CANYON, Texas — Michael McBroom, director of athletics at West Texas A&M University since 2006, has been named to the same position at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches.

“I want to thank the people of West Texas for 24 incredible seasons and a lifetime of memories,” McBroom said. “There are too many people to name, too many coaches to thank, too many student-athletes who crossed the finish line to mention. Just know that we are forever fans and will always be cheering for the Buffs and Lady Buffs.

“Finally, while we may be departing, our daughter Zoey will be staying to finish her career as a Lady Buff,” he continued. “Please make sure she goes to class and has some good, homecooked meals once in a while.

“We leave here with hearts full, tremendous gratitude and a great adventure ahead of us,” McBroom concluded. “Thank you, West Texas. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. It’s been a great run.”

McBroom and his wife Angie, a Houston native and physician’s assistant, currently reside in Canyon with children Johnny and Maggie. They have two adult children: Ally, who is studying at the University of Texas at Austin, and Zoey, a sophomore on the WT women’s basketball team.

McBroom has been an outstanding athletic director and colleague, WT President Walter V. Wendler said.

“I am not surprised Michael is moving into Division I athletics. I am surprised we have been able to keep him at WT for all these years,” Wendler said. “His impact on WT Athletics in every sport can be witnessed in the both the academic excellence of our athletes and number of championships and winning records held by so many of our teams and athletes. I send Michael and his family on from WT with deep appreciation.”

McBroom joined WT in 2000.

Under his leadership, WT Athletics has achieved previously unseen levels of success in coaching and administrative hirings, strategic planning, facility upgrades and community outreach.

McBroom established a strategic plan for WT Athletics that focuses on the building and sustaining championship programs for all sports, improving the academic performance of student-athletes and developing long-standing relationships in the Texas Panhandle.

During McBroom’s tenure, WT opened the Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium, an on-campus facility picked as the top Division II football stadium in the country.

The Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium seats 8,500 along the west and east sides with an estimated total capacity of 12,000 when including overflow berm seating and standing-room-only space at the concourse level. Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium offers opportunities for future expansion of up to 14,000 permanent seats.

The stadium features a video scoreboard structure that sits on the north end zone and a ribbon board system along the front of the east and west upper decks, and a concourse provides full circulation for patrons around the stadium. Additionally, the stadium was one of the first university stadiums in the country to run on a WiFi 6 network.

Along with the stadium, the Bain Athletic Center also serves as a cornerstone of the excellence of WT Athletics.

Phase III of construction for the Athletic Center facility, the vision of Ray and Barbara Bain, is expected to be completed this summer. When complete, the facility will house sports performance, sports medicine, football and Olympic sport offices, academic success programs, team meeting rooms and the Hall of Champions.

Other key accomplishments include:

• Nine national championships and more than 100 Lone Star Conference and NCAA regional championships;
• Nearly $100 million in new athletics facilities construction and renovations;
• More than $40 million in gifts and external support for scholarships, facilities and team operating funds;
• Top 10 finishes in the NCAA Division II Directors Cup every year since 2013;
• New attendance and ticket records in every sport;
• The first institution in the LSC to provide full scholarship funding to all women’s teams;
• A 37 percent improvement in the academic success rate and GPAs of student-athletes.

McBroom’s committee appointments include the NCAA Division II Football Committee and the NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Committee, ultimately serving as chair of each. He also was recognized as a 2015 Under Armour Division II Athletic Director of the Year.

He earned his bachelor of arts in advertising from Southern Methodist University in 1992 followed by a master of sports science with honors from the United States Sports Academy in 2006. Prior to joining WT’s athletic department, he was a marketing executive in the private sector.

Born in Canyon and raised in Dallas, McBroom’s family has been associated with Canyon and WT for four generations.

McBroom will fill a position vacated by Ryan Ivey, who left SFSA for Louisiana Tech University.

The success of WT Athletics under McBroom’s tenure directly reflects the values set out in the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.

That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised nearly $160 million.