BYU AD Tom Holmoe explains his retirement decision — and the biggest issues facing the Cougars

Provo • Behind the 40-yard stage inside AT&T Stadium, BYU athletic director Tom Holmoe surveyed the scene around him.

Big 12 athletic directors buzzed about. Conference commissioner Brett Yormark discussed the league’s potential path to a national title. Heisman Trophy hopefuls shuffled from station to station.

Since Holmoe took over in 2005, he’d tried to navigate his Cougars to the highest level of college athletics. At BYU’s first Big 12 media day two years ago, he saw the football promised land he’d be hoping for. BYU finally had a seat at the table.

And with the job complete, he hinted about the end. He only had a few years left, he said.

Now, as BYU readies for its third year in the league, Holmoe is stepping away. The man who navigated BYU from the Mountain West Conference to independence and into the Power Four said his race is done. He’ll pass the baton to the next leader in August.

“When I was passed the baton to play the role of BYU athletic director in 2005, I knew at the time it would not be my duty to finish the race or to break the tape,” he said Wednesday. “But, instead, [it was] to run a good race and be prepared to pass that baton to the next BYU AD at the right time. I believe this is the right time.”

Don’t hold on too long

One of Holmoe’s biggest fears was overstaying in his welcome. Now in his 20th year, BYU is staring at a new series of challenges.

It isn’t about independence anymore. It is about Name, Image and Likeness collectives, revenue sharing and the future of the Power Four. Holmoe wanted his successor to get a head start on those issues before he made final decisions. He started the work, but it will be on the next AD to execute the policies.

“In my nine years with the 49ers, I learned firsthand that to keep a franchise at the top, the leaders of the organization could not allow players and coaches to just hang on to their valued positions while they were in the downturn of their careers,” Holmoe said. “It was a tough pill to swallow for all of us that had to move on, but the 49ers organization remained at the top for 20 years.”

He continued, “I don’t want to hold on too long in any way to diminish the greatness which lies ahead for BYU athletics.”

Holmoe said he made the decision to step away last July. He’s been on a one-year contract his entire career. The current one runs through August.

“The last couple years I’ve had to seriously contemplate [retirement]. My wife and I made the decision for a couple years, ‘Let’s go one more. Let’s go one more. Let’s go another.’ And sometime this summer, I’m not sure about the exact date, I just had a really strong impression that it was time,” he said.

BYU President Shane Reese indicated he wanted Holmoe to stay a bit longer for the job search.

“I think my bosses wanted me to give them a little bit more time, like a year,” Holmoe said. “And I just didn’t feel that I could do that.”

Big 12, coaching stability

The current Big 12 media rights contract runs through 2031, giving BYU some stability in the league for about seven years.

Conference realignment cycles typically flare up at the end of the media rights deals and Holmoe believes the league is in a strong position. He’s handing BYU off in a stable situation.

“I sincerely believe that the pieces are in place for us to continue to really thrive,” Holmoe said. “The Big 12 has been a special blessing for all of our teams. We all believe in the Big 12 and the leadership of the Big 12.”

He also locked up both of BYU’s most powerful coaches — football coach Kalani Sitake and basketball coach Kevin Young. Sitake just signed a long-term extension at the end of the 2024 season after going 11-2.

“I love my beloved BYU and I believe strongly in our athletic future. I believe in the leaders that are in place right now,” Holmoe said.

Navigating COVID

During the 2021 season, many teams in the west elected to play only four or five games. Conferences scrapped non-conference schedules altogether.

It made life as an independent nearly impossible. But Holmoe elected to play a 12-game season. It set the stage for quarterback Zach Wilson’s ascent to the No. 2 overall draft pick and the program’s rise to national prominence. BYU went 11-1 and got up to No. 8 in the country.

“During COVID, Kalani and I would get together and say, ‘What are we going to do? Really?’ We would look at each other like, ‘I’m not prepared for this. He’s not prepared for this.' And then we’d cobble together a schedule,” Holmoe said.

“I’d say, ‘Kalani, we have a chance to do a home-and-home with Alabama. You want to do it?’ And he looked at me, and I knew in his heart of hearts, he’s thinking, ‘I’m not so sure about that.’ And he’d go, ‘Let’s do it,’” he continued.

He said he leaned on Jazz owner Ryan Smith, NFL coach Andy Reid and BYU alum Danny Ainge during that time.

The next year, BYU was admitted into the Big 12. Most of the work was done before 2021, but that rise helped push BYU over the edge.

Relationship with the LDS Church

BYU is a unique job in Power Four circles. It’s owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and leaders answer directly to the faith’s board of trustees.

Holmoe had to navigate the balance of the church’s faith-based mission while also pushing the athletic department forward.

“I was hired by President [Cecil] Samuelson in 2005 and he sat me down in his office and said, ‘You have got to be aligned with BYU, the school,’” Holmoe said. “There are things that are going on in athletics right now that will bring you away from that. But he said, ‘Keep aligned with me, and the direction that I give you. And I will stay aligned with our board of trustees and the church.’ We have the closest bond as any school in the country, it’s a strength I could never underestimate.”

He continued, “When things get tough and things get rough, we’re aligned. They’ve given me leeway because I’m OK to fail. We’ve struggled and stumbled and done some crazy things. And they have grace, and we’re good. That gives me confidence to give that to our coaches. And so there’s stability, there’s structure, and there’s consistency, and that rules the day here.”

Challenges ahead

What are some of the biggest challenges for the next administration? Holmoe indicated revenue sharing, which could go into effect this summer, will inevitably be one.

He has been planning for almost two years now. But it will be on the next athletic director to tweak the plans.

“I think there are a lot of new things on the horizon. Revenue sharing, NIL, transfer portal, the House settlement,” Holmoe said. “That will be an ongoing challenge and will be for a few years. I think the work we’ve done in the last two years is solid.

“No one’s going to really know how good we’re doing at this until a year or two or three, when you can see how it paid off.”