Nebraska athletic director Bill Moos announced his retirement on Friday morning.

Moos, 70, previously said he wanted to finish his contract, which was set to expire soon after the 2022 football season. Instead, he’ll retire on June 30.

“To understand just how special Nebraska is, you need to spend time here, meet our people, visit our cities and towns and sit in Memorial Stadium in a sea of red on a Saturday afternoon in the fall,” Moos said in a statement. “I step away completely content, knowing that our athletic program is reborn and rebuilt and that it has a solid, stable foundation.”

Nebraska chancellor Ronnie Green also issued a statement thanking Moos for his contributions to the athletic department. Green said a national search would begin “very soon.”

Garrett Klassy will step in as interim athletic director.

Moos arrived in 2017 and made several key hires, including football coach Scott Frost, men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg and baseball coach Will Bolt.

Moos has served as an athletic director for over 40 years. Before arriving in Lincoln, he had stops at Montana, Oregon and Washington State.

“I have been so fortunate to work as the Director of Athletics at four wonderful schools and have seen a lot but I have never witnessed and experienced the passion of fans like we have at Nebraska,” Moos said in a statement. “The unflinching support of our programs and of our university is inspiring and unmatched. I have visited every part of our great state and engaged with thousands of Husker fans over the years, and there truly is No Place like Nebraska.”