Change is coming to the athletic department at Marshall.
Athletic director Christian Spears and the school have mutually agreed that they will not be renewing his contract, sources told ESPN on Monday. The deal expires in March of 2026.
Spears will stay on as the athletic director until the school finds a replacement, sources said. The timeline of lining up a replacement is not known.
Select school officials have been briefed on the decision, per sources. An announcement of the plans is expected in the near future.
Spears has overseen a generally successful tenure at Marshall since being hired in 2022. Marshall has been bowl eligible in all three football seasons he’s been there.
Spears’ hires included Kim Caldwell in women’s basketball, who has since gone on to coach at the University of Tennessee. Marshall also reached the national final of the men’s soccer college cup in 2024, a notable achievement for a mid-major program. He also oversaw the fund raising and building of a new baseball stadium, which opened in March of 2024.
After Marshall won the Sun Belt this year in football and finished 10-3, coach Charles Huff departed for another program in the SBC – Southern Miss. A flurry of transfers followed Huff, which led in part to Marshall opting out of the school’s bowl game this year.
Spears filled the football job with long-time N.C. State defensive coordinator Tony Gibson, who has deep ties in the state from two stints at West Virginia.
