UK names new Athletic Director

The University of Kentucky today announced that J Batt — a nationally recognized leader in college sports — has been named Chief Executive Officer of Champions Blue LLC and UK Athletics Director.

Batt comes to UK from Michigan State University, where he serves as Vice President and Director of Athletics. Previously, he served as Director of Athletics and Vice President at Georgia Tech. He served multiple roles at the University of Alabama for several years, including Executive Deputy Director. Batt also has worked at a number of other university athletics departments.

“Across these institutions, J has distinguished himself as a record-breaker in fundraising and as a leader who strategically invests in facilities to maximize resources and revenue,” UK President Eli Capilouto said today in a message to the UK campus. “As important, he has remained focused on ensuring student-athletes compete at the highest levels while being prepared for lives of meaning and purpose.”

“We couldn’t be more excited to join the University of Kentucky and the Big Blue Nation,” Batt said. “The championship standard has been established at Kentucky, and we are committed to upholding that standard of excellence. Our continued success will take everyone in the Big Blue Nation, working together to provide resources to our teams and our student athletes that position them for success. With that standard as our North Star, Kentucky Athletics and Champions Blue are well positioned to deliver results in the changing landscape that is college athletics today.

Batt is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he was a member of a national championship soccer team and later earned his master’s degree. He and his wife, Leah, and their two sons are eager to join Big Blue Nation.

Batt will officially join UK later this summer. He indicated he will spend the next several weeks talking and listening with UK leaders, Athletics staff, donors and other stakeholders as he prepares to take the helm.

Batt succeeds Mitch Barnhart, who is retiring at the end of June after leading UK Athletics to unprecedented success for nearly a quarter century. Among many accomplishments, six NCAA championships as well as more than 60 conference or conference tournament titles were achieved at UK under Barnhart’s leadership. UK also has placed in the Top 20 in the Director’s Cup — the national all-sports standings —numerous times continually over the last two decades, a marker of overall excellence in the program.

Courtesy: UK Athletics