Former Arizona athletic director Greg Byrne and current Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois, both 54, appear to be around for the long haul. They are both in the prime of their impressive careers.
Byrne last week received a two-year contract extension at Alabama, a deal that will pay him $2.67 million in 2032-33. Reed-Francois was granted a three-year extension through 2031-32, which will pay her a base salary of $1.6 million in the final year of the contract.
The contract extensions reflect on the work done by Byrne and Reed-Francois, both of whom are viewed nationally among the top ADs in Power 4 conferences.
You could make a case that Reed-Francois has been a home run hire by Arizona. She has fully revamped the school's financial status, overhauled the staff she inherited from Dave Heeke and overcome hurdles — both financially and competitively — that are matched in UA history only by the challenges facing ex-athletic directors Dick Clausen in 1960 and Cedric Dempsey in 1983.
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Arizona athletic director Desireé Reed-Francois stops by football media day at Davis Sports Center, Aug. 4, 2026.
Over the last 20 years at Fresno State, Tennessee, Cincinnati, Virginia Tech, UNLV and Missouri, Reed-Francois has learned what not to do, as much as how to make an athletic department successful.
She's not afraid to tell a high-profile coach no for the greater good of the athletic department, which was part of what hurt Dave Heeke before his dismissal in 2024. She hears the noise but does not succumb to it.
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