The Next Era for Wisconsin Athletics

Eichorst (right, with interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots) has had a front-row seat to the major changes in college athletics. Bryce Richter

In July, UW–Madison hired Shawn Eichorst as its new director of athletics. During a turbulent time in college sports, the university is turning to a veteran administrator with both local ties and a track record of growth at other major institutions, most recently the University of Texas.

“In this rapidly evolving, ever-changing landscape of college athletics, it was paramount that we find an individual with a tremendous amount of experience and a tremendous amount of success at the highest levels,” said interim Chancellor Eric Wilcots when Eichorst was formally introduced.

The job represents a homecoming for Eichorst, a Wisconsin native who played football at UW–Whitewater and later rose in the administrative ranks at Wisconsin Athletics from 2006 to 2011 under Barry Alvarez. He succeeds Chris McIntosh ’04, MS’19, who departed UW–Madison in April to become the Big Ten Conference’s deputy commissioner for strategy.

At Texas, Eichorst served as deputy athletic director and chief operating officer for a department that earned the Learfield Directors’ Cup as the top-achieving broad-based program in five of the last six years. During his eight-year run, the Longhorns won 87 conference championships and 17 national titles. The football program regained powerhouse status by reaching the national semifinal in 2023 and 2024.

Eichorst previously served as the athletic director at the University of Miami and the University of Nebraska. He’s had a front-row seat to the major changes in college athletics, where student-athletes can now profit from their name, image, and likeness and receive direct revenue-sharing payments from universities. At his introductory event, Eichorst, a first-generation college graduate, emphasized the importance of being part of an elite academic institution that prepares student-athletes for what comes after their playing days. He added that he wants to recenter the value of education in college athletics.

“There is truly nothing like Wisconsin and the pride that comes with being a Badger,” Eichorst said. “I believe Wisconsin represents everything that is great about higher education and college athletics — the academic excellence, the competitive distinction, the integrity, the commitment to serving one another.”

Published in the Fall 2026 issue