Since taking over as the Director of Athletics and Recreation on August 27, 2004, Dan Coonan has helped take Santa Clara University athletics to new heights both on and off the field. Coonan arrived at Santa Clara from the University of California, Berkeley, where he served as the executive associate athletics director.

In his first year (2004-05), the Broncos captured their first-ever West Coast Conference (WCC) Commissioner's Cup, the award given annually to the top WCC school, based on a point system reflecting the place finish of each team in conference play. In 2005-06, the athletic department saw four of its coaches earn WCC Coach of the Year honors as Santa Clara finished second in the Commissioner's Cup standings. From 2004 - 2006, 12 teams have reached the postseason play, including the 2005 volleyball team's dramatic run to its first-ever Final Four and an appearance in the 2004 College Cup by the women's soccer team. Five teams ended the season in 2005-06 ranked in the top-20 nationally. Additionally, in 2005-06 the Broncos earned their highest finish in the Directors Cup standings since 1998-99.

In 2006-07, Coonan helped Santa Clara athletics reach even greater heights. The Broncos captured the WCC Commissioner's Cup for the second time in three years and simultaneously, SCU student-athletes achieved the department's long-stated goal of a cumulative 3.0 GPA. Santa Clara won the Rivalry Series with San Jose State for the fifth straight season.

The student-athletes at Santa Clara continue to thrive off the field under Coonan's leadership as the school leads the WCC in graduation rates among student-athletes and ranks second on the West Coast.

Following his arrival on the Mission Campus, Coonan has helped energize the Bronco Bench Foundation, while re-connecting the athletic department with its roots. Under his leadership, the athletic department has seen a rise in contributions to the Bronco Bench, as Santa Clara continues to attempt to increase its scholarship base. School spirit is also on the rise under Coonan, fueled by his decision to move the student section for men's basketball to center court and by his decision to encourage the return of the student pep band. Coonan also oversaw the successful opening of the newest jewel of the athletic department, Stephen Schott Stadium, a state-of-the-art stadium for the Broncos tradition-rich baseball program.

The El Segundo, Calif. native was named as one of the top 25 "Most Powerful People in Sports in the Bay Area" by the San Jose Mercury News in 2006.

While at Cal, Coonan, oversaw all aspects of football and men's and women's basketball and volleyball. He also managed the department's strength and conditioning and sports medicine units as well as legal affairs and event management. He served as the department's primary contact with local, regional, and national television representatives for football and basketball broadcasts, conducted a successful search for football coach Jeff Tedford, and negotiated the institution's first multi-sport apparel and equipment contract with Nike.

A 1984 graduate of the University of Notre Dame, Coonan received his doctor of jurisprudence from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles in 1987. He served on the staff of the Loyola Law Review and as a law clerk for the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth District. After passing the California Bar exam, Coonan worked as an associate attorney for Smith & Hilbig in Torrance for five years before becoming a partner at Nakahara & Lane. In 1994, he served as the finance director for the United States congressional campaign of Corky Larson.

He began his career in athletics in 1994 as he returned to his alma mater in to serve as assistant compliance director for the Fighting Irish athletic department before moving to Central Connecticut State University to become assistant athletic director in January 1995. Following his time in Connecticut, Coonan came to the Bay Area to accept a position at the University of California, Berkeley as assistant athletic director responsible for legal affairs, compliance, and personnel.

Coonan next moved on to accept a position as assistant commissioner for governance and enforcement at the Pacific-10 Conference in Walnut Creek, Calif. While at the Pac-10, he managed the league's NCAA and conference rules enforcement program and oversaw the NCAA and conference governance and legislative process. He also organized the conference's gambling issues committee and conducted campus audits and education sessions on NCAA and league rules.

Coonan is the fifth director of athletics at Santa Clara since Pat Malley took over the reigns in 1965. Since that time, Tom O'Connor (1986-92), Carroll Williams (1992-2000) and Cheryl Levick (2000-2004) have served in that role on the Mission Campus. Coonan oversees all aspects of operating the department's 19 NCAA Division I intercollegiate sports as well as its recreation, intramural, and club sports programs.

Coonan, a devoted father and husband, is married to the former Donna Kreter and the couple has three children, Claire, Tommy and Kevin.