USA Club News

USA Rugby officially announced today that Todd Bell has been hired as the organization’s Director of College Rugby.

Bell comes to USA Rugby after a 15-year career with the nation’s oldest college coaches association, the American Football Coaches Association, where he most recently served as the organization’s Director of Media and Membership Relations.

Bell was responsible for media relations for the 10,000-member organization, including the promotion of all AFCA awards and media services at the association’s annual convention. He directed the AFCA’s All-America and Coach of the Year programs and Division III Coaches’ Poll voting board. He served as the staff liaison to the NCAA Division III Football Committee and the Football Championship Subdivision Board of Directors.

From 1997-2007, Bell also directed operations for the AFCA’s Division III national team that compiled a 10-1 record in the Aztec Bowl and served as the selection committee coordinator or co-coordinator for the Hula Bowl from 1997-2001 and 2005-2006.

In 1990, he began a 20-year affiliation with the AT&T Cotton Bowl that continues to this day. He serves as a member of the bowl’s game operations staff each year. In addition to the AT&T Cotton Bowl, Bell’s event experience includes numerous NCAA, Big 12 and Southwest Conference basketball tournaments and the 1995 and 2004 Major League Baseball All-Star Games.

As the first USA Rugby staffer solely dedicated to the college game, Bell will work with a new College Rugby Strategic Committee to manage all aspects of USA Rugby’s new college department including the creation of a governance model, a College Coaches Association, the establishment of best practice templates that support the development of college programs, and the review of the current college competition structure. In addition, he will oversee regular season and postseason collegiate competition, coaching and player development, the promotion of the Women’s NCAA Initiative and sponsorship and media opportunities.

“As one of the few Olympic team sports that is not overseen in some way by the NCAA it is our responsibility as a National Governing Body to produce a high-level regular season competition and postseason championship event that showcases rugby and our top tier programs nationwide,” Bell said. “At the same time we have to continue to improve the experience for our athletes at the other levels of college rugby.

“I am excited about this opportunity and look forward to working with our college strategic committee to grow intercollegiate rugby.”

In addition to his work with the AFCA, the University of St. Thomas (Minn.) graduate has also served as a consultant to USA Football, managing that organization’s 2007 Senior National Team and 2009 and 2010 Junior National Teams. He served as a press officer for the United States Olympic Committee at the 2003 Pan American Games, 2005 World University Games, 2006 Winter Olympics and 2008 Summer Olympics. Bell was also a member of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee’s media services staff during the 2002 Winter Olympics.