Scott Barnes
Scott Barnes was named Vice President and Director of Athletics Dec. 22, 2016 by then Oregon State University President Dr. Ed Ray.
In Barnes’ tenure, OSU Athletics has made significant strides academically and athletically. Beaver student-athletes are among the leaders in the Pac-12 Conference for academic accomplishments, the Valley Football Center officially re-opened and the popular Fan Experience Committee was created. In addition, he has increased the emphasis on fundraising and developing a sustainable business model that will ensure Beaver Athletics continues to progress and thrive, and debuted the BUILD THE DAM Strategic Plan to guide the program forward for future years.
Barnes has spent over three decades in athletics administration, including more than 20 years as an athletics director. He arrived back to his native Pacific Northwest from the University of Pittsburgh, where he served as the Panthers’ Director of Athletics for nearly two years. Pittsburgh achieved high success academically and athletically that included bowl trips, conference titles and record academic achievements.
Prior to Pitt, Barnes headed the Utah State University athletics program from 2008-15 as Director of Athletics and was promoted to Vice President in 2012. While at Utah State, the Aggies experienced unprecedented success that included multiple bowl trips in football, 20 league titles and a successful transition to the Mountain West Conference.
Barnes has also served as the Director of Athletics at Eastern Washington University and Humboldt State University. In addition, he has held various athletics roles at the University of The Pacific, the University of San Diego, Iowa State University and the University of Washington. He also has experience in corporate business and professional basketball.
The Spokane native graduated from Fresno State with a bachelor’s degree in 1986 and a master’s degree in athletics administration and physical education in 1993. A basketball letterman under coach Boyd Grant, he helped the Bulldogs advance to two NCAA Tournaments and two NITs. Barnes was a second-team all-conference player as a senior before playing professionally in Germany.
He and his wife, Jody, have two children: Daughter, Milanna, and son, Isaac, a member of the Beaver men’s basketball team. In addition, the family dog is appropriately named Benny (OSU’s mascot is Benny Beaver).
