Dr. Chris Ratcliff enters his eighth year at Rogers State University and is the Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics. He was named the fourth Director of Athletics in RSU history on November 18, 2016 by President Dr. Larry Rice.
Under Ratcliff’s leadership, RSU became an associate member of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) in the fall of 2019 and accepted full membership the summer of 2022. With college athletics changing by the day, Ratcliff led the RSU Hillcats through unprecedented times during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
In December 2021, Ratcliff earned his doctorate from the University of the Cumberlands in Williamsburg, Ky. in Leadership with an emphasis in University Student Personnel. His dissertation was titled "Female Leadership in NCAA Division II: A Hermeneutical Interpretative Phenomenology Study into the Ascension of Female Athletic Directors” and maintained a 4.0 GPA.
Along with the success on the playing fields, Ratcliff has overseen tremendous strides in the classroom as well. As a department, RSU has posted an overall GPA of 3.30 or better with at least 75 percent or more student-athletes earning a 3.0 or better GPA in the last several years. As of Fall 2024, 78 percent of Hillcat student-athletes held a 3.0 or better GPA with 67 holding a perfect 4.0 GPA.
Under his guidance, RSU has become deeply connected to and involved in the Claremore and Rogers County communities. The RSU Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and all Hillcat teams have developed deep relationships with Claremore Elementary Schools and regularly volunteer at other community events. Ratcliff himself is very active in the community as well, serving on the Advisory Board of the Claremore Chamber of Commerce and has facilitated fundraising campaigns for the Boy Scouts of America troops of Northeast Oklahoma.
RSU has seen tremendous facility upgrades under Ratcliff’s leadership. The department recently completed a $1.7 Million project to add new turf playing surfaces for soccer, softball and baseball in 2024. The Hillcats also look to break ground on a new indoor practice facility for baseball, softball and golf in 2025. Over the last few years, there have also been projects to install new netting and fence upgrades for baseball, softball and soccer along with several upgrades to the Claremore Expo Center, where the Hillcat basketball teams play.
The 2023-2024 athletic season continued to be successful under Ratcliff’s leadership. RSU women’s golf advanced to the NCAA Division II National Championship for the third time in four years and hosted the NCAA Division II Central Regional Tournament. RSU men’s golf saw Elliot-Han Monteremal advance to the National Championship as an individual. Hillcat softball won their first MIAA regular season championship and second tournament championship. They hosted the NCAA Central Regionals and Super Regionals for the second time in the past three seasons. Along with being ranked in the top 25 all season, RSU won more than 45 games for the third season in a row. RSU men’s soccer also advanced to the GAC/MIAA championship game for the fourth time in five years.
In 2022-2023, Ratcliff continued to oversee several great achievements in Hillcat athletics. Women’s golf advanced to their third-straight appearance in the NCAA Regional Championship. Men’s golf also advanced to their third-straight NCAA Midwest/Central Regional Championship with at least one player making an appearance. Softball was ranked No. 1 in the country for five-straight weeks, and spent the entire season ranked in the top 25. They also won more than 45 games and advanced to NCAA Regional Championship Game for the second-straight season. Men’s soccer also finished the season as GAC/MIAA runner ups.
2021-22 was a banner year for the Hillcats as they passed several new milestones. RSU saw its first-ever national championship as Hillcat softball capped off a magical season with the win over Cal State Dominguez Hills in Denver, Colo. at the NCAA Division II Softball World Series. Additionally, won their first MIAA tournament championship. Along with men’s golf winning their first MIAA Tournament, they won a school-record eight tournaments in a row and advanced to the NCAA Midwest/Central Regional Championship. The women’s golf team advanced to the second straight appearance in the NCAA National tournament.
In the 2019-2020 season, RSU saw much success on the field. Men’s soccer won the GAC/MIAA Tournament Championship in the first year of joining the conference. Men’s basketball finished second in the MIAA and earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament. Ratcliff led RSU through the beginning of COVID-19 pandemic, as the athletic season was cut short in March.
In the 2018-19 season, Ratcliff’s leadership continued to shine, as the Hillcats won two Heartland Conference Championships. Baseball won the Heartland Conference Championship, and advanced to the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament made it to the South Central Regional Championship. Softball also won the Heartland Conference, and advanced to the NCAA South Central Regional Tournament.
In the 2017-18 season, Ratcliff led the Hillcat Athletic Department to its the most successful year since joining the Heartland Conference. RSU captured three Heartland Conference championships in men's cross country, men's golf and softball.
Ratcliff arrived on College Hill after serving as Director of Athletics at the University of Arkansas at Monticello from 2009 to 2016.
At UAM, Ratcliff helped change the culture of UAM Athletics through improvements in all facets of the department, including competitiveness on the field, academic achievement by student-athletes, service in the community and fundraising. Among the accomplishments during his tenure are increasing the overall GPA for student-athletes, creating six new scholarship endowments to assist student-athletes and coaches, and fostering an environment where student-athletes completed an average of 2,600 hours of community service per year.
During his tenure, UAM athletics has seen an increase in annual giving as well as corporate sales, including a record amount of giving and membership in the UAM Sports Association. UAM fields 11 athletic teams as a member of the Great American Conference.
Ratcliff oversaw two major capital campaigns over the last four years, including major improvements to the UAM Baseball and Softball facilities, additional facilities for Men's and Women's Golf, and improvements to its fieldhouse gymnasium.
At UAM, Ratcliff served on the Board of Directors for the D2 Athletic Directors Association (ADA). In 2016, he was voted in as Third Vice President. He also served on the D2 ADA NCAA Regulatory Committee and was the national chairman of the NCAA Women's Basketball Committee in addition to serving for two seasons on the Men's Basketball Regional Advisory Committee.
Ratcliff previously served two years as UAM's Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance and remained active in the compliance world by attending numerous regional rules seminars.
A native of Houston, Ratcliff joined UAM in 2006 as the school's sixth head women's basketball coach. He more than doubled his win total from his first season to his second. In his third year at the helm of the Blossoms (2008-09), Ratcliff and his team captured the program's first 20-win season of the decade (21-9), the program's first-ever appearance in the finals of the Gulf South Conference Championship Tournament, and the program's second appearance in the NCAA South Regional.
In addition to taking the team to its first ever GSC Championship game, Ratcliff's 2007-08 squad was the first UAM team to earn a spot in the GSC Semifinals game after knocking off then No. 7 ranked West Georgia in the quarterfinals.
Prior to his hire at UAM, Ratcliff served as assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at Henderson State University, where he helped lead the Lady Reddies to numerous postseason appearances, including the 2006 NCAA Division II Elite Eight, the 2005 Sweet 16, and the 2004 Final Four, while winning the 2004 GSC Championship, the 2006 GSC-West Championship and posting three consecutive 20-win seasons. A notable recruiter, he helped assemble talent that included two D2 All-Americans, one Academic All-American and six All-GSC selections.
Prior to his time at HSU, Ratcliff served in the same role at San Jacinto Junior College in Houston, Texas from 1999-2003. While there, he aided the Lady Gators to the NJCAA Region XIV Tournament for the first time ever in 2002, followed by another appearance the next season.
Ratcliff and his wife Andrea live in Claremore and have two children, Ella and Rivers.
