Josh Whitman took over in February 2016, and he has changed the trajectory of Illinois Athletics in the 26 months since. Whitman hired Lovie Smith, Brad Underwood, Chris Tamas, started renovations on the indoor football facility and has changed the attitude associated with the Illini (for the most part).
Whitman’s efforts, which started when he was the youngest Athletic Director at any Power Five school, were on display Wednesday night when he was honored with SportsBusiness Journal/Daily’s Forty Under 40 Award in the Class of 2018 at an event in Los Angeles.
“I am honored to be included in this year’s SportsBusiness Journal Forty Under 40 class,” Whitman said.