Quotes and notes from Gene Smith retirement announcement press conference

COLUMBUS — Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith met with the local media Wednesday morning and announced that he plans to retire at the end of June 2024.

Smith’s 18-year tenure is the third-longest among ADs in Ohio State history. Smith is the eighth Buckeyes athletic director. The other seven were Andy Geiger (1994-2005), Jim Jones (1987-94), Richard Bay (1984-87), Hugh Hindman (1977-84), J. Edward Weaver (1970-77), Richard Larkins (1947-70), and Lynn W. St. John (1912-47).

Before taking over his AD post at Ohio State, Smith served as the AD at Arizona State (2000-2005), Iowa State (1993-2000) and Eastern Michigan (1985-1993), making up a 38-year career as an athletic director.

“Sheila (his wife) and I look forward to our next chapter,” Smith said. “We plan to spend more consistent, quality time with our children and our grandchildren and our extended family. I also want to thank Buckeye Nation for its support. At Ohio State, we are truly blessed to have the best fans in the land. I think we all know that, and we’re just fortunate.”

Here’s what else the Ohio State AD said…

• Smith, 67, made it clear that the recent changes to college athletics “were not a part” of his decision to retire next June: “Everything that’s happening, some of it I’ve seen before,” Smith said. “Realignment, I was blessed to be a part of the committee that went from the Big Eight to the Big 12. So realignment’s not new to me. NIL’s new to me. But the transfer portal is not new to me. Olympic sports have been dealing with that for years.”

• Smith continued: “And so the changes in the industry is not what caused me to say I need to step away. My mentors have always have said, ‘You will know when it’s time. You’ll know.’”

• Smith is the first Black AD in Ohio State history. He spoke about the challenges that came with that: “I decided this years ago. I was 29 as an athletic director, and one of the few [Black ADs] — I think there was only two at that time — I decided that I was just going to do my job, and try to do it excellently and disregard the color of my skin. And that was hard. Because there were a lot of rooms that I walked into in the ’80s, early ’90s, where there were people in the room that didn’t want me there. And I knew that. Fortunately, I was able to be embraced by the people who did want me there.”

• Smith continued: “I’ve always thought that it was an honor and a privilege to be the first. And I didn’t see it as a burden. Except that in the early years, I knew I couldn’t fail. Because if I failed, I’d be the excuse back in the day. That’s not true today. In a lot of places, it still exists, but not as true today with the hiring authorities as it was then. … So I’m proud of that, and I’ve been blessed to have this career.”

• Smith said it’s critical for there to be alignment between whoever is the next AD and head football coach Ryan Day: “Ryan are aligned like it’s never been. We’ve got an emotional tie because we share a lot of beliefs. He’s just a good human being. So because of my football background, I can talk to him about who’s at left tackle, who’s at right tackle — where we are with the quarterback, what’s the issues here, what’s the issues there. So we have great conversations. But also alignment with the industry and all the issues that we’ve talked about, getting his feedback. Such an easy conversation because he’s smart.”

• Smith added: “That alignment has to exist. You can’t have conflict there. … I’m going to miss him when it’s all said and done. He’s the real deal.”

• Smith on the biggest challenge he’s faced as Ohio State AD, referencing the “Tattoo-Gate” scandal: “2011 was hell. That was painful. The student-athletes who were impacted didn’t deserve the penalties they had to deal with. That was hard. …”

• Smith continued: “So helping [interim head football coach] Luke Fickell through that year was hard. That was really challenging. I have to compliment him for his resiliency and his commitment.”

• Smith, when asked about advice he has for whoever fills his position: “Hopefully, they’re going to hire someone skilled and with experience. Someone hopefully with high IQ and EQ. Someone that understands the value of people. That’s a huge characteristic. Someone that holds true to their values of integrity and respect for others … but they’re gonna have to be patient. In this ever-changing world that we’re dealing with, you gotta hit pause. Don’t overreact and just be patient and be curious and inquisitive. Just ask a lot of questions and then at some point when you have to be authoritative, then lead. You just can’t overreact in this space.”

• Smith later said: “I’ve always wanted to leave a place better than I found it. But I also wanted to leave a place that when the next person comes in, it gives them a chance to transition as smooth as possible. And they now have that ability with this team. And it wasn’t always that way.”