On Wednesday, the Oklahoma Sooners announced a splash hire for the football program when they named Jim Nagy the next football general manager. Nagy has served as the executive director for the Senior Bowl since 2018, helping it reach greater heights and popularity.
Nagy worked in NFL front offices for 18 years prior to his stint with the Senior Bowl. He spent time with the Seattle Seahawks, Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots, and the Washington Redskins. Nagy’s spent extensive time as a scout in both his NFL and Senior Bowl roles. Nagy will oversee the Oklahoma Sooners talent evaluation and recruiting efforts, roster building, and compensation in the new revenue sharing and name, image, and likeness eras.
His experience will be invaluable to the program, with connections across both the NFL and collegiate games.
Here’s what Nagy, Brent Venables, Joe Castiglione, and Randall Stephenson had to say about the hire in a statement released by the University of Oklahoma.
General Manager Jim Nagy
This is a new era in intercollegiate athletics at one of the greatest college football programs in the country. The legacy of excellence that precedes my arrival is a testament to the leadership at OU and the university’s commitment to execute at a championship level. I am honored to bring my experience and work ethic to this program and am confident that through collaboration and effort, we can achieve excellent results. I am truly excited to get to Norman and begin our process with Coach Venables and his great staff.
Head Coach Brent Venables
The work required to manage a roster, including contract negotiations, player evaluation, strategic planning, recruiting, and retention, requires full-time focus and skill sets. Nagy’s high-caliber, extensive experience in scouting, recruiting, and retaining top talent will pay dividends across our roster and ultimately on the field. I look forward to working alongside him and Athletics Director Castiglione as we look ahead to great things for OU football.
Athletic Director Joe Castiglione
I am pleased to have worked with President Harroz and the Board of Regents to bring about this progressive change. Today’s evolving world requires skilled management of player contracts, multiple player acquisition pathways and allocating resources. All of these are new and vital functions within college athletics. I am convinced that great college football teams will be set apart by their ability to continually innovate to meet these massive changes. Part of that innovation means providing every tool Coach Venables and his staff need to be successful. OU’s willingness to reimagine the traditional structure and reposition the varied responsibilities within football operations will strengthen us going forward. Jim Nagy brings to us great experience, relationships and perspectives that will mesh well with our staff and will complement the program’s continued pursuit of conference and national championships.
Chair of Football Randall Stephenson
Few industries, inside or outside the world of sports, have experienced the pace and magnitude of change we are witnessing in intercollegiate athletics. The freedom now afforded to athletes to monetize their name, image, and likeness and transfer between programs demands that college athletics adapt its approach to meet the needs of these athletes. Hiring a GM with the proven pedigree and experience Nagy brings to OU is another step toward meeting these demands.
For more than a quarter-century, OU Athletics has been under the visionary leadership of the best athletics director in the country, who, alongside some of the greatest coaches in college sports, continually produces championship teams,” Stephenson continued. “The growing demands and complexities of collegiate athletics today, however, require a multi-faceted approach that leverages the strengths and skillsets of multiple leaders.
More from the University of Oklahoma
The new model is intended to meet the emerging challenges of college football and mirrors many aspects of professional sports teams. It allows for the general manager and head football coach to work side-by-side in partnership, each focusing on a specific area of expertise. To facilitate the implementation and operation of this new model, Randall Stephenson has been asked to assume the role of Chair of Football and Special Advisor to the President and the Director of Athletics. In that role, he will provide day-to-day oversight of the general manager and head football coach. In addition, he will continue offering his oversight and expertise of the budgeting, strategic planning, and business planning functions during this unique time of change in college athletics.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: Oklahoma Sooners hire Jim Nagy to be new general manager
