Richard Schultz, describing himself as “very honored,...

Richard Schultz, describing himself as “very honored, very humbled,” received a five-year contract to succeed Walter Byers as executive director of the National Collegiate Athletic Assn.

“This decision did not come easy,” Schultz, 57, said. “It’s a position I did not pursue. When the search committee contacted me to see if I’d be interested in visiting with them, I had to give it considerable thought.”

Schultz’s latest stop in a diversified career has been athletic director at Virginia. Before going to Virginia in 1981, he was athletic director at Cornell.

Byers will remain in charge for about a year while Schultz works with him. Schultz will join the NCAA staff no later than Sept. 1 and succeed Byers no later than Aug. 31, 1988.