Ohio State’s Gene Smith ‘not interested’ in Big Ten commissioner job
The Big Ten is in search of a new commissioner, but Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith says it won’t be him.
Standing courtside before Thursday night’s men’s basketball game between Wisconsin and the Buckeyes, Smith was discussing a few other topics when he had one final point to share.
“I’m not interested in that commissioner’s job,” Smith told The Dispatch. “You can throw that in (your article) too. People keep asking me that and I’m like, ‘Why?’ ”
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Kevin Warren, the sixth Big Ten commissioner in league history, was appointed to the job in 2020 but accepted a job as the Chicago Bears’ team president and CEO in mid-January. The league has continued to search for a replacement and Smith, now in his 18th year as Ohio State’s athletics director, has been speculated as a viable candidate.
Smith has held his current role for the third-longest tenure in Ohio State history. He also serves on the boards of directors of the Columbus Sports Commission, Fiesta Bowl, National Football Foundation and Champions of Community and is on the NCAA’s Name, Image and Likeness Review Committee, among other duties.
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