LSU's Scott Woodward Voted Top Athletic Director in the SEC, Proving to be Phenomenal Hire for Tigers
The first step in running a successful, long-term, stable athletic department is finding the athletic director that best fits the culture of the university and its various athletic teams. So when LSU hired Louisiana native and lifelong Tiger Scott Woodward to replace Joe Alleva in April, 2019, the move was universally acclaimed.
Over a year later and the move is still receiving its positive due. On Monday, in an article by Stadium, Woodward was ranked as the SEC's top athletic director. The move is a true testament to the value Woodward brings to the university as he has yet to make a significant hire while in charge of the LSU athletic department.
Here was the reasoning from writers Jeff Goodman and Brett McMurphy for giving Woodward an A grade.
Scott Woodward has yet to make any major hires at LSU since taking over at his alma mater last year, but he has an impressive track record at his previous stops. At Washington, Woodward hired USC offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian, who inherited a program that just went 0-12 and had five consecutive losing seasons. Sarkisian had four consecutive winning seasons before leaving for USC. Woodward then convinced Chris Petersen to leave Boise State and Petersen made UW elite: three consecutive double-digit win seasons, two Pac-12 titles and a College Football Playoff appearance. At Texas A&M, Woodward had two solid hires in Jimbo Fisher and Buzz Williams, who should both pay off in the long run for the Aggies.
The Petersen hire in particular, is what put Washington and Woodward on the map. Petersen led Washington to three straight double digit win seasons and appearances in the Peach, Rose and Fiesta Bowls.
The success at Washington helped Woodward parlay that into a position with Texas A&M, where the hires of Fisher and Williams were acclaimed by many.
In two years with the Aggies, Fisher has led the Aggies to a 17-9 record and two bowl appearances while Williams in his one year with the basketball program, turned 14-18 program into an above .500 team.
When the time comes that LSU needs to fill a coaching vacancy for one reason or another, Tiger fans can have faith that the right man is at the controls. Woodward's track record of making successful, long term hires is just one of the many reasons LSU brought him back.
In his short time with the Tigers, Woodward has left a positive impression, particularly in the last few months as the administration deals with the COVID-19 outbreak. After spending months researching the virus and preparing for athletes to return to campus, Woodward, along with senior associate athletic trainer Shelly Mullenix and director of athletic training Jack Marucci, developed the protocol used by the SEC in terms of safety precautions and what happens when a player tests positive for the virus.
"I gotta give Scott Woodward a lot of credit. He was very well-prepared, Shelly (Mullenix), and Jack (Marucci). Those guys were prepared for our team to come in," Orgeron said Tuesday on 104.5 ESPN Baton Rouge. "Obviously, something happened. I think that our team is getting the best care that they possibly can. This is the new lay of the land, it's something that we have to work through. I think our guys are doing a very good job of adjusting and we should be fine."
The other great quality in Woodward's early tenure in Baton Rouge is his willingness to make public appearances and be open and candid about the issues at hand.
The most recent example was a one-hour virtual town hall sit down he did with the Advocate where he answered every question as truthfully as possible in regards to a college football season in the fall.
“I think we're getting to the point where people are going to be very accepting and want football, and we're planning like the season is a go. We are going to do that and are planning that way,” Woodward said. "I'm very bullish and I think, like Coach O said we need football, this culture needs football, the state needs football, this community needs football and I'm very positive."
