New Contracts for Batt, Key Approved – Football — Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

THE FLATS – The Georgia Tech Athletic Association Board of Trustees approved new five-year contracts for director of athletics J Batt and football head coach Brent Key on Friday. The new contracts add two years to both Batt’s and Key’s original agreements, extending them through December 2029.

“J Batt has demonstrated exceptional leadership as Georgia Tech’s athletic director, bringing a strategic vision and enthusiasm that have been instrumental in navigating the evolving landscape of intercollegiate athletics,” said Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera. “I am delighted that the Georgia Tech Athletics Association Board supports contract extensions for both J and head football coach Brent Key, ensuring that we continue to build on the prestige they have brought to our athletics program.”

Batt became Georgia Tech’s 10^th full-time athletics director in October 2022. In just 25 months under Batt’s leadership, Tech athletics’ impressive achievements include:

• the highly regarded hires of Georgia Tech alumnus Key as the 21^st head coach in Tech football history and former All-American and NBA All-Star Damon Stoudamire as the Yellow Jackets’ 15^th men’s basketball head coach;
• a record-breaking $78.2 million in contributions to the Alexander-Tharpe Fund (Georgia Tech athletics’ fundraising arm) during Batt’s first full fiscal year at the helm (FY 2024), shattering the previous single-year record by 43%;
• the launch of Full Steam Ahead, a $500 million fundraising initiative – of which nearly $300 million has already been pledged – to enhance infrastructure across multiple athletics facilities (including a renovation of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field), deliver a best-in-class gameday experience for Yellow Jackets fans and provide the resources needed to navigate the ever-changing landscape of top-level college sports;
• a monumental multi-decade partnership with Hyundai, which provides transformative revenue for Tech athletics;
• historic academic success, with a record 94% NCAA Graduation Success Rate and the highest mean grade point average in Tech athletics history (3.25 – spring 2024).

Georgia Tech has also taken a big step towards re-establishing itself as one of college athletics’ premier programs under Batt, most notably with back-to-back football bowl berths for the first time since 2013-14. Other achievements include consecutive NCAA semifinals appearances for golf, volleyball aiming for its second-straight NCAA…