Rutgers athletic director Pat Hobbs resigned suddenly Friday afternoon, ending the stint of the athletic director with the longest continuous tenure within the Big Ten.
Hobbs will be replaced on an interim basis by deputy athletic director Ryan Pisarri as the school begins a search for a permanent replacement.
Hobbs’ resignation note, which was distributed internally at Rutgers, referenced his health and a recent meeting with his “cardiac team.”
“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.”
Hobbs had been under contract through 2028.
“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 in a message to university leaders. “I have asked Ryan Pisarri, deputy athletic director and chief of staff, to serve as interim Director of Intercollegiate Athletics. A search for a new permanent athletic director will begin as soon as possible.
Hobbs has been the athletic director at Rutgers since 2015, and his tenure has been highlighted by the hiring of Steve Pikiell in basketball and the return of Greg Schiano as the football coach. Those hires helped lift Rutgers out of the Big Ten doldrums, as Pikiell has led the Scarlet Knights to a pair of NCAA tournament trips and Schiano led Rutgers to its first winning season last year since 2014.
Hobbs overcame a difficult start at the school, which included the rocky tenure of football coach Chris Ash, who was hired by Hobbs and went 8-32. Hobbs is the former dean of Seton Hall Law School and has a background as a tax attorney. Pisarri is in his 14th season at Rutgers.
In an internal note from Hobbs to the staff, he said: “It has been an honor and a privilege to serve with you. I look forward to enjoying all your success this season and in the years ahead.”