Derrick Ramsey, a former player in the National Football League who has an outstanding record of success in collegiate athletics, has been appointed as the director of athletics at Coppin State University.
Coppin State’s president, Dr. Reginald S. Avery, who appointed Ramsey to the position on July 1, 2008, introduced him at a news conference held on campus on Monday, August 18, 2008.
In his more than 10-year career in intercollegiate athletics, Ramsey has served as an athletics administrator at Kentucky State University and the University of Kentucky as well as having been a student-athlete while attending Kentucky. He also served as the Deputy Secretary of Commerce for the state of Kentucky under the direction of former Governor Ernie Fletcher.
“Coppin State University is extremely proud to welcome Derrick Ramsey to the Coppin State Family,” said Dr. Avery. “His impressive and extensive collegiate athletics experience made him the right candidate for this position. As a former student-athletes, he also knows the importance of balancing academics and athletics, and is committed to insuring that our student-athletes are successful athletically, but more importantly, academically.
He added, “Ultimately, Derrick Ramsey wants to insure that every student-athlete successfully earns his or her diploma. He also brings vast administrator knowledge and has what it takes to successfully run an athletics program. He also loves working with youngsters, has a keen interest in reaching beyond the campus to help the community, and has great discipline and tenacity, which ultimately earned him great success collegiately, and in the NFL. We are ecstatic to have him here at Coppin State, and look forward to a great and productive future.”
The 52-year old Ramsey served as the Director of Athletics at Kentucky State from 1999-2003 and was the Director of Community Relations at Kentucky from 1998-99.
“The leadership of Dr. Avery is one of the factors that has brought me to Coppin State,” Ramsey said. “He understands athletics and trusts my judgment to run the program as I see fit. Additionally, Coppin State athletics has a rich tradition and history and I wanted to be a part of that success. There are a lot of challenges, but I’m very excited about the opportunity.”
From 2003-07 Ramsey served as the Deputy Secretary of Commerce for the state of Kentucky where he oversaw the Fish and Wildlife Department, the Kentucky State Fair and Exposition Center and operated a budget in excess of 50 million dollars.
During his tenure at Kentucky State, Ramsey significantly reorganized the athletic department’s budget, administration and academics. Over 24 percent of the student-athletes at Kentucky State earned a grade-point average of at least 3.0 and he also oversaw the implementation of a 5,000-sqaure foot academic and fitness center. On the field, five teams won conference championships and the Kentucky State football team posted its highest win total in 25 years in 2003.
“I plan to bring accountability to Coppin State athletics,” said Ramsey. “When you have accountability then things begin to happen. Academics are my main priority and we will improve in that area. Also, I am focused on improving our Olympic sports and bringing them to a championship level.”
Ramsey spent over four years working at his alma mater, the University of Kentucky. He worked as a community relations officer before being elevated to the position of Director of Development and Community Relations where he coordinated the fundraising strategies for the Lexington campus.
In 1998 he was appointed to the position of Director of Community Relations for the Lexington campus where he developed several mentoring programs.
Ramsey is one of the more decorated players in the history of Kentucky football. He is a member of the Kentucky Hall of Fame and had his jersey retired in 1992. He was named to the Kentucky All-Time football team in 1994 and quarterbacked one of only two teams in UK history to win a Southeastern Conference title in 1976.
After earning his degree from Kentucky, Ramsey embarked on a nine-year career in the NFL with Oakland, New England and Detroit.
Ramsey was a member of the 1981 Super Bowl Champion Oakland team that defeated Philadelphia 27-10.