UNLV has lost one of the architects of its glory days. Brad Rothermel, the athletic director who helped turn the Rebels into a national power in the 1980s and early 1990s, died Monday, March 30. He was 88. His decade in charge of the athletic department overlapped with the program's most celebrated run, and local sports figures described him as a giant in Southern Nevada athletics, a presence felt from the Thomas & Mack Center to UNLV classrooms and offices.
As first reported by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Rothermel died Monday in Las Vegas at the age of 88. The outlet noted that he remained a familiar face around UNLV long after he left the athletic director's office, and friends, former players and colleagues quickly stepped forward to share stories about how he helped raise the profile of the Rebels.
Rothermel's Record at UNLV
Rothermel served as UNLV's director of athletics from 1981 to 1990 and presided over a remarkable stretch of success in which all 14 of the school's varsity programs reached postseason play and Rebel teams collected 33 conference championships, according to UNLV Athletics. He helped guide the department's move into the Thomas & Mack Center and hired coaches who built teams that stuck in the national conversation. After stepping down as athletic director he moved into the university's education leadership program as a faculty member, then later circled back to work with the athletics department again.
1990 Title and National Legacy
The pinnacle of that era came with the Runnin' Rebels' 1990 national championship, a 103-73 demolition of Duke that still ranks as one of the most lopsided title-game results in NCAA history, as chronicled by the Washington Post. The run pushed UNLV firmly onto the national stage and helped cement Las Vegas as a legitimate college basketball town. Rothermel's administrative decisions and key hires were widely credited with building the depth and stability that allowed the Rebels to operate at that level.
Colleagues Remember Him
"Southern Nevada has lost a giant," UNLV Director of Athletics Erick Harper said in a university statement, adding that Rothermel "helped put the Rebels on the map in the world of sports" and was "a respected leader, educator and friend," per UNLV Athletics. Former coach Jerry Tarkanian once said Rothermel had "no ego and cared about helping people," as recalled by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. Players, staff and alumni shared memories of his mentorship across local networks on Monday, underscoring how many careers he quietly helped shape.
Rothermel earned a bachelor's degree in education from Northern Illinois in 1960, a master's from the University of Illinois in 1961 and a doctorate in 1965. He worked at Kansas State and West Virginia before heading to Las Vegas, later joining UNLV's faculty for nearly a decade and serving as chief executive of the Las Vegas Bandits. His contributions were recognized with induction into the UNLV Athletics Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Southern Nevada Sports Hall of Fame in 2001.
He is survived by his wife, Suzanne, and two daughters. Services or funeral arrangements had not been announced as of Tuesday. In a city where college basketball legend still starts with the Runnin' Rebels, Rothermel's imprint on UNLV and Southern Nevada sports is likely to endure for years to come.
