The University of Kentucky has found its next Athletics Director in Jason ‘J’ Batt, who will also serve as Chief Executive Officer of Champions Blue LLC. Batt will officially join UK later this summer, succeeding Mitch Barnhart after his 24 years at the helm.

Background and Experience

Batt comes to Lexington after spending the past year in East Lansing as the Michigan State Vice President and Director of Athletics. Previously, he served as the Director of Athletics and Vice President at Georgia Tech from 2022-25. Before that, Batt was in the Southeastern Conference, serving in multiple roles at the University of Alabama, including Executive Deputy Director.

His career also includes stops at East Carolina, Maryland, James Madison, and William and Mary, as well as his alma mater, North Carolina. At his most-recent position with Michigan State, Batt was instrumental in securing a more than $400 million commitment — the largest single gift in college athletics — and established Spartan Ventures, a nonprofit similar in focus to Kentucky’s Champions Blue LLC, in which Batt is now the CEO.

Statement from Batt

‘We couldn’t be more excited to join the University of Kentucky and the Big Blue Nation,’ Batt said via release. ‘The championship standard has been established at Kentucky and we are committed to upholding that standard of excellence. Our continued success will take everyone in the Big Blue Nation, working together to provide resources to our teams and our student athletes that position them for success.’

During his tenure, Michigan State student-athletes achieved the highest department-wide GPA in school history, and eight teams earned NCAA tournament bids this past year. At Georgia Tech, the university was one of only nine schools nationally that earned postseason berths in football, men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, softball, and baseball under his leadership.

Original reporting: WTVQ (Lexington) — read the source article.