Strockbine to be Inducted into UD Hall of Fame Class of 2022

IRVING, Texas - The University of Dallas athletics department has released their selections for the Hall of Fame Class of 2022.  The 82nd member of the UD Hall of Fame, and the lone inductee for the class of 2022, will be Athletic Director Emeritus, Dick Strockbine.

Strockbine was UD’s athletic director from 1995 until his retirement in July of 2021.  To say he shaped the athletics department would be an understatement; from conference and association changes, to expanding staffing and the number of sports offered, Strockbine was the chief architect of it all.  

The shift from the NAIA to NCAA Division III was spearheaded by Strockbine, as well as a handful of conference changes that brought the Crusaders to their current home for the past 11 years: the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference.  The number of varsity sports offered by the department doubled under his watch, adding a total of eight varsity sports and more than tripling the student-athlete population from 79 to a high of 289 in 2018-19.  All the while, the facilities were overhauled, with new playing fields for baseball, softball, and lacrosse being constructed, as well as significant upgrades to the soccer field and the Maher Center.

Strockbine is also credited with establishing the UD Student Athlete Advisory Committee and the UD Athletics Hall of Fame.

In addition to everything he has done for the University, Strockbine has also done much to support the collegiate athletic community at large.  He served as the president of the Association of Division III Independents for nine years, and a four year member of the Division III Management Council.  His time with the Management Council resulted in assignments with the Olympic Sports Liaison Committee, Membership COmmittee, Championships Committee, Nominating Committee, and as Chair of the Playing and Practice Seasons Sub-Committee.  He directly influenced legislative changes that allowed student-athletes to self-release to other institutions as well as changes to countable contests in the championship selection process.

During his quarter of a century with UD, the Crusaders won 13 championships with six teams and two individuals qualifying for NCAA tournaments and championships.