Pat Hobbs resigns as Rutgers athletic director for health concerns

Rutgers athletic director Pat Hobbs resigned Friday, citing health reasons for deciding to leave the school after nine years.

The departure of the 64-year-old Hobbs comes just three weeks before the Scarlet Knights begin a highly anticipated football season. Ryan Pisarri, the deputy athletic director and chief of staff, will take over as interim athletic director.

“After meeting with my cardiac team this week and having just been apprised of the results of my latest round of testing, it is clear that I can not continue to serve as Athletic Director given the requirements of the position,” Hobbs wrote in an email to school president Jonathan Holloway. “I recognize this is not the ideal timeframe to depart, however other factors need to take precedence.”

Rutgers hired Hobbs in 2015, a year after the school joined the Big Ten. He previously was a dean in the Seton Hall law school. Holloway, in an email to university leaders, offered best wishes to Hobbs as he prioritizes his health.

“I want to thank Pat for his remarkable nine-year tenure at Rutgers, during which we have seen our men’s and women’s teams become leaders and successfully compete in the Big Ten, both on and off the field,” Holloway said.

Hobbs was to make at least $635,000 in base salary this school year with his compensation adjusted to the median of other Big Ten athletic directors, according to his employment contract.

“My tenure as Athletic Director has been the highlight of my professional career,” Hobbs wrote in his email. “What we have all accomplished and what I know Rutgers will continue to accomplish in the years ahead should leave us with nothing but pride. Almost every program has seen success not seen in decades.”

Hobbs’ first major hire was Steve Pikiell, who turned around Rutgers’ struggling men’s basketball program and led it to NCAA Tournament appearances in 2021 and ’22. He brought back Greg Schiano as football coach for the 2020 season, and the Scarlet Knights last year posted their first winning record since 2014 and won the Pinstripe Bowl. In 2022 he hired Coquese Washington to replace C. Vivian Stringer as the women’s basketball coach.

Hobbs oversaw a number of facilities projects, notably the construction of a football practice facility.

He also had to navigate turbulence in the softball program. A 2019 investigation by NJ Advance Media reported allegations by players that coach Kristen Butler and volunteer assistant coach Marcus Smith, her husband, fostered a climate of fear, intimidation and abuse. Butler remains the coach.

Rutgers’ overall athletic success peaked in 2021-22 when it had nine teams appear in national rankings, the most in program history. Men’s lacrosse advanced to its first NCAA Final Four in program history, women’s soccer earned a No. 1 seed and a trip to the College Cup, and wrestling sent seven competitors to the NCAA championships.

“We are competing at the highest levels and vying for Big Ten Championships,” Hobbs wrote. “I would have loved nothing more than to be on staff as the football team this fall attempt to make the playoffs, to see our men’s basketball program, including Dylan Harper and Ace Bailey, take the basketball program to new heights this winter, and to see all of our teams continue to excel.”