Neeli Bendapudi leaving Louisville for Penn State
The two people tabbed to clean up the University of Louisville’s many scandals have had enough. News broke this morning that Dr. Neeli Bendapudi is leaving Louisville to take the same job at Penn State. Meanwhile, athletics director Vince Tyra was expected to take the open AD job at Florida State, although that is now in question in the wake of the Bendapudi news. The UofL Board of Trustees met yesterday afternoon and voted to allow Tyra out of his contract, clearing the path for his exit.
Tyra and Bendapudi came on board following an especially tumultuous period for the university. Tyra was named interim AD in October 2017 when Tom Jurich was fired following the men’s basketball program’s involvement in the college hoops bribery scandal. Bendapudi was hired in 2018 to replace James Ramsey, who was forced out in 2016.
During his time at Louisville, Tyra has made two big coaching hires, bringing in Scott Satterfield to replace Bobby Petrino (2.0) and Chris Mack to replace David Padgett, who was serving as interim head coach following the firing of Rick Pitino. Both hires have underwhelmed, with the fanbase growing increasingly frustrated with Satterfield in the wake of a 6-6 season that ended with Kentucky’s 52-21 rout at Cardinal Stadium.
What does Vince Tyra do now?
Hilariously, rumors spread late last week that Tyra wanted to fire Satterfield and hire Jeff Brohm but Bendapudi said no, which frustrated Tyra so much he started looking for opportunities elsewhere. Now, Bendapudi’s gone, leaving Floyd Street spinning.
Will Bendapudi’s exit make Tyra reconsider leaving Louisville? A source tells Mark Ennis that Tyra has turned down Florida State’s offer, but it’s not clear whether that means he’s staying or just getting out of the industry altogether. If Tyra says, does that mean Satterfield is out? Either way, the meltdown sure is fun to watch from afar.
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