Jonesboro, AR — (Contributed) — April 24, 2025 — Arkansas State University Chancellor Dr. Todd Shields announced Thursday that a national search for the Red Wolves’ 14th all-time athletics director has begun.
The current director, Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics Jeff Purinton, was appointed Executive Vice President at Learfield’s Sports Properties division.
“Jeff arrived at Arkansas State a few months before I became chancellor, but I began working closely with him immediately after I arrived on campus and knew our Athletics Department was in great hands under his leadership,” said Shields. “Including unprecedented postseason success, numerous conference championships, high academic marks, facilities enhancements, operations and much more, Jeff’s positive impact on A-State Athletics in numerous areas has been evident. He and his family have been a special part of our community, and we want to wish him, Julie and their daughters – Jillian and Josie – all the best as they make this life transition.
Purinton came to A-State as Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics in May of 2022, and the Red Wolves proceeded to claim 12 Sun Belt Conference championships that were the most among all league members during his three years at the helm. Including the women’s bowling team winning the Southland Bowling League in 2023, the Red Wolves accumulated 13 combined conference titles under Purinton for their second most over any three-year stretch in school history.
“I want to thank everyone at Arkansas State for embracing us as part of the Red Wolves family during our three years in Jonesboro,” said Purinton. “We’ve developed lifelong friendships and made memories as Red Wolves that we will carry with us always. We have accomplished a lot of great things with athletics, academics, and also in our community. That is a result of the dedication from our exceptional student-athletes, coaches, staff, donors and fans.
“While we will continue to follow the future achievements of A-State closely, we are also looking forward to this new chapter with an outstanding organization at Learfield. Thank you to Cole Gahagan and Kim Damron for this opportunity – we are excited to get started and join their team.”
The Red Wolves currently sit atop the standings for the 2024-25 Bubas Cup, the league’s annual all-sports award, with 94.5 points through 12 sports scored. Last year, A-State placed fourth in the final standings for their best finish for a full academic year since 2015-16.
Purinton’s second year at the helm saw a school-record 10 different Arkansas State teams compete in the postseason. Since 2022-23, there have been 23 A-State teams participate in postseason competition for the most over any three-year span in school history. This year, A-State is one of just eight programs in the nation to win a bowl game and advance to the postseason in volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball.
A-State also excelled academically under Purinton’s watch as the fall 2024 Athletics Director’s Honor Roll boasted a school-record 269 student-athletes who helped the Red Wolves post a 3.20 all-department GPA that was the highest in school history for a fall semester. Arkansas State also had a school-record-tying 85 percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR) for the second straight year.
The national search for A-State’s next athletics director will be led by Shields and Arkansas State University System President Dr. Brendan Kelly, who have said that while they will move as quickly as possible, there is no timeline to complete the search.
“We want people to give their best effort for results for whatever time they are part of our ecosystem, and Jeff has done that incredibly well,” said Kelly. “We wish Jeff and his family the best. I’m totally confident that the opportunity to lead athletics at A-State is an incredibly desirable one, and we will be flush with excellent options to continue to build the Red Wolves program.”