Reports Say Tulane's Troy Dannen Will Be Next AD for UW

The Iowa native has worked for eight years at the New Orleans school.

The University of Washington lost athletic director Jen Cohen to USC, so maybe it makes sense her Montlake replacement should be named Troy.

On Saturday, Yahoo.com and ESPN reported that eight-year Tulane athletic director Troy Dannen will be hired as Cohen's successor. The UW had made no announcement as of early morning.

If he is indeed the new leader, Dannen emerges from a well-concealed, six-week search that had leading UW donors complaining earlier this week at a major fund-raising event about the lack of information circulating on prospective candidates.

The school this time chose to from a small in-house committee that involved administrators and supposedly former UW coach Chris Petersen rather than alums, hence the leak-free search.

Dannen became an attractive candidate because he's a football-first administrator in New Orleans with a track record of Tulane results.

In 2022, the Green Wave were the country's biggest surprise college football team. They finished 12-2 after winning the America Athletic Conference, beating Central Florida 45-28 in the championship game, and USC, of all people, in a thrilling 46-45 victory in the Cotton Bowl. 

Tulane is off to a 4-1 start this season and, similar to the UW, is taking a bye week. 

Here’s our @espn story on Washington’s expected hire of Tulane's Troy Dannen as AD, as the sides are finalizing a deal. https://t.co/6FjGKzWQJk

— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) October 7, 2023

With his Midwest background, Dannen appears to be a good fit to work with UW football coach Kalen DeBoer and staffers who hail from South Dakota, Indiana and, in the case of offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, also Iowa.

A Northern Iowa grad in 1989, Dannen, a father of four, served as athletic director for eight years at his alma mater before turning to Tulane.

He's been deeply involved in college football, serving as the chair for the NCAA Football Competition Committee, plus other committees.

Dannen, who would oversee the UW's entry in the Big Ten, is the first outside athletic director hire for the school since Todd Turner took the job in 2004 during a 1-10 year for Husky football.

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