Arizona's two largest public universities are dealing with fallout connected to their athletic departments, including staffing shuffles at the highest levels of their departments.
On Monday night, news broke that the University of Arizona would be shuffling its leadership. Athletic Director Dave Heeke is heading out, replaced with former softball coach Mike Candrea.
Candrea will lead on an interim basis, and Heeke is expected to officially leave his position on February 2.
The shuffle came as the university prepares to face an investigation into how it lost track of $240 million, a gaping hole in funding that was brought to light by the university itself in November.
RELATED: University of Arizona releases financial recovery plan
"Certainly, in terms of optics, it's a big concern," said Shane Dale, co-host of the Wildcat Country podcast. "And I think those who say, 'well, athletics is too much of a driver of what happens at these universities,' [they] are going to look at this and say 'what the heck happened to $240 million?'"
At the time the funding gap was revealed last year, Arizona President Robert Robbins referred to the issue as a "miscalculation."
As a result of that miscalculation, so-called "draconian cuts" began to be made at the Tucson campus, including a hiring freeze and a pause on expected construction projects.
As for what comes next, Dale says it's not out of the question more changes could be on the horizon.
"You never know, come next athletic season, we could be seeing a whole different regime at Arizona, in terms of not only just football coach but athletic director and school president, as well," he said.
Dale said he anticipated there would be an audit of the athletic department released to the Board of Regents this Thursday.
Closer to home, Arizona State University remains on the hunt for a new leader of its athletic department.
Former ASU Athletic Director Ray Anderson stepped down in November after a decade in Tempe. His era at the university saw multiple controversies, including some tied to his hiring decisions.
Since then, there's been no announcement of a new athletic director at the school.
In terms of the actual impact on both universities, Dale says this may hurt their image temporarily. However, he believes it ultimately will not stop players from wanting to put on the team jersey, since it's the team management that matters more than the university's.
