It’s been a busy offseason when it comes to the leadership of the BCS conferences and schools.

• First, Notre Dame AD Kevin White opts for the arguably less-stressful and lower-profile vacancy at Duke.
• Then Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese announced his retirement last week.
• Now we learn that Pac-10 commish and defender of the Rose Bowl Tom Hansen is on his way out after 26 years.

The Big 12 named Dan Beebe its commissioner less than a year ago. Though Tranghese and Hansen will continue on for another academic year, we’ll still see a turnover of more than half of the BCS leadership between 2007 and 2009.

Will this sudden turnover have much effect on things like the BCS and college football postseason? I doubt it. It’s important to remember that conference commissioners serve at the pleasure of the presidents of the conference’s schools. Though there is plenty of room for each commissioner to make his mark on his conference, major policy decisions are likely to be guided by those presidents. In other words, if the Pac-10 presidents as a group oppose a playoff (and it seems as if they do), Hansen’s replacement is likely to share that view.

Still, it will be interesting to see what new blood brings to the table and if any of the newcomers become polarizing figures in their own right.

Mike Slive (2002), John Swofford (1997), and Jim Delany (1989) are now the elder statesmen of the BCS conferences. In case you’re wondering who might be next to retire, Delany and Swofford both turn 60 this year, and Slive is approaching 68.