Mississippi State Athletics Director John Cohen is finalizing a 5-year deal to become the next Athletics Director at Auburn, according to report by ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
It was reported Saturday by Thamel that Cohen was in discussions with Auburn and that things could be moving quickly.
Mississippi State President Mark Keenum issued the following statement:
“We thank John and Nelle for their long and dedicated service to MSU. In many ways, MSU is a victim of our own success in that several former MSU athletics directors have transitioned into similar roles at peer institutions in the Southeastern Conference. That fact speaks to the growing culture of success among our student-athletes and the commitment of our university, our alumni and friends and our fans to competing at the highest levels of collegiate athletics and doing so in the right way. Together as the Bulldog family, we will move purposefully to find a new leader who can both embrace and build on that culture of success.”
Auburn Athletics Director Allen Greene stepped down from the position in August after four years with the fellow SEC West university. Auburn officials have been on the clock for two months now to find his replacement, and Cohen emerged as one of their top candidates in recent days.
Cohen signed a four-year extension with Mississippi State this summer raising his salary to $1.1 million, the maximum length allowed under Mississippi Law. His buyout is worth $250,000.
Cohen's first project will be leading the football coaching search as Head Coach Bryan Harsin was fired today after his Tigers fell to 3-5 in a 41-27 loss to Arkansas this weekend.
Cohen, a Mississippi State alumni who played three years on the MSU baseball team from 1988-1990, has served as the school's Director of Athletics since 2016. He served as the Head Baseball Coach from 2009-2016, where he led the Bulldogs to five NCAA Tournaments, three Super Regionals, and a College World Series runner-up finish in 2013.
Since taking over as the Director of Athletics in 2016, he's made 12 Head Coaching hires across various sports at Mississippi State, most notably Head Baseball Coach Chris Lemonis in 2019, who led Mississippi State to its first National Championship in 2021. Cohen also hired Head Football Coaches Joe Moorhead in 2018 and Mike Leach in 2020, and Head Men's Basketball Coach Chris Jans in 2022.
Cohen has also had success hiring coaches in women's sports. He hired Head Softball Coach Samantha Ricketts in 2020, who led Mississippi State to its first Super Regional appearance in program history in 2022. Volleyball has also improved since he hired Julie Darty Dennis in 2018, as the program made its first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2021. He hired Nikki McCray-Penson in 2020 after Head Women's basketball coach Vic Schaefer took the Texas job. After McCray Penson stepped down for medical reasons at the start of the 2021-22 season, he hired Louisville assistant Sam Purcell who will begin his first season with the Bulldogs next week.
Mississippi State officials will begin a job search immediately. Athletic administrator Bracky Brett is will serve as the interim Athletics Director according to the news release.
“Bracky is well-known and highly respected in the Southeastern Conference and across the NCAA and I know he will maintain stability and focus as we move forward with a search for a new athletics director,” said Keenum.
Stick with BulldogBlitz for updates on potential replacements. Mississippi State football is on bye this week but will start back up next Saturday night as they'll welcome Auburn to town.
