was named the 2021 Athletics Director of the Year by Sports Business Journal.
“Championship athletics is woven into the Baylor experience, and it’s a key recruiting tool for prospective students, the engagement of current students, and the positioning of our brand,” Livingstone said.
