EXCLUSIVE: J Batt Finalizing Deal To Leave Michigan State for Kentucky

Michigan State's athletic director is headed to Lexington.

Michigan State On SI is the first to report that MSU athletic director J Batt is finalizing a deal with the University of Kentucky to become the Wildcats' next AD, sources at Kentucky have told Spartan Nation first.

Batt has been on the job in East Lansing for just a bit more than a year, but will now leave East Lansing not long after university president Kevin Guskiewicz announced he would be leaving the school for Clemson. An official announcement is expected at some time in the next 72 hours, barring anything unforeseen.

Batt's Tenure at Michigan State

Batt's time at Michigan State was brief, but quite eventful. He was brought to MSU to help the school fundraise and infuse more money into the athletic department. Batt took a major step in that direction back in December when Acrisure CEO Greg Williams made a donation and investment totaling $401 million to the school.

That money is largely going to the school's "For Sparta" financial campaign. It has an overall goal of raising $1 billion to renovate Spartan Stadium, the Breslin Center, and other athletic landmarks on campus. Another chunk of the money is going to Spartan Ventures, a corporation directly affiliated with the school meant to maximize NIL opportunities for Spartan athletes.

Batt also decided to fire Jonathan Smith and hire Pat Fitzgerald at the top of the football program. This move certainly makes things awkward for Fitzgerald, as he is now left without a permanent president or athletic director to report to, and he hasn't even coached a game for Michigan State yet.

A major reason why this move happened is the future departure of Guskiewicz. This will trigger a clause in Batt's deal that cuts his buyout from $5 million to $2.5 million. MSU paid up $2 million to buy out Batt's previous contract with Georgia Tech, and it seems like that discount was enough to make Kentucky pursue Batt and likely do the same thing with Michigan State.

Next Steps for Michigan State

It might be a while before there is another permanent athletic director in East Lansing. MSU still needs to find a new and permanent president. It hasn't even named an interim president yet. Searches for somebody to take that office can take months. Teresa Woodruff was the interim president at Michigan State for a year and four months (November 2022-March 2024) before the school landed on Guskiewicz.

MSU President Kevin Guskiewicz, pictured Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, during the Board of Trustees meeting. | Matthew Dae Smith/Lansing State Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

All the instability around the school also won't help the school's pitch to potential candidates, both presidents and athletic directors. A qualified athletic director accepting a position at a school without a permanent president would also be a bit unusual.

Tom Izzo and Deputy AD Jennifer Smith were co-interim athletic directors after Michigan State fired Alan Haller last year. We'll have to see what setup the school goes for this time.

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