Tennessee executive senior associate athletic director Jon Gilbert has accepted the AD at Southern Miss, it was announced Tuesday.
Gilbert, who will start at Southern Miss "no later than March 1," had been Dave Hart's No. 2 man at Tennessee since arriving in 2011. Hart announced in August that he was retiring.
"Clearly Jon Gilbert's credentials allow him to be a viable candidate for any athletic director position," Southern Miss president Rodney Bennett said. "I could not be more excited for the future of Southern Miss athletics under Jon Gilbert. Jon Gilbert is the right person at the right time for our athletic program."
Gilbert served in a number of different roles during his time at Tennessee, including the supervision of the men's basketball team. At Alabama, Gilbert was a member of the executive leadership team. He was responsible for external operations, athletics development, facilities, event management, the ticket office and oversight of several sports programs.
Gilbert replaces Bill McGillis, who resigned from Southern Miss in December to accept the same job at the University of San Diego.