Xavier University Athletics
Mike Bobinski Is Back As Xavier Athletic Director
07.24.06 | General
July 24, 2006
Xavier University announced that Associate Vice President Mike Bobinski will be Xavier's new Director for Athletics, removing the interim tag that was in place since June 1. This is actually a return engagement for Bobinski, who came to Xavier in 1998 as Athletic Director and served in that position until his move to the development office in June 2004.
"Over the past two months it became evident to me and (University President) Fr. Michael Graham that Mike is the very best person to lead our athletic department to new heights in the future," said Administrative Vice President John Kucia. "Mike is clearly energized by this opportunity. Fr. Graham and I are equally excited about the future of our athletic program under Mike's leadership."
During Bobinski's previous tenure, Xavier's athletic teams won nine Atlantic 10 Championships and competed in 19 NCAA tournament events. He hired Thad Matta as the men's basketball coach in 2001 and Sean Miller as Xavier's first associate head coach. Matta is now head coach at The Ohio State University and Miller is head coach at Xavier. Bobinski also hired women's basketball coach Kevin McGuff and oversaw the opening of the Cintas Center. He served on the NCAA Division I Management Council and as president of the Division I-AAA Athletic Directors Association in 2002-2003.
"Xavier athletics remained a passion for me and I'm grateful for the opportunity to rejoin our talented student-athletes, coaches and staff as we work together to advance the athletic program," said Bobinski. "With the help and support of our loyal alumni and fans, there's much to be accomplished in the years ahead."
Bobinski has called himself a non-traditional athletic director who came to intercollegiate athletics more than 20 years ago from the business world, not the playing field or coaching arena. Before coming to Xavier he was the athletic director at the University of Akron, and prior to that, he was the associate director of athletics at the U.S. Naval Academy. There he oversaw all business operations, capital projects, fund raising and daily operations of the football and basketball programs.
Before moving to the Naval Academy, Bobinski, 48, was associate and assistant business manager at the University of Notre Dame from 1984 to 1989. A native of Yaphank on Long Island, N.Y., Bobinski received his bachelor of business administration from Notre Dame in 1979, graduating magna cum laude.
As a licensed certified public accountant, he first went into accounting with Arthur Young & Company and Deloitte, Haskins and Sells. He also worked for the Walt Disney Company in Orlando before moving into college athletics. As associate vice president for development from 2004-06, Bobinski oversaw all fund-raising efforts for Xavier University including planned giving, annual giving, major gifts, capital campaigns, grant services and internal operations.
Bobinski and his wife, Sil, have two children, Melissa, 19, who just completed her freshman year at Xavier, and Brian, 17. They live in Mason, Ohio.
