UW athletic director search: Eight candidates to replace Troy Dannen

Last October, University of Washington president Ana Mari Cauce hired Troy Dannen as UW athletic director from Tulane and brought him to Seattle to oversee the school’s roughly $150 million athletic department budget.

Sooner than anyone expected, Cauce must replace Dannen after he abruptly left Washington on Wednesday for the AD job at Nebraska, citing a desire to return closer to his Marshalltown, Iowa home.

His departure is untimely for the Huskies who are amid a search for a new men’s basketball coach.

If Cauce admits it or not, Washington botched the Dannen hiring, considering his five-month stint is by far the shortest tenure for a Husky AD over the past century.

It’s believed UW’s board of regents, Cauce and school administrators met Wednesday morning to decide their next move. It took Washington two months to replace former athletic director Jen Cohen with Dannen, but the process is expected to go much faster this time.

Dannen’s successor will inherit new football coach Jedd Fisch, a cash-strapped athletic department and a fair amount of skepticism from UW fans wondering who’s going to lead the Huskies as they transition to the Big Ten next season.

Here’s a list of candidates the Huskies should consider.

Erin O’Connell: Washington promoted O’Connell, UW’s deputy athletic director and chief operating officer, as interim AD last August when Cohen bolted for USC and will likely ask O’Connell to do it again while finding Dannen’s successor. But what if it wasn’t just a temporary assignment? O’Connell, who rowed four years at UW and graduated in 1996, knows all about the Huskies. She oversees event management, facilities and operations, government relations, sport operations, IT staff in addition to four sports. Cauce will likely pay thousands to a national search committee to produce a high-profile list of suitable replacements, but maybe the best candidate is already doing the job.

Stephanie Rempe: Not sure why she wasn’t hired by UW last October. Rempe checks all of the boxes. She’s in her second year as AD at Nevada. She has strong ties to Washington where she worked eight years (2008-16) as associate athletics director under Cohen’s predecessor Scott Woodward. Rempe also spearheaded the Husky Stadium renovation. Luring her away from Nevada won’t be cheap, considering she signed a five-year, $2.5M deal that expires in 2027.

Edward Scott: It’s believed the deputy athletics director at Virginia was among the finalists before UW hired Dannen. Among those on this list, Scott doesn’t necessarily have strong Northwest ties aside from spending summers teaching leadership class as an adjunct UW professor. Scott, a former baseball player at Albany, has made six stops during his 19-year professional career on the east coast and in the south.

Scott Barnes: The Oregon State athletic director is another holdover from UW’s previous coaching search who didn’t convince Cauce that he was the right person for the job. This time might be different. Barnes, a Spokane native, is the most experienced candidate on this list who has been an athletic director at Utah State, Pittsburgh, Eastern Washington, Humboldt State and OSU. He’s also spent three years (2005-08) at UW as senior associate athletic director.

Pat Chun: In one fell swoop, the Huskies could fill their two biggest vacancies if they hired Chun who brought WSU men’s basketball coach Kyle Smith with him to Seattle in a package deal. Chun has been rumored to leave Pullman for years and he’s been reportedly linked with a number of jobs, including Northwestern and Ohio State.

Chris Petersen: The former UW football coach still holds cache on Montlake where he compiled a 55-26 record during a six-year stint (2014-19). Petersen generates excitement among UW fans, donors and corporate partners — which is very much needed these days — but his lack of practical AD experience makes him a long-shot candidate at best. The same goes for former UW men’s basketball coach Lorenzo Romar.

Allen Green: Two-time athletic director at Auburn and Buffalo who is currently the senior deputy AD at Ole Miss. Why would the UW job pique his interest? Because the 46-year-old Greene is a Bellevue native who starred in baseball and basketball at O’Dea High.

Carter Henderson: Lacks the name recognition — and if we’re honest, the extensive resume compared to others on this list. Among industry observers, Henderson is a viable candidate due in part to his 10 years at Washington in an assortment of roles, including senior associate athletic director under Cohen before leaving in 2021 for Stanford where he’s the chief communications officer.

In addition to O’Connell, other potential internal UW candidates include: deputy athletic director Andy Fee, deputy athletic director for revenue Shannon Kelly and director of community and external engagement Damon Huard.