Derrick Gragg (born November 16, 1969)"Tulsa University chooses Derrick Gragg as Athletic Director,"

KRMG-FM KRMG-FM (102.3 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Sand Springs, Oklahoma, and serving the Tulsa metropolitan area. The station is owned by Cox Media Group and airs a conservative news/talk radio format, simulcast with co-owned AM 74 ...

, March 20, 2013. is an American college athletics administrator. He is the

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches an ...

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

, a position he has held since 2021. He previously spent eight years, 2013 to 2021, as the

at the University of Tulsa, seven years, 2006 to 2013, as the athletic director at

Eastern Michigan University Eastern Michigan University (EMU, Eastern Michigan or simply Eastern), is a public research university in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Founded in 1849 as Michigan State Normal School, the school was the fourth normal school established in the United Sta ...

, six years, 2000 to 2006, as senior associate athletic director at the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

. Gragg played college football at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

, lettering as a wide receiver for the

Commodores Commodores are an American funk and soul band, which were at their peak in the late 1970s through the mid 1980s. The members of the group met as mostly freshmen at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) in 1968, and signed with Motown in ...

for four seasons, 1988 to 1991.

Early life, education and NCAA football

Gragg was born and raised in

Huntsville, Alabama Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in ...

, where he played football and basketball at Lee High School."EMU names Derrick Gragg intercollegiate athletic director,"
Eastern Michigan University, February 21, 2006. He attended

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

, and played wide receiver for the

Vanderbilt Commodores The Vanderbilt Commodores are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Vanderbilt University, located in Nashville, Tennessee. Vanderbilt fields 16 varsity teams (6 men's teams and 10 women's teams), 14 of which compete at the National ...

football team from 1988 to 1991.Princine Lewis
"Former Vanderbilt football player and author Derrick Gragg to speak Feb. 26,"
Vanderbilt.edu, February 24, 2016.Jerome Boettcher
"AD finds inspiration in Vanderbilt’s growth – on and off football field,"
''

The City Paper ''The City Paper'' (also known as ''The Nashville City Paper'') is a free, weekly newspaper that serves Nashville, Tennessee opened November 1, 2000. The newspaper will reopened under new ownership of Nashville News on January 1, 2021 ''The C ...

'', July 28, 2013. He was recruited and played for head coach

Watson Brown Watson Brown may refer to: * Watson Brown (American football) Lester Watson Brown (born April 19, 1950) is a retired American football coach and former player. He was most recently the head football coach at Tennessee Technological University, a ...

, before

Gerry DiNardo Gerard Paul DiNardo (born November 10, 1952) is a former American football player and coach. He played college football as a guard for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish where he was selected as an All-American in 1974. DiNardo served as the head f ...

took over as head coach his senior season. Gragg graduated from Vanderbilt in 1992 with a bachelor of science in human development."Vandy Proud: Derrick Gragg, BS '92,"
''Vanderbilt Magazine'', May 12, 2016. He went on to earn a master's degree in sports administration from

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

in 1999, and a doctorate in higher education administration at the

in 2004. He is a member of

Kappa Alpha Psi Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. () is a historically African American fraternity. Since the fraternity's founding on January 5, 1911 at Indiana University Bloomington, the fraternity has never restricted membership on the basis of color, creed ...

fraternity.

Career

Early academic career (1993–2006)

In 1993, Gragg was hired as an academic counselor at Vanderbilt University. Soon after he was promoted to director of student life in the athletics department. From 1995 to 1997, he was director of compliance at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus University of Missouri System. MU was founded in ...

.Matthew Costa
"An Interview With Tulsa Athletic Director, Derrick Gragg,"
Football Matters, November 17, 2015. He went on to the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, where he was an assistant athletic director from 1997 to 2000. Gragg joined the

athletic department in 2000 as an associate athletic director. In 2003, he was promoted to senior associate athletic director and then deputy director.Kyle Austin
“EMU confirms athletic director Derrick Gragg’s departure to Tulsa University,”
''

Ann Arbor News ''The Ann Arbor News'' is a newspaper serving Washtenaw and Livingston counties in Michigan. Published daily online through MLive.com, the paper also publishes print editions on Thursdays and Sundays. History Original publication Published in ...

'', March 20, 2013.

Eastern Michigan (2006–13)

On February 21, 2006, Gragg was named the new director of athletics at

Ypsilanti, Michigan Ypsilanti (), commonly shortened to Ypsi, is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 census, the city's population was 20,648. The city is bounded to the north by Superior Township and on the west, south, an ...

. At EMU, Gragg was responsible for an intercollegiate athletic program with 21 teams, 550 student-athletes and 80 staff members. Under his leadership, the Eastern Michigan Eagles totaled 24 Mid-American Conference team championships, 32 MAC Coach of the Year awards, 38 MAC Player of the Year honors and 164 individual MAC champions. Gragg also spearheaded construction of EMU's $3.9 million multipurpose indoor athletic practice facility. In March 2013, it was announced that Gragg would leave Eastern Michigan University for Tulsa University. His seven years as EMU athletic director was the longest tenure since Gene Smith oversaw the department from 1986 to 1993.

Tulsa (2013–2021)

On March 22, 2013, Gragg was officially introduced as the new vice president and athletic director at the University of Tulsa in

Tulsa, Oklahoma Tulsa () is the second-largest city in the state of Oklahoma and 47th-most populous city in the United States. The population was 413,066 as of the 2020 census. It is the principal municipality of the Tulsa Metropolitan Area, a region with ...

. He was the first Vanderbilt Commodore football alumnus to become athletic director of a major NCAA Division I university. Following a 10-year tenure in C-USA, the Golden Hurricane were upgraded to the

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (The American or AAC) is an American collegiate athletic conference, featuring 11 member universities and five affiliate member universities that compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's (NCAA) ...

(AAC) in 2014, shortly after Gragg's arrival.Jesse Keipp
"Lunch with Derrick Gragg: AD talks about 'Elevate'-ing Tulsa sports,"
''

University of Tulsa Collegian The ''Collegian'' is the official student newspaper at The University of Tulsa. It is a weekly issue in broadsheet format. The ''Collegian'' is an independently operated, edited, and written by the students apart from the administration, whi ...

'', February 9, 2015. They won four AAC championships in the 2014 season, including conference titles in men's and women's cross country and men's soccer. In the 2013–14 season, the Tulsa basketball team won 11 games in a row and earned its first NCAA tournament bid since 2003. They made the tournament again in 2016, losing in the first round both times. Over the course of his career, Gragg has been a presenter and panelist at events including the NCAA Presidential Summit, Future Coaches Academy, Champions for Athletic Director and Football Coaches, and the NCAA Annual Convention. He is a member of the

National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) is a professional organization for college and university athletic directors in the United States. NACDA boasts a membership of more than 6,100 individuals and more than 1,600 ins ...

and the

Black Coaches & Administrators The Black Coaches & Administrators (BCA) is a non-profit organization whose primary purpose is "to foster the growth and development of ethnic minorities at all levels of sports both nationally and internationally". It currently is focused on athl ...

Northwestern (2021–present)

On June 4, 2021, Gragg was named the new athletic director at

Evanston, Illinois Evanston ( ) is a city, suburb of Chicago. Located in Cook County, Illinois, United States, it is situated on the North Shore along Lake Michigan. Evanston is north of Downtown Chicago, bordered by Chicago to the south, Skokie to the west, ...

. Gragg assumed his position as the Combe Family Vice President for Athletics & Recreation on July 1, 2021.

Book

In October 2015, Gragg's book ''40 Days of Direction: Life Lessons From the Talented Ten'' was published. It relates the personal experiences of Gragg and 10 of his Commodore football teammates as African American student-athletes on the predominantly white campus of Vanderbilt University, and demonstrates how those experiences would shape their personal and professional lives, offering a blueprint for success."Inside Leadership: Derrick Gragg,"
''Athletic Management'', June/July 2016.

Honors and awards

Administrator of the Year, 2008–09 * Huntsville-Madison County (Ala.) Athletic Hall of Fame, 2010

Bibliography

*
Factors that Positively Affect Academic Performance of African-American Football Student-Athletes Who Graduate From Southeastern Conference Institutions
' (University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, 2004) * ''40 Days of Direction: Life Lessons From the Talented Ten'' (3G Publishing, 2015)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gragg, Derrick Living people 1969 births American football wide receivers Arkansas Razorbacks athletic directors Eastern Michigan Eagles athletic directors Northwestern Wildcats athletic directors Tulsa Golden Hurricane athletic directors University of Arkansas alumni University of Michigan people University of Missouri staff Vanderbilt Commodores football players Wayne State University alumni Sportspeople from Huntsville, Alabama Players of American football from Alabama African-American players of American football African-American college athletic directors in the United States