Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State Hires Former Division I Athletic Director Craig Angelos To Manage Bohl Diamond At Blair Field
10/15/2026 10:47:00 AM | Baseball
The former athletic director at FAU and Hawai’i comes to the Beach to oversee the operations, stewardship, and continued growth of the iconic venue, while adding significant executive experience to the Long Beach State Athletics’ senior leadership team.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – Long Beach State has made an impactful hire for a critical new leadership role, as the Beach welcomes longtime Division I athletics executive Craig Angelos to the Beach as the Senior Associate Athletic Director of Facilities, Events, Operations, and Capital Projects.
In this new position, Angelos will serve as the senior administrator for Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, responsible for managing venue operations, stewardship, capital project management and coordination, revenue development, and the complex network of public-private partnerships connected to the facility. In the upcoming calendar year, Angelos will also serve as the sport administrator for Dirtbag Baseball, providing executive oversight and support to the program.
Angelos will also join Executive Director of Athletics Bobby Smitheran's senior leadership team, bringing more than 25 years of Division I administrative experience to broader departmental strategy in a pivotal moment for Long Beach State given the rapidly evolving landscape of college athletics.
Located in a picturesque setting in Recreation Park and owned by the City of Long Beach, Long Beach State operates Blair Field under a multi-year lease. In addition to serving as the home of Dirtbag Baseball, the venue hosts the Long Beach Coast, an independent professional club competing in the Pioneer Baseball League, as well as the Moore League, the primary high school competition league in the CIF-Southern Section in Long Beach.
Additionally, the field has once again become the primary home of the Area Code Games, an annual event that brings together over 200 of the best young players in the nation to showcase their skills in front of professional and collegiate scouts. Household names that have come through the event include Clayton Kershaw, Freddie Freeman, Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, Nolan Arenado, Blake Snell, Adley Rutschman, and Jacob Misiorowski. Blair Field also regularly hosts third-party rentals and special events, with its distinctive setting having served as a backdrop for major film productions including Moneyball and Space Jam.
Most importantly, Bohl Diamond at Blair Field is the primary home of Dirtbag Baseball, a national brand with four College World Series appearances, a long history of producing Major League Baseball talent, and a strong tradition of grit, toughness, and success. Long Beach State has already made significant investments into improvements. The Troy and Danyll Tulowitzki Batting Facility, Jered Weaver Bullpen and Steve Trachsel Bullpen have been constructed thanks to generous support from prominent former Dirtbags. Clubhouses, the press box, seating areas, light towers and the LED scoreboard have all been improved under the stewardship of Long Beach State Athletics.
Recently, thanks to another philanthropic gift from Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Famer Marilyn Bohl, the Bohl Annex Pitching Lab was completed prior to the start of the 2027 season. The project made significant structural changes to the former batting cages, enhancing the safety, security, functionality and appearance of the space while setting the stage for significant technological improvements. Partnering with Driveline, Long Beach State is now one of five schools in the nation to boast a pitching launchpad, combining fiber-optics, high speed cameras and data input to measure biomechanics using the same system used by Major League Baseball. Measuring strength and rotation, the facility will allow Dirtbag pitchers to track improvement, create greater consistency across pitching mechanics, and pursue increased velocity and arm speed while maintaining proper and repeatable arm actions.
With the opportunity to continue building upon the unique advantages provided by Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, Smitheran and Long Beach State Athletics sought an experienced executive capable of navigating the intersection of Division I athletics, baseball, venue operations, major capital projects, revenue generation, and complex public-private partnerships, while helping establish a long-term vision for one of the most iconic venues in college baseball.
Looking at his stops at FAU and Hawai'i, Angelos brings a rare combination of experience to that charge. At FAU, Angelos conceived and directed the construction of the $250 Million Innovation Village, a site that included a 30,000-seat football stadium, athletics facilities, student housing, retail space and campus infrastructure. At Hawai'i, Angelos played a major part in building new initiatives that produced over $850,000 in recurring annual revenue.
He has an established track record of building strong partnerships with civic leaders, legislators, alumni, corporate partners, and community stakeholders, all of which will be critical in this new role with Long Beach State.
"Bohl Diamond at Blair Field is a beloved community asset that has served the City of Long Beach for decades, and it's critically important that we position the facility for improvements that benefit the next generation of Dirtbags, fans and residents," Smitheran notes. "Given the uniqueness of Blair Field and our desire to improve all facets of the student-athlete and fan experience, it was important to identify a leader who has demonstrated large-scale capital improvement experience. Craig Angelos is a veteran administrator who has the experience and leadership skills to help us navigate the future of Blair Field, and I'm thrilled to have him join the Beach Athletics team. He has a baseball background, and a keen understanding of the positive impact public-private partnerships can have for the betterment of Long Beach State and our community, and I look forward to his contributions to the Beach."
At Long Beach State, Angelos will serve as the primary administrative point of contact for Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, leading the coordination of venue ops, capital projects, and strategic initiatives, while building and maintaining relationships with the many partners in the facility, including the City of Long Beach, Long Beach Unified School District, Major League Baseball, the Pioneer Baseball League and others.
Working in concert with Smitheran, campus leadership and Long Beach State's external partners, Angelos will help develop a long-term vision for the continued modernization and activation of Blair Field. That work will include identifying and prioritizing capital needs, improving the operational readiness and functionality of the venue, maximizing facility utilization, and pursuing opportunities to generate new revenue and enhance the student-athlete and fan experience.
"I want to thank Bobby Smitheran for this opportunity and for his confidence in me," said Angelos. "He is a tremendous person and an innovative leader, and I am excited to join his staff as they challenge the status quo in college athletics. Long Beach State is thinking differently about what an athletics department can be, and I'm thrilled to be part of the team as we continue building something special here at the Beach."
A college baseball player himself, Angelos is a member of the Rio Hondo College Baseball Hall of Fame where he played before moving to Division I with BYU, a path that will resonate with many current and former Long Beach State student-athletes.
Following a stint playing professional baseball in Italy, Angelos graduated from Creighton University law school and then embarked on a 30-year career in intercollegiate athletics. That includes 12 years as a Director of Athletics most recently at the University of Hawai'i and previously at Florida Atlantic University, as well as the number two roles at the University of Miami, Indiana University, the University of South Florida, Temple University, and Long Island University.
In this new position, Angelos will serve as the senior administrator for Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, responsible for managing venue operations, stewardship, capital project management and coordination, revenue development, and the complex network of public-private partnerships connected to the facility. In the upcoming calendar year, Angelos will also serve as the sport administrator for Dirtbag Baseball, providing executive oversight and support to the program.
Angelos will also join Executive Director of Athletics Bobby Smitheran's senior leadership team, bringing more than 25 years of Division I administrative experience to broader departmental strategy in a pivotal moment for Long Beach State given the rapidly evolving landscape of college athletics.
Located in a picturesque setting in Recreation Park and owned by the City of Long Beach, Long Beach State operates Blair Field under a multi-year lease. In addition to serving as the home of Dirtbag Baseball, the venue hosts the Long Beach Coast, an independent professional club competing in the Pioneer Baseball League, as well as the Moore League, the primary high school competition league in the CIF-Southern Section in Long Beach.
Additionally, the field has once again become the primary home of the Area Code Games, an annual event that brings together over 200 of the best young players in the nation to showcase their skills in front of professional and collegiate scouts. Household names that have come through the event include Clayton Kershaw, Freddie Freeman, Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, Nolan Arenado, Blake Snell, Adley Rutschman, and Jacob Misiorowski. Blair Field also regularly hosts third-party rentals and special events, with its distinctive setting having served as a backdrop for major film productions including Moneyball and Space Jam.
Most importantly, Bohl Diamond at Blair Field is the primary home of Dirtbag Baseball, a national brand with four College World Series appearances, a long history of producing Major League Baseball talent, and a strong tradition of grit, toughness, and success. Long Beach State has already made significant investments into improvements. The Troy and Danyll Tulowitzki Batting Facility, Jered Weaver Bullpen and Steve Trachsel Bullpen have been constructed thanks to generous support from prominent former Dirtbags. Clubhouses, the press box, seating areas, light towers and the LED scoreboard have all been improved under the stewardship of Long Beach State Athletics.
Recently, thanks to another philanthropic gift from Long Beach State Athletics Hall of Famer Marilyn Bohl, the Bohl Annex Pitching Lab was completed prior to the start of the 2027 season. The project made significant structural changes to the former batting cages, enhancing the safety, security, functionality and appearance of the space while setting the stage for significant technological improvements. Partnering with Driveline, Long Beach State is now one of five schools in the nation to boast a pitching launchpad, combining fiber-optics, high speed cameras and data input to measure biomechanics using the same system used by Major League Baseball. Measuring strength and rotation, the facility will allow Dirtbag pitchers to track improvement, create greater consistency across pitching mechanics, and pursue increased velocity and arm speed while maintaining proper and repeatable arm actions.
With the opportunity to continue building upon the unique advantages provided by Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, Smitheran and Long Beach State Athletics sought an experienced executive capable of navigating the intersection of Division I athletics, baseball, venue operations, major capital projects, revenue generation, and complex public-private partnerships, while helping establish a long-term vision for one of the most iconic venues in college baseball.
Looking at his stops at FAU and Hawai'i, Angelos brings a rare combination of experience to that charge. At FAU, Angelos conceived and directed the construction of the $250 Million Innovation Village, a site that included a 30,000-seat football stadium, athletics facilities, student housing, retail space and campus infrastructure. At Hawai'i, Angelos played a major part in building new initiatives that produced over $850,000 in recurring annual revenue.
He has an established track record of building strong partnerships with civic leaders, legislators, alumni, corporate partners, and community stakeholders, all of which will be critical in this new role with Long Beach State.
"Bohl Diamond at Blair Field is a beloved community asset that has served the City of Long Beach for decades, and it's critically important that we position the facility for improvements that benefit the next generation of Dirtbags, fans and residents," Smitheran notes. "Given the uniqueness of Blair Field and our desire to improve all facets of the student-athlete and fan experience, it was important to identify a leader who has demonstrated large-scale capital improvement experience. Craig Angelos is a veteran administrator who has the experience and leadership skills to help us navigate the future of Blair Field, and I'm thrilled to have him join the Beach Athletics team. He has a baseball background, and a keen understanding of the positive impact public-private partnerships can have for the betterment of Long Beach State and our community, and I look forward to his contributions to the Beach."
At Long Beach State, Angelos will serve as the primary administrative point of contact for Bohl Diamond at Blair Field, leading the coordination of venue ops, capital projects, and strategic initiatives, while building and maintaining relationships with the many partners in the facility, including the City of Long Beach, Long Beach Unified School District, Major League Baseball, the Pioneer Baseball League and others.
Working in concert with Smitheran, campus leadership and Long Beach State's external partners, Angelos will help develop a long-term vision for the continued modernization and activation of Blair Field. That work will include identifying and prioritizing capital needs, improving the operational readiness and functionality of the venue, maximizing facility utilization, and pursuing opportunities to generate new revenue and enhance the student-athlete and fan experience.
"I want to thank Bobby Smitheran for this opportunity and for his confidence in me," said Angelos. "He is a tremendous person and an innovative leader, and I am excited to join his staff as they challenge the status quo in college athletics. Long Beach State is thinking differently about what an athletics department can be, and I'm thrilled to be part of the team as we continue building something special here at the Beach."
A college baseball player himself, Angelos is a member of the Rio Hondo College Baseball Hall of Fame where he played before moving to Division I with BYU, a path that will resonate with many current and former Long Beach State student-athletes.
Following a stint playing professional baseball in Italy, Angelos graduated from Creighton University law school and then embarked on a 30-year career in intercollegiate athletics. That includes 12 years as a Director of Athletics most recently at the University of Hawai'i and previously at Florida Atlantic University, as well as the number two roles at the University of Miami, Indiana University, the University of South Florida, Temple University, and Long Island University.
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