WAC Announces Hiring of Patrick Colbert
DENVER – Incoming Western Athletic Conference Commissioner Brian Thornton announced today that Patrick Colbert has been hired as Senior Associate Commissioner for Internal Operations.
Colbert comes to the WAC after eight years at the American Athletic Conference. At the American, he served as the primary sport administrator for men's soccer, swimming and diving, tennis, women's lacrosse and softball and he served as the tournament manager for the men's and women's basketball tournaments at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. In addition, he oversaw the conference's licensing and merchandising partnerships.
"I am extremely excited for Patrick to join our staff. He brings a decade of successful conference office experience to our league," said Thornton "He is extremely organized and will provide great internal leadership for our office and high-level service to our member institutions."
At the WAC, Colbert will have oversight over the management of internal operations and will be the conference's primary administrator to its member institutions. His primary focus will be to ensure the governance processes are being adhered to throughout each constituent group and he will also act as the tournament director for the WAC Basketball Tournaments in Las Vegas as well as oversight over select WAC sports.
Before joining the American, Colbert served in several capacities at the Eastern College Athletic Conference, most recently directing preseason and postseason events for Division I, II and III institutions. He joined the ECAC staff in 2008 as a marketing assistant, was named coordinator of operations and officiating in 2009 and was elevated to director of special events in 2011.
Colbert earned a bachelor's degree in exercise and sports science in 2008 from Colby-Sawyer College, where he was a four-year starter as a soccer player. He added a master's degree in sports leadership from Northeastern University in 2013.