‘Rising tide raises all boats’ Conque agrees to extension through 2028‘

UTRGV and Chasse Conque, vice president and director of Athletics, have agreed to a contract extension, according to a Jan. 12 university news release.

Conque, who joined UTRGV in 2019, is in his fifth year as director and the extension ensures he remains at the helm through Aug. 31, 2028.

“I appreciate [President Guy Bailey’s] trust and support of what we’re building and doing here in athletics,” he said. “When I came to campus in 2019, I was fortunate to receive a five-year contract at that time. And so to be able to be renewed and now have that five year commitment from the institution is a wonderful thing for me and my family.”

In an interview with The Rider, Bailey praised Conque and his tenure as athletic director.

“[Conque] has done a terrific job since he’s been here,” he said. “Our fundraising for athletics has just increased unbelievably, so has season ticket sales and attendance at events.”

Jonah Goldberg, senior associate athletic director for Communications and Championships, works closely with Conque.

“Chasse is a servant leader, he’s been a transformative leader here at UTRGV,” Goldberg said. “He’s the kind of person that really cares about people, who they are, what they’re about. He doesn’t see you as, like a number, or just somebody who’s gonna help get a job done. He sees you as a human being which is, I think, the first thing that you notice about him. Chasse truly cares about everybody in this department.”

One of Conque’s accomplishments during his tenure as athletic director included securing over $85 million in facility upgrades for all UTRGV athletic programs.

The Rider asked Conque about his future goals for UTRGV athletics. 

Conque said short-term goals for UTRGV athletics include finishing facility upgrades, continuing to build community support and celebrating academic success. 

Long-term goals for the Athletics Department include football and the start of the women’s swimming and diving program.

“It seemed like a long-term goal maybe a year or two ago but it’s sneaking up pretty quickly,” Conque said. “We’ll compete in women’s swimming and diving this fall and then we obviously kick off football in 2025. And so that’s keeping us busy and keeps our feet moving pretty fast and making sure we’re ready for those moments and to be able to bring Division I football to the Valley, and then doing it the right way and building it in a sustainable way.”

Moving forward with the contract extension, Conque is set to stay optimistic. 

“[UTRGV can expect] the same passion that we’ve operated with,” he said. “Competitive success, that’s something we wanna see us have more of in the coming years. And I think that the facility investment is a much needed piece of the puzzle, to help us do that, and continuing to, hopefully, be great partners with our university community but also with the communities and the cities that we serve.”

Goldberg described Conque as a “visionary.”

“He’s always five steps ahead and thinking forward,” he said. “He’s always thinking down the line, and what this could do and what this could grow. I bet you he’s already thought of the year 2040 for UTRGV athletics.

“There’s no limit to what he can do for this entire Valley, or this region. He wants to raise up the Rio Grande Valley and to do that he wants to use UTRGV athletics. He talks about it all the time, ‘rising tide raises all boats.’ As UTRGV athletics rises, so will UTRGV and so will the Rio Grande Valley.”

Bailey has expectations going forward for Conque.

“That he continue to do a great job fundraising, building attendance, building interest across the Valley,” he said.