USF athletic director Michael Kelly leaving for Navy

Barely a month after the USF Board of Trustees formally approved the expenditure of $407 million for construction of its on-campus stadium, the athletic director who presided over the project’s evolution is leaving.

Seventh-year Bulls AD Michael Kelly, 54, is departing for the same job at Navy, the school confirmed late Wednesday afternoon. His exit means the school is seeking to replace two prominent administrators at the same time. President Rhea Law announced her retirement in mid-February.

“This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity came along at a time that feels right for me and my family,“ Kelly said in a statement released by USF. ”This decision isn’t about leaving South Florida — it’s about the chance to serve a place that’s long been meaningful to me."

USF’s news release indicated Law has asked USF Foundation CEO Jay Stroman to serve as interim athletic director. Stroman has played a key role and worked alongside Kelly in the planning for USF’s on-campus stadium over the past four years, including raising more than $40 million for the project, according to the school.

A Washington, D.C., native, Kelly will replace Chet Gladchuk, who retired in April after 24 years at Navy. Kelly’s father, Dennis, is a 1967 graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy and was a Naval officer who served in Vietnam. While growing up in the D.C. area, Kelly attended St. John’s College High School, an all-boys military institution, where he became a company commander, according to a USF story published in 2023.

“As the son of a Naval Academy graduate and someone who spent part of my childhood in Annapolis, the values of this institution have long been a guiding force in my life,” Kelly said in a statement released by the Naval Academy.

“Returning to this remarkable place in this capacity is a full-circle moment that fills me with both pride and purpose.”

Since joining USF in 2018, Kelly has nearly doubled the department’s budget to $100 million and has secured more than $100 million in philanthropic gifts, according to his university bio. In addition to helping oversee the launch of the stadium project, Kelly has watched the $22 million football indoor practice facility and a $3 million football locker room renovation come to fruition during his tenure.

USF student-athletes maintained a collective 3.0 grade-point average or higher for 21 consecutive semesters on his watch. The department also improved its average Graduation Success Rate to a program-record 88% in the most recent report, up a percentage point from the previous high.

“USF Athletics and our student-athletes have excelled under Michael Kelly’s tenure,” Law said in the school news release.

”Michael has supported our students, coaches, alumni and fans like a family, and that culture of success is among the highlights of his legacy here as a leader within Bulls Nation. We are grateful for his service and wish him continued success at the U.S. Naval Academy.”

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Among Kelly’s significant coaching hires: Amir Abdur-Rahim, who led the men’s basketball program to its first regular season conference title in his lone season; football coach Alex Golesh, who has guided USF to consecutive bowl triumphs; and Mitch Hannahs, who led the baseball team to its first winning season since 2021 this past spring.

“(Kelly) has forever changed our campus and our community for the better,” Stroman said, “and I am proud to call him my friend and to have worked with him to move USF Athletics forward.”

Kelly’s most glaring misstep: Hiring Clemson co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott to replace Charlie Strong as football coach after the 2019 season. USF managed four wins — only one against a Football Bowl Subdivision team — in nearly three full seasons under Scott.

Prior to arriving at USF in 2018, Kelly served as the chief operating officer of the College Football Playoff, held administrative roles in the ACC and directed Super Bowl host committees in Jacksonville, Tampa and South Florida.

“I’m deeply proud of what we’ve built together here and incredibly grateful for the relationships, achievements, and momentum that will continue to carry USF forward,” Kelly said in the USF release.

“I am confident that with this team — and in alignment with the university —even better days lie ahead for the Bulls.”

Among the names certain to be mentioned as prospective replacements are longtime Bulls softball coach (and USF alumnus) Ken Eriksen, Tampa Bay Sports Commission executive director Rob Higgins (another USF alumnus), Pro Football Hall of Famer (and Lightning executive) Derrick Brooks, and veteran USF deputy AD Lelo Prado, who oversees all athletic fundraising efforts.

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