Jan. 11, 2006
ATLANTA–Dave Braine, Georgia Tech’s Director of Athletics since 1997 who has presided over the unprecedented growth and success of the Yellow Jackets’ overall athletics program, will retire due to health reasons, Institute President Dr. Wayne Clough announced Wednesday.
Braine, 62, has been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease, an intestinal disorder. He will continue to direct the athletics department until a new director takes over. (Please note: More information about Crohn’s disease is available at www.ccfa.org)
“Georgia Tech means a great deal to me,” said Braine. “I have always said that it takes a special person to coach at Georgia Tech and a special student-athlete to go to school here, and because of that I have had the opportunity to work with great people. It starts with Dr. Clough, and it continues through our coaches, our administrators, and most importantly, our student-athletes, who all work so hard to make the Georgia Tech program what it is.
“I had fully intended to complete my contract, which runs through June, 2007, so it is difficult to leave on these terms but there really is no other way,” Braine continued. “I was diagnosed last summer with Crohn’s disease. My condition is not life-threatening, but it is necessary for me to step down and take care of my health.
“Again, I want to thank Dr. Clough for everything he has done for me personally and for Georgia Tech. I want to thank our coaches, administrators and staff, and I especially want to thank all of the student-athletes who have played for Georgia Tech the last nine years.”
A native of Grove City, Pa., Braine was named Director of Athletics on June 3, 1997, following a 10-year stint in the same position at Virginia Tech. His administrative career also includes two years as athletics director at Marshall University (1985-87) as well as stays at Fresno State (assistant/associate athletics director, 1983-84) and Virginia (assistant athletic director, 1978-83).
Braine previously spent two years (1974-75) at Georgia Tech as an assistant football coach under Pepper Rodgers, and he also coached at Virginia (1976-77), Richmond (1971-73) and Virginia Military Institute (1967-70). He earned his B.S. and M.A.T. degrees from North Carolina, where he lettered three years in football (1962-64).
Georgia Tech’s overall athletics program enjoyed unprecedented success during Braine’s tenure, highlighted by the men’s basketball team’s 2004 NCAA runner-up finish and a school-record streak of nine straight bowl games for the football program, as well as continued excellence in sports such as baseball and golf and remarkable growth in women’s athletics. Each of the last two years, Tech has placed 31st in the NACDA Directors’ Cup standings to shatter the Institute’s previous high of No. 45 in 1993-94. Other athletics highlights under Braine include 18 Top 10 national team finishes, No. 1 national rankings in baseball and golf, and 12 ACC team titles in seven different sports.
Facility upgrades include the $75 million renovation and expansion of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field, the reconstruction of Russ Chandler Baseball Stadium and the new Georgia Tech Aquatic Center, which will host the 2006 NCAA Swimming Championships.
“Dave Braine will leave Georgia Tech with a long list of accomplishments and his leadership will be missed,” said Clough, who hired Braine in 1997. “I know Dave as a colleague and friend, and he has been a steadfast resource to Tech.
“Dave will be known for building the strength of our intercollegiate sports programs across the board, and leading us to the highest overall rankings in our history. He will be remembered for his courage in taking on the challenge to both rebuild our baseball stadium and complete a major renovation of our football stadium. His efforts led to the raising of $50 million towards these major improvements.
“During his tenure Dave hired talented coaches like Paul Hewitt, Chan Gailey, Bond Shymansky of women’s volleyball, and Bryan Shelton of women’s tennis, who have taken their teams to levels never before reached,” Clough continued. “He helped us to a football streak of nine consecutive bowl appearances. He will leave big shoes to be filled, and we will miss his good service and friendship.”
Clough said that a national search for the new Director of Athletics will begin immediately. He will chair a search committee which will report to the Athletic Association Board of Trustees. The search committee also includes Dan Schrage, Faculty Representative for Athletics; Joe Irwin, President of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association; Chuck Easley, former Tech football standout and current member of the Athletic Board; and David Anderson, President of the Student Government Association.
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS FROM Dave Braine
“Early this summer, I lost about 28 pounds and was having a lot of problems just being a normal person. Finally, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease. Crohn’s disease is basically a young person’s disease; it attacks people between the ages of 15 and 35. Well, I’m 62 years old, so I guess you might say I still have the body of a 35-year-old. But in losing all that weight, I basically thought I had cancer. So the good new is I don’t have cancer, the bad news is, I have Crohn’s. It’s a disease that attacks the small and large [intestine], and it’s much easier on a younger person than an older person. I have tried, unsuccessfully, to battle it and to get control of it. My doctor has told me that if I continue working much longer, I’m going to make myself sick. So basically I’m going to retire and try to get back health back in order and live as normal a life as is possible for a person that has this disease. I told Dr. Clough in December that there would be no way I could continue on for the rest of my contract, so basically, as soon as somebody else is hired, I will no longer be the Athletic Director.
“I appreciate the people here at Georgia Tech very much, especially my staff, the coaches and the student-athletes, and the people who I work with day to day, because they have known about this, they’ve helped me through it and I couldn’t be here today if it weren’t for them. Obviously Dr. Clough has been very, very supportive, but it’s time for somebody else to take over this job.
“Chronic fatigue is one of the byproducts of Crohn’s and for about the last year, I’ve really been fatigued. I do know that when I’m away from the job, I feel a whole better. The doctor said, If you don’t get out of your job, you’re really going to get sick, and when the doctor tells you that, it’s time to make a tough decision.
“Crohn’s is not a curable disease. Once you have it, you will have it for th remainder of your life. Now, you can medicate it and it can go dormant. So there are times when you can live a normal life, but there are other times when you can’t
“I think everybody knows how much I love Montana and fly-fishing. Probably this fall, every Saturday, I’m going to be fishing rather than watching football, and that will make my life a whole lot easier. They’ll be writing about somebody else.
“Basically, the timetable is, when the new person gets or here, or if my health gets worse, whichever comes first.
[How involved will you be in search for new AD?] “Not at all. That’s up to somebody else. Obviously I’d like for someone on my staff to have the job, but other than that, I will not say anything. I do know that it’s a good situation and there’s a good staff here.
[What are you most proud of?] “I would hope that the student-athletes will tell you that we cared about them and that we did what was in their best interests. That’s the most important thing. I think every decision we made was in their best interests. They know that they’re the reason why we have our jobs, and they know we care about them.
Georgia Tech Athletics Highlights Under Dave Braine, 1997-2006
• School-record 31st-place finish in the NACDA Directors’ Cup standings for both 2003-04 and 2004-05 (previous best was No. 45 in 1993-94) • School-record nine straight bowl appearances and nine consecutive winning seasons in football • 2004 NCAA men’s basketball runner-up • Eighteen Top 10 national team finishes in football, basketball, golf, baseball, volleyball, softball, track and tennis • Twelve ACC team titles in seven different sports • No. 1 national rankings in baseball and golf • Seven NCAA individual titles in track and golf • Seventeen ACC Coach of the Year awards • Four NCAA regional championships in baseball, highlighted by 2002 College World Series • Five Top Five NCAA finishes in golf in the last six years • 26 Academic All-America student-athletes • Addition of women’s swimming and diving as Tech’s 17th sport • Expansion and renovation of Bobby Dodd Stadium/Grant Field, raising capacity to 55,000 • Reconstruction of Russ Chandler Baseball Stadium into 4,157-seat, state-of-the-art facility • Opening of Georgia Tech Aquatic Center, where Tech will host 2006 NCAA Men’s Swimming & Diving Championships • Hosting 2002 NCAA Men’s Final Four and 2003 NCAA Women’s Final Four and preparing to host 2007 NCAA Men’s Final Four
THE BRAINE FILE
Full Name: David Thomas Braine
Born: July 7, 1943, in Grove City, Pa.
Education: University of North Carolina, B.S., 1965; M.A.T, 1966
Playing Career: Three-year football letterman at UNC (defensive back & kicker), 1962-64
Football Coaching Career: 1966-67 Manatee (Fla.) H.S. 1967-70 VMI, Freshman & Asst. Coach 1971-73 Richmond, Assistant Coach 1974-75 Georgia Tech, Assistant Coach 1976-77 Virginia, Assistant Coach
Administrative Career: 1978-83 Virginia, Assistant Athletics Director 1983-84 Fresno State, Assistant/Associate Athletics Director 1985-87 Marshall, Director of Athletics 1988-97 Virginia Tech, Director of Athletics 1997-06 Georgia Tech, Director of Athletics
Joined Tech Staff: June 3, 1997
Family: Four children: Jennifer, Bill, Steven, Meredith. Eight grandchildren: Kaeler, Nathan, Garrett, Margot, Ramsey, Jennings, Bennett, William
TECH’S DIRECTORS OF ATHLETICS John Heisman, 1904-19 William Alexander, 1920-50 Bobby Dodd, 1951-76 Doug Weaver, 1976-79 Homer Rice, 1980-97 Dave Braine, 1997-2006
