Gene Taylor Named 2012 Under Armour FCS Central Region Athletics Director of the Year

DALLAS, Texas—North Dakota State University of Director of Athletics Gene Taylor was one of 29 winners as the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) announced the Under Armour AD of the Year Award (ADOY) recipients.

Taylor, who received the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Central Region honor, was one of four FCS winners recognized. This is his second Under Armour Athletics Director of the Year Award, winning previously in 2008.

Taylor will receive his award during the James J. Corbett Awards Luncheon on Wednesday, June 27 at NACDA's 47th Annual Convention at the Hilton Anatole Hotel in Dallas, Texas.

Taylor has been a man on a mission and has Bison athletics on the move in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, the Summit League and Western Wrestling Conference.

Since starting at NDSU in 2001, Taylor has successfully guided the department through a reclassification from Division II to Division I.

The Bison football team won the 2011 FCS National Championship in their second playoff appearance. The NDSU men’s basketball, women’s volleyball and softball programs have qualified for NCAA national tournaments capped off by softball advancing to the 2009 Super Regional.

Individuals representing the Bison women’s golf, track and field, and wrestling teams have competed at NCAA championships.

At the conclusion of the 2011-12 season, North Dakota State earned its first Summit League Commissioner's Cup with a total of 111.5 points. NDSU also claimed the top spot for the Dr. Helen Smiley Women's All-Sports Award. The Bison won both the overall and women's awards after placing among the top-five in every women's sport in which it competes. NDSU won a total of six championships in women's cross country, volleyball, women's indoor track & field, softball and men's and women's outdoor track & field. NDSU also took second in men's cross country, women's soccer and women's golf.

The NDSU athletics budget has tripled from $5 million in Taylor’s first year to $15 million, while the scholarship endowment has grown to $11.2 million, and Team Makers booster club support has went from $750,000 to $2.3 million.

The athletics program is two-thirds of the way in the $32 million Building the Competitive Edge campaign to construct the Sanford Health Athletic Complex.

Taylor came to NDSU after a 15-year stint at the United States Naval Academy in athletics administration. He recently began a four-year term on the FCS ADA Executive Committee in 2011. This is Taylor’s second Athletics Director of the Year Award, winning previously in 2008.

Taylor and his wife, Cathy, are the parents of a daughter, Casey, and a son, Jared.

Winners of the 2011-12 Under Armour AD of the Year Awards are:   

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. Special Selection Committees composed of current and former directors of athletics, present and past NCAA and NAIA presidents, 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 Web site at www.nacda.com.

Under Armour (NYSE: UA): is a leading developer, marketer, and distributor of branded performance apparel, footwear, and accessories. The brand's moisture-wicking synthetic fabrications are engineered in many different designs and styles for wear in nearly every climate to provide a performance alternative to traditional natural fiber products. The Company's products are sold worldwide and worn by athletes at all levels, from youth to professional, on playing fields around the globe. The Under Armour global headquarters is in Baltimore, Maryland, with European headquarters in Amsterdam's Olympic Stadium, and additional offices in Denver, Hong Kong, Toronto, and Guangzhou, China. For further information, please visit the Company's Web site at www.underarmour.com.

About NACDA:  NACDA, now in its 47th year, is the professional and educational association for more than 6,500 college athletics administrators at more than 1,600 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 2,200 athletics administrators annually attend the NACDA Convention. Additionally, NACDA administers 12 professional associations, including six for the separate business units that report directly to the athletics directors and two foundations.  For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com.