CSA Search & Consulting is proud to have partnered with Colorado on its successful Director of Athletics search! With more than 100 years of combined experience and 500+ successful searches, CSA continues to be a trusted partner to institutions nationwide. Our team delivers best-in-class executive search services through a personalized, collaborative approach grounded in integrity, relationships, and results.
The top ten most-clicked jobs of the week...
#10: Coastal Carolina: Chief Executive Officer, Chanticleer Athletic Foundation
#9: USC Upstate: Assistant Vice Chancellor for Strategic Development and Athletic Partnerships
#8: Sam Houston State: Director of Athletics
#7: Johns Hopkins: Director of Cohort-Based Learning: Athletics
#6: South Carolina: Director of the Letterman's Association
#5: Sacramento State: Senior Associate AD of External Affairs
#4: Williams: Director of Athletics and Chair of the Department of Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation
#3: Texas: Manager, Game Operations
#2: Coastal Athletic Association: Associate Commissioner for Sport Administration
#1: East Carolina: Chief Revenue Officer and Executive Director of the Pirate Club
#10: Division I Men's Soccer will remain a single semester sport after a vote to move to two semesters has officially been rescinded by two-thirds of the membership. (link)
#9: Alabama has installed a Maven Baseball Lab setup to improve player performance. Take a look. (link)
#8: It's one of the best moments on the college football calendar. Army West Point tapped future NFL Hall of Famer/Fox NFL analyst Rob Gronkowski to debut this year's uniforms for the Army-Navy game. Have a look. We'll keep an eye out for the forthcoming uni breakdown. (link)
#7: Also check out this very cool one-shot drone video of Notre Dame's entrance ahead of its victory over Miami (FL). (link)
#6: Some of you were skeptical when New Mexico recently released a video of employee Jeff Tickets working hard to sell tickets to Lobos football games. Jeff Tickets is really Football HC Jason Eck, you said. Well, UNM has provided footage that categorically proves Tickets and Eck are two different people. Sorry to disappoint, but see for yourself. (link)
#5: Florida State hires Learfield EVP/FSU alum Jeff Purinton as its next VP/AD. President Richard McCullough: “Jeff Purinton has the experience, judgment and championship pedigree to lead Florida State Athletics at this important moment. As a two-time FSU graduate and former Athletics department employee, Jeff has a deep understanding of Florida State, our culture and the expectations that come with representing this university. Jeff further developed his extensive leadership experience overseeing football operations as part of Nick Saban's championship program at Alabama. I am incredibly excited to welcome Jeff home to Florida State.” Parker Executive Search assisted with the process. (link)
#4: The College Football Playoff is officially expanding to 24 teams starting next season, as the CFP and ESPN have finalized a five-year, nearly $1.7B media deal, per ESPN's Heather Dinich. From the CFP: “The decision to expand was driven by a desire to increase opportunities for FBS programs, student-athletes and fan bases to participate in the Playoff and have a chance to play for the CFP National Championship, while new scheduling standards incentivize institutions to schedule more compelling non-conference matchups during the regular season. The expanded format will feature 16 on-campus Playoff games, which will bring Playoff football to more students and local fans while providing a positive impact for campus communities.” (link)
#3: Check out Tennessee's Dark Mode laser show from Saturday night's matchup against Kentucky featuring sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads. (link, link, link)
#2: For decades, colleges answered almost every strategic problem by growing: more students, more programs, more buildings, more staff. That answer is running out. About one in seven colleges (387) lost money over the past decade, small private schools now discount nearly 55 cents of every tuition dollar to hold enrollment, and undergraduate enrollment is still roughly 400,000 below 2019. Athletics is not exempt — in 2024, public FBS schools in the top tier spent more on athletics than they brought in for the first time: $13.06B in expenses against $13.02B in revenue. Our executive briefing brings together Jeff Selingo's The State of Higher Education and the U.S. Department of Education's College Affordability and Transparency Report, covering the economics of attrition, the federal ROI mandate, research funding and AI, governance and leadership turnover, and what all of it may mean for athletic departments. The companion piece, Higher Ed in 25 Charts, has the data behind it. (link - executive briefing, link - 25 charts)
#1: Tennessee men’s basketball student-athletes, alongside Athletes.org, have negotiated a proposed collective bargaining term sheet, covering compensation, player movement, health and wellness, rules and enforcement, academics and much more. Notably: “All parties explored this process and provided perspective. The Administration has not agreed to or endorsed these terms, and nothing in this document reflects a commitment, policy, or binding legal or political position of the University.” Here are the key details…
➤ On compensation, the term sheet includes two spending-floor options, alongside a salary cap: 89% of the average cap over the four-year window or a negotiated percentage of the athletic department’s budget. The agreement would include minimum compensation, a freshman pay scale, protections to sport funding, prohibitions on NIL payments to athletes or payments to family members as inducements and the opportunity for bonus compensation. Cap circumvention penalties for schools, athletes, coaches and associated entities or individuals are laid out, with schools subject to a fine of 25% of their conference payout for the first offense, escalating to 50% and 100% for second and third offenses in a seven-year window, plus a forfeiture of all postseason revenue for all sports.
➤ The term sheet lays out a new 15-day portal window that would open “at least one week after the national championship” and a tampering window between the championship and the opening of the portal. Should an athlete declare for a professional league, their eligibility would end.
➤ Under this framework, athletic activities would be more strictly tracked and limits would be enforced. All student-athletes would receive at least two years of post-participation injury coverage and those with veteran status would be eligible for at least five years of coverage. Catastrophic injuries would receive lifetime coverage and an athlete’s final school would be responsible for the coverage.
➤ In the event of athlete grievances, Athletes.org would pursue any grievances with all parties required to cooperate. Unresolved cases would go to neutral arbitration. AO would also be responsible for agent certification and agent fees would be capped at 5% of a contract’s value. Fines would be collectively bargained, with player fines to go to charities selected by AO’s executive committee.
➤ Full term sheet. (link)
