Beth Goetz named as interim athletic director for Iowa Hawkeyes

The Iowa Hawkeyes have found their interim replacement for long-time athletic director Gary Barta, who is stepping into retirement on August 1, 2023.

Beth Goetz, who has been serving as Iowa's deputy director of athletics and chief operating officer, will replace Barta upon his retirement. It's worth noting that Iowa did announce that Iowa will search for Barta's permanent replacement sometime early in 2024, but for now, Goetz seems to be a great fit.

"Beth is a talented and respected leader, not only at Iowa, but also at the national level in college athletics," Iowa president Barbara Wilson said in a statement. "I am grateful she has agreed to lead this crucial part of our university, and I am confident she will generate a lot of excitement and forward momentum for our student-athletes, coaches, athletics staff and Hawkeye fans."

Goetz started her role at Iowa in 2022 after serving as Ball State University's director of athletics for four years. Before that, she was the COO/senior woman administrator for the University of Connecticut and also served as the deputy athletics director for the University of Minnesota.

She has big shoes to fill at Iowa. Barta was one of the most tenured athletic directors not just in the Big Ten, but in all of college sports. He was Iowa's athletic director for 17 years and oversaw four NCAA team titles, 26 Big Ten conference team titles and close to 500 All-America athletes during his time with the Hawkeyes.