Doug Woolard assumes command of the University of South Florida Department of Athletics at a moment in time that is pivotal in the school's athletic history. With a successful launch of football already in place, USF will emerge as a player in the BIG EAST Conference in 2005. Woolard's leadership role is one he is fit to assume and one in which he has experience.
In October 1994, Woolard assumed leadership of the Saint Louis University Department of Athletics as its Director and guided the program through a historic period that included the school's inclusion as a founding member of Conference USA, and more recently its acceptance of membership in the Atlantic 10 Conference.
While overseeing a department that was progressive in its competitive success, Woolard also proved to be a large asset in a community, that like Tampa Bay, presents the challenge of finding a niche with professional football, baseball and hockey in the market.
The Saint Louis men's basketball team has consistently ranked among the top 30 in the nation in annual attendance during Woolard's decade at the helm. Three times, the program was among the nation's top 10, peaking with an average attendance of 17,708. Further, the men's soccer program at Saint Louis is consistently in the nation's top 10 in attendance by averaging over 2,800 fans a game in a stadium that was constructed for the men and women's teams under Woolard's watch.
Further enhancing the community partnership, Woolard has remained committed to bringing all Billiken athletic events back on campus. In addition to constructing a new soccer stadium, Saint Louis has added a new softball facility and nine new tennis courts on campus. Planning and fundraising are now underway to construct a $70 million on-campus multi-purpose facility where Saint Louis can play its men and women's basketball games
Woolard's leadership has extended beyond competitive success and a strong community setting into an ultra-successful academic environment. Saint Louis student-athletes have not only been the frontrunner among their Conference USA peers, but they have developed an outstanding reputation nationally for their achievement.
Saint Louis student-athletes achieved a 69% graduation rate in 2002-03, the highest in Conference USA, and the University won the league's institutional academic excellence award for the eighth straight season, representing every season in C-USA history.
To achieve the many successes at Saint Louis over the past decade, Woolard has kept a keen eye on the financial foundation of the program. He added the first-ever in-house development director to the program to maximize the revenue streams for an NCAA Division I program. He also negotiated the Billikens' first department-wide shoe and apparel contract with Nike and he renegotiated a radio and television syndication package that enhanced the school's revenue base. The television package included locally televised games for men's and women's soccer and volleyball.
While maintaining an outstanding department at Saint Louis, Woolard has also become a prominent figure on national committees. He is a past chair of the Conference USA directors of athletics committee and he also served as the league's representative on the NCAA Academic/Eligibility/Compliance (AEC) Cabinet, where he chaired the amateurism and agents subcommittee. Woolard has also served as C-USA's alternate to the NCAA Management Council, the most powerful committee in the NCAA governance structure.
Prior to joining Saint Louis, Woolard worked for the nationally respected Jim Livengood at Washington State University. Under Livengood, who is now the Director of Athletics at Arizona and a past chair of the NCAA Men's Basketball Committee, Woolard was the associate director for external operations from 1989-94 after one year (1988-89) as an assistant director of athletics.
While at Washington State, Woolard was a key member of the senior management staff that oversaw a successful football program, and he played a prominent role in the entire department's relationship with the community.
Woolard and his wife, Cherrie, have two children, Chris and Amy.
