USF’s athletic director Michael Kelly joins Navy in same role
USF is going through another major leadership change as Vice President of Athletics Michael Kelly accepted the role of Navy’s next director of athletics.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel said Kelly would formally accept the role early Wednesday. USF confirmed the news Wednesday afternoon.
His departure comes just four months after university president Rhea Law announced plans to step down.
USF is now searching on different fronts around campus during a pivotal time in sports as the House v. NCAA case continues.
The ongoing class-action lawsuit challenges NCAA rules by seeking to remove constraints that prevent college athletes from receiving a portion of media rights gains.
Related: USF-themed beer supports student-athletes through NIL funds
Kelly had been a proponent for conference revenue sharing in recent times and appointed USF’s first name, image and likeness unit in 2024.
Kelly said the decision to leave South Florida wasn’t driven by dissatisfaction, but rather an opportunity to return to a place with personal significance.
“This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity came along at a time that feels right for me and my family,” he said in a USF press release.
Kelly will replace former Navy athletic director Chet Gladchuck, who retired in April after 24 years with the program.
At the helm, Gladchuck led the Midshipmen to 249 conference titles and four national championships. The most recent Navy programs to win were rowing and rugby, in 2021 and 2023, respectively.
Kelly, 54, is a D.C. native and has close ties to the Naval Academy. His father, Dennis, graduated from the school in 1967.
As a long-time administrator with deep roots in college athletics, he had led USF since 2018. At the time, he replaced interim athletics director Scott Kull.
He started his administrative career at Wake Forest as the school’s director of athletics in 1995.
Since then, he’s hosted Super Bowl committees in Tampa, Jacksonville and South Florida. He also acted as the chief operating officer for the college football playoffs and was the senior associate commissioner for the Atlantic Coast Conference.
During his tenure at USF, the athletic department nearly doubled its budget to $100 million and obtained over $100 million in donations.
Kelly’s salary, reported by the Orlando Sentinel, followed a 2022 contract extension that outlined a five-year deal worth $5.525 million.
The agreement began with a $625,000 base salary and was set to rise to $850,000 in 2025. Incentives included annual $100,000 lump-sum payments, up to $200,000 in performance bonuses and a $250,000 bonus if USF joined a Power Five conference.
USF declined to join the Pacific 12 conference when an offer was made for it to join along with Memphis, Tulane and UTSA.
Related: USF to remain in AAC after Pac-12 offer
His departure comes five weeks after USF’s Board of Trustees approved a $407 million expenditure for the school’s on-campus football stadium. The stadium, budgeted originally at $340 million, is set to open in 2027.
He also oversaw the completion of a $22 million indoor football practice facility and a $3 million renovation to the football locker rooms.
Since Kelly took over, USF athletic programs have captured 21 American Athletic Conference titles. Most recently named champions were softball and track and field.
“Michael Kelly is a servant leader who has always put others and the greater good of our USF community above himself,” said Will Weatherford, USF Board of Trustees chair.
Kelly was also involved in hiring several of the university’s highest-profile coaches.
Related: USF’s Bryan Hodgson inks 6-year deal as new men’s basketball coach
That includes football coach Alex Golesh, who led the Bulls to back-to-back bowl wins, and former men’s basketball coach Amir Abdur-Rahim, who delivered USF’s first regular-season conference title in his debut season.
Abdur-Rahim died unexpectedly last year and was recently announced as part of the 2025 USF Hall of Fame class.
Other hires include baseball coach Mitch Hannahs, who just completed the program’s first winning season since 2023, women’s lacrosse coach Mindy McCord, who led the Bulls to a conference championship in their inaugural season and new men’s basketball coach Bryan Hodgson.
Following a formal USF announcement, Kelly will return to his hometown and begin his tenure in Annapolis as Navy navigates its own transition in athletic leadership.
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