Florida State AD Coburn to retire

Florida State athletic director David Coburn will be retiring, the school announced in a statement obtained by Alison Posey of ABC27.

Coburn intends to step away either at the end of the 2022 spring semester or when the school appoints his successor.

"I have enjoyed the position as athletics director a great deal, and it has been very rewarding, but this program needs an athletic director who will be here for the long term," Coburn said in a statement. "It is just a good time to step away and let the next generation take it from here."

Florida State named Coburn the 12th athletic director in school history in 2019; he started on an interim basis in 2018.

"When I accepted this position, I was determined to get the athletic program and the university I love through a historically challenging period," Coburn said. "We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel in terms of the myriad of COVID-related issues - not the least of which was the potentially crippling budget impact that virtually all schools have suffered through."

Coburn notified Florida State president Richard McCullough of his intentions to retire earlier in 2021. McCullough praised the program's success under Coburn, pointing to a women's soccer national championship, among other feats.