Bruce Rasmussen is the first person at the Division I level to be recognized Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year four times.
Photo by: Mark Kuhlmann
Bruce Rasmussen Honored as Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year
3/6/2019 1:00:00 PM | General
Creighton leader is first Division I AD to win the award four times
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Creighton University Director of Athletics Bruce Rasmussen has been named a 2018-19 recipient of the Under Armour AD of the Year Award, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics announced today. Rasmussen becomes just the fifth person to be a four-time winner of the award in history, and the only Division I AD in history to be recognized four times.
The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities.
Winners will receive their awards during the James J. Corbett Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, June 11 at NACDA's 54th Annual Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Florida.
In Rasmussen's 25-year tenure as Creighton's McCormick Endowed Athletic Director, he has seen Bluejay teams pick up 39 regular-season conference titles, 41 conference Tournament titles and make 84 postseason appearances. The Webster City, Iowa, native was previously honored in 2004, 2011 and 2015, and AD's can only be recognized once every three years.
Rasmussen is one of 28 honorees nationwide to be honored for an award that spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges).
"The athletics directors who have been recognized as part of the Athletics Director of the Year Program continue to raise the bar as thought leaders and decision makers in college athletics," said Bob Vecchione, NACDA Chief Executive Officer. "In 2019, we are proud to honor the highest number of female athletics directors with this award in a given year — nine — since the ADOY program was initiated 21 years ago! This is a true testament to the positive changes happening across the landscape of college athletics."
Winners of the 2018-19 Under Armour AD of the Year Awards are:
In the last year Rasmussen has served as chairman of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee and helped oversee the opening of Ruth Scott Training Center. Creighton's women's basketball team made its 11th straight postseason trip, while the volleyball program made a seventh consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and won a fifth consecutive BIG EAST title. The men's basketball team made a second straight NCAA Tournament trip, and the men's soccer program won the BIG EAST regular-season title last fall. All the while, Creighton's student-athletes had GPA's near 3.45 and performed close to 5,000 hours in community service.
Twenty-one of the 28 individuals being honored in 2019 are first-time ADOY award winners.
Under Armour is now in its 11th year of sponsoring the award and over 248 different athletics directors have been honored with the award during that time.
"The Athletics Director of the Year Award acknowledges the positive impact top athletics directors across all levels have had at their respective institutions, and the leadership they provide to their student-athletes," said Suzanne Williams, Under Armour's director of collegiate sports marketing. "Under Armour is proud to partner with NACDA to honor those individuals who continue to excel and set the standard for leaders in college athletics."
All NACDA-member directors of athletics in the United States, Canada and Mexico who met the criteria were eligible for the award. Among the criteria were service as an AD for a minimum of five academic years; demonstration of commitment to higher education and student-athletes; continuous teamwork, loyalty and excellence; and the ability to inspire individuals or groups to high levels of accomplishments. Additionally, each AD's institution must have passed a compliance check through its appropriate governing body (i.e., NCAA, NAIA, etc.), in which the institution could not have been on probation or cited for a lack of institutional control within the last five years during the tenure of the current athletics director.
Nominators were NACDA-member directors of athletics, institutional presidents and conference commissioners, as well as other respected intercollegiate athletics administrators. Special Divisional Selection Committees composed of current and former directors of athletics, current and former commissioners and other key athletics administrators voted on nominees for the award. A complete listing of Selection Committee members can be found on NACDA's website at www.nacda.com.
About Under Armour, Inc.: Under Armour, Inc., headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland is a leading inventor, marketer and distributor of branded performance athletic apparel, footwear and accessories. Designed to make all athletes better, the brand's innovative products are sold worldwide to consumers with active lifestyles. The company's Connected Fitness™ platform powers the world's largest digitally connected health and fitness community. For further information, please visit about.underarmour.com.
About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 54th year, is the professional and educational Association for more than 15,700 college athletics administrators at more than 1,700 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 6,500 athletics administrators annually attend NACDA & Affiliates Convention Week. Additionally, NACDA manages 17 professional associations and three foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.
The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities.
Winners will receive their awards during the James J. Corbett Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, June 11 at NACDA's 54th Annual Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Florida.
In Rasmussen's 25-year tenure as Creighton's McCormick Endowed Athletic Director, he has seen Bluejay teams pick up 39 regular-season conference titles, 41 conference Tournament titles and make 84 postseason appearances. The Webster City, Iowa, native was previously honored in 2004, 2011 and 2015, and AD's can only be recognized once every three years.
Rasmussen is one of 28 honorees nationwide to be honored for an award that spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges).
"The athletics directors who have been recognized as part of the Athletics Director of the Year Program continue to raise the bar as thought leaders and decision makers in college athletics," said Bob Vecchione, NACDA Chief Executive Officer. "In 2019, we are proud to honor the highest number of female athletics directors with this award in a given year — nine — since the ADOY program was initiated 21 years ago! This is a true testament to the positive changes happening across the landscape of college athletics."
Winners of the 2018-19 Under Armour AD of the Year Awards are:
| Winner | Institution |
| Football Bowl Subdivision | |
| Patrick Chun | Washington State University |
| Jamie Pollard | Iowa State University |
| Danny White | University of Central Florida |
| Deborah Yow | North Carolina State University |
| Football Championship Subdivision | |
| Grace Calhoun | University of Pennsylvania |
| Barry Collier | Butler University |
| Earl Hilton | North Carolina A&T State University |
| Matt Larsen | North Dakota State University |
| Division I-AAA | |
| Jim Donovan | California State University, Fullerton |
| Ken Kavanagh | Florida Gulf Coast University |
| Bruce Rasmussen | Creighton University |
| Mike Roth | Gonzaga University |
| Division II | |
| Anita Barker | Chico State |
| Mike Cerino | Limestone College |
| Pete Meyer | Florida Southern College |
| Carolyn Stone | Palm Beach Atlantic University |
| Division III | |
| Nan Carney-DeBord | Denison University |
| Erin McDermott | University of Chicago |
| Mike Mooney | SUNY Geneseo |
| Jason Verdugo | Hamline University |
| NAIA | |
| Kiki Barnes | Dillard University |
| Mike Hermann | Kansas Wesleyan University |
| Mike McCaffrey | University of Saint Francis |
| Darin Wilson | Georgia Gwinnett College |
| Junior/Community College | |
| Kanoe Bandy | Taft College |
| Gary Broadhurst | Mohawk Valley Community College |
| Jeremy Capo | Iowa Western Community College |
| Marci Henry | Northeastern Junior College |
In the last year Rasmussen has served as chairman of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee and helped oversee the opening of Ruth Scott Training Center. Creighton's women's basketball team made its 11th straight postseason trip, while the volleyball program made a seventh consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and won a fifth consecutive BIG EAST title. The men's basketball team made a second straight NCAA Tournament trip, and the men's soccer program won the BIG EAST regular-season title last fall. All the while, Creighton's student-athletes had GPA's near 3.45 and performed close to 5,000 hours in community service.
Twenty-one of the 28 individuals being honored in 2019 are first-time ADOY award winners.
Under Armour is now in its 11th year of sponsoring the award and over 248 different athletics directors have been honored with the award during that time.
"The Athletics Director of the Year Award acknowledges the positive impact top athletics directors across all levels have had at their respective institutions, and the leadership they provide to their student-athletes," said Suzanne Williams, Under Armour's director of collegiate sports marketing. "Under Armour is proud to partner with NACDA to honor those individuals who continue to excel and set the standard for leaders in college athletics."
All NACDA-member directors of athletics in the United States, Canada and Mexico who met the criteria were eligible for the award. Among the criteria were service as an AD for a minimum of five academic years; demonstration of commitment to higher education and student-athletes; continuous teamwork, loyalty and excellence; and the ability to inspire individuals or groups to high levels of accomplishments. Additionally, each AD's institution must have passed a compliance check through its appropriate governing body (i.e., NCAA, NAIA, etc.), in which the institution could not have been on probation or cited for a lack of institutional control within the last five years during the tenure of the current athletics director.
Nominators were NACDA-member directors of athletics, institutional presidents and conference commissioners, as well as other respected intercollegiate athletics administrators. Special Divisional Selection Committees composed of current and former directors of athletics, current and former commissioners and other key athletics administrators voted on nominees for the award. A complete listing of Selection Committee members can be found on NACDA's website at www.nacda.com.
About Under Armour, Inc.: Under Armour, Inc., headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland is a leading inventor, marketer and distributor of branded performance athletic apparel, footwear and accessories. Designed to make all athletes better, the brand's innovative products are sold worldwide to consumers with active lifestyles. The company's Connected Fitness™ platform powers the world's largest digitally connected health and fitness community. For further information, please visit about.underarmour.com.
About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 54th year, is the professional and educational Association for more than 15,700 college athletics administrators at more than 1,700 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 6,500 athletics administrators annually attend NACDA & Affiliates Convention Week. Additionally, NACDA manages 17 professional associations and three foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.
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