TEMPE, Ariz. — Arizona State University has a new athletic director.
The university announced Graham Rossini as chief business officer of Sun Devil Athletics on Thursday, signaling the beginning of a new era of leadership. He was introduced to the media Thursday morning.
"What I want everyone to know is I am a Sun Devil first and foremost," he proclaimed during the news conference. "I've got credentials to lead us into what comes next."
Some of those credentials include 20 years of sports business experience with the MLB and Power 5 schools. Rossini is expected to lead the new athletic leadership team in fundraising, partnerships and NIL opportunities.
“The ability to lead the athletics department at my alma mater is a responsibility that I am enormously proud to take on,” said Rossini, who holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from ASU’s W. P. Carey School of Business. “I am so thankful for the many opportunities in my life that were created through ASU, and I have much to repay as a result.
Rossini thanked several people for helping him get to this opportunity. They include former Sun Devil coach Pat Murphy and Arizona Diamondbacks President and CEO Derrick Hall.
Before joining ASU leadership, Rossini spent 13 years with the Arizona Diamondbacks as vice president of special projects and fan experience. He was responsible for several departments and revenue generated from ticketing, corporate partnerships, special events, food and beverage, and merchandise.
“This is an exciting time for Graham and his family, as well as our entire Sun Devil family,” said Hall in a release, who graduated from ASU in 1991. “Graham was a talented and valued member of our leadership team before returning home to ASU."
"I see the opportunity. We all talk about the brand of ASU and how powerful it is and why it maybe hasn't transitioned over to athletics, I think there's a lot of reasons for that and ultimately we're focused on what comes next," Rossini said. "We're focused on relationships. The core of what we do is our head coaches and our student athletes."
He added that the administration's job is to find the resources, connections and abilities for everyone to have success.
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