Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker Named Next NCAA President

Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker will be named the next president of the NCAA, the association announced Thursday. Baker will succeed Mark Emmert and take over as the face of the collegiate sports governing body during changing times in a new era.

Baker, a Republican, has been governor since 2015 but will conclude his second term next January. He is expected to take over full-time starting March 1. Emmert announced last April that he would be stepping down after taking over the title in 2010.

Emmert will remain in an advisory role until June.

"We are excited to welcome Governor Charlie Baker to the NCAA and eager for him to begin his work with our organization," Linda Livingstone, Baylor University president and chair of the NCAA Board of Governors, said in a statement. "Governor Baker has shown a remarkable ability to bridge divides and build bipartisan consensus, taking on complex challenges in innovative and effective ways. As a former student-athlete himself, husband to a former college gymnast, and father to two former college football players, Governor Baker is deeply committed to our student-athletes and enhancing their collegiate experience. These skills and perspective will be invaluable as we work with policymakers to build a sustainable model for the future of college athletics."

A former basketball player at Harvard, Baker, 66, will bring a poltical style to college athletics in hopes of navigating through the trials of setting boundaries with name, image, and likeness. According to Sports Illustrated's Ross Dellenger, the NCAA wanted to make sure its next president had political connections and interviewed several governors during its search.

"The NCAA is confronting complex and significant challenges, but I am excited to get to work as the awesome opportunity college athletics provides to so many students is more than worth the challenge," Baker said in a statement. "And for the fans that faithfully fill stadiums, stands, and gyms from coast to coast, I am eager to ensure the competitions we all love to follow are there for generations to come. Over the coming months, I will begin working with student-athletes and NCAA members as we modernize college sports to suit today's world while preserving its essential value."

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