Jim Delany served as OVC Commissioner from 1979-89 before taking over as Commissioner at the Big Ten, where he served 31 years until his retirement in 2020.

During his time at the OVC he saw National Championships in football, track and field and rifle, and several high-profile men's basketball NCAA Tournament victories. He helped the OVC gain national exposure with basketball games played late at night (FNL) so they could be featured on television (he also innovated with TV when he launched the ground-breaking Big Ten Network later in his career).

This is Part 1 of our conversation; Part 2 will be released later in the month.