Mike Buddie - Director of Intercollegiate Athletics - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Mike Buddie

Title:
Director of Intercollegiate Athletics

Mike Buddie became TCU’s ninth Director of Intercollegiate Athletics on January 1, 2025, bringing decades of leadership experience across Division I athletics. Since arriving in Fort Worth, Buddie has worked quickly to elevate TCU Athletics on the national stage.

Impact at TCU

During Buddie’s tenure, Beach Volleyball captured its first NCAA National Championship, while TCU Women’s Basketball won the Big 12 Championship and advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time in program history. Buddie secured the program’s future by extending the contracts of championship-winning head coaches Hector Gutierrez and Mark Campbell.

In November 2025, Buddie’s influence expanded beyond campus when he joined TCU Chancellor Emeritus Victor J. Boschini, Jr. as the newest members of the Armed Forces Bowl Executive Council.

Success at the United States Military Academy (West Point)

Before TCU, Buddie served more than five years as Director of Athletics at Army West Point (2019-24), where he guided Army Athletics to historic success. The Black Knights’ football program earned a College Football Playoff ranking in 2024, winning a program-record 12 games, tying the best single-season mark for any service academy.

Buddie also launched the “Fruits of Victory” strategic plan in September 2023, strengthening the cadet-athlete experience and enhancing leadership development. His tenure included major facilities investments, highlighted by the $170 million Michie Stadium Preservation Project, the largest private gift-funded construction initiative in West Point history.

He secured football-only membership in the American Conference in 2024, where Army went undefeated in its debut season and won the league championship while remaining a contender for the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy. The Black Knights won or shared the CIC Trophy in three of Buddie’s five seasons.

Buddie played a central role in Army West Point’s television contract with CBS, expanded bowl partnerships, extended a long-term deal with Nike, and served nationally as Chair of the Division I Baseball Committee. He also retained top coaching talent, extending contracts for head football coach Jeff Monken and several Patriot League Coach of the Year award-winners.

Leadership at Furman University and Wake Forest

Before West Point, Buddie spent four years as Director of Athletics at Furman (2015-19), where he negotiated a major Nike partnership, delivered the school’s first balanced athletics budget, and helped return the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament to Upstate South Carolina in 2017. He secured significant financial gifts, including three separate $1 million endowments, and oversaw 26 Southern Conference Championships.
Earlier in his career, Buddie spent a decade at Wake Forest as senior associate athletic director for administration and development (2003-15). He supervised multiple sports, including baseball, women’s soccer, and men’s golf, and worked closely with the football and men’s basketball programs.

Playing Career and Education

A 1993 Wake Forest graduate with a degree in communications, Buddie was a standout pitcher for the Demon Deacons. He was selected by the New York Yankees in the fourth round of the 1992 MLB Draft and went on to pitch for the Yankees and Milwaukee Brewers from 1998 to 2002. He was a member of the Yankees’ 1998 World Series Championship team.

Personal

Mike Buddie and his wife, Traci, are the proud parents of two children, Zachary and Zoe.

In the Media