UNIVERSITY PARK — Pat Kraft, Penn State’s Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics, was announced as one of the five finalists for Sports Business Journal’s Athletic Director of the Year award.
Kraft took his role in July of 2022 and has worked tirelessly to improve Penn State Athletics since. In an era of constant change with NIL, Roster limits and scholarships, being an athletic director in today’s world is not an easy task.
The most notable of his achievements this year was the overseeing of a $700 million renovation to Beaver Stadium set to be completed in 2027.
Recently, Kraft also helped sell the naming rights to the field in Beaver Stadium. Thanks to a $50 million gift from West Shore Homes, the field is now known as West Shore Home Field at Beaver Stadium through the 2039 season.
Outside of football, Kraft helped lead Penn State to No. 3 nationally in the fall Learfield Directors’ Cup standings, leading the Big Ten. This is also the highest finish for Penn State since Kraft assumed his role.
A large part of this was the women’s volleyball national championship the Nittany Lions won in December. This was the first national title for the volleyball team in 10 years and Katie Schumacher-Cawley became the first female head coach to win a Division I women’s volleyball championship.
With elite Penn State sports such as wrestling and lacrosse still in full swing, more championships could be on the horizon.
Kraft is joined by Tennessee’s Danny White, Boise State’s Jeremiah Dickey, Iowa State’s Jamie Pollard and Vanderbilt’s Candice Storey Lee. The winner will be announced on Wednesday, May 21, in New York City by the Sports Business Journal.
