As Dick Tamburo begins his fourth year as Director of Intercollegiate Athletics at the University of Missouri, he can rest comfortably knowing that he has the Tiger athletic program moving on an upward plane. He's guided the MU athletic department with the same dedication, desire, and drive that propelled Arizona State and Texas Tech to financial stability under his leadership. Tamburo's goal continues to be to streamline the Missouri athletic department, and to give its programs the best possible opportunity to achieve competitive success on the field of play.
Within the last year, four Tiger teams were ranked among the nation's top 20, and Mizzou became the first school to claim both the Big Eight Conference Male (Doug Smith) and Female (Julie Dorn) Athlete of the Year Awards in the same year.
Despite operating under fiscal constraints, Tamburo has moved to raise MU's Varsity Sport programs to a level of full scholarship funding, as allowed under NCAA guidelines, and to improve Missouri's facilities.
Chancellor Haskell Monroe recognized Tamburo's attributes when he selected Tamburo for the job three years ago.
Tamburo knew the Mizzou Athletic Department well, having spent two years handling day-to-day operations as associate athletic director. He was appointed interim athletic director by Monroe in July 1988, when former director Jack Lengyel left for a similar job at the U.S. Naval Academy. On Sept. 7, Monroe made the appointment permanent and Tamburo became athletic director at his third university.
After assuming the AD reins, he analyzed the Mizzou athletic department and reorganized in an effort to get the most efficient production from his staff. He added a compliance officer to establish educational and monitoring programs to help the Tiger coaching staff understand and keep up-to-date on complex Big Eight Conference and NCAA regulations. Other moves were made to expand MU's efforts in the area of group sales and marketing, and to maximize the department's fund-raising potential in endowments, annual giving and major gifts.
Tamburo's staff development endeavors paid off in a number of areas during 1990-91. Missouri received accolades from veteran observers for the manner in which it hosted four Big Eight Conference Championships — indoor track and field, wrestling, gymnastics and women's golf. Tamburo was also the prime mover in MU's celebration of its football centennial, which is being emulated by other schools as they approach their 100th season of football.
Perhaps one of the achievements of which Tamburo is most proud is the institution of the University of Missouri Intercollegiate Hall of Fame. With the help of a bequest from the estate of Ace and Mary Stotler, Tamburo supervised the construction of the Hall of Fame on the west side of Hearnes Center, formulated the Hall's constitution and bylaws, and appointed an expert selection committee to honor the best and brightest of MU's proud athletic past.
Tamburo, 61, joined the Missouri staff in May 1986. As associate AD, he supervised the department's operations and was instrumental in establishing a new administrative structure for MU athletics. Tamburo also oversaw a number of physical plant improvements at Memorial Stadium and the Hearnes Center and was responsible for Mizzou's Varsity Sports.
Tamburo says his priorities are simple — to maintain Missouri's reputation for integrity, and to take care of its student-athletes.
"We talk about the student-athlete but sometimes we get to the point where we forget they are student-athletes," Tamburo says. "I think our primary mission with an athletic program is to have a young student-athlete come to the University and gain a meaningful degree. By that, I mean gaining a degree that has some substance to it so that they can go out in the world and earn a class living and be respectable within the community and be somebody of whom the University can be proud."
MU was proud of a number of student-athletes in 1990-91. For the winter semester, 135 Tigers had grade-point averages that exceeded 3.0, including 57 with 3.5s and 13 perfect 4.0s. In addition, six MU athletes earned Academic all-America status.
At Fresno State, Tamburo served as associate athletic director for six months, where he managed operations, the organizational chart and NCAA compliance.
During his tenure at Arizona State, from 1980-85, Tamburo managed a 23-sport Sun Devil program. ASU was the only PAC-10 Conference school that did not drop a sport during that time. At the same time, he increased all women's sports to their NCAA scholarship allotment. In addition, Tamburo added promotional activities worth $1 million per year for four years, took the ASU athletic department from a deficit to a $1.6 million reserve, and established a counseling program similar to Mizzou's Total Person Program.
Tamburo spent 1978-80 as the director at Texas Tech, where he increased Red Raider Booster Club contributions from $250,000 to $500,000 and initiated plans for a new baseball field. He served Illinois, from 1972-78, as associate athletic director and began his administrative career in athletics during a two-year stint at Kent State.
Tamburo is involved in the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA). He's been a member of the District Eight Executive Committee and served as coordinator of the Athletic Agents Program, Television Revenue Program and Western Regional Drug Program.
Tamburo coached collegiate football for 13 years, including nine years at Arizona State, under Frank Kush. He later coached at Iowa, for four years.
As an offensive lineman and linebacker at Michigan State, Tamburo earned all-America honors. The Spartans posted a 26-1 record in his three-year (1950-52) career and was chosen by his teammates as the most valuable player of Michigan State's 1952 undefeated national champion team. He was chosen for the Dapper Dan Award and was selected as the Detroit Times Lineman of the Year in '52. Tamburo played in the East-West Shrine and Senior Bowl games and was chosen to the College All-Stars of 1953. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns but opted to play a year in Canada for Hamilton.
He entered the Army in 1954. During his military service, he continued playing football and was selected all-Army and all-service.
He has been inducted into the Allegheny-Kiske Valley Sports Hall of Fame and the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame.
Tamburo, a native of New Kensington, Pa., graduated from Michigan State in 1953 with a degree in police administration. He and his wife, Marie, have three children and four grandchildren.