Rutgers Names New Athletic Director After The Patrick Hobbs Affair Scandal

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — Nearly one year after former Rutgers athletic director Patrick Hobbs abruptly quit the top job (it would later be revealed he was having an extramarital affair with the Rutgers women's gymnastics coach), Rutgers has now named a new athletic director.

Keli Zinn comes from Louisiana State University, where she was the assistant athletic director and chief operating officer.

She was recommended for the job by new Rutgers president William Tate, who also comes from LSU, where he used to be the president. Tate took over as Rutgers president July 1.

Zinn thanked Tate repeatedly at this press conference Wednesday:

"Tate was the biggest piece," she said. "President Tate and I spent three years together at LSU and accomplished a lot. We won four national championships, two of which had never taken place ... When he departed, it was tough for me ... He gave me this opportunity; I thank him dearly for putting me up here."

Rutgers has been without a permanent athletic director for the past year: It was in mid-August 2024 that former athletic director Hobbs abruptly and mysteriously resigned, saying he had heart issues.

Then, just a few weeks after he quit, Rutgers announced they were investigating complaints about bullying done by head women's gymnastics coach Umme Salim-Beasley. The young women on the RU gymnastics team said Salim-Beasley bullied them and made mean comments, and that Hobbs either dismissed or ignored their complaints when they went to him.

More reports emerged, including that Hobbs frequently attended women's gymnastics meets, that he traveled with the team and that he did yoga with the team.

Rutgers promised to investigate.

In January, Rutgers put Salim-Beasley on leave and later fired her in April after the school determined she “presided over a divided and dysfunctional organization" on the women's gymnastics team. The school also said Hobbs and Salim-Beasley had an "undisclosed consensual relationship," which was romantic.

Hobbs was married with three children at the time. Salim-Beasley was not married.

The Rutgers Board of Governors approved the appointment of Zinn on Wednesday. Zinn officially starts the job August 6. She has a five-year contract and will be paid $1.35 million for the first year, with $50,000 annual increases. She'll also be paid a $150,000 retention bonus every two years of the term, ESPN reported.

Tate said Zinn was instrumental in advancing LSU’s Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) strategy, and he expects her to do the same at Rutgers.

When Zinn was at LSU, the university won — for the first time ever — four national championships (gymnastics, women’s basketball, and baseball twice), multiple SEC titles including in women’s track & field and women’s gymnastics, and a top‑10 finish in the Director’s Cup — a measurement of the overall competitiveness of an athletic department — for the first time since 2009.

Also during her tenure, LSU football posted a dominant 10‑win season and won a Western Division title during one of the fastest turnarounds in college football history.

Zinn was previously the interim athletic director at West Virginia University, and she guided the university when it entered into the Big 12 conference in 2015. Before that, she worked in compliance, governance and sport administration at University of Maryland.

"We are excited to welcome Keli and her husband Nate to the Banks and look forward to partnering with her as we build on Rutgers' proud legacy and drive toward even greater success in the Big Ten and beyond," said Rutgers Board of Governors Chair Amy Towers.

Prior reporting on the Patrick Hobbs scandal at Rutgers:

Rutgers Athletic Director Pat Hobbs Resigns For Health Reasons (August 2024)

Rutgers Pays Law Firm $470K To Investigate Gymnastic Team Complaints (Sept. 2024)

Rutgers Gymnastics Coach On Leave After Report Says She, Ex-AD Had Affair (January 2025)

Rutgers Fires Women's Gymnastics Coach Accused Of Bullying, Weight Gain Comments (April 2025)

Rutgers Launches Search For New Athletic Director After Patrick Hobbs Scandal (April 2025)

On new Rutgers president William Tate, who comes from LSU:

Rutgers Names New President To Succeed Holloway, Who Will Resign In June

Here Are The Terms Of New Rutgers President's Contract

5 Things To Know About New Rutgers President William Tate