Sometimes a college student’s career path can take a slippery turn. Take Doug Frank (BA ’76), for example.
He chose the University of Denver back in the 1970s planning to attend the DU law school after his undergraduate work.
He didn’t know it then, but there was something outside of law and his bachelor’s degree that would influence his future career: DU hockey.
“I had some interest in ice skating and in hockey before I came to DU, but that interest took a huge jump once I came to Denver,” Frank says. “The student body was an important component of the Pioneer games then, and I was swept up in the excitement.”
Swept so hard that hockey ultimately took a front and center role in his life. Today he’s president of the Corpus Christi Rayz, a minor league professional hockey team in the Texas town.
“I love the physicality of the game, and the athletic skill it takes to play at the professional level is amazing,” he explains.
Frank says his DU education prepared him perfectly for the job because of the different kinds of people he met from around the country and the globe.
“I felt engaged academically at DU, and I grew tremendously as a result of interaction with the diverse student body,” he says.
His memories of DU are fond, he says. One sticks out: “I even remember the errant streaker who made it across the ice between periods one night.”
He says he’s very impressed with today’s DU hockey program. “Just like the school … it has continued to grow in strength since my time in the ’70s.”
He says several players he’s coached in youth hockey have gone on to attend DU and that he has at least three more who are hoping to be admitted later this year.
“We have more professional hockey teams in Texas than any other state in the country, and at least with regards to Corpus Christi, our community has DU to thank for that.”