SPOKANE, Wash. — Gonzaga athletic director Mike Roth said Monday he will retire on Aug. 31, ending a 24-year run during which the Bulldogs had unprecedented success in men’s basketball and other sports.
Roth has spent a total of 34 years at the private Jesuit university in Spokane. He was an assistant men’s basketball coach from 1982-83 and returned in 1987 as assistant athletic director. He was named acting athletic director in 1997 and was given the job permanently the next year.
“I have been blessed to be able to serve Gonzaga as the AD for all these years,” Roth said in a statement. “I am beyond grateful to everyone that has been a part of my experience here at Gonzaga.”
During Roth’s tenure, the Zags made 73 appearances in NCAA tournaments or championships across all sports. The men’s basketball team has reached the NCAA tournament every year since 1999 and twice played in the national title game, including this year, when the Zags lost to Baylor.
Roth elevated Mark Few to head coach after Dan Monson left following the Bulldogs’ surprise 1999 run to the Elite Eight.
“It has been an incredible blessing and rewarding 24 years of having Mike Roth as our director of athletics,” Few said. “Without Mike, this entire era of growth and success never would have occurred. It has been a great partnership and one I feel so lucky to have been part of.”