The Scoop: Will LSU's Keli Zinn be the new Rutgers AD?

LSU Athletics Director Scott Woodward is expected to embark on a search for the replacement for Keli Zinn, who serves as the Executive Deputy Director of Athletics and Chief Operating Officer for LSU Athletics.

Zinn, who had been one of the top candidates for the recently-filled vacancy as Georgia Tech’s Athletics Director, is now expected to fill the void as the new Athletics Director at Rutgers, sources tell The Bengal Tiger staff. A formal announcement, barring a shift in the 11th hour, is expected this week.

On Sunday evening, Zinn was reported as a top target for new Rutgers President William F. Tate IV, who moved into his role on July 1. Tate began his time as LSU’s President in 2001, becoming the first African-American president in LSU’s history and a familiar face around all the school’s athletics programs, including often pitching in on the recruiting front for multiple sports.

Zinn replaced Woodward’s longtime right-hand woman Stephanie Rempe, who has served as the Nevada Athletics Director since June 2022.

LSU’s athletics website lists Zinn’s main job responsibilities as overseeing all external and internal affairs of the athletics department, working closely with University leadership, senior athletics administration, and campus and community partners to support and advance the Tigers’ growth and success.

Her work includes supervision of all 21 varsity programs with direct oversight of football and gymnastics, revenue generation, capital projects, strategic initiatives, and more.

During Zinn’s time in Baton Rouge, LSU has won National Championships in baseball, gymnastics, and women’s basketball. Zinn is LSU’s primary sports administrator for the football and gymnastics programs, and she earned the 2025 Central Region Administrator of the Year award, given to “athletics administrators who have made a significant impact on their gymnastics programs and institutions.”

On the business side, Zinn renegotiated the program’s multimedia rights partnership, helping secure a 21% value increase, and helped LSU see significant revenue increases in ticket sales, merchandising, and donor support.

LSU’s website lists Zinn as responsible for “all external and internal affairs of the athletics department, working closely with University leadership, senior athletics administration, and campus and community partners to support and advance the Tigers’ growth and success.”

Prior to her arrival at LSU in 2022, Zinn was the Deputy Athletic Director at West Virginia, her alma mater.

If Zinn follows Tate to Rutgers as expected, she will replace current interim Athletics Director Matthew Colagiovanni, as well as the previous interim Athletics Director Ryan Pisarri.

The move would come nearly a year after former Athletics Director Pat Hobbs resigned prior to an investigation into the gymnastics program.

A 2002 graduate of the Mountaineers, Zinn got her start in college athletics in Morgantown as a Compliance Assistant for two years.

In 2003, Zinn began her work with the Big East conference in the same role. There, she assisted in the review of institutional compliance audits and the processing of all conference and NCAA waivers and violations. She also helped organize events and served as oversight to the conference’s student-athlete advisory committee.

Zinn worked in the compliance department at Maryland for six years, with her first two years serving as a Compliance Coordinator before being promoted to the Assistant Athletic Director of Compliance from 2005 to 2010. She served as the sports administrator for Maryland’s women’s tennis and competitive cheer programs.

Zinn returned to her alma mater at West Virginia in 2010 as an Associate Athletic Director for Governance and Compliance, a role she held for two years, before being promoted to an Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director.

In December of 2014, Zinn made school history as the first woman to lead the Mountaineers’ athletic department, serving as West Virginia’s Interim Athletic Director after the departure of Oliver Luck. Zinn was retained after the hiring of Shane Lyons as the full-time Athletic Director and earned the role of Deputy Athletic Director / COO.

In the role, Zinn “provided strategic direction and operations management to a department that includes 18 intercollegiate programs, 250 coaches and staff and a budget exceeding $93 million annually,” according to her school biography. She also served as the football program’s administrator, as well as the Senior Woman Administrator on the Big 12 and NCAA Governance groups, representing the university.

Zinn left West Virginia in July 2022 to serve in her current role at LSU.

Stay tuned to The Bengal Tiger for more on this developing story.

Editor’s note: On3’s Alec Crouthamel helped contribute to this report