Brian Mann is entering his fourth year as William & Mary’s Director of Athletics. He was named the university’s AD on June 23, 2021, and began his tenure at W&M on Aug. 9, 2021.
He is responsible for the daily operations of the Athletics Department and its more than 500 student-athletes and 120 coaches and staff. He oversees the university's 23 Division I varsity sports, which compete in the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA).
During the 2023-24 year, Tribe Athletics scored a number of triumphs:
- Won two conference championships
- Hired three new head coaches
- Successfully completed the All In fundraising campaign
- Launched the new Excel program to focus on the personal and leadership development of student-athletes
- Made great progress on the renovation and improvement of Kaplan Arena
- Dedicated Jill Ellis Field and the 1987 Women’s Soccer Team Training Center
- Ranked as the No. 1 public university for perfect multiyear APR scores
Women’s tennis scored a three-peat as CAA Champions. Their school-record tying 14-match win streak came to an end at the hands of the Wisconsin Badgers in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Head Coach Jessica Giuggioli was named CAA Coach of the Year for the third straight year.
Field hockey won the CAA tournament and then defeated Sacred Heart in the first round of the NCAA tournament before falling to eventual champion North Carolina.
Three new coaches joined Tribe Athletics in the past year. Brian Earl, formerly the head coach at Cornell, is the new head Men’s Basketball coach. Rob McCoy is the new skipper for W&M Baseball, coming to the Tribe from Niagara. Joining the Tribe as the head coach for Women’s Lacrosse is Kelyn Freedman, who was previously at Towson.
The
All In campaign exceeded its $55 million goal with a grand total of $57.2 million raised, including $13.2 million for scholarships, thanks to an outpouring of support from 11,206 donors. Of those donors, 3,280 gave to athletics for the first time and 2,310 donors made their first gift ever to W&M. Nearly $3.4 million was secured for the Athletics Impact Fund, which gave immediate-use funds to teams, programs and areas facing pressing needs.
The New Excel program, designed to enhance student-athletes’ personal development during their college years, finished its inaugural year. W&M’s student-athletes are involved with Excel from the moment they step on campus to the day they receive their diplomas. This comprehensive program provides numerous opportunities to develop their leadership skills and to ensure they are ready to start their professional careers upon graduation.
Renovations in Kaplan Arena, funded by the
All In campaign, took a major step forward and resulted in an enhanced gameday experience. An impressive new video board, lighting and sound system, plus a new weight room and refurbished locker rooms, debuted to the delight of both fans and student-athletes. Plans for the Mackesy Sports Performance Center (MSPC) — the crown jewel of the W&M Athletics Complex, are also taking shape.
Jill Ellis Field, a completely new turf field, was installed on campus, along with the new 1987 Women's Soccer Team Training Center. With a new scoreboard and lights, night practices and games are possible for varsity and rec sports. The new field honors Ellis. A legendary Tribe soccer player who had a stellar career as a head coach at the Division 1 level and as the head coach for the U.S. National Women’s Team, which won back-to-back FIFA World Cups in 2015 and 2019.
The Tribe ranked No. 1 nationally among all public universities in perfect multiyear Academic Progress Rate (APR) scores. The APR is calculated on a team basis, with scholarship student-athletes earning points for remaining eligible and staying in school or graduating. Tribe programs garnered 12 Public Recognition Awards, which go to teams earning multiyear APRS in the top 10% of all squads in their sport. The Tribe’s 12 were the most in the CAA, state of Virginia and among all Division I public universities in the country.
Tribe student-athletes achieved a GPA of 3.4 during the Spring 2024 semester and for the second consecutive year all 21 programs had a semester GPA above 3.0.
Other athletics highlights include:
- 7 student-athletes were named All-Americans
- 2 student-athletes were named CAA Player of the Year
- 1 student-athlete was named CAA Rookie of the Year
While he joined W&M Athletics in 2021, Mann is not a newcomer to William & Mary. "Many years ago, I toured the campus with a friend. I fell in love right then and I've been keeping an eye on William & Mary ever since," he said.
The impact of a student-athlete's experience is intensely personal, said Mann. "While my parents weren't able to secure their degrees, they instilled in their five children the importance of higher education. I know how difficult it is to earn a college degree, especially at an institution with such rigorous standards. Being a former student-athlete, I also understand the commitment, discipline and hard work the Tribe's student-athletes demonstrate every day."
A seasoned athletics administrator, Mann has more than 20 years of experience in intercollegiate athletics, the private sector and professional sports. Prior to W&M, he was the senior associate athletics director at the University of California, Berkeley.
As chief development officer/senior associate athletics director at UC Berkeley, Mann was the architect for the athletics department's $350 million portion of the university's $6 billion campaign. He helped orchestrate a $12.5 million gift to create a new student-athlete development program, a $10.8 million bequest in support of women's athletics and the first-ever head coach endowment for a women's sport at Berkeley. He had sport oversight of the men's basketball team and was a key contributor to the department's ongoing strategic plan.
Prior to his stint at UC Berkeley, Mann was chief development officer and senior associate athletics director at Rice, where he was responsible for all fundraising for the Owls' athletics programs. He also was the single contact between athletics and the office of admission for all 16 sports.
Mann got his start in athletics at Dartmouth College, his alma mater, where he served as director of football operations and began his work in fundraising. Mann holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Dartmouth, where he played quarterback and still holds the single season passing record. His 5,912 career passing yards are third on the Big Green's all-time list. Before beginning his career in academia, Mann played professional football for the L.A. Avengers of the Arena Football League.
He and his wife Hilary have two young sons, Russell and Henry. They reside in Williamsburg.
