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Haven Fields Sr. is constantly looking to get better. That's what I took out of this conversation. From the great ADs he's worked for like Troy Dannen, Beth Goetz and Josh Whitman, to his personal board of directors, Fields has clearly paid attention as he continues his path to the AD chair. Haven talks about what he's learned from those ADs and how he consumes and stores insights to keep learning about the industry. He is led by his faith and talks about why it's important for him and his family to find the right fit anywhere he's been in his career as he wants to be part of the community. I asked Haven what it's like being a competitive person on the pursuit of the first AD job and how to still be happy for your industry colleagues when they get opportunities, too. 0:00 Introduction2:00 Proud Nebraska Initiatives4:27 AD Vantage - Where Victory Is Vetted5:45 Learning from Great Athletic Directors11:00 How Haven Learns & Consumes Information14:55 Onrise - Mental Health for College Athletes16:30 Decision Process for Job Opportunities21:06 Tactical Strategy - How Do You Keep Notes/Materials for Future AD Chair24:32 Working with Very Different Budgets Throughout Career28:30 Competitive Nature of Pursuing First Athletic Director Job31:50 Haven's Podcast and Book RecommendationsAD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Learn more: ⁠https://www.athleticdirectorvantage.com⁠ Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. Learn more: ⁠https://onrise.care⁠

To continue demonstrating how I think about AD openings as I work to break into executive search, here are my shortlists for Toledo, Kentucky, Oregon State and Wisconsin. I try to base these names off reality (contracts), trends and situational needs of the institutions. I do not use sources for these names and no one has influenced me to mention their names. These are not predictions but instead the names I would reach out for to measure interest if Higher Ed Athletics was leading the search. 0:00 Introduction3:45 Toledo9:35 Kentucky20:30 Oregon State27:38 Wisconsin

Devin Crosby joined HEA to talk in-depth about New Haven's 5-day decision to reclassify from D2 to D1. Under his watch New Haven raised $9 million to help support the transition. The first half of the episode is about institutional vision and alignment. Then the conversation shapes into advice on how ADs can think creatively to solve problems, like manufacturing a football rivalry with a local non-conference school. Crosby has spent much of his career in D1 but he was also a D2 AD at Lynn University for 8 years. We talked about how aspiring D1 ADs could benefit from applying to D2 AD jobs. 0:00 Introduction1:30 The 5-Day D1 Decision7:25 AD Vantage - Where Victory is Vetted8:50 Raising $9 Million the Same Year13:00 The Blueprint After the Decision21:20 Manufacturing a Football Rivalry23:30 The South Florida Showdown25:10 Onrise - Mental Health Care for Athletes26:43 Leadership Style & Empathy31:35 Should D1 Administrators Consider D2 AD Jobs?37:10 Advice for Aspirational ADs AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Learn more: https://www.athleticdirectorvantage.comOnrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. Learn more: https://onrise.care

Eric George joined the Rice Owls in late 2023 after 4 years at Clemson where he started as the Senior Associate AD/CFO before being promoted to Deputy AD. He is a business-minded strategist with a CPA that has worked for some incredible athletic directors. This conversation is mostly focused on how George thinks in his job, how he learns from others, and how he and his wife processes opportunities that led him to Rice and the ones that he will have in the future. I finish by asking Eric about the trend in FBS AD hires going younger lately and how that might change his approach. Eric is very focused on his deputy role at Rice and learning from Tommy McClelland, but I know he will be a great AD for some school at some point. 0:000 Introduction2:25 Proud Rice Initiatives So Far # 15:45 HEA: AD Chair Strategy Sessions7:18 Proud Rice Initiatives So Far # 28:50 AD Vantage - Where Victory is Vetted10:10 Learning from Great Athletic Directors13:55 Studying Athletic Director Content & Interviews16:35 How Eric Keeps Thoughts Organized for Future AD Role23:55 Career Design & Processing Opportunities33:40 Onrise - Mental Health Care for Athletes34:41 Balancing AD Ambitions with Deputy AD Demands37:20 The Evolving Role of the FBS Athletic Director42:40 FBS Presidents Taking Chances on Younger First-Time ADsHEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. Learn more: ⁠https://pilytix.ai/ AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Learn more: https://www.athleticdirectorvantage.com Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. Learn more: https://onrise.care

The idea of "AD Film Study" is to watch a handful of athletic director press conferences and break them down in a way that I think can help future ADs in preparing for their introductory press conference, whether that be in their words or understanding the settings of the press conferences. At the end I offer a list of final thoughts and tips based on what I observed.I watched Bryan Blair (Syracuse), Roger Denny (Oklahoma), Kevin White (Charlotte) and Ryan Berryman (New Mexico) press conferences. Each situation was different when you think about it. Blair was the G6 sitting AD that is now joining the P4. Most Syracuse fans expected it to be someone with ties to the university and Blair had to introduce himself to the fan base. Denny was a surprise hire at Oklahoma coming from Illinois when everyone thought Oklahoma would go industry outsider or at least hire a sitting AD. Kevin White was the P4 deputy from Clemson, likely seen as an aspirational peer school to Charlotte from an athletic department perspective, and had more of a traditional pathway to the AD chair. Ryan Berryman was the interim that everyone seemed to know would be the permanent AD despite his young age.And if you want to support the HEA Road Trip I’m planning, please consider donating 5, 10 or 20 bucks via my HEA Stripe accountIf you prefer reading, I wrote a very long article of my notes for each of these press conferences on the HEA website0:00 Introduction3:38 Bryan Blair - Syracuse10:45 Explaining the HEA Road Trip11:45 Roger Denny - Oklahoma25:00 Custom HEA Briefings + Career Mapping Conversations27:30 Kevin White - Charlotte41:20 Ryan Berryman - New Mexico52:25 Final Thoughts & TipsHEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts.Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.

Ziggy Siegfried has been the AD of the Evansville Purple Aces since April 2022 after serving as the AD at CSU Bakersfield for 8 years. Siegfried hosted me for a visit in Evansville and gave me a tour of campus before sitting down for a wide-ranging conversation. Fighting for Evansville Fan Market Share. Donor Fatigue, Revenue Generation & Naming Rights. Uniform Patch Strategy. Deputy ADs as Basketball General Managers. Hiring Coaches. Most Difficult Decisions. Getting High School and College ADs in a Room Together. visit www.HigherEdAthletics.com to check out my D1 AD Hiring Trends + Tracker and my new D1 AD Directory HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. Learn more: ⁠https://pilytix.ai/AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Learn more: https://www.athleticdirectorvantage.comOnrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. Learn more: https://onrise.care 0:00 Introduction3:23 City of Evansville Market Share with USI in Town7:10 ONRISE Partnership8:14 Communication Approach with Donors & Fans10:28 Donor Fatigue, Revenue Generation, Naming Rights17:10 Uniform Patch Strategy & Considerations24:03 Deputy ADs are Basketball GMs, too29:13 AD VANTAGE: WHERE VICTORY IS VETTED30:30 Coaching Hires36:30 Most Difficult Decisions as an AD39:39 Best Moments as the Purple Aces AD42:17 High School and College ADs in a Room Together

Lee De Leon joined the Blue Raiders in 2021 as Deputy AD after a long career at some incredible places, including Louisiana, New Mexico, Arizona and Houston on his way to becoming a young first-time AD at Abilene Christian from 2014-2018. We've seen a recent trend of several young ADs being hired as first-time ADs at New Mexico State, Austin Peay State, New Mexico and UL Monroe. So I start the conversation asking specifically about what it felt like being such a young AD trying to learn things at ACU. This conversation predominantly talks about institutional fit, including why his one year at Purdue was a life lesson in fit. We also talk about the evolving role of the Deputy AD and why his time as an AD feels similar to what he does now at MTSU. De Leon shares how he's changed as an administrator in the past five years and what he's learned from longtime MTSU AD Chris Massaro, including why they get paid to hit the curve balls. Faith is incredibly important to Lee, and he talks about the beginnings of "ADs for Christ" and how he sees it as ministry in the industry he's worked 20+ years in so far. I have no doubt Lee will be an AD again soon. HEA is presented by ⁠PILYTIX⁠, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. ⁠AD Vantage⁠ empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. ⁠Onrise⁠ provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. 0:00 Introduction1:40 What it was like being an AD so young3:47 Onrise - Mental Health Care for Athletes4:46 Working at a Christian University6:40 How different AD jobs are at the places Lee's worked11:40 Evolving as an administrator the past 5 years14:25 AD Vantage - Where Victory is Vetted15:45 Career Mapping in the De Leon family27:30 What Lee is working on now to become a better future AD again30:25 Lee's personal mission statement31:40 ADs for Christ and Kingdom Coaching

This conversation is absolutely loaded with strategic advice for current and aspiring ADs. Chance Miller brought new ideas to Coastal Carolina, including wild halftime shows and free concessions at football games. Chance explains where the ideas come from and how they've worked so far at Coastal. Despite being hired in 2024, Chance is already working with a new president (and served on the presidential search committee) and explains how that transition has worked up to this point. Miller goes in-depth on what he was evaluating last fall before making the decision to hire a new football head coach, and shares what he was looking for in the search. He also discusses the strategy Coastal Carolina is taking with uniform patch sponsorships across the athletic department. The conversation ends with BYOD (Bring Your Own Deputy) as I ask Miller to explain why it was important for him to bring Deputy AD Andy Humes with him from University of South Carolina. If you will be interested in AD or Deputy AD jobs between now and the next 2-3 years, fill out the new HEA Candidate In-Take Form so you can be added to Travis's executive search database: HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. 0:00 Introduction0:15 Free Concessions at Football Games7:05 Onrise: Mental Health Care for Athletes8:10 President Transition14:15 Football Coaching Change Decision (AD Vantage)21:30 Uniform Patch Deal25:00 BYOD - Bring Your Own Deputy

In this episode, Travis studies the AD search at Syracuse from the perspective of who he thinks a board and new chancellor would (or should) select. One outsider. One Commissioner. Two Sitting FBS Athletic Directors. If you will be interested in AD or Deputy AD jobs between now and the next 2-3 years, fill out the new Candidate In-Take Form on the HEA website so you can be added to the HEA database as it turns into an executive search business. HEA is presented by ⁠PILYTIX⁠, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. ⁠AD Vantage⁠ empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. ⁠Onrise⁠ provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.

In this episode, I sit down with John Daniel of the University of Cincinnati to discuss the modernization of one of the most innovative athletic departments in the country. John shares insight into Cincinnati’s record-setting financial year, the institution’s critical support before full revenue distribution from the Big 12 Conference kicked in, and how the House Settlement has once again reshaped their financial landscape. We also explore his unique reporting line to both the athletic director and the university’s CFO—an experience that is clearly preparing him for a future cabinet-level role. JD walks through his preparation and thought process for potential athletic director opportunities and the stops he's had up to this point in his career. I invited JD on the show because as the top deputy in a forward-thinking department like UC, I believe he won’t be a deputy much longer. HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue. 0:00 Introduction2:00 Modernization of the Athletic Department5:30 Onrise6:35 Record Financial Year11:35 Reporting Line with University CFO18:50 Projects JD Thinks is Preparing Him to be an Effective AD23:20 AD Vantage27:10 What to Look for in Job Opportunities29:27 Titles Aren't Everything, But the Data Says it Matters32:30 How JD Prepares for Opportunities40:20 Why JD is Ready to Become an AD in the Evolving World of College Athletics

I spent about 12 hours researching this situation and looking at the potential candidates for this position and I kept coming back to why it will likely be Ryan Berryman. I have never met or spoken to Ryan Berryman nor have I talked to any sources about this position since I use my own filtered analysis, not sources, to look at these searches. Berryman is the perfect institutional fit and he will give them long-term stability in the AD chair. Despite only being 32 years old, Berryman has an incredibly impressive background to lead the Lobos. I also explain why I think UNM is doing this search before finishing the president search. To have some fun, I muted out the other names I came up with on my shortlist for the job if it's not Berryman, and will post the unedited version in a reaction video if it doesn't end up being Berryman. HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance.AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts.Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.

In this episode, I narrate parts of 3 previous AD conversations I had with Duke's Nina King, Cornell's Nicki Moore, and North Carolina's Bubba Cunningham. Nina shares about replacing Coach K just a few days on the job and goes in-depth about the Chief of Staff position for an AD. Nicki talked about the difference between being a power school administrator that leaves for a small school AD job. She then talks about the identity change Colgate went through to better align both athletics and the rest of campus. Bubba did this interview 2 days after finishing a quick and confidential search for his men's basketball coach. He talks about how difficult it is to keep that process secret from even some of his most trusted colleagues. He also shares how 20 years at Notre Dame before becoming the AD at Tulsa, Ball State and North Carolina shaped his career. Both Nicki and Bubba share advice to aspirational ADs. HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.

If the AD search breakdowns and interviews have been helpful, please consider financially supporting HEA with a tip. CollegeAD reported this week that there are 5 finalists for the Charlotte AD job, including 2 sitting ADs and 3 P4 Deputies. I do not think they will hire a sitting athletic director. In this video, I outline who I think those deputy candidates could be or at least outline why the job profiles of each could be a sign of who Charlotte decides to hire. I do not have sources and this is all my own analysis based on studying positions and schools. HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts.Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.

Come for the insights, stay for the Landman behind-the-scenes NIL story. Ryan Peck has learned from some incredible athletic directors, most recently Wren Baker, Jeremiah Donati, and now Mike Buddie. In this conversation, Peck definitely shares what he's learned from the deputy positions, but I wanted to see how an up-and-coming senior administrator is carving out his own experiences in the job, too. Peck was on the steering committee for the university's strategic plan and was able to learn and share insights with other university stakeholders across campus in what will certainly prepare him for the president's cabinet role one day as an AD. Peck also talks about the impact of TCU being heavily featured in the latest season of Landman and how they were able to create NIL deals for their athletes to be extras on the show. I asked Ryan how he considers and prepares for certain opportunities that have or will come his way. To round out the conversation I ask Peck his thoughts on schools potentially looking at more outsiders for AD openings and what his approach is and will continue to be for his career. I hope you like these new installments of interviewing the next generation of athletic directors as college athletics continues to evolve.HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance. AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts. Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.0:55 Learning from Wren Baker, Jeremiah Donati, Mike Buddie & Others6:20 Onrise: MENTAL HEALTH CARE for ATHLETES8:18 Experience on TCU's Strategic Plan Steering Committee16:13 AD Vantage: COACHING HIRES17:30 LANDMAN comes to TCU - NIL Deals for Athletes as Extras24:08 Decision-Making Process for Career Mapping34:21 How does Ryan Peck Prepare for Job Opportunities40:25 Thoughts on Outsiders as ADs and Learning from Pro Sports for College Role

Since 2026 is the 250th birthday of America, and I'm reading books about the American Revolution, I thought it made sense to ask Army Athletic Director Tom Theodorakis to join HEA for a conversation. Theo shares what it feels like every day at West Point and why it is such a special place. I asked him what perspective he gets from working at different institution types, including P4 schools, another military academy, and even The Ivy League at Harvard. The conversation turns to outlining his vision going into his second year in the AD chair. We discuss what it takes to put on an Army/Navy game and what it will take to keep it from being changed as the College Football Playoff dates continue to change. It's safe to say the game won't be in July. Theo explains how Army has to continue to think about what college athletics looks like at their institution since they do not do House, NIL, and the transfer portal is not the same for them. He also communicates what athletics means at West Point and what the future leaders of our nation's Army learns from the experience, including failure and trying to build up muscle memory of winning in tough situations. HEA is presented by PILYTIX, an AI tech company for higher education institutions and sports organizations. Increased Donations. Fast, Effective Targeting. Improved Performance.AD Vantage empowers athletic directors with comprehensive staff data, performance analytics, and AI-powered candidate insights to make smarter hiring, compensation, and retention decisions in an era where every dollar counts.Onrise provides complete mental health Coverage for your Athletes. One call. Same-day setup. Your athletes get immediate access to peer support from retired pros, licensed clinicians, and 24/7 crisis care. Less than one in-house FTE. No hiring hassles. No initiative fatigue.0:00 Introduction0:40 Experiencing West Point Daily as AD1:55 Perspective from Army, Harvard, UCLA, Arizona, Air Force6:52 Transitioning from 1st Year to 2nd Year as AD11:20 Visit Onrise.CARE for Mental Health Athlete Care12:20 What it takes to put on the Army/Navy Game18:45 How do you protect the Army/Navy Game Date?22:00 Institutional Collaboration at West Point27:05 Deciding to complete a Doctorate in Education31:35 Aspirational Advice: Get out of your Comfort Zone