
<p>After just three years as athletic director at Michigan State, Bill Beekman is stepping away to take a new position within the university. The news was first <a href="https://www.freep.com/story/sports/college/michigan-state/spartans/2021/08/05/michigan-state-athletic-director-bill-beekman-resigns-national-search/7971017002/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported</a> by the Detroit Free Press. </p>



<p>Beekman will remain as the Spartans’ athletic director on an interim basis while the school conducts a national search for his replacement. He will then take on a new role as vice president for strategic initiatives. Beekman has been at Michigan State in multiple roles since 1995, including serving as acting president. Prior to his role as athletic director, he had no previous experience in athletics.</p>



<p>“Bill stepped in to help our athletic department during a time of turmoil and change, and we thank him for that,” Michigan State president Samuel Stanley said in a <a href="https://msuspartans.com/news/2021/8/5/general-msu-athletics-update-beekman-to-take-new-position-as-vice-president-for-strategic-initiatives.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">press release</a> on Thursday. “That department is in a better place now and ready to look for long-term leadership to propel us to a new, nationally leading level. With his skills and extensive institutional knowledge, I feel Bill is an ideal fit for this new strategic initiatives role.”</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-beekman-provided-stability">Beekman provided stability</h2>



<p>Beekman is a Michigan State graduate and became interim athletic director in February 2018 after former athletic director Mark Hollis retired in the wake of the Larry Nassar scandal. He ascended as the Spartans’ permanent athletic director in July 2018.</p>



<p>“I have been honored to serve as athletic director at Michigan State, and I thank the Board of Trustees and our administration for this opportunity,” Beekman <a href="https://msuspartans.com/news/2021/8/5/general-msu-athletics-update-beekman-to-take-new-position-as-vice-president-for-strategic-initiatives.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>. “While we’ve experienced the most challenging 18 months in the history of college athletics, we’ve pushed forward on many fronts, laying the groundwork for the future.”</p>



<p>Beekman’s contract ran through 2023 and was worth $750,000 annually. According to the Detroit Free Press, the agreement includes a stipulation allowing Beekman to be reassigned as “Vice President and Senior Consultant to the Offices of the Provost and the Executive Vice President for Administrative and Services Finance.” The position would have a salary of $375,000 and extend through the end of the contract.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-who-will-replace-beekman">Who will replace Beekman?</h2>



<p>Per Yahoo! Sports’ Pete Thamel, this position will have no shortage of interest.</p>



<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<span class="JYRslv6LqN0"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">This job will get a lot of juice. Look for some Big 12 ADs to be strong candidates. UCLA's Martin Jarmond worked at MSU and WSU's Pat Chun has B10 ties, which makes them potential targets. Expect more Power 5 interest than Missouri has got. <a href="https://t.co/FmXXL3Ozy2">https://t.co/FmXXL3Ozy2</a></p>— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteThamel/status/1423331941479239682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 5, 2021</a></blockquote><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></span>
</div></figure>



<p>Should Michigan State choose to stay within the university family for its next athletic director, Alan Haller would likely be of interest. Haller is a former Michigan State cornerback who has been with the school’s athletic department since 2010. He was promoted to deputy athletic director in 2019. </p>



<p>Second-year head football coach Mel Tucker is in the middle of trying to turn around the Spartans’ program after it finished last season 2-5. That followed a major downturn in the latter years of Mark Dantonio’s tenure. Returning Michigan State football to national prominence will need to be a top priority for the incoming athletic director. </p>



<p><em>Image courtesy of Michael Hickey/Getty Images</em></p>


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Michigan State athletic director Bill Beekman stepping down

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