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Terry Mohajir became the 11th Director of Athletics in A-State history on September 19, 2012, and since that time has been elevated to Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics as the Red Wolves have enjoyed unprecedented overall success academically, competitively and financially.
Since being named director of athletics, Mohajir (pronounced MO-HODGE-ER) has adopted an “ALWAYS RISING” slogan as an expansion on the popular “RED WOLVES RISING” campaign. With that theme in mind, the Arkansas State alumnus has instituted sweeping changes, created new policies, produced record-breaking fundraising totals, overseen significant facility upgrades, almost tripled the athletics department budget and implemented creative philosophies that have strengthened the Red Wolves’ national brand. During his watch, the Red Wolves have accomplished numerous firsts in both academics and athletics accomplishments, but the Red Wolves’ passionate and energetic leader continues to reinforce his belief that “our accomplishments of today become our expectations of tomorrow.”
A-State has claimed 25 conference championships under Mohajir, including four Sun Belt football titles (2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016) and league crowns in volleyball (2015 and 2016), men’s indoor (2015, 2018 and 2020) and outdoor (2016 and 2018) track and field, women’s bowling (2016 and 2018), women’s basketball (2014 and 2016), men’s basketball (2013), women’s indoor (2013 and 2020) and outdoor (2015 and 2019) track and field, women’s cross country (2013, 2019 and 2020), men’s golf (2019) and women’s soccer (2020).
Since 2012-13, the Red Wolves have won a league-high 23 Sun Belt titles. The next closest program over the last nine years is Texas State with 16. A-State’s 25 total conference championships over the last nine years are 13 more than it won the previous 12 years from 2000-11 combined.
Arkansas State had its first female student-athlete ever win an individual national championship and its women’s athletics program claimed its highest finish all-time in the Capital One Cup standings, earning two prestigious “Top-50” awards for ranking No. 44 among all NCAA?Division I programs during 2013-14 and No. 45 in 2015-16. The No. 44 ranking remains the highest ever by a Sun Belt Conference women’s program.
The 2013-14 athletics year also saw A-State enjoy its highest ever finish in the Learfield Sports Director’s Cup standings, ranking No. 1 in the Sun Belt Conference and No. 83 in the nation among 297 schools. The Red Wolves’ finish not only set a school record, it topped the program’s previous high of No. 134 set in 1999-2000 by 51 places. Arkansas State’s next four highest finishes ever in the standings all came over the last five years. A-State has led the Sun Belt Conference three times in the standings and finished among the league’s top three programs seven of eight years under Mohajir.
The Sun Belt Conference also officially recognized Arkansas State as the winner of the 2019-20 Vic Bubas Cup, the league’s annual all-sports championship award. The Red Wolves claimed their third all-time Bubas Cup championship and their first since 1997-98. A-State posted 72 points in 2019-20 for an average of eight points per sport, which was the second highest in school history behind only its 8.1 mark in 1997-98.
During Mohajir’s tenure, A-State has won four football conference championships with three different head coaches, including Gus Malzahn, Bryan Harsin and Blake Anderson. His hires have been heralded by the national media as some of the best in the country.
Mohajir has responded well with coaching transitions. Carrying out one of his first major acts as athletics director, he appointed an interim head football coach and kept the entire assistant coaching staff in place for the 2013 GoDaddy.com Bowl. The Red Wolves went on to claim their first bowl victory since 1970 and their first win over a top-25 ranked opponent since joining the FBS in 1992. Faced with a head football coaching change following the next season as well, Mohajir guided A-State through the process again by keeping the assistant coaching staff in place and giving the Red Wolves everything needed in order to pick up a second consecutive GoDaddy Bowl win.
Mohajir has successfully guided A-State through coaching changes in other sports as well. He appointed Mike Hagen head men’s golf coach prior to the 2015-16 season, and he was promptly named the Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year and has since led the Red Wolves to their first ever Sun Belt title in 2019. Mohajir also tabbed Brian Dooley as head women’s soccer coach in 2015, and Dooley was named the 2020 SBC Coach of the Year after guiding A-State to its first ever regular-season conference championship in school history.
Mohajir has also been charged with hiring new coaches in the sports of men’s basketball (twice), women’s basketball, women’s tennis and volleyball. Most recently in 2019, Mohajir tabbed Matt Daniel and Santiago Restrepo to lead the women’s basketball and volleyball programs, respectively. He also recruited Mike Balado, who was previously the lead assistant at one of the elite men’s basketball programs in the nation in Louisville and is considered one of the top up-and-coming head coaches in the nation, to replace his previous hire, Grant McCasland. McCasland led the Red Wolves to 20 regular-season victories to tie the school record in his lone year with the program.
Eight different coaches at A-State since Mohajir’s arrival have been named either a Sun Belt Conference Coach of the Year or national Coach of the Year a combined 20 times.
The value he places on the student-athlete has been evident, creating the inaugural A-State Awards held at the end of each year to celebrate both their academic and athletic accomplishments. He was behind the development of a student-advisory group that encompasses everything from a student-athlete mentorship program to fostering leadership in the community. The Red Wolves Leadership Academy program (RWLA) was designed with the sole purpose to obtain 100 percent job placement for all the athletics department’s student-athletes upon graduation, and that key initiative has been achieved the last six years in a row.
The RWLA continued to strengthen under Mohajir’s watch with a new study abroad component added to foster global awareness, which is often cited by employers as a positive attribute they seek. The study abroad program was designed to allow students the ability to make themselves more marketable in the workforce. The summer of 2015 saw Arkansas State student-athletes take part in the first study abroad program offered by any university and their athletics department in the nation. The program goes hand-in-hand with the RWLA’s primary purpose to obtain 100 percent job placement for all its graduating student-athletes.
The Red Wolves’ academic performance reached an all-time high during record-setting years since 2014-15, each year setting a new school standard for all-department GPA. The 2019-20 academic year saw A-State’s all-department GPA rise to 3.211, which was also the best in Sun Belt Conference. The Red Wolves placed a school-record 232 student-athletes on the fall 2018 Athletics Director’s Honor Roll.
The program has also increased its Graduation Success Rate (GSR) the last three years under Mohajir. Data announced in 2018 saw A-State produce a school-record 85 percent GSR, topping its previous high of 83 set just one year prior and in 2019. The Red Wolves continue to increase their Academic Progress Rate (APR) as well with the most recent data (2020) reflecting a school-record 985 score.
Additionally, the Red Wolves’ have made a strong commitment to cost of attendance, appropriating funds for all student-athletes that is in the top 15 percent of all FBS schools.
Mohajir’s candid media interviews and engaging public speaking appearances have captivated the Red Wolves’ fan base, but his actions in a short amount of time have also reflected his vision to take A-State Athletics to new heights.
The primary development arm of A-State Athletics, formerly known as the Red Wolf Club, has been renamed the Red Wolves Foundation and a new logo has been introduced as part of a rebranding effort. The changes have been in conjunction with new and exciting initiatives that have been put in place, designed to make a significant impact on donor relations and fundraising opportunities. The positive results are evident as the foundation’s annual fund and premium seating revenue has increased by as much as 184 percent, while capital facilities fundraising has reached an all-time high as well.
Another area that has seen dramatic growth under Mohajir is the Lettermen’s Club, which has seen membership increase 205 percent since 2012. A-State has also achieved its highest spot ever in the Collegiate Licensing Company’s (CLC) rankings and set school records for both football total season ticket sales and season ticket revenue. Not only that, A-State recently ranked 21st among schools in the Group of 5 conferences in self-generated revenue.
The athletics department’s budget increased from $15.3 million in Mohajir’s first year to a school-record $43.1 million (FY 2016), representing an increase of 181 percent. A-State Athletics placed among the top 12 programs in the nation in each of the five most recent Excellence in Management Cup standings, which annually reviews the nation’s athletics departments in regards to maximizing fiscal resources while providing results in the form of championship victories.
The growth of A-State’s brand under Mohajir led to signing a new 10-year agreement in 2016 with Learfield Sports, one of the multimedia industry leaders, which is generating unprecedented revenue in the athletics department’s history. Arkansas State, in the fall of 2016, also entered a new seven-year partnership with adidas that is the most lucrative apparel-based contract in school history and makes it an elite adidas program.
Mohajir has made it a point to engage the fan base, stressing the importance of fan experience through avenues such as courtside seating at basketball games, enhancing game-day atmosphere and ensuring that staff go out of their way to extend every fan their assistance. Also among the changes in this area was the installation of a new approximately 1,600 square foot LED?Daktronics scoreboard at Centennial Bank Stadium.
Facilities have received a number of facelifts since Mohajir’s arrival as well, making sure that the athletic department’s “front door” and other sports areas possess a first-class appearance. A-State has completed, is in the process of completing and has committed a combined $90 million in construction and facility renovations since Mohajir’s arrival, including stadium lighting and seats at Centennial Bank Stadium, new tennis courts and a new outdoor track. Also included in the upgrades have been renovations and updates inside Centennial Bank Stadium’s south end zone facility and with weight rooms, locker rooms and training rooms at both the football stadium and First National Bank Arena, where new seating has been installed.
The Red Wolves Foundation received a $5 million gift commitment from alumnus Johnny Allison for a renovation to its “Centennial Expansion,” and it is tied for the largest individual donation in A-State Athletics history. The construction and renovation project to the stadium’s press box and west-side concourse covered 40,000 square feet and cost $26 million.
The Red Wolves Foundation received a $5 million contribution from First National Bank in October 2017 in conjunction to naming rights to the facility formerly known as the Convocation Center, and Mohajir is oversaw the fundraising efforts for an approximately $29-million football facility project in Centennial Bank Stadium’s north end zone as well.
Construction on the end zone facility began in December of 2017 following another $5 million commitment by Allison and an additional $5 million contribution from Centennial Bank.
Additionally, a 78,000-square foot Student Activity Center (SAC), which also serves as an indoor practice facility for A-State sports, has been constructed on the north side of Centennial Bank Stadium. The approximate cost was $11 million for construction of the center and the relocation of the soccer complex.
Construction of a new state-of-the-art control room was completed in 2020, and the Red Wolves are in the process of adding a studio, which will enhance A-State’s television production capabilities. During Mohajir’s tenure, A-State produced its first non-linear televised football, men’s and women’s basketball, volleyball, soccer and baseball competitions.
Committed to Title IX and gender-equity initiatives, A-State has worked to improve coaching staff sizes and salaries, operation funding and facilities under Mohajir. Among the upgrades, A-State has completed a new women’s soccer and women’s tennis facility, which houses both squads’ locker rooms, training room and more. A new women’s bowling locker room, lounge and pro shop have also been constructed.
The development of the Centennial Bank Athletics Operations Center in the football stadium’s north end zone has also created additional space for the entire athletics department to expand, allowing for areas such as the women’s basketball and volleyball coaching offices to be relocated and upgraded.
His philosophies on scheduling have been well documented, and they resulted in home-and-home games scheduled with nationally-prominent programs such as Missouri and Miami for the first time in A-State history. He has capitalized on the Red Wolves recent success by gaining additional games against teams such as Southern Cal, making A-State the first Sun Belt program to schedule a football contest against the Trojans. In 2020, the Red Wolves will become just the second SBC team to play Michigan.
Mohajir has and continues to serve on many prestigious committees, acting as a strong national voice for students and intercollegiate athletics. Possessing experience as a student-athlete, football coach and well-respected administrator, he was most recently selected in 2019 to serve on the prestigious College Football Playoff (CFP) selection committee. In the process, he became one of just 13 athletics directors and 29 total people to ever serve on the elite committee as the CFP entered its sixth year of existence.
Mohajir was also previously appointed as the Sun Belt Conference’s representative on the inaugural College Football Playoff Athletic Director’s Advisory Board, acting as one of 10 athletics directors from FBS conferences on the board. He was additionally asked to serve on the NCAA Division I Championships Cabinet and the NCAA Division I Football Issues Committee. Mohajir was one of six athletics directors appointed to the NCAA Division I Football Ad Hoc Recruiting Working Group, which was formed to conduct a comprehensive review of Division I football recruiting legislation.
He was appointed Chairman of the Sun Belt Conference AD’s Committee as well, in addition to being invited as a guest panelist at the prestigious Knight Commission public meeting in May 2017 at the National Press Club.
Mohajir continues to evaluate and process information to complete a national-branding campaign, but has already built a strong foundation for the future of A-State Athletics.
Mohajir's career path went through three other NCAA?Division I institutions, including the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Florida Atlantic and Kansas, before leading him back to his alma mater.
Mohajir's wealth of experience, history of success working with a university in A-State's current conference and his noted accomplishments at a BCS automatic qualifying school made him a clear choice to take over the reins at Arkansas State.
Mohajir has gained national respect in collegiate athletics while working with some of the finest administrators and coaches in the country, such as former FAU, Louisville, Miami and Oklahoma head football coach Howard Schnellenberger.
The Overland Park, Kansas native has been involved with major fundraising campaigns at multiple universities, while al so overseeing corporate sales, marketing promotions and ticket sales. Prior to A-State, he most recently served 16 months as Kansas' Senior Associate Director of Athletics and Chief Marketing Officer. Prior to his time with the Jayhawks, he spent a seven-year stint as Florida Atlantic's Senior Associate Director of Athletics for External Relations from 2004-11 after working at UMKC?from 1997-2004 as its Assistant Director of Athletics for External Relations.
Mohajir worked at Kansas in a variety of capacities during two different stints, but his latest stop in Lawrence saw him assume responsibility for the Williams Education Fund that totaled over $22 million in revenue for the fiscal year 2012. He supervised the athletics department's areas that generated over $40 million in revenue. In addition, Mohajir oversaw Kansas' multimedia rights partnership for IMG. His most recent role as Chief Marketing Officer was heavily focused on the market strategies for the proposed football stadium renovations.
Mohajir went to Kansas from his position at Florida Atlantic, where he oversaw development, marketing, ticket sales, corporate sales and the media relations department. Foremost among his responsibilities was a fundraising campaign for a $70 million on-campus football stadium. His astute project management helped the Owls' football program reach the 2007 New Orleans Bowl in just its fourth year as an FBS?program, an NCAA record for the fastest start-up program to go to a bowl game. During his tenure, FAU's athletics department enhanced its major gift program 800 percent, Owl Club giving increased 400 percent and special-events revenue increased 150 percent.
Mohajir's original connection to KU dated back to the early 1990's, when he was a graduate assistant, an assistant offensive line coach and game-day special team's football coach for the Jayhawks (1993-96). He left Kansas in 1997 but didn't go far, staying in the Kansas City area to take over his administrative position with the newly-created Division I UMKC?Athletics program. There he supervised marketing and promotions, sports information, fundraising, radio and TV contracts, corporate sales, tickets, event operations, sports medicine, strength and conditioning and men's soccer.
Under his leadership, the Kangaroos saw dramatic increases in endowment, sponsorships, ticket revenue and its donor base. One of his more visible accomplishments at UMKC?was the fundraising and construction efforts for a new training room and strength and conditioning center.
During his time as an assistant coach at Kansas, Mohajir was on the staff that beat UCLA in the 1995 Aloha Bowl and had a final ranking of No. 9 in the AP?poll. He was also a football ticket sales and promotions account executive for Kansas Athletics and earned a master's degree in sports management at KU?in 1997.
Mohajir graduated from Arkansas State University with a major in sports management and a minor in business marketing in 1993. He was a starting safety on A-State's football team.
Mohajir is married to the former Julie Hammond and they have two daughters, Maria (19) and Molly (17), and son, Marco (12).
