William F. Tate, former LSU President inaugurated at Rutgers, shares insight into LSU sports, role of hiring Brian Kelly, Scott Woodward, Verge Ausberry, how a state university works with governments, NIL and vision for opportunity of all students

Pivot Podcast

The Pivot Podcast Network

Sports, Football, Society & Culture

4.9 • 3.1K Ratings

🗓️ 7 November 2025

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

This week on The Pivot, Ryan Clark sits down with Dr. William F. Tate IV — fresh off his transformative tenure as president at LSU — as he takes on a new challenge: leading Rutgers University. In this candid and inspiring conversation, Dr. Tate opens up about the journey from his groundbreaking role as LSU’s first African American president and first in SEC history to his vision for shaping the future of higher education in New Jersey. Ryan and President Tate get into the recent news around firing of LSU football coach, Brian Kelly (a hire Tate helped make) as well as long time Athletic Director Scott Woodward which led to the naming of Verge Ausberry as his predecessor to oversee Tiger's athletics. Tate openly shares what goes into the process, the success of all LSU sports and the importance of state universities working in harmony with state governors. They dive deep into leadership, legacy, and the lessons learned along the way — from navigating the pressures of big-time college athletics in the SEC to building a campus culture grounded in equity, excellence, and innovation. Ryan and Dr. Tate explore how faith, mentorship, and resilience have guided him, and what it means to “pivot” from success into significance. Whether you’re a fan of college sports, education, or powerful personal stories, this episode delivers wisdom, humor, and heart from one of higher education’s most dynamic leaders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:29.9	Today's a huge day for Rutgers University president Bill Tate. I mean, yeah, he's here on
0:35.3	a pivot, but in New Jersey, it's his inauguration day. He was the first
0:39.2	black school president of LSU. And as a matter of fact, the first black school president of any
0:44.6	SEC school that comes with his own trials, its own tribulations, its own adversity. But in listening
0:50.7	to President Tate, it also comes with its own triumphs.
0:54.6	He's the son of educators.
0:56.4	He's the grandson of an educator.
0:58.3	He spent his entire life working to be fair for the people he's been charged with educating.
1:05.6	During his tenure at LSU, sports flourished.
1:08.8	It was the dawn of the NIL era. and we saw people like Livy Dunn,
1:13.1	Angel Reese, Flagee Johnson take advantage of that. And under Scott Woodard, there were national
1:18.9	championships in baseball and gymnastics and obviously Kim Mokie and the women's basketball team.
1:25.2	Now, they didn't hit it with Coach Brian Kelly, but he takes us through
1:28.9	the criteria and the priorities in hiring him. He talks about Verge Osbury, the newly elected
1:35.6	athletic director of LSU, and he believes that he can lead LSU into the future in an excellent
1:42.0	way. There's also the conversation of politics and how the change in office from John Bell
1:48.5	Edwards to Jeff Landry caused a change at LSU.
	...

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