The University of Minnesota has named Beth Goetz as its interim athletic director after Norwood Teague stepped down last week following allegations of sexual harassment. Jon Krawczynski of the Associated Press reported the development.
Goetz, 41, played college soccer at Clemson before becoming the head women’s soccer coach at Missouri-St. Louis at just 23 years old. She also oversaw compliance at Butler University during the Bulldogs’ men’s basketball team’s heyday under former coach Brad Stevens, now with the NBA’s Boston Celtics.
Prior to being named interim AD, Goetz worked as Teague’s Deputy AD since 2013. She has a reputation as being calm and level-headed. As her father told Krawczynski, she had no knowledge of Teague’s inappropriate behavior until his resignation.
Regarding her promotion, Goetz has remained humble.
“I think you’re naive to say everybody is going to be fine through a transition because people are going to think, ‘How might that impact me today or down the road?'” Goetz said. “But I think that what you do is communicate as much as you can. You’re as transparent as possible and reassure everybody we’re going to move forward.”
If she can weather the storm and guide Minnesota back into the light with a steady, gentle hand, don’t be surprised if Goetz remains with the university for the long-term and has the interim tag removed.
Can’t get enough of Campus Sports? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to stay updated with the latest news and exclusive giveaways!
*Featured Photo (above) credit to Associated Press
