Report: Ohio State targeting Texas A&M AD Ross Bjork

Ohio State is reportedly targeting Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

As the Buckeyes athletic department engaged in its search for a new AD, Bjork is the top candidate for the gig. This could be a landmark change in Columbus.

“Sources: Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork has emerged as the target in Ohio State’s athletic director search,” Thamel wrote on Twitter. “Search is expected to be finalized in upcoming days.”

Bjork, 51, took over as the Aggies’ AD in 2019 after spending eight years at Ole Miss. If hired, he’ll replace long time athletic director Gene Smith at Ohio State.

Bjork started his career in 1996 at Western Kentucky for two years. He moved to Missouri from 1997-2003 in a variety of roles as an assistant AD.

Then in 2003, he became the associate AD at Miami for three years. In 2005, Bjork went out west to become the senior associate athletic director at UCLA.

Once 2010 rolled around, Bjork became the youngest athletic director among FBS schools went he took over Western Kentucky upon his return. After three years, he moved onto Ole Miss.

Bjork just hired former Duke head coach Mike Elko to replace Jimbo Fisher on the football field. It was seen as a big change following the disappointment and lack of a national title from Fisher and staff.

Bjork explained that the search firm helped in the process but that Elko was always one of the top candidates.

“We started the process Sunday night on November the 12th, right?” Bjork said in December. “And people think search firms pick the coach for you. That’s not how it works. The search firm, their job is to understand the landscape throughout the whole year, not just during football season, not just when I call them on November 12th and say, ‘Hey, okay, are you ready?’ Well, yeah, they’re always ready. So, they understand the landscape. They understand who is movable.”

Bjork added that Elko showed Texas A&M throughout the process that he was the right person to instill a winning culture in the program.

“Coach Elko was on our list from the very beginning. And as the process unfolded, as the identity of what we really, really wanted and we thought was the right DNA of a program that wins, he obviously rose to the top. There was engagement from the beginning,” Bjork said.

Should the Texas A&M AD move on to Ohio State, he’ll work with Ryan Day, who’s certainly under pressure after missing out on the College Football Playoff and losing to Michigan for the third year in a row.