This is a list of athletic directors of the Nebraska Cornhuskers, which are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. The university is a member of the Big Ten Conference, and the Cornhuskers compete in NCAA Division I. Troy Dannen was appointed Nebraska's seventeenth full-time athletic director in March 2024 after the departure of Trev Alberts.[1]
| Athletic Director of the University of Nebraska–Lincoln | |
|---|---|
| Reports to | President of the University of Nebraska |
| Formation | 1920 |
| First holder | Fred Luehring |
In its earliest days, the Nebraska Department of Athletics had no central figure serving as the head of the department or "athletic director", and the history of how this position developed is unclear. Early on, the head of the athletics department often had only a partial or part-time role and held other titles and responsibilities. The Athletics Department was governed by the "Athletic Board", composed of faculty members and other university officials. Sometimes, the person serving as the effective head of the Athletics Department served on this board and other times he did not. The first six heads of the Athletics Department held the title "Athletics Manager," first held by Raymond G. Clapp, NU's basketball coach and a professor of physical education.[2] The first individual to hold the title "athletic director" was E. J. Stewart, who served from 1916 to 1919, while also coaching men's basketball and football during parts of his tenure.[3] However, he is not considered Nebraska's first athletic director because it was not considered a full-time administrative position by the board of regents; this designation belongs to Fred Luehring, who held the position from 1920 to 1922.[4]
Many of Nebraska's athletic directors simultaneously coached one of the university's teams. These included basketball, baseball, and swimming, but the majority of dual-role administrators were football coaches: Stewart, Fred Dawson, Dana X. Bible, Biff Jones, Glenn Presnell, Adolph J. Lewandowski, George Clark, and Bob Devaney. NU's longest-serving athletic director was Devaney, who led the department from 1967 to 1992.
List of part-time athletic managers
| No. | Athletic manager | Tenure | Other notable positions held at Nebraska |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Raymond G. Clapp | 1902–05 | Head men's basketball coach (1903–09)[5] |
| 2 | Earl Eager | 1905–11 | |
| Ewald O. Stiehm[a] | 1911–15 | Head football coach (1911–15); head men's basketball coach (1911–15) | |
| 3 | Guy Reed | 1914–18 | |
| 4 | E. J. Stewart[b] | 1916–19 | Head football coach (1916–17); head men's basketball coach (1916–19) |
| 5 | Robert Scott | 1919 | President of the athletic board[6] |
| James T. Lees[7] | 1919–20 |
List of athletic directors
| No. | Athletic director | Tenure | Other notable positions held at Nebraska |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fred Luehring[c] | 1920–22 | Head swimming coach (1921–22) |
| 2 | Fred Dawson | 1922–25 | Head football coach (1921–24) |
| 3 | Herbert D. Gish | 1928–32[d] | Assistant athletic director (1923–25)[4] |
| 4 | Dana X. Bible | 1932–36 | Head football coach (1929–36) |
| 5 | Biff Jones | 1937–42[e] | Head football coach (1937–41) |
| 6 | Adolph J. Lewandowski | 1942–47[f] | Head football coach (1943–44); head men's basketball coach (1940–45); head baseball coach (1942)[8] |
| 7 | George Clark | 1948–53 | Head football coach (1945, 1948) |
| 8 | Bill Orwig | 1954–61[g] | |
| 9 | Tippy Dye | 1962–67 | |
| 10 | Bob Devaney | 1967–92 | Head football coach (1962–72); athletic director emeritus (1992–96)[12] |
| 11 | Bill Byrne | 1992–2002[h] | |
| 12 | Steve Pederson | 2003–07 | Associate athletic director for football operations (1994–96)[15] |
| 13 | Tom Osborne[16][17] | 2007–13[i] | Head football coach (1973–97); assistant athletic director (1979–98) |
| 14 | Shawn Eichorst | 2013–17[j] | |
| 15 | Bill Moos | 2017–21[k] | |
| 16 | Trev Alberts[20] | 2021–24[l] | |
| 17 | Troy Dannen | 2024–present |