Don Coryell was named the Director of Athletics at Texas State on September 1, 2021, and he is in his 21st year overall with the athletic department. A former student-athlete with an extensive administrative career in external affairs and focus on the student-athlete experience, Coryell oversees all aspects of Texas State Athletics, including its 16 varsity sports, 350+ student-athletes and 100+ person staff.
In the summer of 2023, Coryell and Texas State Athletics unveiled the department’s strategic plan with a focus on competitive excellence, student-athlete success, fan engagement, revenue generation, and brand recognition.
Under Coryell’s guidance, Texas State has reached new heights in competitive excellence – and set the stage for even more in the years to come. Over the last three years, Texas State has won the Sun Belt’s 2021-22 Bubas Cup, captured four conference team championships, made seven NCAA postseason appearances as teams and individuals, and brought home the football program’s first ever bowl win as an FBS team.
While the Bobcats have enjoyed a tremendous amount of competitive success, Texas State student-athletes have also improved in the classroom since the start of the 2021-22 academic year. The Bobcats posted their best NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) with the most recent data released in December 2023. Five sports had GSRs higher than the national rate while four had perfect GSRs.
The Bobcats also had a department-wide GPA of 3.00 in the spring 2023 semester, highlighted by 199 student-athletes earning a 3.0 GPA or higher. Nine different teams had a team GPA of 3.0 or higher.
Fan engagement has made a quick turnaround under Coryell. Texas State has seen record attendance numbers in the last three years across multiple sports. Football had its best total attendance in Bobcat Stadium history in 2023 and registered its fifth- and 10th-best crowds ever. Baseball had a record total attendance in 2022 – only to be surpassed the following season in 2023. Meanwhile, volleyball and softball have posted some of their program’s best attendance figures for an entire season during Coryell’s tenure.
Another focus point for Texas State recently has been improving facilities for all student-athletes. The Bobcats have successfully fundraised $37 million for the Johnny and Nathali Weisman Football Performance Center and William Trevillion IV Weight Room at Bobcat Stadium. The renovation and expansion of the existing football complex is currently under construction and is set to be complete by 2025.
Texas State is also actively working towards facility enhancements for the baseball and softball programs with the $8 million expansion project of Bobcat Ballpark as well as an indoor practice facility that can be used by all student-athletes.
Coryell has also made several key head coaching hires in his time leading the Bobcats, including football coach GJ Kinne, women’s soccer coach Steve Holeman, director of track and field/cross country John Frazier, and women’s tennis coach Kendall Brooks.
Kinne, the most recent hire of the group, took the Bobcats to one of the program’s most successful seasons in his first year at helm in 2023. Texas State, behind the mantra “Take Back Texas,” won an FBS program record eight games and captured its first bowl game with a 24-point takedown of Rice in the SERVPRO First Responder Bowl in Dallas. The game experienced a record attendance and TV viewership thanks to the Bobcats first ever appearance in a bowl game.
While Kinne lifted Texas State football, Holeman, Frazier and Brooks each have re-energized their programs since taking over. Holeman and Texas State soccer had their best season in seven years during his first year in 2022 and have put together back-to-back winning campaigns. Frazier has led the Bobcats earn three All-America honors, two All-America honorable mentions, three runner-up finishes in the conference indoor and outdoor seasons, and more than 30 appearances in the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field West preliminaries. Brooks, in her first year as the head coach in 2023, led the tennis team to its most wins since 2017.
A veteran in athletic administration, Coryell previously served as the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director for External Operations at Texas State from 2004 to 2021. He was responsible for the athletic department's marketing and promotional campaigns, ticket and sale operations, facilities and game operations, university licensing, several suite accounts, corporate partnerships and community relations. He was also the sport administrator for Bobcat soccer, men's basketball, track and field, men’s golf, women’s golf, and the Strutters. In addition, Coryell served as the executive director of the “T” Association, Texas State’s Athletic Alumni Organization.
Coryell, a former standout basketball player at Lamar, arrived at Texas State after serving as the Assistant Athletic Director for Development at his alma mater from 1999 to 2004. The Beaumont native was responsible for all external affairs at Lamar, including fundraising, marketing, promotions, sponsorships and community relations. Additionally, he served as executive director of the Cardinal Club, the booster group for Lamar Athletics.
Prior to returning to Lamar as an administrator, Coryell spent one season playing professional basketball in Ireland for the Dungannon Flyers. He was an All-Star in his lone campaign and headed clinics for students from ages 5-18 at over 40 campuses.
A 1998 graduate of Lamar with a bachelor's degree in corporate communication, Coryell was named the team's most valuable player following his senior season. He played two years at Lamar after transferring from Angelina Junior College, where he was a 1996 Academic All-American. He received his Master’s of Education in Sports Administration from Concordia University in Austin.
Coryell is involved in several community organizations in the Central Texas area including participating as a Board of Director for the Hays County Heart Walk. He and his wife Marci, have a son, Dylan, and a daughter, Myra.
