Oklahoma Narrowing on Target for Next Athletic Director, per Report

Oklahoma is reportedly closing in on its new athletic director.

The Sooners are targeting Illinois deputy athletic director and chief operating officer Roger Denny to replace outgoing athletic director Joe Castiglione, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on Friday.

Denny was appointed to his current post in July 2021.

Denny has been on campus twice, per Thamel, and an official deal is expected to be completed “in the coming days,” Thamel reported.

Sources: Oklahoma is targeting Illinois deputy athletic director/COO Roger Denny to be the school’s next athletic director. He’s interviewed on campus twice, and a deal is expected to be completed in the upcoming days. pic.twitter.com/wzyM2c5Wdc
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) January 23, 2026

Denny graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Southeast Missouri State, then he earned a law degree from St. Louis University and an LLM degree in tax law from Washington University in St. Louis.

He worked as an attorney for nearly 15 years, where he has experience with private equity and corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions and real estate development.

At Illiniois, Denny was the sport administrator for football.

The 2021 season was the first for Bret Bielema (he was hired in December 2020). Illinois has gone 37-26 under Bielema.

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As COO, Denny also supervised the department’s internal operations, including facilities and capital projects, as well as corporate sponsorships and licensing.

After his most recent promotion to deputy AD at Illinois last summer, Illini AD Josh Whitman lauded the work that Denny accomplished over his first three years in Carbondale.

“I am excited to promote Roger into the role of Deputy Director of Athletics,” Whitman said in a statement. “Roger maintains a low profile, but he has quietly become an unsung hero of our department. Since Roger’s arrival, he has helped push our program to greater heights, particularly in his areas of administrative responsibility, with historic success in football, a steadied financial outlook, significant upgrades to our most notable facilities, especially Memorial Stadium, and long-term partnerships with our most prominent coaches.”

“Roger’s legal background, including expertise in executive compensation, tax, corporate finance, and licensing, make him uniquely qualified to help us take advantage of the disruption occurring across the collegiate athletics landscape,” Whitman added, per the Daily Illini. “In this elevated role, he will continue to lead and as we face even more dynamic change in the coming years.”