2 0 1 2 T C U H O R N E D F R O G S VOL L E Y BA L L F AC T BOOK
ATHLETICS ADMINISTRATION CHRIS DEL CONTE
DAVIS BABB
Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Chris Del Conte was appointed TCU’s athletics director on Oct. 21, 2009. Since his arrival on campus, the TCU football program made two straight BCS appearances, including a 2119 win over Wisconsin in the 2011 Rose Bowl. Additionally, the Horned Frog baseball team reached the College World Series and the rifle team won the 2010 NCAA national championship. In 2009-10, TCU was the only school in the nation to play in a BCS game and win at least one game at the CWS. Del Conte oversaw a fundraising campaign that made it possible for TCU to undergo a $164 million renovation of Amon G. Carter Stadium, its longtime football home. The new stadium will be completely finished in time for the 2012 season. Other recent facility improvements include the expansion of baseball’s Lupton Stadium and the Fall 2011 opening of the Physical Performance Center. A renovation of the Walsh Complex, currently underway, will see a new football locker room, sports medicine center and equipment room completed in time for Fall 2012. Del Conte has helped guide the Horned Frogs into Big 12 Conference membership effective in the 2012-13 athletics season. The recipient of the 2010 Bobby Dodd Division I-A Athletic Director’s Award, Del Conte was also one of five finalists for the SportsBusiness Journal’s Athletic Director of the Year. Over the last three years, three TCU head coaches (Gary Patterson, football; Jim Schlossnagle, baseball; Karen Monez, rifle) have been named National Coach of the Year. Five TCU coaches were named Mountain West Coach of the Year in their respective sports in 2009-10. TCU set a single-season school record in 2009-10 with six conference championships (football, men’s swimming and diving, women’s basketball, men’s tennis, women’s tennis and baseball). Fifteen of 20 sports were represented in NCAA postseason play and 12 teams were nationally ranked. The success on the playing field carried over to the classroom. In the Fall 2009 and Spring 2010 semesters, TCU student-athletes recorded their highest cumulative grade-point average since tracking began in 1998. Fifteen of 20 sports had team GPAs over 3.0. The partnership between TCU, Fort Worth and the Metroplex has never been more evident. Football, baseball, soccer, tennis, track and field and volleyball set single-season attendance marks in 2010-11. During his tenure at Rice, Del Conte had responsibility for 16 intercollegiate programs, 350 student-athletes, along with coaches and staff. Del Conte also designed, developed and managed the Rice Vision for the Second Century Campaign, which raised over $90 million. He secured significant funds to build athletic facilities such as the Tudor Fieldhouse and Youngkin Center for Student-Athlete Excellence, and also raised $4 million for upgrades to the football stadium. Del Conte also secured a marketing sponsorship and broadcast rights contract for Rice and maintained a focus on student-athlete academic achievement, resulting in numerous public recognition awards from the NCAA for the academic progress rate of student-athletes. Prior to Rice, Del Conte was the senior associate athletics director for external operations and sports programs at the University of Arizona (2000-06). In that role, Del Conte had responsibility for the planning, management and oversight of the day-to-day operation for the department of intercollegiate athletics. He also functioned as the chief financial officer; managed external operations; had oversight and management of all contracts, ticket sales, broadcast rights fees, corporate sponsorships, and trademarks and licensing; and oversight of all facility construction. Del Conte also served as an assistant athletics director for external operations at both Washington State (1998-99) and Cal Poly (1994-98). Del Conte served on the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Host Committee and currently assists with the Davey O’Brien Foundation Board and the National Sports Marketing Network Board. His other professional committee involvement and associations include the Division I-A Athletics Directors Association and the National Association of Directors of Athletic Development. Del Conte received a bachelor’s of arts degree in sociology from UC Santa Barbara and a master’s of education, administration and supervision from Washington State. Del Conte is married to Dr. Robin Ward and has two daughters.
Associate A.D. for Development
ROSS BAILEY Associate A.D. for Operations
JACK HESSELBROCK Associate A.D. for Internal Relations
KIM JOHNSON Associate A.D. / Senior Woman Administrator
SCOTT KULL Associate A.D. for External Operations
ANDREA NORDMANN Associate A.D. / Compliance
INAUGURAL BIG 12 SE ASON
29