Kirby Hocutt will be the keynote speaker for the 45th Annual School of Banking dinner slated for Thursday, Aug. 16 at the Overton Hotel and Conference Center.
Kirby Hocutt has served as Texas Tech's athletic director since March 2, 2011. Since taking over as the university's 13th athletic director, Hocutt has guided Texas Tech athletics to one of the most successful periods in history the past two academic years, with six Big 12 titles and 14 of 17 intercollegiate sports advancing to the NCAA postseason.
During his tenure, Texas Tech has secured nine Big 12 conference titles (four in women's tennis, two in baseball and one in men's tennis, men's soccer and men's track and field), 49 NCAA team postseason appearances and three football bowl games.
He started the first athletics-specific fundraising campaign in university history, called The Campaign for Fearless Champions. Part of the campaign funded the Sports Performance Center, which opened its doors in 2017 and houses an indoor track and field and football practice facility.
Hocutt served as a member of the College Football Selection Committee for the past three years, with the last two of his three-year term spent as chair of the committee.
In 2018, Hocutt was named the Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. In the past, he was also awarded the Street & Smith's SportsBusiness Journal, "Forty Under 40 Award," as one of the most promising young executives in sports business.
A Sherman, Texas native, Hocutt joined Texas Tech after serving as athletic director
for the University of Miami from 2008 to 2011 and Ohio University from 2005 to 2008.
Hocutt also served in the athletics departments at Kansas State and the University
of Oklahoma. Prior to that, he 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 University.
A former football student-athlete at Kansas State, Hocutt was a four-year letterman at linebacker while leading the Big 8 Conference in tackles as a junior in 1993. He was elected captain his senior year and named to the All-Big 8 Conference team following his junior season.
Hocutt earned his bachelor's degree from Kansas State in 1995 and his masters of education degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2001. He and his wife, Diane, have two sons – Drew Phillips (15) and Brooks Ryan (13).
Read Kirby Hocutt's official bio here.
To learn more about the School of Banking, visit the school's webpage here or contact Stephanie Bohn at stephanie.bohn@ttu.edu.