MSU AD J Batt lead candidate for Kentucky job: report

Connor Earegood, The Detroit NewsSat, June 13, 2026 at 10:25 PM UTC

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A day after Board of Trustees chair Brianna Scott said she expected J Batt to remain on board as Michigan State's athletic director, it appears the situation may be more complicated.

According to a report by ESPN's Pete Thamel, Batt is the top target of Kentucky's search for its new athletic director. Batt, 44, was hired by Michigan State just over one year ago.

Michigan State hired Batt away from Georgia Tech last June after firing Alan Haller a month before. A longtime associate of President Kevin Guskiewicz dating back 25 years to his time as a soccer player at North Carolina, Batt signed a six-year, $12.6 million contract with Michigan State, and the university paid his more than $2 million buyout at Georgia Tech to hire him.

Michigan State's J Batt has reportedly emerged as a top target in Kentucky's athletic director search.

However, within a year turbulence arose. Guskiewicz is leaving Michigan State for the same job at Clemson, which announced his hire as its president May 27. That move triggered a clause in Batt's contract that cuts his buyout in half, to $2.5 million, should he leave for another school before his contract expires.

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Batt has extensive ties to both the SEC, with longtime experience as the No. 2 in Alabama's athletic department from 2017-22, as well as the ACC having served as Georgia Tech's athletic director from 2022-25.

In one year with Michigan State, Batt made significant decisions for the athletic department, including the firing of football coach Jonathan Smith and the hire of Pat Fitzgerald, as well as the creation of third-party fundraising arm Spartan Ventures, a brainchild of Batt and Guskiewicz expected to launch July 1.

cearegood@detroitnews.com

@ConnorEaregood

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: MSU's J Batt a top target for Kentucky athletic director job

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