National Football Foundation

A visionary in New Jersey athletics, Mulcahy has spent his life working towards the betterment of sports in his home state, steering the Rutgers football program toward national prominence during his time in Piscataway.

Coming off a winless season the year before his arrival as athletics director in 1998, he worked fast to improve conditions for Rutgers football. In 2001, he hired Greg Schiano, who in four short years would lead the Scarlet Knights to their first postseason appearance in nearly 30 years. Mulcahy, a Villanova graduate, also obtained funding from the state legislature for a massive renovation of the university's athletic facilities, raised the athletics department's endowment and secured increased television coverage for the football program.

Mulcahy is also credited with positively affecting student-athlete welfare, putting an emphasis on academics and community service. He initiated significant upgrades in athlete tutoring and supervision programs, boosting Rutgers to one of the top academic institutions in the Big East. He also encouraged participation in area toy drives, blood drives, reading programs and hospital visits. And, in 2006, Scarlet Knights' team captain Brian Leonard took home the NFF's William V. Campbell Trophy as the top senior football scholar-athlete in the country for his combined academic, athletic and community involvement.

Prior to joining Rutgers, Mulcahy served as president and CEO of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA) for 19 years. Under his watch, the NJSEA created the Kickoff Classic; attracted the Army-Navy game; and hosted eight NCAA Men's Basketball Regionals and the last Final Four ever to be held in an arena. He also negotiated contracts to host the NHL's New Jersey Devils, the NFL's New York Jets and Giants and the MLS' MetroStars to play at the Meadowlands.

Mulcahy has served on the NFF Board of Directors since 1990, chairing the organization's Awards Committee. He is also an honorary member of the American Football Coaches Association. He and his wife Terry live in Basking Ridge, N.J., and have seven children and 11 grandchildren.