Ryan Pisarri Named Director of Athletics
July 7, 2025
Dear Tufts community members,
It is my pleasure to share with you today the appointment of Ryan Pisarri as the next director of athletics at Tufts University, effective August 1. Ryan succeeds John Morris who departed the university for a new opportunity last month.
Ryan currently serves as the interim athletic director at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, New Jersey. In that capacity, he oversees a department that includes 24 athletic programs, 800 student-athletes, and over 300 employees. In addition to overseeing the daily operations of the department, he acts as the sports administrator for five programs, including men’s basketball and football. Prior to his current role, and during a 15-year career at Rutgers, he has served as deputy athletic director for competitive excellence, senior associate athletic director for sports administration and chief of staff, and as an assistant academic coordinator.
A 2006 graduate from the University of Pennsylvania, Ryan was a member of the football team that won Ivy League Championships in 2002 and 2003. He received his master of arts in education from Rutgers in 2021 and an MBA from Rutgers Business School in 2024. You can learn more about him tomorrow in Tufts Now.
Ryan impressed the search committee as someone who was committed to athletic excellence while also focusing on the holistic academic experience at Tufts for all student-athletes. He exhibited a deep commitment to Tufts, to the well-being and growth of our student-athletes, and to the support and professional development of our coaches and athletics staff. By the end of the process, I was convinced that Ryan was the right person to lead the Department of Athletics at this time. I am confident that Ryan can build on our already successful athletics program by focusing on a winning culture and by fostering close relationships between Athletics, the rest of the institution, and our deeply engaged alumni and supporters.
Let me also take a moment to thank the members of the search committee, named below, who worked hard during the summer to review over 60 applications and for forwarding me exceptional recommendations for finalists. I am grateful to all of them for giving us their time and for their effort over the past few weeks. I am also appreciative of Alexis Mastronardi, who stepped up to serve as director of athletics ad interim during this time.
I wish you all a very pleasant rest of the summer.
Best regards,
Sunil
Director of Athletics Search Committee
- Ted Tye, Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees and Chair of the Athletics Board of Advisors (Co-chair)
- Marty Ray, Vice President of Strategic Initiatives and Chief of Staff to the President (Co-chair)
- Andre Baynes, Trustee and Member, Athletics Board of Advisors
- Jay Civetti, Head Football Coach
- Rich DeCapua, Senior Associate Dean of Students and Deputy Chief Student Life Officer for Arts, Sciences, and Engineering
- Tom Downes, Associate Professor of Economics, School of Arts and Sciences
- Lisa Gorman, Member, Athletics Board of Advisors
- Courtney Shute, Head Women’s Lacrosse Coach
- Lena Sugrue, E26, Student-Athlete, Women’s Soccer
- Samuel Thomas, Professor of Chemistry and Senior Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences
- Jill Weinberg, Associate Professor of Sociology, School of Arts and Sciences, and Associate Professor, Tisch College
- Sidney Wooten, A26, Student-Athlete, Men’s Basketball