SEWARD, Neb. – For the second time in five years, Concordia University, Nebraska’s Devin Smith has been honored as an Athletics Director of the Year Award winner by the National Association of Directors of Athletics (NACDA). Smith was announced by NACDA as one of the 28 honorees for 2024-25 on Monday (March 17). The award spans seven divisions (NCAA FBS, FCS, Division I-AAA, II, III, NAIA/Other Four-Year Institutions and Junior College/Community Colleges). Winners will be recognized in conjunction with the 60th Annual NACDA & Affiliates Convention at the World Center Marriott Resort in Orlando, Fla., on June 10.
The ADOY Award highlights the efforts of athletics directors at all levels for their commitment and positive contributions to student-athletes, campuses and their surrounding communities. Smith is one of four athletics directors from the NAIA level to earn the ADOY Award for the 2024-25 athletic year.
Smith has served as Director of Athletics at his alma mater since June of 2010 and has led Concordia Athletics to new heights both within the Great Plains Athletic Conference and nationally. At the heart of the success achieved by the Bulldogs are the pillars of Smith’s departmental mission: family, Christ-centered, excellence, teamwork and passion. The process of living out these core values has yielded impressive results over nearly 15 years of leadership in his current role managing one of the NAIA’s largest athletic departments.
A former Bulldog Basketball student-athlete, Smith has twice been named an Athletics Director of the Year honoree by NACDA (2021 and 2025). He is also a three-time winner of the GPAC Athletics Director of the Year award (2015, 2020 and 2024). For the last nine years, Smith has represented the GPAC on the NAIA National Administrative Council (NAC) and is the current chair of the Championships Sub-Committee. He began a two-year term as the Chair of the GPAC Athletic Director Steering Committee in 2024-25 and is the NAC liaison to the sport of outdoor track & field.
Under Smith’s direction, the Concordia Athletics Department captured GPAC All-Sports Championship Trophies for the 2014-15, 2021-22 and 2023-24 academic years. This past 2023-24 year, the Bulldogs placed 15th in the Learfield Directors’ Cup NAIA Standings, marking the fifth time in Smith’s tenure that Concordia has finished in the top 20 nationally. In addition, Concordia Athletics annually ranks among the national leaders for NAIA Scholar-Teams and NAIA Scholar-Athletes. Concordia University, Nebraska remains the NAIA’s all-time leader in number of NAIA Scholar-Athletes with 2,526 entering the 2024-25 academic year.
Concordia University, Nebraska President Dr. Bernard Bull stated the following after Smith was named the 2023-24 GPAC AD of the Year, “Devin’s passion for our student-athletes and his genuine care for the well-being of our coaches is evident in his daily actions. He is a passionate Bulldog and a Champion for Christ, inspiring everyone around him to strive for Christ-centered excellence.”
Added GPAC Commissioner Corey Westra, ““Under Devin’s leadership, the Bulldogs continue to be leaders on and off the courts and fields of competition. The GPAC greatly appreciates his leadership not only for his institution but for our conference and in the NAIA.”
All NACDA-member directors of athletics in the United States, Canada and Mexico who met the criteria were eligible for the award. Among the criteria were service as an AD for a minimum of five academic years; demonstration of commitment to higher education and student-athletes; continuous teamwork, loyalty and excellence; and the ability to inspire individuals or groups to high levels of accomplishments. Additionally, each AD's institution must have passed a compliance check through its appropriate governing body (i.e., NCAA, NAIA, etc.), in which the institution could not have been on probation or cited for a lack of institutional control during the tenure of the current athletics director.