On Oct. 1, 2024, Lincoln University elevated Tim Abney to the position of Director of Athletics and Campus Recreation. Abney had previously been named as LU's Interim Athletic Director on April 1, 2024.
Abney, who entered the Lincoln University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017, is a true Blue Tiger in every sense of the word. The Assistant Athletic Director for Administration the past eight years, Abney graduated from LU with a business degree in 1978 and has spent most of his professional career as a coach or administrator at Lincoln University.
As the coach of Lincoln's tennis program for seven years, Abney's athletes were stellar in the classroom, with more than half of his players earning All-MIAA academic honors. A true believer in the importance of a college education, Abney concurrently served as the Assistant Athletic Director for Academics at Lincoln. Abney served as an advisor and coordinator for each of Lincoln's student-athletes, and in the fall of 2015, over 120 Blue Tigers made the Dean's List.
A former star basketball player at LU, Abney helped lead the Blue Tigers to its best four-year stretch in history. From 1974-1978, Abney was a member of Lincoln teams that won 83 games and two MIAA regular season championships. During his senior season, Lincoln advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament and came within two points of earning a berth in the Final Four. During the 1975-76 campaign, Abney was a part of a team that totaled 1,458 rebounds, which still stands as the Lincoln single-season record. Following the 1976-77 and 1977-78 seasons, Abney was named to the All-MIAA basketball teams.
Abney also formerly served as Lincoln's women's basketball coach for 10 seasons, including in 2008-09 when he also began his tenure as the tennis coach. Under Abney's guidance, Lincoln won 72 games, making him the second-winningest coach in program history behind the legendary Leo Lewis. Abney joins Lewis as one of just two coaches in LU history to lead the women's basketball program to four-consecutive seasons with 10 or more wins, accomplishing the feat by winning 45 games between 2001 and 2005. In 2002-03, Abney was named the Heartland Conference Women's Basketball Coach of the Year.
Abney is originally from Kansas City, Mo. He and his wife, Diane, have three children: Darrell, Dannon and DeAndrea.
