Ryan Bamford
Ryan Bamford was named the seventh permanent University of Massachusetts Director of Athletics on March 24, 2015. In a short amount of time, it’s hard to miss the progress and growth Bamford’s presence and dedication have brought to UMass’ 650+ student-athletes, coaches and staff, in addition to the campus and Amherst communities.
On his 100th day as Director of Athletics, Bamford announced that UMass Athletics would begin covering cost of attendance for all student-athletes that receive athletic financial aid, beginning with the 2015-16 academic year.
Prior to his arrival in Amherst, Bamford spent four seasons at Georgia Tech, including the last two as Senior Associate Director of Athletics. He was originally hired at Georgia Tech by Dan Radakovich, who became the Director of Athletics at Clemson University in 2012. At Georgia Tech, Bamford was promoted to Senior Associate Director of Athletics in June 2013 after beginning his time with the Yellow Jackets as Associate A.D. in 2011.
Bamford spent eight-plus years, including the last five as Senior Associate Director of Athletics, at Yale. He was the sport supervisor for the football, men’s basketball and fencing programs. He was also responsible for overseeing Yale’s event management team, equipment operations, sports medicine and strength and conditioning, along with internal operations.
Nationally, the New Hampshire native has served on a number of NCAA and Ivy League committees including four years on the NCAA Division I Women’s Lacrosse Committee, which he chaired in 2009 and 2010.
He began his college administration career at Springfield (Mass.) College. He has also served at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), Octagon Sports Marketing, Plymouth State University and the University of New Hampshire.
A 2000 graduate of Ithaca (N.Y.) College, Bamford was a standout basketball player for the Bombers. He left Ithaca as the school’s single-season and career leader in 3-point field goals, while finishing 13th on the career scoring list.
Bamford comes from a family devoted to higher education and professionalism within college athletics. His father, Steve, was the Director of Athletics at Plymouth State University for 13 years before joining the ECAC in 2000 as an assistant commissioner.
