Wisconsin AD Shawn Eichorst is ‘breath of fresh air,’ Greg Gard says

MADISON – University of Wisconsin athletic director Shawn Eichorst has officially been on the job for less than a week, but he clearly has won over men’s basketball coach Greg Gard.

“I couldn’t be more excited and more happy,” Gard said. “You know you got a guy that’s really got your back and understands what this is all about and wants to attack it head on. So I’m fired up. … Everybody’s through the roof on having him here, and Badger Nation should be, too, because he’s freaking good.”

Gard heaped the high praise for his new boss as he talked with reporters after the Badgers’ July 14 practice. Eichorst’s first official day on the job was July 13 although he had been quite active since the July 1 announcement of his hire.

“He’s been at donor events for us,” Gard said. “He’s been here at practice. He’s met with a ton of people. He’s just attacked at full-steam ahead, which has been a breath of fresh air, and immediately from Day 1, put wind in our sails.”

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Wisconsin men’s basketball head coach Greg Gard through the years

University of Wisconsin assistant men’s basketball coach Gard in the 2006-2007 season.

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Head coach Greg Gard of the Wisconsin Badgers looks on during the first half against the Xavier Musketeers in the second round of the 2016 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 20, 2016, in St Louis, Missouri.

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Wisconsin coach Greg Gard talks with the team at end of practice on March 24, 2016, in preparation for their upcoming NCAA Sweet 16 game against Notre Dame. The practice took place at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel archives)

University of Wisconsin head basketball coach Greg Gard (left) talks with Nigel Hayes (center) and Ethan Happ (right) as they arrive at Kohler Company’s corporate aviation hangar for the 5th Annual Wisconsin Sports Awards in Sheboygan Falls, Wis., on April 12, 2016.

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel archives)

University of Wisconsin basketball coach Greg Gard (left) talks on a radio show with Bo Ryan and Mark Tauscher (right) as guests arrive at Kohler Company’s corporate aviation hangar for the 5th Annual Wisconsin Sports Awards in Sheboygan Falls, Wis., on April 12, 2016.

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel archives)

Head Coach Greg Gard of the Wisconsin Badgers directs play from the sidelines during the first half against the Idaho StateBengals at Kohl Center on January 02, 2016 in Madison, Wisconsin.

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NCAA referee Terry Oglesby talks with Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard during a game with the Indiana Hoosiers at the Kohl Center on Feb. 5, 2017. Wisconsin defeated Indiana 65-60.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers forward Nigel Hayes (10) talks to head coach Greg Gard during the game with the Indiana Hoosiers at the Kohl Center on Feb. 5, 2017. Wisconsin defeated Indiana 65-60.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard on the sidelines during the first half of a game against the Michigan State Spartans at the Jack Breslin Student Events Center on Feb. 26, 2017 in East Lansing, Mich.

(Mike Carter-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard huddles with his team during the second half against the Villanova Wildcats in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament at KeyBank Center on March 18, 2017 in Buffalo, NY.

(Timothy T. Ludwig-USA TODAY Spor)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard and the Badgers bench react during the first half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Jan. 23, 2018 in Iowa City Iowa.

(Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks to his team in a timeout during the game with the Michigan Wolverines at the Kohl Center on Feb. 11, 2018 in Madison, Wis.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks to guard Brevin Pritzl (1) and guard D’Mitrik Trice (0) during the second half against the Xavier Musketeers at the Cintas Center on Nov. 13, 2018. The Badgers won 77-68.

(Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks to guard D’Mitrik Trice (0) during the game with the Northwestern Wildcats at the Kohl Center on Jan. 26, 2019 in Madison, Wis.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard during the second half of his team’s game against the Northwestern Wildcats at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Feb. 23, 2019 in Evanston, Ill.

(Nuccio DiNuzzo-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks to the bench during the game against the St. Mary’s Gaels at Sanford Pentagon on Nov. 5, 2019 in Sioux Falls, SD.

(Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin guard Brevin Pritzl (1) in congratulated by head coach Greg Gard in the waning moments of their game on Nov. 17, 2019, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin beat Marquette 77-61.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin Badgers senior guard Brevin Pritzl (1) and head coach Greg Gard shake hands in pre-game festivities on senior night before a game against the Northwestern Wildcats at the Kohl Center on March 4, 2020, in Madison, Wis.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Roy Williams talks with Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard after game in the first round game of the 2021 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Mackey Arena on March 19, 2021 in West Lafayette, Ind. The Badgers won 85-62.

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Wisconsin Badgers star sophomore Johnny Davis (1) speaks with head coach Greg Gard about the Pewaukee versus Wisconsin Lutheran game on Jan. 4, 2022, at Pewaukee High School. The Wisconsin Lutheran Vikings defeated the Pewaukee Pirates in double OT 101-99.

(Milwaukee Journal Sentinel archives)

Wisconsin guard Brad Davison (34) listens to head coach Greg Gard during the second half of their game at the Kohl Center Friday, Jan. 21, 2022, in Madison, Wis. Michigan State beat Wisconsin 86-74.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard watches his team during the second half of their game Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin beat Michigan 77-63.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks with Wisconsin Badgers guard Johnny Davis (1) during the game with the Purdue Boilermakers at the Kohl Center on March 1, 2022, in Madison, Wis.

(Mary Langenfeld-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard talks to an official during the second half in the first round game of the 2022 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 18, 2022, at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wis. Wisconsin beat Colgate 67-60.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard speaks to an official during the first half in their second round game of the 2022 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament on March 20, 2022, at Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wis. Iowa State beat Wisconsin 54-49.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard talks with guard Kamari McGee (4) during the first half of their game against Stanford on Nov. 11, 2022, at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin Badgers forward Tyler Wahl (5) talks with Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard during the second half against the Penn State Nittany Lions at the Kohl Center on Jan. 17, 2023, in Madison, Wis.

(Kayla Wolf-USA TODAY Sports)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard argues a call during the first half of their game against Purdue on March 2, 2023, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin Badgers guard Max Klesmit (11) talks with head coach Greg Gard during the second half of their game against the Purdue Boilermakers at Kohl Center on March 2, 2023, in Milwaukee, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports)

Current Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard and former head coach Bo Ryan speaks about Howard Moore as the Wisconsin men’s basketball family gathered to honor Howard Moore and to kickoff a fundraising initiative for the Moore family on April 15, 2023, at the Champions Club in the Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wis.

(Jovanny Hernandez / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard is shown during the first half of their preseason game against UW-Stevens Point on Nov. 1, 2023, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard is shown during the first half of their game on Dec. 2, 2023, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin beat Marquette 75-64.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard is shown before their game against Nebraska at Kohl Center on Jan. 6, 2024, in Madison, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports)

Jamison Battle (10) of the Ohio State Buckeyes shoots a three-point shot over the defense of Max Klesmit (11) of the Wisconsin Badgers as Greg Gard watches from the sideline during the first half of the game at Value City Arena on Jan. 10, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio.

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Head coach Greg Gard of the Wisconsin Badgers stands on the sideline during the first half of the game against the Ohio State Buckeyes at Value City Arena on Jan. 10, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio.

(Getty Images)

Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard is shown during the first half of their game against Michigan State on Jan. 26, 2024, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin guard Chucky Hepburn (23) is greeted by head each Greg Gard during the second half of their game on Jan. 26, 2024, at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wis. Wisconsin beat Michigan State 81-66.

(Mark Hoffman / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

Wisconsin Badgers head coach Greg Gard talks to players during a timeout against the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the first half at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Feb. 1, 2024, in Lincoln, Neb.

(Dylan Widger-USA TODAY Sports)

Eichorst visited a recent men’s basketball practice along with interim chancellor Eric Wilcots, and part of his message was that he is “so darn excited to be here” and wants to get to know the players. His visit seemed to leave a positive impression on Gard’s players.

“He came and introduced himself,” sophomore guard Zach Kinziger said. “Saw him around a couple other times already, talked to him personally. So I think that’s huge for the players just to kind of have that relationship with him. … It’s a good start for sure.”

More: Wisconsin basketball’s summer practice shows some encouraging signs for 2026-27

Eichorst and Gard – natives of southwestern Wisconsin villages Lone Rock and Cobb, respectively, and alumni of in-state Division III schools – already have plenty of shared history. Eichorst’s duties when he worked under Barry Alvarez from 2006-11 included oversight of the Bo Ryan-led men’s basketball program.

Ryan and Gard also gave Eichorst an assist as he was leaving for the University of Miami and thinking about the direction to take with the Hurricanes’ men’s basketball coaching vacancy. Their choice, Jim Larranaga, eventually became the Hurricanes’ all-time winningest coach.

“I still have a lot of the same notes that we hammered out over at the Main Depot over a beer and a burger, so I have great admiration for [Gard],” Eichorst said. “I’ve loved watching him grow. I think you all have. He’s a great ball coach.”

University of Wisconsin athletic director Shawn Eichorst (left) and interim chancellor Eric Wilcots pose with a Badgers football jersey during a meet-and-greet event for Eichorst at the Champions Club inside Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin on Tuesday July 7, 2026.

After stints as athletic director at Miami from 2011-12 and Nebraska from 2012-17 – and football results that were not to Nebraska fans’ liking – Eichorst spent eight years as the deputy athletic director and chief operating officer at Texas.

The Longhorns reached the College Football Playoff semifinals twice and won five Learfield Directors’ Cup titles during his tenure. Those career stops in his 15 years since last residing in Madison gave him experience as either an AD or deputy AD in all four power conferences.

“It was a home run hire,” Gard said. “I thought it was exactly who we needed at this point in time – the experience he has, the places he’s been, what he’s been exposed to, what he’s seen, what he’s had success with and the fact that he’s been here.”

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin AD Shawn Eichorst is ‘breath of fresh air,’ Greg Gard says

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