​The Shawn Eichorst era has officially begun. At his introductory press conference with the Wisconsin Badgers, Eichorst confirmed that he is returning to his home state to take on the role of UW’s next athletic director. It took Wisconsin about two and a half months to find a replacement for Chris McIntosh, and Eichorst emerged as the choice over interim AD Marcus Sedberry and a number of other notable candidates. While some viewed this as a “safe” hire given his background, others were eager to see what he could bring to Madison.
In recent years, Eichorst has built a notable reputation at the University of Texas, and he is now ready to show why he deserves a second chance, both as an athletic director in the Big Ten and as a Wisconsin native who is deeply connected to the state he serves. Although he admitted that he hasn’t had extensive conversations yet with Wisconsin’s football coach, who has also been under scrutiny, Eichorst offered plenty of positive remarks about the man who made his reputation at Cincinnati. “Obviously he’s won everywhere he’s been,” Eichorst said.
He added, “My expectation is more of me than of him, meaning I need to pour into him, learn more about his program, how he has things set up, how his athletes are taken care of, and how we’re supporting that endeavor. And then we can figure out—moving forward—what that might look like.”
Eichorst reflected on the Texas experience, noting that while the Longhorns’ end results were celebrated, it didn’t happen overnight. “When we got there in 2018, we weren’t very good in a lot of areas. And that didn’t change overnight.” The task of rebuilding Wisconsin’s football program will be similarly long-term; success won’t appear immediately no matter the resources or the coach’s past achievements.
“I know nobody will work harder for Wisconsin athletics,” Eichorst said. “I love this state, and I love everything that it represents. The passion is palpable. You can see it. I don’t have to manufacture it. I’ve lived it. It’s in my heart.” One memorable moment from his introduction centered on a discussion of “swag.” He asked, “There’s swag in Texas, right? There are 30 million people there, so we’ve got swag too, but we balance it with humility. We need to lift our shoulders, feel good about what we’re doing.”
Wisconsin’s population is considerably smaller—just under six million in the entire state and under 300,000 in Madison—compared with Texas. Still, Eichorst suggested that “swag” could become a defining quality for the Badgers, marking one of the most talked-about moments from his press conference.
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