Purdue hires Mike Bobinski as next athletic director

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Purdue President Mitch Daniels and Chairman of the Board of Trustees Michael Berghoff on Tuesday (Aug. 9) announced the hiring of Mike Bobinski as the university’s new director of Intercollegiate Athletics. Bobinski has held the same position at the Georgia Institute of Technology since 2013, as well as the University of Akron and Xavier University previously.

“Today’s announcement culminates an extraordinarily long and thorough process, befitting the importance of its subject,” Daniels said. “Purdue thanks a remarkable search committee, and our Board Chairman Mike Berghoff who led it personally. Together, Mike and I have logged many miles and hours looking for the best individual to build on the terrific 23-year record of our nationally admired AD Morgan Burke. His credentials, record, values and intensely competitive desire to win convinced us that Mike Bobinski is that person.”

Bobinski has 30 years of athletic management experience, with two decades of that as an athletic director. He graduated from Notre Dame in 1979 where he played baseball before becoming a certified public accountant. After working for five years with the Walt Disney Company and large accounting firms, he started his athletic administration career at Notre Dame in 1984.

“Mike Bobinski truly understands the lasting value of college athletics in preparing young people to experience success in competition, in the classroom and most importantly in life,” Burke said. “His values match Purdue’s, and I look forward to working with him and the athletics staff in what is my ‘senior year’ to hand the baton over in a smooth and seamless transition.”

Mike Bobinski, former athletic director at Georgia Institute of Technology, takes questions from the media Tuesday (Aug. 9) at a gathering to announce his hiring at Purdue.(Purdue University photo/John Underwood) Download image

At Purdue, Bobinski will lead a program known for its academic and athletic strength. Academically, student-athletes regularly outperform the general student body, having maintained an average GPA above 3.0 for 15 consecutive semesters. Athletically, Purdue has won three straight Governor’s Cups and jumped 15 spots last year in the national Director’s Cup to rank No. 45 out of hundreds of schools. Both the volleyball and men’s basketball teams finished in the top 25 of their sport’s final national polls, and three more teams placed in the top 25 of their respective NCAA championships (men’s indoor track and field, men’s outdoor track and field, and women’s swimming and diving).

“There is lots to like about Mike,” Berghoff said. “He is competitive and expects to win. He was a student-athlete, a coach and a CPA with career experience in both industry and universities with lofty academic and athletic expectations.”

The search committee, appointed by Daniels, included: Christie Sahley, associate dean in the College of Science and a longtime Faculty Athletic Representative; Stephanie White, 1999 Purdue graduate and current head coach of the Indiana Fever; Rod Woodson, former Boilermaker, College and Pro Football Hall of Famer, and the Oakland Raiders’ assistant defensive backs coach; Purdue standout and NFL veteran Matt Light; Christa Szalach, now a senior on Purdue’s soccer team; and Nancy Cross, senior associate athletics director. 

Sources: Mitch Daniels, president@purdue.edu

Mike Berghoff, trustees@purdue.edu