As a young educator in 1974, Phil DiStefano was ready to leave the familiar territory of Ohio and take on a new challenge.

A graduate of Ohio State — with a masters degree from West Virginia — DiStefano interviewed at several colleges for a faculty position.

“My advisor said, ‘You’ve got two choices: Wisconsin or Texas,’” DiStefano said in a recent interview with BuffZone. “I said, ‘I really liked Colorado when I interviewed there; it was a great interview.’ My advisor was really pushing me for taking one of those other two schools.”

DiStefano chose Colorado, but he and his wife had a plan of leaving within three years if it didn’t work out.

“Fifty years later, we’re still here, so it worked,” he said with a laugh.

The chancellor at the University of Colorado-Boulder since 2009, DiStefano will retire from his position on July 1, handing the reigns to his successor, Justin Schwartz.

In his 15 years as chancellor and 50 years at CU, DiStefano has seen a lot, not only as an educator, but within athletics.

Originally hired as an assistant professor in CU’s School of Education, DiStefano quickly became involved with athletics when he got to Boulder. A colleague suggested he might be a good candidate for a faculty council on athletics.

“We used to meet over at Farrand Hall, the residence hall, and meet and talk about academics, talk about Title IX issues,” DiStefano said.

Title IX, a federal law to bring equity in education among men and women, was enacted in 1972 and it has had significant impact not only in education, but athletics.

At the time in 1974, CU had a solid football program under head coach Bill Mallory, while legendary coach Sox Walseth was roaming the sidelines for men’s basketball. CU also had baseball and men’s programs in cross country and track, golf, gymnastics, skiing, swimming, tennis and wrestling.

DiStefano’s arrival at CU, and his involvement in the athletic committee, coincided with CU’s introduction of women’s sports. CU started a women’s cross country and track program during the 1973-74 school year. In 1974, women began participating in basketball and gymnastics at CU. More women’s programs, in golf, lacrosse, skiing, soccer, swimming and volleyball would come later.

From Title IX to the last couple of years with the transfer portal and athletes now able to profit from their name, image and likeness, the evolution of college athletics, including at CU, has been remarkable.

“College athletics over the last 50 years here and witnessing all the changes, it’s just been amazing,” he said. “Being here for 50 years, I’ve seen it all.”

There were dark times, of course, including in 1980. DiStefano remembers a football game that fall when Oklahoma hung 82 points on the Buffs, but that wasn’t the worst part of that year.

Like several schools around the country, CU faced an athletics budget deficit and responded by cutting sports.

In June of 1980, CU and athletic director Eddie Crowder cut seven sports: baseball, wrestling, men’s swimming, women’s swimming, diving, men’s gymnastics and women’s gymnastics.

“At the time, we had to,” DiStefano said. “I don’t think there were very many options there.”

There have been other off-the-field issues CU has dealt with during the last 50 years, as well, but also many good times. Just 10 years after Oklahoma’s 82-42 win in Boulder, the Buffaloes and head coach Bill McCartney won the national title.

“We were one of the top football schools in the country (for several years),” DiStefano said.

In addition to the football title, DiStefano said a highlight for him was women’s basketball.

“Watching Ceal Barry build women’s basketball here, that was so exciting,” he said. “Ceal recruited just some awesome players who were great students, and I still see them around because many of them went into teaching. … Then you look at our Olympians.

“Those are the things I remember, and then just recently our ski team winning a national championship (in March).”

Conference realignment and TV contracts have been a major part of the last 50 years, as well.

CU was in the Big Eight when DiStefano got to Boulder. In 1996, that expanded to the Big 12. In 2011, the Buffs left the Big 12 for the Pac-12. And, in DiStefano’s final year as chancellor, the Buffs are making the move back to the Big 12, beginning this fall.

During DiStefano’s time at CU, he’s seen the construction of the CU Events Center, the Dal Ward Center and, in 2015, the opening of the Champions Center.

As chancellor, DiStefano has overseen the hiring of numerous people, including current athletic director Rick George, men’s basketball coach Tad Boyle, women’s basketball coach JR Payne and, of course, the December 2022 hire of Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders to lead the football program.

“I give Rick all the credit for hiring Coach Prime,” DiStefano said. “I think it’s exactly what we needed for this university. How things have turned around in a very short time in a year, year and a half … and the economic impact that has occurred because of Coach Prime for the city, and for the county, has just been amazing.”

Given the transformation of college athletics in the last couple of years, there’s no telling what it will look like in the future.

“Personally, it concerns me and I think it concerns many people that we’re not going to have intercollegiate athletics like we know it,” DiStefano said. “Unless Congress steps in somehow, but I think where we’re heading is going to change college athletics as we know it.”

DiStefano won’t be involved in the future changes, though. He’s seen and done plenty during his tenure. He will remain at CU, however, as the executive director for the Center of Leadership, and has no plans to leave Boulder.

“No, never,” he said with a laugh.

There were numerous reasons DiStefano never left, he said.

“No. 1, the university,” he said. “The university in 50 years has just made exceptional strides as a first class quality institution. And secondly, the community. There’s not a better place to have a family, to raise kids and this community was amazing to me. And third, the university took some chances on me from the standpoint of I stayed, I was the dean here, I was the provost.

“As a first generation college student, it gave me opportunities I never dreamed of.”

Several years into his time at CU, DiStefano ran into that advisor who suggested he go to Texas or Wisconsin instead.

DiStefano recalled, “He said, ‘You have probably made the right move.’”