Providence College Athletics
PROVIDENCE COLLEGE PROMOTES BOB DRISCOLL TO VICE PRESIDENT
2/11/2019 1:34:00 PM | General, Athletic Department
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -Â Fr. Brian J. Shanley, O.P. president of Providence College (PC), announced today that Robert G. (Bob) Driscoll, Jr., associate vice president for athletics and athletics director, has been promoted to vice president.
"In his 18Â seasons as Providence College's athletics director, Bob Driscoll has reinvigorated and transformed Providence College's athletics program, and led us to unprecedented success, all while maintaining a very clear focus on student-athlete success and wellbeing in competition as well as in the classroom," said Providence College President Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P.
From 2013 to the present, Driscoll has been the architect of one of the most successful eras in the history of PC athletics. During this period, both the PC Men's Basketball team and the PC Men's Hockey team made their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The basketball Friars, under the leadership of head Coach Ed Cooley, enjoyed a run to the BIG EAST Tournament title game in 2018 that included three-consecutive overtime contests - a 72-68 win over No. 4 Creighton, a 75-72 triumph over top-seeded Xavier, and a 76-66 setback to eventual national champion Villanova. Meanwhile, Men 's Hockey posted their fifth consecutive 20-plus win season under Head Coach Nate Leaman, and advanced to their first Hockey East Championship Game since 2001 with a 3-2 overtime win over Northeastern in the semifinals. Providence also advanced to the NCAA East Regional Final by virtue of a 1-0 win over Clarkson in Bridgeport, Conn. The team finished the season ranked seventh in the USCHO poll and ninth in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, marking the sixth-consecutive season that the program has earned a spot in the final national polls.
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Providence became just the third Division I school all-time to have both men's basketball and men's hockey programs earn NCAA Tournament bids in the same season for five consecutive years.
Bob's leadership also has helped elevate the stature of women's sports at PC. In 2018, the Women's Cross Country team secured its fifth NCAA Northeast Regional crown in the last six seasons, and one of its members (Catarina Rocha) captured the individual BIG EAST Cross Country crown. The Friars earned its 28thNCAA Cross Country Championships berth, finishing 16th overall at the event. In addition to her efforts in cross country, the Friars' Millie Paladino also qualified for the final of the women's mile at the NCAA Indoor Track Championships, finishing sixth overall to earn First Team All-American recognition. The Friars' Catarina Rocha and Abbey Wheeler both qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 5,000m event. Wheeler advanced to the final of the 5,000m, finishing 19th overall and earning Honorable Mention All-American accolades.
This impressive run kicked off when the 2013 women's cross country team claimed the College's second NCAA Championship. It continued with the men's basketball team winning the 2014 BIG EAST Tournament title and advanced to the 2014 and 2015 NCAA Tournaments. The men's hockey team made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances (2014 and 2015) for the first time in program history before claiming its first NCAA Championship with a dramatic, come-from-behind win over Boston University on April 11, 2015 at the TD Garden. It marked Providence College's third NCAA team title and its first in a men's sport.
For the second time in his tenure, Driscoll was recognized as the Under Armour I-AAA Athletics Director of the Year at the 51st Annual National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) convention in June 2016. In June 2008, Driscoll also was named the 2007-08 Astro Turf Athletics Director of the Year for the Division I Northeast Region at the 43rd National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Annual Convention.
The Friars also have excelled in the classroom, with Providence's student-athletes combining for an average GPA of 3.22. After a school-record six Providence College athletic programs received Public Recognition Awards in 2014 as part of the NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) program, three Friar teams earned the honor in 2015 and two teams, women's swimming & diving and women's tennis, earned recognition awards in 2016 and 2017. Multiple Friar teams have been honored in each of the 13 years the NCAA has given out the Public Recognition Awards. Aside from excelling in the classroom and competing for championships, PC's student-athletes are very active in the local community, with Driscoll's enthusiastic support. Last year alone, Friar student-athletes combined for over 2,000 hours of community service, raising $28,880. Providence was named a runner-up for the 2018 NACDA Community Service Award, earning $5,000 to donate to local charities.
One of the biggest impacts Driscoll has had on the Providence College Athletics Department, and on the College as a whole, has been with facility development, construction and renovation. Since his arrival in 2001, Driscoll has helped spearhead a transformation of the College's athletics facilities. The most recent addition was the Ruane Friar Development Center (RFDC), a multi-purpose building that opened in September 2018, which has already significantly enhanced Friar athletics, student services and College community life. The facility includes a 56,000 square-foot, two-court practice facility for Men's Basketball, and improvements for other student athletes, including a new Innovation Lab, an expanded Canavan Sports Medicine Center, and a student-athlete fueling station.
Construction was completed in the fall of 2015 to build Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium, where the men's and women's soccer and men's lacrosse programs play, as well as a new softball field and tennis courts.Â
In September of 2013, a state-of-the art renovation and 30,000-square foot addition project to Schneider Arena was completed. The project included new locker rooms, new coaches' offices, a renovated press box, a state-of-the-art video board and sound system, luxury boxes, as well as a new hockey and lacrosse strength and conditioning room. The Ray Treacy Track was built over the summer of 2013 to give the men's and women's cross country and track programs an improved place to train and race, as well as serving the whole Providence College community. Taylor Natatorium also underwent extensive renovations in 2013.
Other facility upgrades that have highlighted Driscoll's tenure include an $80-million renovation of the Dunkin' Donuts Center, which serves as the home venue for Friars men's basketball. The project was the result of Driscoll working strategically with lead officials in the City of Providence and the State of Rhode Island. The renovations enhanced the game-day experience by adding 20 luxury boxes, new seats, a video scoreboard, sound system, updated restaurant and concession stands, team store, locker rooms and new weight training/fitness areas. These renovations have enabled Providence College to serve as host for the First and Second Rounds of the 2010, 2016, and the future 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.Â
Kicking off Driscoll's vision for the improved athletic facilities footprint at Providence College, the Concannon Fitness Center, opened in August of 2007, adjacent to Lennon Family Field (Astroturf facility), which was completed in August 2005. A new Astroturf surface was installed on Lennon Family Field in the summer of 2017 in addition to a new videoboard in the summer of 2018. The Fitness Center houses the Friars' Jimmy Walker Strength and Conditioning Center for varsity student-athletes, as well as administrative and coaching offices, conference rooms and locker rooms. Additionally, the Concannon Fitness Center serves the whole Providence College community and houses the recreation sports staff, furthering the bond between the campus community and Friar Athletics. Next, the Canavan Sports Medicine Center was completed in August of 2008.
Driscoll established the athletic fundraising philosophy and department that has been instrumental in making program upgrades possible. He and his staff have exceeded fundraising goals on a yearly basis, including $6.4-million in cash donations during the 2017-18 fiscal calendar. The additional revenue remains critical to building and supporting championship programs and providing the best opportunities to Providence College's student-athletes. The funds Driscoll and his staff raise help directly support all 19 of Providence College's Division I programs, the Friars Forever Fund and capital projects.
Bob Driscoll joined the Providence community after 14 years in athletic administration at the University of California, Berkeley, culminating in serving as the Acting Executive Director for Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports. Prior to that, he was Cal's Executive Associate Athletic Director and was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the department, as well as overseeing football, men's basketball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's water polo, rugby, strength training, equipment and the sports medicine programs.
Driscoll was hired at Cal as the Associate Athletic Director for Student Services, a position he held for five years. He then assumed the position of Executive Associate Athletic Director, at which point he was responsible for the administration of 27 varsity sports, a staff of 250 and a $36 million budget. Prior to coming to Providence, he served as the Acting Executive Director for Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports. During his tenure, Cal won over 20 national championships and competed in the Citrus, Copper, Alamo and Aloha Bowls. The Bears also finished as high as 12th in the NACDA Directors' Cup.
Before arriving at Cal, Driscoll served six years (1981-87) as the Athletic Director and Chair of the Department of Physical Education, Recreation and Intramural Sports at Mills College in Oakland, Calif. Prior to Mills, Driscoll was Assistant Athletic Director and Head Baseball and Hockey Coach at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. from 1977-81. Driscoll played hockey, where he was captain and team MVP for three-consecutive years, and baseball at Ithaca College (N.Y.). He received a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education in 1974 and his Master of Science in physical education/psychology of sports from Ithaca in 1975.
A native of West Concord, Mass., Driscoll was inducted into the inaugural class of Concord-Carlisle High School's Athletic Hall of Fame (football, ice hockey and baseball) in 1993. He and his wife Cathy have three grown children.
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"In his 18Â seasons as Providence College's athletics director, Bob Driscoll has reinvigorated and transformed Providence College's athletics program, and led us to unprecedented success, all while maintaining a very clear focus on student-athlete success and wellbeing in competition as well as in the classroom," said Providence College President Rev. Brian J. Shanley, O.P.
From 2013 to the present, Driscoll has been the architect of one of the most successful eras in the history of PC athletics. During this period, both the PC Men's Basketball team and the PC Men's Hockey team made their fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. The basketball Friars, under the leadership of head Coach Ed Cooley, enjoyed a run to the BIG EAST Tournament title game in 2018 that included three-consecutive overtime contests - a 72-68 win over No. 4 Creighton, a 75-72 triumph over top-seeded Xavier, and a 76-66 setback to eventual national champion Villanova. Meanwhile, Men 's Hockey posted their fifth consecutive 20-plus win season under Head Coach Nate Leaman, and advanced to their first Hockey East Championship Game since 2001 with a 3-2 overtime win over Northeastern in the semifinals. Providence also advanced to the NCAA East Regional Final by virtue of a 1-0 win over Clarkson in Bridgeport, Conn. The team finished the season ranked seventh in the USCHO poll and ninth in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, marking the sixth-consecutive season that the program has earned a spot in the final national polls.
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Providence became just the third Division I school all-time to have both men's basketball and men's hockey programs earn NCAA Tournament bids in the same season for five consecutive years.
Bob's leadership also has helped elevate the stature of women's sports at PC. In 2018, the Women's Cross Country team secured its fifth NCAA Northeast Regional crown in the last six seasons, and one of its members (Catarina Rocha) captured the individual BIG EAST Cross Country crown. The Friars earned its 28thNCAA Cross Country Championships berth, finishing 16th overall at the event. In addition to her efforts in cross country, the Friars' Millie Paladino also qualified for the final of the women's mile at the NCAA Indoor Track Championships, finishing sixth overall to earn First Team All-American recognition. The Friars' Catarina Rocha and Abbey Wheeler both qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships in the 5,000m event. Wheeler advanced to the final of the 5,000m, finishing 19th overall and earning Honorable Mention All-American accolades.
This impressive run kicked off when the 2013 women's cross country team claimed the College's second NCAA Championship. It continued with the men's basketball team winning the 2014 BIG EAST Tournament title and advanced to the 2014 and 2015 NCAA Tournaments. The men's hockey team made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances (2014 and 2015) for the first time in program history before claiming its first NCAA Championship with a dramatic, come-from-behind win over Boston University on April 11, 2015 at the TD Garden. It marked Providence College's third NCAA team title and its first in a men's sport.
For the second time in his tenure, Driscoll was recognized as the Under Armour I-AAA Athletics Director of the Year at the 51st Annual National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) convention in June 2016. In June 2008, Driscoll also was named the 2007-08 Astro Turf Athletics Director of the Year for the Division I Northeast Region at the 43rd National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics Annual Convention.
The Friars also have excelled in the classroom, with Providence's student-athletes combining for an average GPA of 3.22. After a school-record six Providence College athletic programs received Public Recognition Awards in 2014 as part of the NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) program, three Friar teams earned the honor in 2015 and two teams, women's swimming & diving and women's tennis, earned recognition awards in 2016 and 2017. Multiple Friar teams have been honored in each of the 13 years the NCAA has given out the Public Recognition Awards. Aside from excelling in the classroom and competing for championships, PC's student-athletes are very active in the local community, with Driscoll's enthusiastic support. Last year alone, Friar student-athletes combined for over 2,000 hours of community service, raising $28,880. Providence was named a runner-up for the 2018 NACDA Community Service Award, earning $5,000 to donate to local charities.
One of the biggest impacts Driscoll has had on the Providence College Athletics Department, and on the College as a whole, has been with facility development, construction and renovation. Since his arrival in 2001, Driscoll has helped spearhead a transformation of the College's athletics facilities. The most recent addition was the Ruane Friar Development Center (RFDC), a multi-purpose building that opened in September 2018, which has already significantly enhanced Friar athletics, student services and College community life. The facility includes a 56,000 square-foot, two-court practice facility for Men's Basketball, and improvements for other student athletes, including a new Innovation Lab, an expanded Canavan Sports Medicine Center, and a student-athlete fueling station.
Construction was completed in the fall of 2015 to build Chapey Field at Anderson Stadium, where the men's and women's soccer and men's lacrosse programs play, as well as a new softball field and tennis courts.Â
In September of 2013, a state-of-the art renovation and 30,000-square foot addition project to Schneider Arena was completed. The project included new locker rooms, new coaches' offices, a renovated press box, a state-of-the-art video board and sound system, luxury boxes, as well as a new hockey and lacrosse strength and conditioning room. The Ray Treacy Track was built over the summer of 2013 to give the men's and women's cross country and track programs an improved place to train and race, as well as serving the whole Providence College community. Taylor Natatorium also underwent extensive renovations in 2013.
Other facility upgrades that have highlighted Driscoll's tenure include an $80-million renovation of the Dunkin' Donuts Center, which serves as the home venue for Friars men's basketball. The project was the result of Driscoll working strategically with lead officials in the City of Providence and the State of Rhode Island. The renovations enhanced the game-day experience by adding 20 luxury boxes, new seats, a video scoreboard, sound system, updated restaurant and concession stands, team store, locker rooms and new weight training/fitness areas. These renovations have enabled Providence College to serve as host for the First and Second Rounds of the 2010, 2016, and the future 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.Â
Kicking off Driscoll's vision for the improved athletic facilities footprint at Providence College, the Concannon Fitness Center, opened in August of 2007, adjacent to Lennon Family Field (Astroturf facility), which was completed in August 2005. A new Astroturf surface was installed on Lennon Family Field in the summer of 2017 in addition to a new videoboard in the summer of 2018. The Fitness Center houses the Friars' Jimmy Walker Strength and Conditioning Center for varsity student-athletes, as well as administrative and coaching offices, conference rooms and locker rooms. Additionally, the Concannon Fitness Center serves the whole Providence College community and houses the recreation sports staff, furthering the bond between the campus community and Friar Athletics. Next, the Canavan Sports Medicine Center was completed in August of 2008.
Driscoll established the athletic fundraising philosophy and department that has been instrumental in making program upgrades possible. He and his staff have exceeded fundraising goals on a yearly basis, including $6.4-million in cash donations during the 2017-18 fiscal calendar. The additional revenue remains critical to building and supporting championship programs and providing the best opportunities to Providence College's student-athletes. The funds Driscoll and his staff raise help directly support all 19 of Providence College's Division I programs, the Friars Forever Fund and capital projects.
Bob Driscoll joined the Providence community after 14 years in athletic administration at the University of California, Berkeley, culminating in serving as the Acting Executive Director for Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports. Prior to that, he was Cal's Executive Associate Athletic Director and was responsible for the day-to-day operations of the department, as well as overseeing football, men's basketball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's water polo, rugby, strength training, equipment and the sports medicine programs.
Driscoll was hired at Cal as the Associate Athletic Director for Student Services, a position he held for five years. He then assumed the position of Executive Associate Athletic Director, at which point he was responsible for the administration of 27 varsity sports, a staff of 250 and a $36 million budget. Prior to coming to Providence, he served as the Acting Executive Director for Intercollegiate Athletics and Recreational Sports. During his tenure, Cal won over 20 national championships and competed in the Citrus, Copper, Alamo and Aloha Bowls. The Bears also finished as high as 12th in the NACDA Directors' Cup.
Before arriving at Cal, Driscoll served six years (1981-87) as the Athletic Director and Chair of the Department of Physical Education, Recreation and Intramural Sports at Mills College in Oakland, Calif. Prior to Mills, Driscoll was Assistant Athletic Director and Head Baseball and Hockey Coach at Union College in Schenectady, N.Y. from 1977-81. Driscoll played hockey, where he was captain and team MVP for three-consecutive years, and baseball at Ithaca College (N.Y.). He received a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education in 1974 and his Master of Science in physical education/psychology of sports from Ithaca in 1975.
A native of West Concord, Mass., Driscoll was inducted into the inaugural class of Concord-Carlisle High School's Athletic Hall of Fame (football, ice hockey and baseball) in 1993. He and his wife Cathy have three grown children.
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-Go Friars!-
2019 Providence College All-Sports Gala
Wednesday, May 01
