An accomplished administrator, Dr. Patrick Kraft began his tenure as the Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics at Penn State on July 1, 2022. Kraft came to Penn State after serving two years as the director of athletics at Boston College. Believing the foundation and future success of an athletics department is based on developing and caring for the whole person, Kraft has a long history of a strong commitment to student-athlete development in and out of competition, while also being an advocate for coaches and staff.
Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi introduced Kraft as the new leader of the Nittany Lions on April 29, 2022.
“Pat is an exceptional and inspiring leader with the vision, experience and drive to excel in this role and to build upon our tradition of intercollegiate athletic success,” said Bendapudi at the time of his hire. “Along with having a bold vision for excellence and an impressive record of achievement, Pat values teamwork and cares above all about the success and development of student-athletes and coaches on and off the field. With Pat at the helm of our athletics department, the possibilities of what we can accomplish ahead are unlimited.”
Kraft’s career includes leadership roles at Penn State University, Boston College, Temple University, Loyola University Chicago and Indiana University. In addition, he has taught business, sports marketing and management courses throughout his career and is a former Big Ten football student-athlete.
During the 2023-24 academic year and Kraft’s second year leading the department, Penn State won a National Championship in wrestling and seven conference championships, while also having 22 teams participate in NCAA Championships, the WBIT or bowl games. The Nittany Lions had six individual NCAA Champions (five wrestlers and a track & field athlete) and 19 teams were nationally ranked during their respective seasons. It was another exceptional year in the classroom for PSU student-athletes, who posted semester GPAs of 3.24 in the fall and 3.29 in the spring. Penn State student-athletes earned a record 93% NCAA Graduation Success Rate (GSR) and 12 programs earned perfect 100% ratings.
In Kraft’s first year at the helm of the Blue & White, Penn State finished No. 15 in the Learfield Directors' Cup standings, the highest finish for the Nittany Lions since 2018-19. Overall, Penn State had one National Championship (wrestling), three NCAA National Semifinal appearances (field hockey, men’s volleyball, men’s lacrosse), nine conference championships, a Rose Bowl Championship, 20 teams made appearances in their respective NCAA Championships and 16 teams were ranked during their season. Academically, Penn State had a 3.25 departmental grade point average (GPA) for the 2022-23 academic year, 142 student-athletes graduate, 421 Academic All-Big Ten selections and 174 Big Ten Distinguished Scholars (3.7 GPA during academic year). Penn State also had a then-record-tying 92% graduation success rate as of Fall 2022.
Student-athlete welfare has been a key focus of Kraft’s during his first two years leading a department that consists of more than 850 student-athletes. Kraft created a mental health and wellness department to provide health and wellness resources and support to the student-athletes, and also upgraded numerous nutrition fueling stations across all athletics facilities.
Six construction projects are coming to fruition under Kraft’s leadership, including a Performance Dining and Student Wellness Center in the Greenberg Indoor Sports Complex, East Area Locker Room renovation, Jeffrey Field Soccer Operations Center, Indoor Practice Bubble, upgrades to the Lasch Football Building and a multi-year renovation plan for Beaver Stadium.
In his two years as the director of athletics at Boston College, Kraft guided 31 varsity teams, oversaw numerous fundraising efforts, renovated spaces which would have the greatest impact on student-athletes, and was responsible for expanding the department’s mental health and reporting resources. Under his leadership, the Eagles excelled in the classroom and in competition with 70% of all student-athletes earning a 3.00 GPA or better in the 2021 fall and spring semesters and five teams being ranked in the top 25 nationally. Among the other accomplishments for Kraft during his time at Chestnut Hill included Boston College earning its sixth NCAA Championship, and the first for the women’s lacrosse team, the first postseason victory for women’s volleyball, and two bowl game qualifications for the football program.
Under Kraft, Boston College met fundraising goals to support efforts for a future practice facility for the men’s and women’s basketball programs, fully endow head coach positions for ski and women’s ice hockey, support athletics scholarships and financial aid, and more. He led $84 million in fundraising and completed more than 11 capital projects. The Student-Athlete Academic Advising space was renovated to support student-athletes in their pursuit of academic excellence, and construction was completed on a new football locker room and training room, as well as the Barry Gallup Sports Medicine Facility, which offers a state-of-the-art saltwater therapy room, new hydrotherapy pools, recovery rooms, nutrition centers and rehabilitation spaces, during Kraft’s tenure.
Kraft also led the department into a new apparel and footwear partnership, the largest financial footwear and apparel agreement in Boston College Athletics history.
Prior to his tenure at Boston College, Kraft served as the director of intercollegiate athletics at Temple University after spending two years as the university’s deputy athletic director.
During his five years at the helm at Temple, Kraft oversaw a department of 180 employees with 19 sports and more than 500 student-athletes. He was responsible for all facets of athletics administration, including academics, NCAA Title IX compliance, diversity and finances, and led the hiring of new head coaches in football, men’s basketball, men’s and women’s soccer, and field hockey. Along with significant program milestones for women’s lacrosse, fencing, gymnastics, men’s crew and women’s rowing under Kraft’s leadership, the football team won the 2016 American Athletic Conference Championship (AAC) and made five-straight bowl appearances for the first time in school history, the men’s basketball team won the 2015-16 regular season AAC title and the women’s basketball team made the 2017 NCAA Tournament for the first time in five years.
With a focus on student-athlete academic performance, career development and mental health, at Temple, Kraft also led an effort to improve classroom performance resulting in an NCAA Academic Performance Rate (APR) that ranked fourth among Division I FBS institutions in 2018-19, followed by a school record 90% Graduation Success Rate for 2019. He also oversaw planning and fundraising efforts for more than $55 million in construction and renovation projects, including the Temple Sports Complex for men’s and women’s soccer, field hockey, women’s lacrosse and track & field, as well as enhancements to locker room facilities for all 19 sports, an all student-athlete lounge, multiple student-athlete nutrition centers and updated practice facilities for several sports.
Kraft has served on a number of committees, including the NCAA Football Oversight Committee, NCAA Football Competition Committee, NCAA Women’s Basketball Committee, NCAA Strategic Vision and Planning Committee, LEAD1 working group on student-athlete time demands, Collegiate Athletic Leadership Symposium faculty member and AAC finance committee. He served as vice chair of the Athletic Directors of the AAC and has been an invited speaker at the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics annual convention.
Kraft was recognized by Sports Business Journal as “one of the top 40 sports executives under the age of 40” and the Philadelphia Business Journal as “one of the top Business Executives in Philadelphia under the age of 40.” His scholarly work has been published in the International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, International Journal of Sport Management and Marketing, Sport Marketing Quarterly and Branding in Sport Business.
A native of Libertyville, Illinois, Kraft earned a bachelor’s degree in sport marketing management, a master’s degree in sport marketing administration and his doctoral degree in sport management, all from Indiana University.
Kraft and his wife, Betsy, have a daughter, Annabelle, and son, Joseph.