MIKE ALDEN

“AUGUST A. BUSCH JR. AWARD”

Orchestrating the most comprehensive run of athletic and academic success in school history, Mike Alden has been at the helm of Missouri athletics since 1998

History-making landmarks have occurred each year under Alden’s watch. While each event has been significant, few were as impactful as Missouri’s transition into the Southeastern Conference in 2012.

Alden is a former student-athlete, coach and current president of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics. With family roots in Central Missouri, he has always understood the importance of Mizzou to the entire state of Missouri. The university’s move to the SEC has resulted in record-breaking facility growth, ticket sales and fan/alumni interest.

In 2013-14 Missouri began its second season in the SEC and comes after 14-of-20 sport programs advanced to NCAA postseason play. Mizzou maintained its competitive excellence in its first season in the SEC and Tiger student-athletes continued to soar in the classroom. They ranked among the SEC leaders in both graduation success rates and academic progress rates.

That surge is in stark contrast to how Missouri looked prior to Alden’s arrival. Before he took charge, Mizzou ranked near the bottom of the league in on-field success, facility development and fund-raising. Since beginning his 16-year stint in Columbia, however, Alden has seen several programs rise to the level of national championship contenders. Highlights include conference championships in football, men’s basketball, soccer, softball, baseball and wrestling, including three league titles in the 2011-12 season.

Last year the Tiger Wrestling squad won its first Mid-American Conference crown. The Tiger Softball team battled to the championship game of the SEC Tournament and advanced to NCAA Super Regionals for the sixth consecutive year. Mizzou’s Women’s Basketball program also advanced to postseason play for the first time since 2007. Mizzou Basketball, one of college basketball’s winningest programs over the past five seasons, held the longest active NCAA Tournament streak in the SEC.

While conference affiliation fueled uncertainty for many institutions, Alden and his staff helped secure the second-largest donation in the history of the University of Missouri. The $30 million gift, courtesy of the Kansas City Sports Trust in 2012, kick-started an incredible $200 million facility improvement plan.

The support and growth didn’t stop there. In 2013 Alden and his team also cultivated singular donations of $6.4 million and $8.3 million to continue moving Missouri Athletics into the next phase of its facility-growth plan. The aggressive recruitment of supporters has the plan impacting nearly all of Missouri’s 20 varsity sports teams. Renovation of Memorial Stadium will make the home of Tiger Football one of the finest in America. Through capital campaign efforts, Alden has overseen more than $265 million in private gifts for Tiger Athletics.