Broyles to be Honored with NACDA/NIT Athletics Director Award

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Frank Broyles, men’s athletics director at the University of Arkansas, has been chosen as the recipient of the 26th NACDA/NIT Athletics Director Award.

Broyles will receive his award at the 42nd Annual Convention of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), June 4-7. The ceremony will be held on Friday, June 8, at the James J. Corbett Awards Luncheon. The Convention is being held at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Florida.

On Feb. 17, Broyles announced that his tenure at Arkansas will come to an end on Dec. 31, 2007 after five decades at the university.

Broyles started at Arkansas in 1957 as the head football coach, before taking over the reigns of the Arkansas athletics program in 1971. He served in dual roles until 1976 when he retired as Razorback head coach. In 19 seasons at the helm of the football program, Broyles amassed a record of 144-58-5. In 1964, Broyles led the Razorbacks to their lone national championship in football.

Under Broyles, five Razorback men’s basketball teams competed in either the NIT Season Tip-Off/Preseason NIT or Postseason NIT Tournaments. In 1997, the men’s squad finished fourth overall in the Postseason tournament.

As men’s athletics director, Broyles oversees a program that has claimed 43 national titles, 57 championships in the defunct Southwest Conference and 48 Southeastern Conference championships.

Broyles has overseen the construction and renovation to the athletics facilities on campus, from the Bud Walton Arena, completed in 1993, to the renovated 72,000-seat Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium in 2001. He has also overseen the construction of nationally acclaimed facilities including Baum Stadium at George Cole Field, John McDonnell Field and the Fred W. and Mary B. Smith Razorback Golf Center. All of the improvements made to the athletics facilities were paid through private donations which Broyles helped raise.

The recipient of numerous awards, Broyles was a member of the inaugural class of the UA Sports Hall of Honor, was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame and was again honored by the National Football Foundation as the recipient of the John L. Toner Award for outstanding achievement as an athletics director in 2000.

In 1996, Broyles was honored with an award named in his honor, the Broyles Award, which is awarded to the country’s top assistant coach. Assistant coaches under Broyles that went on to head coaching positions have combined to win five Super Bowl titles, five national titles, more than 40 conference championships and over 2,000 victories.

On receiving word of his award, Broyles said, “Receiving the NACDA/NIT Athletics Director Award means a great deal to me, as it is conferred by peers and represents my colleagues in the profession. It has been a privilege for me to serve as athletics director at the University of Arkansas since 1973, and to be able to complete, in December, my 50th year as a Razorback. I express my deepest thanks to the selection committee for honoring me with this prestigious award.”

About the NIT. The NIT, LLC, under the umbrella of the NCAA, assumed control of the postseason NIT and the NIT Season Tip-Off Tournament in August 2005. The post season NIT was founded in 1938 by a group of New York City sportswriters, while the NIT Season Tip-Off (formerly known as the preseason NIT) started in 1985. An independent committee chooses the field for both events. Since the inception of the two tournaments, thousands of student-athletes have participated. Visit www.nit.org for more details on tournament history, selection committee and procedures.

About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 42nd year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,100 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,000 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, NACDA administers 10 professional associations for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics director.