Commentary: Anne McCoy’s dismissal as WSU AD reveals Elizabeth Cantwell’s urgency to win

Washington State’s decision to fire athletic director Anne McCoy came as a surprise here on the Hotline – not the dismissal itself but, rather, that it took this long.

McCoy and new WSU president Elizabeth Cantwell were a bad match from the start. The decision, announced Wednesday afternoon, is not necessarily bad for the Cougars or a repudiation of McCoy’s tenure.

Yes, fundraising was lagging, but McCoy’s legacy hinges on football coach Jimmy Rogers. If he wins consistently, then McCoy will have aced the most important test of her 17-month tenure.

That said, Cantwell’s decision reflects her aggressive, relentless approach to athletics – an approach that should benefit WSU during an era defined by revenue sharing, NIL and the restructured conference landscape.

After all, Cantwell was the driving force behind Utah State’s move to the new Pac-12 during her tenure in Logan. If she is all-in with football and men’s basketball on the Palouse, the Cougars will be better positioned for a prosperous future.

Where should WSU turn for McCoy’s successor?

Presumably, the Cougars will hire a search firm to assist with the process, vet candidates, offer advice and then slap the university with the bill.

Hopefully, WSU will not take the search firm’s advice as gospel. Cantwell, who was appointed last winter to succeed Kirk Schulz, should reach out to former WSU athletic officials for names of candidates who are best equipped to navigate the new terrain.

Three names come immediately to mind:

• Former WSU athletic director Jim Sterk, who’s currently in the same role at Western Washington.

• Recently retired Northern Arizona athletic director Mike Marlow, who graduated from WSU and worked for the Cougars as deputy athletic director under Bill Moos.

• JD Wicker, who is in charge of San Diego State’s department but spent a decade in Pullman working for Sterk.

Pick their brains about the evolving landscape and how WSU can leverage its strengths and hide its weaknesses.

Also, ask them which current college administrators, on the West Coast or elsewhere, would have the best chance to elevate the Cougars.

(We suspect Cantwell will seek counsel from her former athletic director at Utah State, Diana Sabau, who left Logan a few months ago to become Maryland’s senior deputy athletic director.

(Would Sabau, who grew up on the East Coast and worked for the Big Ten, be interested in the WSU vacancy? We are skeptical.)

Another suggestion: Don’t limit the search itself to candidates with connections to WSU. The ability to energize donors should be paramount. You do not need Cougar blood to achieve that.

Pat Chun arrived from Florida Atlantic in 2018 and raised gobs of money.

McCoy worked for WSU for a quarter century and struggled to generate NIL dollars.

It is easier to convince constituents to open their wallets when the university president is leading the charge and creating a permission structure to support athletics throughout the university community.

Whether the Cougars target one of the aforementioned options or take an unconventional approach – perhaps an executive in professional sports, or the sports business industry – they are playing from a position of strength in one respect.

And it is arguably the most important: Their president wants to win.