Doug McNamee named as Baylor's athletic director, replacing Mack Rhoades

WACO, Texas (AP) — Former Baylor athletics administrator and graduate Doug McNamee was named Monday as the Big 12 school's athletic director.

The new AD replaces Mack Rhoades, who last month stepped down after nine years for personal reasons. Rhoades had also been chairman of the College Football Playoff selection committee.

McNamee was the senior associate AD for external affairs at Baylor in 2018 when he left to become president of Waco-based Magnolia, the nationally recognized lifestyle and media company founded by Baylor alums Chip and Joanna Gaines. He left Magnolia in 2022 to become president of the reimagined Field & Stream with country music stars Eric Church and Morgan Wallen as investors.

“My connection to Baylor University runs deep, and its culture, history, and expectations have profoundly shaped my life," McNamee said in a statement. “I believe the breadth of my experiences has prepared me for this moment at Baylor and within the evolving landscape of college athletics. Stepping into corporate leadership allowed me to cultivate the entrepreneurial mindset, creativity, hunger, and financial discipline required to thrive in today’s environment and the one ahead. Returning to my alma mater in this capacity is a profound honor and responsibility. I do not take it lightly.”

In his previous stint at Baylor, McNamee was responsible for all major revenue-generating and brand-facing units, including fundraising, marketing, communications and premium ticketing. He played a key role in the fundraising, planning and opening of McLane Stadium over a decade ago.

McNamee began his career at IMG College, rising to general manager for Baylor’s multimedia portfolio, where he led sponsorship strategy, partnership development and revenue optimization. He earned his bachelor’s degree in speech communications from Baylor in 2003, and two years later got a master’s degree in sport management from the school.

At Field & Stream, McNamee has led the revitalization of the 154-year-old outdoor brand into a modern, multi-platform media and consumer lifestyle company. He guided all product, media, retail and content strategy while positioning the company for long-term, omni-channel growth. At Magnolia, he led commercial strategy across media, retail, hospitality, e-commerce and partnerships.

"Doug’s familiarity with Baylor and his recent experience as the chief executive of two national lifestyle and media companies will serve him well as we prioritize increasing revenues, expanding external NIL opportunities for our student-athletes and growing our brand in this new era of college athletics while also engaging our passionate fanbase,” said Baylor President Linda Livingstone, who previously served as chair of the NCAA Board of Governors and of the Big 12 Board of Directors.

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