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Dave Mullins was recently appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Intercollegiate Tennis Association following a unanimous vote by the ITA Board of Directors.

Mullins, who replaces Tim Russell, is just the third executive leader in the ITA’s nearly 70-year history. Mullins joined the ITA in 2019 as the ITA Managing Director of Community Engagement and Coach Empowerment. In 2021, he was promoted to Chief Operating Officer.

Mullins spent 12 years as a college tennis coach with stops at DePaul University, Northwestern University and the University of Oklahoma, where he spent his final eight years in the profession as the head coach of the women’s team.

Mullins played at Fresno State and was named an All-American in 2001. Before college, he competed in the Junior Wimbledon and French Open Junior championships in 1997. He was a member of the Irish Davis Cup Team from 1999-2004.

Mullins holds a bachelor’s degree in business and finance and master’s degrees in sports psychology and sports administration.

Mullins will spend the next six months as the CEO Designate, continuing his work with Russell. Mullins officially takes over as the Association’s CEO on January 1, 2025.

In a Q&A two days after being named the new CEO, Mullins discussed the ITA’s role in a rapidly changing collegiate landscape where athletes could potentially become paid employees, how college tennis is preparing for potential disruptions and how the ITA can help in recruiting.

How do you plan to push the ITA forward in this new era of college athletics and the changes in store?

Although we don’t know what changes are coming, we have been assured from multiple key sources within intercollegiate athletics that change is definitely coming to Division I athletics. Whether that is positive, negative or a little of both for non-revenue sports like tennis remains to be seen. We also don’t know what consequences it may have for the other five divisions (NCAA DII, NCAA DIII, NAIA, Junior College, and Wheelchair) of college tennis. It is an uncertain time for everyone in the college athletics industry with so many factors being out of the control of everyone working in this industry, regardless of the sport. I plan to work closely with our incredible ITA Board of Directors, coaching body and other key stakeholders to determine where to focus our efforts based on what we can control and influence.

Given the potential changes in college athletics, how does the ITA plan to try and avoid programs being cut?

The ITA, along with many other non-revenue coaches’ associations, is a member of the Intercollegiate Coach Association Coalition (ICAC). Together, several members have pooled resources to hire a lobbyist firm to help better tell the story of non-revenue sports to members of the US Congress and the US Senate. There are obvious challenges we face with this being an election year, but ultimately these are the decision makers who will determine the fate of college athletics. We plan to travel to Washington DC as a group to ensure the voices of all these sports are being heard.

The ITA or any other group cannot control resource allocation decisions made on campuses. We have to continue to encourage our coaches to be the biggest advocates for their tennis programs on their campus, in their communities and within their own athletic departments. The coaches and the tennis population within the surrounding areas are best positioned to advocate on their behalf. Of course, the ITA and the USTA will always try to assist programs in jeopardy as much as possible.

What we can control is how innovative we can be during this time. We need to identify both revenue generating ideas and cost saving options for college tennis programs moving forward. On the revenue generation side of things, we are looking at the future intersection of sports wagering on college tennis, additional community hub offerings and grants, pickleball, virtual tennis, tickets sales and corporate sponsorships to name a few.

How does the ITA help junior players looking for college options?

Traditionally, the ITA has not been involved in this process and has been reluctant to provide recruiting or compliance advice for several reasons. However, with the establishment of the ITF World Tennis Number and in conjunction with the USTA, we have created the College Connect Page to provide some direction for players and their families hoping to participate in college tennis. Players can also use the College Connect WTN tool to find a list of colleges that currently fit their playing level. This is a great way for players to gain a better understanding of this process, and I would encourage everyone who has even a slight interest in playing college tennis to review this webpage.

The ITA will also be hosting a college recruiting showcase at this year’s ITA Coaches Convention on November 17^th at Southern Methodist University, Dallas, Texas. More details will be available on our website, www.wearecollegetennis.com later this summer.

What does the ITA plan to do to increase participation in college tennis?

The ITA is one of the only coaches’ associations of non-revenue sports that employs a marketing and communications department. The ITA will continue to promote college tennis through our various channels as much as is possible within our current bandwidth. We will continue to work with partners such as Cracked Racquets to help broaden the appeal while seeking other broadcasting and streaming avenues. We believe that college tennis has a lot of momentum right now and other vitally important governing bodies such as the USTA, ITA and the ATP are now more engaged with college tennis than ever before. The ITA will continue to build coalitions like the ones listed above to help maintain and increase participation in college tennis.

What does the ITA offer coaches to help with their recruiting efforts?

Over the last several years, the ITA has developed several coach education resources for our member coaches–an ITA coaches podcast, a credentialing course named Coach Up, a masterclass and a new program for college players looking to join the coaching ranks after they graduate college named Rising Coaches. All of these resources touch upon the recruiting process in various ways. The partnership with the ITF World Tennis Number as the official, exclusive rating of college tennis provides coaches with another tool to identify players at the appropriate level for their teams and compare with their current rosters. The ITA is also working with USTA sections to start offering more player showcases and provide recruiting information for those that are interested in playing college tennis.

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About Rhiannon Potkey

Rhiannon Potkey is a veteran sportswriter with more than two decades of experience in journalism. Potkey has covered many sports at many levels and has a passion for finding great stories. Potkey has covered the U.S. Open, junior sectional and national events, college conference championships and Davis Cup matches. Potkey is currently Content Strategist for Tennis Recruiting. You can reach Rhiannon by email at rhiannon@tennisrecruiting.net.