Peterson: Iowa State's Jamie Pollard isn't ruffled by unsettled state of college athletics

CARROLL — Will the Big 12 be a one-division conference when it moves to 12 schools – whenever that is?

The guess here is yes.

How critical is hiring the right person to replace commissioner Bob Bowlsby?

Hiring someone of that stature is always critical, but in these changing times of college athletics? Critical-times-100.

Transfer portal unsettling the college sports landscape more so than it ever has?

Oh yeah.

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While Iowa State athletics director Jamie Pollard hit on those topics and more during 20 minutes with a handful of reporters during the Cyclones Tailgate tour this week, the bottom line always bounced back to this:

“I was reminded that in 1929, the Carnegie Foundation did a report on college athletics,” Pollard said. “There were three findings — No. 1, that student-athletes aren’t students; No. 2; that coaches are paid too much and No. 3, we need to get the government involved to help control college athletics.

“That’s really fascinating. That was 92 or 93 years ago. You can argue that not much has changed.”

What’s Pollard’s takeaway?

“Waters are choppy, but they’ve always been choppy,” he said. “We’ll find our way through it. It probably won’t look like it looks like today, but it probably won’t look like it looked in 1929.”

College athletics is undergoing head-spinning change, all with the purpose of improving things for athletes, who generate millions upon millions of dollars for universities.

For Iowa State, the change includes the gradual move to what will be a new Big 12. Enter: BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF. Exit: Texas and Oklahoma. When: To be determined.

“What’s been the most refreshing part, is that members and fan bases are really excited about coming into the Big 12,” Pollard said. “A majority (of opinion) in my time, has always been about what’s wrong with the Big 12, or who’s leaving the Big 12. It’s really refreshing to have four schools that are really excited about being here.”

Reminder: None of this is that easy

The 10-team Big 12 has been a no-division league since 2010. It’s also been the only Power Five conference in which everyone plays everyone during a season. The other conferences have divisions, and unbalanced scheduling.

“Our 10-team format with one division has proven over the last several years, that that’s the right recipe,” Pollard said. “I think that’s why the other conferences are talking about moving away from (divisions).”

Those conferences consist of up to 14 teams. With Oklahoma and Texas, the SEC will be at 16, while the Big 12 eventually will live up to the number in its name. The Big 12’s scheduling round-robin will be gone. History. Kaput. Scheduling loopholes galore, in which some teams could go a few seasons between games against conference powers.

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“We’ll be no different than the Big Ten’s been, or the SEC’s been, or the ACC’s been,” Pollard said. “You have to look at that and say, 'What gives the best chance for your best team?' And probably it’s to have one division, and you’re going to be a victim of, or benefit from, who you don’t play or who you play.

“I’ve moved to being a one-division proponent, because I think that’s the best interest of whatever team has the best year.”

So, who oversees the Big 12’s new age?

Given longtime commissioner Bob Bowlsby announcing retirement plans, this conference needs a leader that’s savvy to the athletic landscape, with charisma, and someone that can hold their own at the college bargaining table during a time in which individual conferences just might be making and playing by their own rules.

“It’s a critical hire for the Big 12,” Pollard said. “We have to on-board four, off-board two, and get a new television deal, at a time that the waters are really choppy.”

Look for the new commissioner to be someone that’s an athletic director, or a university president.

“Getting somebody hired sooner than later will be really important,” Pollard said, “and getting the right person will be extremely critical.”

The bottom line is that the Big 12 isn’t dead, contrary to some thought after Texas and Oklahoma announced they’re leaving for the SEC.

“We’ve created a narrative, by having the inconsistencies of both our membership, and quite frankly, having a perceived discontent,” Pollard said. “The perception has been that Texas has never been happy in the Big 12, right? I’m not saying they’re not, just saying that was the perception,”

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And what about the transfer portal?

“I just find it fascinating that a year ago, we had sit-out (transfer) rules, and everybody told us we were horrible for (having) that … that we needed to change,” Pollard said. “All the professionals said, ‘Be careful what you wish for,’ and we changed it.

“And now everyone says we need to have stipulations that they can’t do this, can’t do that. Be careful what you wish for. There’ll always be change.”

And while some may be freaking out about the thousands of athletes choosing to transfer, don’t lump Pollard in that group.

“I’m personally not worried about the transfer portal. We’ve benefited from it,” he said. “It would be a little shortsighted for me to be saying (negative things about it).

“If you have a great culture, people shouldn’t want to leave. If they do leave, they probably have some reason they want to leave, and that’s fine. If a student-athlete feels like they can get something that’s better for them — whatever that is to them — have at it.

“They get one chance to be a student-athlete. I get multiple chances to be AD.”

Iowa State columnist Randy Peterson embarked on his 50th year of writing sports for the Des Moines Register in December 2021. Reach him at rpeterson@dmreg.com, 515-284-8132, and on Twitter at @RandyPete.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State AD Jamie Pollard discusses transfer portal, the new Big 12