Wojnarowski, Class of ’91, leaves ESPN to take GM role with Bonnies basketball program

ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. — ESPN senior NBA expert Adrian Wojnarowski is stepping away from his award-winning career as a broadcaster and returning to his alma mater as general manager of the St. Bonaventure men’s basketball program.

“I am excited and honored to return to St. Bonaventure with the opportunity to serve the university, Coach Mark Schmidt and our elite Atlantic 10 men’s basketball program,” Wojnarowski said. “In these changing times in college sports, I am eager to join a championship program that combines high-level basketball, national television exposure, professional preparation and NIL opportunities with an intimate, supportive educational environment.”

In his role as General Manager, Wojnarowski will assist the coaching staff in managing a broad range of responsibilities, including name, image and likeness (NIL) promotion and team liaison; transfer portal management; recruiting, family and former player relations; professional player programs; and program fundraising.

In response to the rapid evolution of the college sports landscape, many top conferences and mid-major colleges have added general manager positions starting in 2022, particularly for football and men’s basketball programs.

“I hope to share with our community best practices from some of the most successful franchises and minds in the NBA who are committed to opening doors around the world for our players both on and off the court,” Wojnarowski said.

Bob Beretta, vice president and director of Intercollegiate Athletics, said Wojnarowski’s decision is an “incredible opportunity” for the university, its athletic department and the men’s basketball program.

“In a time of tremendous turbulence in the intercollegiate athletic enterprise, we are making a strong statement that St. Bonaventure continues to be at the forefront of change,” Beretta said. “This is a bold move that aligns with our institutional goals to continue to grow and thrive.”

Beretta said Wojnarowski’s global network of contacts in the basketball world will be an invaluable asset to the program.

“Woj is the ideal person to fill this new role, combining his deep knowledge of St. Bonaventure and our Franciscan values ​​with the deep network of relationships he has built in the world of professional and intercollegiate basketball,” Beretta said. “The fact that a preeminent journalist in his field is willing to step away from a lucrative media career to serve his alma mater in a supporting role is a testament to his love and passion for Bona’s.”

Schmidt called the decision to hire Wojnarowski to his staff “a bull’s eye.”

“This move is key to navigating the new landscape of college basketball in the NIL, recruiting and retention,” said Schmidt, the winningest men’s basketball coach in school history. “Woj is as connected as anyone in the basketball world, and his decades-long network can only help our program remain among the top teams in the Atlantic 10 in the future.”

As he walks away from a lucrative contract extension he signed with ESPN in 2022, Wojnarowski now wants to give back to the university that left an indelible mark on his life. He and his wife, Amy, ’92, have been major benefactors of the basketball program and the Jandoli School of Communication.

“I am grateful to President (Jeff) Gingerich, Bob Beretta, Coach Schmidt and the entire St. Bonaventure community for welcoming my wife, Amy, and me back to the campus community in a new role,” Wojnarowski said. “We met on this beautiful campus as students and shared a lifelong love for the university that continues today. I am ready to get to work.”

Wojnarowski, a Class of 1991 graduate, announced his retirement from ESPN this morning on X (formerly Twitter).

“This craft has changed my life, but I have decided to step away from ESPN and the news industry,” Wojnarowski wrote. “I understand the commitment required in my role and it is an investment I no longer want to make. My time is not infinite, and I want to spend it in ways that have greater personal meaning to me.”

Before joining ESPN, where he has been since 2017, Wojnarowski worked at Yahoo Sports, where he spent nearly 10 years, including two as editor of The Vertical. His distinguished journalism career includes nearly 10 years at The Record of New Jersey (where he was twice named APSE Columnist of the Year), as well as stints at the Fresno Bee and the Waterbury (Conn.) Republican-American.

Wojnarowski’s peers voted him the National Sports Writer of the Year in 2017, 2018 and 2019. He joins an illustrious list of notables who have won the award at least three times in a row – Red Smith, Jim Murray, Frank Deford, Rick Reilly, Bob Ryan and Tom Verducci.

Wojnarowski is the New York Times bestselling author of The Miracle of St. Anthony: A Season with Coach Bob Hurley and Basketball’s Most Impromptu Dynasty.

A graduation speaker and 2022 honorary degree recipient, Wojnarowski was named the 2019 Jandoli School Graduate of the Year and inducted into the Jandoli School Wall of Distinguished Alumni.

The press conference to welcome Amy and Adrian back to the Bonaventure community will be held at 4:00 PM on Wednesday, September 25th in the Quick Center for the Arts Theater. The campus community is invited to attend.

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About the university: The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure University is a community dedicated to transforming the lives of our students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring a lifelong commitment to service and citizenship. Of 167 regional universities in the Northeast, St. Bonaventure was ranked 6th in Value and 14th in Innovation by U.S. News and World Report (2024).