The University of Texas athletic department is parting ways with the employee in charge of softball coverage and communications after the Longhorns won the 2025 Women’s College World Series earlier this month.
A department spokesman told the American-Statesman on Thursday it will not be renewing the contract, which is set to expire in August, for the current sports information director for the sport. He headed communications for the soccer team and the softball team, the latter of which recently won the program’s first national championship. The SID wrote several articles and compiled information on the team’s World Series run.
No reason was given. The department spokesperson said softball and soccer will be covered this upcoming season, but did not specify whether a hire would be made for the position.
The move to reduce staff follows a court decision that greatly affects the bottom line for athletic departments.
Judge Claudia Wilken approved the House v. NCAA settlement last Saturday, requiring universities to pay athletes. This means schools will now share a portion of the billions of dollars in broadcast revenue they help generate and will be exempt from being official university employees. Schools will be allowed to provide $20.5 million annually to athletes; funds can also be used to recruit high schoolers, which previously could not be done
Other power conference programs in Texas have reduced staffing to their athletics departments while the House case was ongoing. Texas A&M Athletic Director Trev Alberts let go of at least 18 employees in April 2024, according to KBTX’s Nicole Griffith. Alberts cited “unprecedented change in the world of intercollegiate athletics” as the reason, with the need to be more “efficient and effective.”
Former TCU SID Mark Cohen posted on X last Wednesday that he was also let go from his position due to departmental restructuring. A question about whether the settlement affected the decision to release the softball and soccer SID was unanswered.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated to remove the name of the employee, as he is not a public figure.