It’s almost impossible to talk about Bowie State University athletics without mentioning Clyde Doughty Jr.

Doughty, the vice president for intercollegiate athletics and recreation, spent 11 years transforming university facilities and student offerings — reopening the pool and building an aquatics program, establishing a nutrition lounge, improving the physical education complex, creating new locker room spaces and upgrading the tennis courts.

He also led Bowie State teams to multiple Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championships, including three consecutive titles in football and softball and a men’s basketball victory.

“He led with professionalism, humility, with joy and an unwavering commitment to Bowie State University,” said Aminata Breaux, the university president. “He did so at times quietly and behind the scenes, just making things work. But he was steadfast in his commitment to Bowie State University, and he always kept the wellbeing of our students at the center of his work.”

He wasn’t done. He still dreamed of building a football stadium and turning golf from a club sport into an athletic program.

His sudden death in the wee hours of Feb. 3 sent shockwaves across Bowie State and college athletics, where Doughty was also known for his enduring enthusiasm and stylish suits. He was 67.

He was born Sept. 8, 1958, in Harlem, New York, but grew up mostly in Queens. The older brother to Edward and Andre was raised primarily by his mother.

Clyde was always interested in sports, Edward Doughty said. He played pitcher on their youth baseball team. The New York Giants were his football team.

But basketball soon became his big love, and he played at Brooklyn Technical High School. He prioritized sportsmanship from a young age, family said.

“Everybody loved him, even the people that felt that he was competing with them,” Edward Doughty said. “He wasn’t that type of person to rattle nobody’s feathers.”

He later played NCAA Division II basketball at the New York Institute of Technology and helped lead the team to two tournament appearances in 1978 and 1980. He also started DJ-ing parties for fun, said his son, Andre Doughty.

Clyde Doughty graduated with a business degree and later earned two master’s degrees in human resource management and human relations at his alma mater. He worked in the athletics department for three-plus decades, rising to athletics director.

He met some of his best friends at NYIT, including Robert Sinckler, who described Doughty as a notorious prankster. His favorite bit was telling someone they had something on their shirt, then flicking their nose. Gotcha!

“You really had to have your head on a swivel, because one way or another, he was going to try to pull one over on you,” Sinckler said.

Doughty prioritized students’ overall success, his son said, and helped athletes focus as much on their academics as they did their sport. He was hurt when the institution stopped prioritizing sports, prompting his move to Bowie State in 2015.

In addition to his career, he’d built a family on Long Island. He met his wife, Pamela, in high school, but she wasn’t interested in jocks. Their paths crossed again in college, where Clyde would sometimes drive around campus in hopes of running into her.

She rejected him, until she didn’t, and they quickly became best friends.

They bought a house near the university and had two children, Andre and Jessica, who joined an older brother, Brandon, from a previous relationship.

Clyde Doughty was his children’s “biggest cheerleader,” Andre said. He worked a lot but was still full of energy at home. Andre remembers his father turning on music on a Saturday morning and jumping on his kids’ beds.

“He wasn’t overbearing — didn’t really demand much of us, but he just knew that we had skills and had talents, and he recognized those, and he let us explore those,” Andre Doughty said.

Clyde Doughty was thrilled to start as athletics director at Bowie State, Maryland’s first HBCU. He “really found his home there,” his son said, and was promoted to vice president in 2018.

During his tenure, Doughty won several CIAA awards for his leadership. He also served as president of the CIAA Management Council from 2017 to 2021.

Tony O’Neil, the athletics director at Claflin University in South Carolina, grew close to Doughty during the pandemic, when they realized they were both members of Phi Beta Sigma fraternity. Doughty had an innate ability to connect with others, O’Neil said.

“His presence meant something when he walked into that room,” he said.

His relationships were especially strong at Bowie State, where he was also pursuing a doctorate in educational leadership. Jolisa Williams started as an assistant athletics director in 2021 but became Doughty’s right-hand woman two years ago. He was a patient, compassionate mentor and one of her biggest advocates, Williams said.

Doughty was a servant leader who helped students work around financial issues or personal setbacks to obtain their degrees.

“He was somebody that really wanted to pour into others and give people an opportunity,” Williams said.

Doughty often reminded Williams that she was resilient and capable, and that he would pass the torch to her when he retired in a couple of years. He always told her to “enjoy the moment” and stop sweating the small stuff.

She leans on those memories as she now prepares to take over the athletics department.

“Clyde put me in a position to be able to do this and to be ready,” Williams said. “I didn’t want to do it this way, but I am prepared for it, and I’m ready to lead that charge.”

Bowie State University will hold a memorial service Feb. 13.

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