Georgia Tech announces J Batt as next athletic director

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets have officially named J Batt as their new athletic director, according to an official statement released by the school on Friday afternoon. The news comes after the school had been searching for a new athletic director since the end of September.

The official statement from the school reads:

“We’re excited to welcome J to Georgia Tech. His leadership experience at one of the most competitive programs in the nation and his extraordinary track record in fundraising and revenue generation will bring great value to Georgia Tech,” said Georgia Tech President Angel Cabrera. “As a former ACC student-athlete, J has a keen appreciation for what it takes for students to compete at the highest level while pursuing a degree at a top academic institution. He values and shares our culture of excellence and integrity and our commitment to student well-being and success. I look forward to working with him to secure and invest the resources necessary for a successful athletics program.”

As the new athletic director at Georgia Tech, Batt will report directly to Cabrera and serve as a member of his cabinet. Batt also released a statement of his own on Friday afternoon in the same press release.

J Batt statement on being hired as the new AD for Georgia Tech

“My family and I truly appreciate President Cabrera and his team for this opportunity, and we are incredibly excited to join the Georgia Tech family,” said Batt. “I look forward to working with our student athletes, coaches, staff, supporters, and fans to reach new heights, on and off the field, and to build on the rich tradition and history of this storied athletics department. We can’t wait to become a part of the Atlanta community! Go Jackets!”

The school let previous AD Todd Stansbury and head football coach Geoff Collins go at the same time to end last month. The school has spent the last few weeks determining which direction they want to go in and it now appears they found their man.

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Batt has spent the last five seasons in Tuscaloosa working with Alabama football, basketball, and overall fundraising for the department. The move is a homecoming of sorts for Batt as a former national champion in the ACC as part of North Carolina’s men’s soccer team in 2001.

He’ll be taking over a big project with how Georgia Tech’s athletics season has started, but with his fundraising skill now at their disposal, the school hopes this will be the positive change they’ve been wanting to make.

More on the firings, potential hirings at Georgia Tech

Geoff Collins was fired at Georgia Tech after going 10-28 in four seasons, as a once steady Yellow Jackets’ program completely bottomed out in its transition away from the triple-option under former longtime coach Paul Johnson. Collins never won back-to-back games with the Bees, topping out at three wins the last three years. Georgia Tech joins Nebraska and Arizona State as the third Power 5 opening already in 2022, and it’s not even October yet. 

Collins proved to be a disaster at Tech, and while the job has some attractive aspects, but the opening also comes with real challenges and questions. Unlike Nebraska or ASU, Georgia Tech’s search will be trickier, as AD Todd Stansbury was fired as well.

On3’s Sam Gillenwater also contributed to this article.