The Badgers need to hire a new athletic director, and they really can't afford to miss. The new AD has two big tasks ahead of him/her: keeping the championship-level teams humming (volleyball, men's and women's hockey) and helping the other programs reach that level (football, basketball, etc.). The biggest issue will be finding and maximizing the funding for the programs.
There are a few names that the interim chancellor, Eric Wilcots, must consider, and all could potentially be home run hires. Though each comes with its own risk/reward.
Jamie Pollard - Iowa State
The first big name, and one who was covered way more extensively in the linked article, is Jamie Pollard. He's the current athletic director for Iowa State, and he's crushed it there. Pollard worked for Wisconsin and under Barry Alvarez before taking on the Iowa State job. He's the No. 1 name on the list, and his only real drawback is that he's in his mid-60s and may only give the program a decade more. However, that could also be a big win as the next person has to right the ship first, Pollard can do that.
Jeramiah Dickey - Boise State
Dickey checks all the boxes minus Big Ten experience. He's been at Boise State since 2021 and, since that time, has built something he can be proud of. He's a football-focused AD but has helped elevate the whole department. Dickey won the award for NACDA AD of the Year and was nominated for the 2025 Sports Business Journal AD of the Year.
His big emphasis at Boise State was "infrastructure, revenue generation, student-athlete experience, and marketability." Basically, he's helped the program in amazing ways through funding, but also athletic success. He's raised over $100 million in his first four years at Boise State. He would be a homerun.
Troy Vincent - NFL
Former Wisconsin legend and is currently the Executive Vice President of Football Operations. He's a bit of a wildcard, but one who knows Wisconsin culture, has operational experience, and could really gel the fanbase.
Marcus Sedberry - Wisconsin
Finally, we got Seberry, who's an internal candidate and is now serving as the interim AD for Wisconsin. It's the least sexy pick of the bunch, but there's something to be said about it. He knows the program, knows the problems intimately, and was also working with McIntosh on the solutions. It's hard to know if McIntosh's plan was actually going to work; if it was, then maybe Sedberry gets a shot.