Staff Directory
Kirby Hocutt
- Title:
- Director of Athletics
Kirby Hocutt, a NACDA 2018 Under Armour Athletics Director of the Year, has guided the Texas Tech athletics department to unprecedented success since being named the 13th Director of Athletics in school history on March 2, 2011.
Under his leadership the past decade-plus, Texas Tech has developed into one of the nation’s elite athletics programs, a tenure highlighted by unprecedented revenue growth, significant investments into the student-athlete experience and a transformation of athletic facilities. Hocutt, the second-longest tenured athletics director in school history, has been at the helm during Texas Tech’s most-successful period in school history where all 17 athletic programs have competed in the NCAA postseason or a bowl game with eight teams finishing in the top eight nationally of their respective sports.
Texas Tech’s success under Hocutt has only been complimented by an athletic profile with a list of achievements such as:
SUCCESS IN COMPETITION
Texas Tech’s programs have not only competed but advanced deep into the postseason throughout Hocutt’s tenure as eight teams – men’s basketball, baseball, softball, men’s track and field (indoor and outdoor), women’s track and field (indoor and outdoor), women’s tennis, women’s golf and men’s golf – have all finished among the top-eight teams in the country for their respective sports. Of that group, the Red Raider men’s track and field program captured the 2024 NCAA Indoor National Championship behind a complete team performance and strong showing in the 4x400-meter relay to cap the meet.
Texas Tech has claimed 27 Big 12 Conference titles under Hocutt, including 10 from men’s track and field, six in women’s tennis, three in baseball, two in soccer, softball and women’s track and field and one in both men’s basketball and men’s tennis. Texas Tech is coming off a school record eight Big 12 titles during the 2024-25 athletic year, which led all conference schools and marked the most in school history.
Texas Tech swept the 2025 Big 12 indoor and outdoor track and field titles on both the men’s and women’s sides, continuing its reign as one of the top programs in the country under longtime head coach Wes Kittley. Texas Tech also claimed the regular season and tournament trophies in both women’s tennis and softball this past spring.
For softball, the two Big 12 titles were the start of an unforgettable journey as the Red Raiders advanced to the championship series of the Women’s College World Series under first-year head coach Gerry Glasco. It was the first trip to Oklahoma City in school history for the Red Raiders, who finished as the national runner-up behind All-American pitcher NiJaree Canady.
Glasco is one of several notable coaching hires Hocutt has made at Texas Tech, joining the trio of football coach Joey McGuire, men’s basketball coach Grant McCasland and baseball coach Tim Tadlock. Under Tadlock, the Texas Tech baseball program advanced to the College World Series for the first time in school history in 2014 and has since made three return trips to Omaha in 2016, 2018 and 2019. The Red Raiders are a mainstay atop the college baseball world, staying near the top of the national rankings with eight total NCAA Regional appearances under Tadlock.
McGuire, meanwhile, has captivated the Red Raider fan base in only three seasons with an enthusiastic energy that has been matched by Texas Tech’s performance on the field. McGuire is only the second head coach in program history to lead the Red Raiders to a bowl appearance in each of his first three seasons and will look to add to expand on his success during the 2025 football season backed by a roster of key returners mixed in with the top transfer portal class in the country. In addition, Texas Tech has finished with a winning Big 12 record in each of his three seasons, joining Kansas State as the only league schools to do so, regardless of conference affiliation.
On the court, the Red Raiders are coming off their third appearance in the NCAA Elite Eight round during Hocutt’s tenure as Texas Tech fell to eventual national champion Florida to end the 2024-25 season. The Red Raiders have earned a spot in the NCAA Tournament in both of McCasland’s two seasons, further demonstrating Texas Tech’s standing as one of the top college basketball jobs in the country.
In addition, United Supermarkets Arena has developed into one of the nation’s top homecourt advantages in recent years, matching the Red Raiders’ performance on the court. Texas Tech captivated the nation’s attention and came within seconds of a national title in 2019 as part of its first-ever trip to the Final Four. The Red Raiders, who advanced to the Elite Eight round just a year before, also claimed the program’s first-ever Big 12 regular-season crown as part of their historic run.
Texas Tech’s success athletically was highlighted by a top-15 showing in the 2017-18 Capital One Cup men’s standings and a top-five finish for the 2018-19 academic year. Texas Tech ranked as the top men’s program in the state of Texas following both years and posted its highest two finishes all-time in the Capital One Cup.
RESPECT THE PAST, INVENT THE FUTURE
Not long into Hocutt’s tenure, Texas Tech unveiled in August 2014 the first athletics-specific fundraising campaign in university history: The Campaign for Fearless Champions. The campaign included four components – to enhance athletic facilities, invest in the athletics scholarship endowment, grow the J.T. and Margaret Talkington Department of Student-Athlete Development and provide for the future of Texas Tech Athletics. The more than $500 million initiative ultimately benefited all 17 Texas Tech programs as the most-successful fundraising initiative in athletics history.
It's part of a key component of the Texas Tech athletics department under Hocutt: respecting the past, all while inventing the future.
Soon after the campaign’s launch, Hocutt and Hall of Fame Coach Marsha Sharp created the Talkington Department of Student-Athlete Development to help prepare student-athletes for success after graduation. The department focuses on many life skills for student-athletes such as resume building, etiquette training, interview skills and leadership development. Since its inception in 2014, Texas Tech has been able to mentor thousands of student-athletes through programming such as the Suited for Success series and various internship opportunities across the country.
The student-athlete experience has been a key priority under Hocutt’s leadership as Texas Tech opened the Cash Family Sports Nutrition Center in February 2020. The state-of-the-art facility is the day-to-day dining location for the university’s more than 400 student-athletes, offering on-site meal preparations, a 220-person seating capacity as well as the Dean and Christi Quinn Education Kitchen for Texas Tech’s nutritional staff to educate student-athletes on proper cooking prep and storage.
As part of The Campaign for Fearless Champions, Hocutt provided the vision and the plans to build the $48 million Sports Performance Center, which opened in the fall of 2017. The world-class facility houses an indoor track and field competition venue and the Petersen Family Indoor Practice Facility along with sports medicine, nutrition and strength and conditioning areas.
Texas Tech officially opened the Dustin R. Womble Basketball Center in May 2021, a $32.2 million, nearly 59,000-square-foot training facility for the Red Raider and Lady Raider basketball programs. The facility is easily among the finest in college athletics, providing both programs with their own practice courts as well as a 6,500-square-foot strength and conditioning area, one of the largest of its kind in the NCAA that is on-par with similar team headquarters in the NBA. Texas Tech’s final investment in the facility was the mounting of video boards in both gyms, making the Womble Center the only practice facility in the country at the time with interactive video boards.
Texas Tech closed The Campaign for Fearless Champions with its most-significant investment into Jones AT&T Stadium to date with the completion of the $242 million South End Zone Building and Dustin R. Womble Football Center that opened during the 2024 season. The facility – boasting the iconic Double T scoreboard atop four levels – is the largest contiguous football complex in the country, providing McGuire and his staff with substantial investments in player development and recovery as the new day-to-day headquarters for the Red Raiders. Already labeled as one of the top facilities nationally, the South End Zone Building connects to the Womble Football Center and Sports Performance Center, combining for more than 340,000 square feet of space with a blend of world-class modern design and technology elements.
WELCOME TO THE THREE STRIPE LIFE
Texas Tech launched a historic 10-year partnership with adidas in July 2024 to align the Double T with not only the global apparel and footwear provider but also Texas Tech alumnus Patrick Mahomes II. Under this partnership, Texas Tech will utilize not only the adidas logo but also Mahomes’ signature Gladiator logo, marking the first time an adidas athlete partner’s logo has been featured on official collegiate apparel.
SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM
Texas Tech student-athletes have excelled in the classroom under Hocutt’s watch, raising the bar multiple times in terms of the highest term and cumulative grade-point averages in school history. Texas Tech student-athletes have combined for at least a 3.0 GPA over 21-consecutive semesters through the 2025 spring term. During this span, student-athletes have set new school records for the highest semester and cumulative GPAs in history.
ON THE NATIONAL LEVEL
Throughout his tenure at Texas Tech, Hocutt has been prominent on several national committees, possibly none more recognizable than his role on the College Football Playoff Selection Committee. Hocutt was named to the CFP Selection Committee in 2015 and served as the committee chairman during the 2016-17 seasons. The CFP Selection Committee was responsible for selecting the top four teams in the playoff at the time while also placing the next group of teams in the remaining New Year’s bowls. Hocutt also wrapped a five-year stint as a member of the NCAA Baseball Committee following the 2023 season.
Hocutt’s success at Texas Tech was recognized in March 2018 as he was named an Under Armour Athletics Director of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). Hocutt was one of four sitting athletics directors at the NCAA FBS level to win the prestigious award.
PERSONAL
Hocutt arrived at Texas Tech following three years at the University of Miami (Fla.) where he was named Athletics Director on Feb. 8, 2008. He previously earned his first opportunity as an NCAA Division I athletics director at Ohio University in 2005 at only the age of 33.
A native of Sherman, Texas, Hocutt also served stints in the athletics departments at Kansas State (1996-97) and the University of Oklahoma (1998-2005). Prior to his time at Oklahoma, Hocutt was the coordinator of licensing at the National Collegiate Athletic Association. He began his sports administration career as the assistant director of marketing and promotions at his alma mater, Kansas State.
A former football student-athlete at Kansas State, Hocutt was a four-year letterman at linebacker and led the Big 8 Conference in tackles as a junior in 1993. Hocutt, who was elected captain his senior year, was named to the All-Big 8 Conference team following his junior season. The Sporting News selected him in 1993 as one of the nation's top-20 “most underrated” players.
Hocutt earned his bachelor's degree from Kansas State in 1995 and his master’s of education degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2001. He and his wife, Diane, have two sons – Drew Phillips and Brooks Ryan. Drew is a Texas Tech graduate and was a three-year member of the Red Raider football program from 2022-24. Brooks is currently a student at Texas Tech.
THE KIRBY HOCUTT FILE
Date announced as Director of Athletics: March 2, 2011
Birthdate: Nov. 19, 1971
Hometown: Sherman, Texas
Bachelor’s of Science Degree: Political Science, Kansas State University, 1995
Master of Education: University of Oklahoma, 2001
Wife: Diane
Sons: Drew Phillips and Brooks Ryan
CAREER TIMELINE
1995-96 – Internship, College Football Association
1996-97 – Assistant Director of Marketing and Promotions, Kansas State University
1997-98 – Licensing Coordinator, National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
1998-2005 – Associate A.D. for External Operations and Sports Administration, University of Oklahoma
2005-08 – Director of Athletics, Ohio University
2008-11 – Director of Athletics, University of Miami (Fla.)
2011-Present – Director of Athletics, Texas Tech University
NOTEWORTHY AWARDS/ADMINISTRATIVE COMMITTEES (past and present)
- Big 12 Athletics Director Executive Committee, 2025-present
- NCAA Division I Baseball Committee, 2019-23
- Finalist for Athletics Director of the Year (Sports Business Journal), 2020
- USA Football Development Model Council, 2019
- NACDA Under Armour Athletics Director of the Year, 2018
- College Football Playoff Selection Committee Chairman, 2016-17
- College Football Playoff Selection Committee, 2015-17
- Chairman, NCAA Division I Football Recruiting Subcommittee, 2013-15
- Big 12 Representative, NCAA Division I Leadership Council, 2012-15
- NCAA Division I Athletic Directors Association Executive Committee
- Named to Street & Smith’s SportsBusiness Journal’s Forty Under 40 Award in 2010
- Orange Bowl Committee, 2009-11
TEXAS TECH'S ALL-TIME ATHLETICS DIRECTORS
2011-current - Kirby Hocutt
1996-2011 - Gerald Myers
1993-96 - Bob Bockrath
1985-93 - T. Jones
1980-85 - John Conley
1978-80 - Dick Tamburo
1970-78 - J.T. King
1960-70 - Polk Robison
1952-60 - DeWitt Weaver
1941-51 - Morley Jennings
1930-40 - Pete Cawthon
1927-29 - Grady Higgenbotham
1925-27 - E.Y. Freeland
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