Former North Dakota State Athletics Director Gene Taylor has taken the role of deputy athletics director at Iowa. Taylor served for 13 years at North Dakota State and oversaw the Bison’s transition from competition in NCAA Division II to NCAA Division I.

Taylor will be the first person to serve in the position at Iowa. His responsibilities will include day-to-day oversight of the Athletics Department’s activities.

“I would like to thank [Iowa Athletics Director] Gary Barta for this exciting opportunity to be a part of Hawkeye athletics and the University of Iowa. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Gary, the athletics program and the university,” Taylor said in a release. “Other than the difference in size, the two share a number of similarities, including the very high priority put on student-athletes’ success athletically, academically, and doing things the right way. I look forward to working with the athletics staff and coaches."

In a press conference held by North Dakota State to announce the transition, Taylor said his eventual goal is to become an athletics director at a Football Bowl Subdivision university. The Bison play in the Football Champion Subdivision.

“[Barta] and I talked about this. He said, ‘Gene, I want you to come here and be here for five to eight years,’ ” Taylor said. “Give me two, at a minimum. I want somebody whose goal is to be a [bowl-subdivision] athletics director.’

“That means they can come in there, work hard, do anything I can to help them … There are a lot of things going on at Iowa. He’s going to see a lot of changes in the near future, and he thought was an opportunity to help guide them through those changes.”