CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – Illinois athletic Josh Whitman was hired at his alma mater in 2016.

At that point, a fair amount had changed since he suited up for the Illini on Saturdays from 1997-2000.

Illini football saw four new head coaches between the time Whitman wrapped up his playing career and returned as the AD.

It could be argued that the past nine years since Whitman returned to Champaign have experienced more transformation in college sports than the 16 years while he was away.

On Thursday, June 26, Whitman held his annual media roundtable with reporters. During the meeting, he presented a 1 hour, 47 minute opening statement that covered nearly every athletic program at the University of Illinois and elaborated on his department’s strategy for handling the revenue sharing era in college sports. He then engaged with reporters, answering their questions for over an hour.

Whitman discussed various topics, including baseball, basketball, softball, golf, revenue sharing, name, image and likeness, infrastructure, the college football playoff, the NBA draft, and much more.

The job looks a lot different than it did when he was hired nearly a decade ago. At that time, college athletes couldn’t even be paid. Now, they’ve been getting paid for four years and a major change means schools will pay the players, instead of a third-party NIL collective.

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Of course, hiring coaches, negotiating contracts, fundraising, speaking events and all those other previous obligations haven’t gone away.

So, how does the Illini AD handle it? How does he avoid getting overwhelmed? Can he ever turn off work?

“The job has always been complex,” Whitman said with a smile, “It’s multifaceted, it’s highly paced, it’s intense, there’s a lot of change, there’s a lot of highs and lows.”

He says hobbies and enjoyment away from the athletic administration building help.

“You try and compartmentalize it the best you can,” Whitman said. “I still go out of my solitary runs and spend some time in my own head and certainly enjoy going home and seeing my kids and my wife and having a chance to unplug in those moments.”

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Anyone who seeks a role with the responsibility, pressure and expectations like being an athletic director at a power four school must know it won’t be easy, he says.

“You get into a line of work like this and you know what you’re signing up for,” Whitman said. “You know what the pace is, You know what the expectations are. And I continue to love what I do and feel really fortunate to be able to do it here.”

Whitman has helped the Illini to some great victories during his tenure as AD. He’s now also the Big Ten representative to the NCAA Division I Council – and also chair of that council.

The 2024-25 athletic calendar saw Illinois compete in, and win, a bowl game while also making NCAA tournament appearances in both men’s and women’s basketball.