From the desk of Director of Athletics Chris Massaro

As we close the books on the 2022-23 Blue Raider sports year, it is appropriate for us to reflect upon the many accomplishments by our student-athletes and teams, both on and off the field.

First and foremost, we accomplished our No. 1 mission and graduated 40 student athletes this year while registering an NCAA Graduation Success Rate of 94 – the ninth straight year we have equaled or set a new GSR record. And, as a program, we recorded perhaps the best overall performance by Athletics in school history:

Our teams won four Conference USA championships (women's basketball, men's tennis, and softball) and four teams competed in the NCAA Tournament (women's basketball, men's golf, men's tennis, and softball). Seven of our teams reached postseason play.
Our softball team came within one run of advancing into the Super Regionals. We lost 1-0 to Alabama -- at Alabama -- with the winner advancing to the Super Regionals.
Our men's tennis team also came within a whisker of advancing to the final 16 in losing a close match to Mississippi State in Starkville after beating Tulane in the opening round.

And our football team beat highly regarded San Diego State in the Hawaii Bowl, claiming our second consecutive bowl win.
Men's tennis, women's basketball, and softball all were ranked in the Top 25 this year.
Softball finished the season ranked No. 23 in the nation by Softball America.
And the Blue Raiders this year beat a school record of nine teams ranked in the Top 25 in six sports (football, men's basketball, women's basketball, men's tennis, softball and baseball).
Track standouts Alaba Akintola and Esther Isa both advanced to the NCAA Championships. Akintola made the indoor and outdoor championships while Isa competed in the indoor.

We also celebrated two significant milestones this year: 50 years of Title IX and the 50th Anniversary of Murphy Center. The Judds final concert, staged in November and broadcast nationally in April, helped everyone remember what a great entertainment facility the Murphy Center was and still can be. There have been a ton of great events in Murphy, and I hope you recalled many of those milestones while browsing the timeline panels we installed on the concourse level of Hale/Earle Arena.

It's now time to turn our attention to the 2023-24 sports year. We are at the midpoint of construction of our new $7.1M outdoor tennis complex featuring eight courts, covered spectator seating, new offices and locker rooms for our men's and women's coaches and players. We have broken ground and have started the demolition process to build the $66M Student-Athlete Performance Center, which will be built where the existing weight room building is in the North Endzone area of our stadium complex.

To date, we have raised over $18 million in donations for the Build Blue project, and we are very optimistic we can pass the $20 million mark in the summer or early fall. Your generosity and support continue to fuel the Blue Raiders and I believe it will transform our entire Athletic Department and further enhance the student-athlete experience.

While I am proud of our achievements, there is still work to be done and challenges to overcome. We need your help in filling our stadium this fall for football games. Of particular importance are our two nationally televised mid-week games vs. Jacksonville State on Wednesday, Oct. 4, and LA Tech on Tuesday, Oct. 10. We also need you to make the short drive to Huntsville, Alabama, this March for the Conference USA Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament. Those three games in March are critically important as we look to give ourselves the best chance to return to the prestigious NCAA Tournament. Let's make Huntsville our home court.

Our Blue Raider Blitz is set for July to support our ongoing work to build and strengthen better connections with fans in Murfreesboro, Rutherford County, and Middle Tennessee. Increased fan engagement participation is critical to our growth and accomplishing our collective goals.

In addition, we are also addressing in the coming months bigger national challenges and issues in athletics, including better mental health awareness and treatment for student athletes; Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) opportunities; navigating the transfer portal, and the always-looming matter of conference realignment.

We want to win every C-USA championship and graduate every student athlete. Thank you for helping us to strive to meet those ambitions. None of this would be possible without you and your unwavering support.

Thank you!

Go Blue Raiders!

Chris Massaro
Director of Athletics

Middle Tennessee State University Athletics

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