Update: The Florida Gators have made it official, announcing on Tuesday that Mississippi State athletic director Scott Stricklin will be the new athletic director in Gainesville, effective Nov. 1 when Jeremy Foley steps down.
"I'm really excited about this opportunity at Florida," Stricklin said. "I'm an SEC guy. I understand the position Florida holds in college athletics. I'm excited to come and be part of the department. It's a great staff here to work with. I love college towns. The opportunity to come and get invested in another community, with my family, you start balancing all that and you understand at this point in my career, this is an opportunity you just can't not do."
Original story:
Florida's search for a new athletic director has ended. The Gators will announce the hiring of Mississippi State AD Scott Stricklin on Tuesday, according to USA Today's Dan Wolken and ESPN's Brett McMurphy. CBS Sports can confirm that Florida moved a planned basketball media day on Tuesday in order to schedule a separate athletic department press conference.
Stricklin has been at Mississippi State since 2008 and has served as the Bulldogs' athletic director since 2010. In his time in Starkville he oversaw $140 million in facility investments in his time -- including a $70 million renovation to Davis-Wade Stadium -- and made notable coaching hires like basketball coach Ben Howland in 2015.
Prior to his time at Mississippi State, Stricklin was the associate AD for media relations at Kentucky from 2003 to 2008 after time as an assistant AD at Tulane (1998) and Baylor (1999-2003).
Stricklin will step in for Jeremy Foley, who announced his retirement in July. Foley had been with the Gators since 1976 and took over as athletics director in 1992.