Gary Holden is the Associate Athletic Director at Ferrum College, where he has been a part of athletics department for over three decades. Since joining Ferrum in 1991 as Sports Information Director, Holden has advanced through leadership roles, including Assistant Athletic Director, Acting Director of Athletics, and his promotion to Associate Athletic Director in 2022.
Throughout his tenure, Holden has shaped Ferrum’s athletic communications, championship event management, and community footprint. He created Ferrum's first athletics website and successfully launched the official FerrumPanthers.com platform in 2007, overseeing multiple major redesigns since.
Experienced in event operations, Holden served as the Tournament Director for the 2019 and 2023 NCAA Division III Wrestling National Championships, and has directed numerous NCAA regional tournaments for both baseball and wrestling. His leadership extends beyond campus; he is a past President and 28-year webmaster for the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Association, and previously served as the Acting Commissioner and Sports Information Director for the Atlantic Central Football Conference.
In addition to administration, Holden has a coaching pedigree. He served as Ferrum’s head men’s and women’s tennis coach from 1999–2008, earning USA South Coach of the Year honors in 2003 and 2006, and spent four years on the NCAA Division III Men’s Tennis Committee (serving as chair in 2008). He began his collegiate career at his alma mater, Plymouth State University, where he was named New England College Conference Wrestling Coach of the Year (1990) and Rookie Coach of the Year (1988), and produced multiple national qualifiers, including an All-American.
As a student-athlete, Holden was a state wrestling champion at Nashua High School (NH), and a three-time All-Conference wrestler and 1985Â Northern New England Wresttling Tournament champion at Plymouth State. He is also the author and publisher of Black & Gold: A History of Athletics at Ferrum College (2014). Holden was inducted into the Plymouth State Sports Hall of Fame in 2015 and the Ferrum Sports Hall of Fame in 2021.
Invested in the local community, Holden has dedicated years to the Franklin County Youth Wrestling Program, the local Parks and Recreation Committee, and Boy Scout leadership—helping guide his two sons to the rank of Eagle Scout. He has also edited the Rock Church News for over 28 years. Holden and his wife, Leslie, have been married for 37 years, reside in Ferrum and have two grown sons, Taylor and Drew.
