SMU athletic director Rick Hart introduced Friday that he can be leaving his place on the finish of the college yr.
“It’s with super pleasure, heartfelt love, and sure, blended feelings, that I share with you that I’ve made the choice that this educational yr can be my final at SMU,” Hart wrote in an announcement posted to X.
“… It’s time for a brand new problem for me and for a brand new voice to guide the Mustangs.”
It has been a heck of a experience! To the Mustangs – and to what’s on the horizon! #PonyUp pic.twitter.com/Jo3SkcnSbL
— Rick Hart (@AD_RickHart) February 7, 2025
Hart took over as athletic director at SMU in July 2012. He was answerable for overseeing the Mustangs’ shift to the Atlantic Coast Convention, which took impact with the 2024-25 college yr. In its first yr within the convention, the soccer program superior to the 12-team School Soccer Playoff.
His departure coincides with that of college president R. Gerald Turner, who introduced final summer season that he would depart the college efficient June. 1.
Hart stated that by leaving now, incoming president Jay Hartzell — most lately the president on the College of Texas — will have the ability to “transfer ahead together with his personal imaginative and prescient.”
In his assertion, Hart didn’t specify what his subsequent transfer can be.
“After I interviewed for this job, President Turner shared that he wished for a nationally aggressive athletics program on par with the standard of the college,” Hart stated in his assertion. “Mission completed! In fact, there’s all the time extra we may have executed and extra that lies forward, however I’m excited for what comes subsequent for me and for SMU athletics.”
In a information launch, SMU stated it’s going to start it seek for Hart’s successor “within the coming weeks.”
–Area Degree Media
