Director, External Communications - Football Intercollegiate Athletics

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Departmental Overview

The Department of Intercollegiate Athletics consists of more than 275 staff members and coaches and sponsors 30 varsity sports programs. These 30 programs include more than 850 student-athletes who participate in the various sports programs annually within the National Collegiate Athletics Association

Position Summary

This position will lead external communications efforts for the Cal football program. Will utilize existing knowledge to craft strategy around storytelling efforts and immerse themselves in the ethos of the sport both on a conference, community, college, national and international level. With a strong emphasis on brand awareness, broad-reaching messaging, recruiting and retaining student-athletes and providing entertainment to all consumers of Cal Athletics, this position is critical in supporting the storytelling for these areas. This position allows a narrowed focus of communication excellence needed for football to thrive in the existing college athletics ecosystem.

Guided by the overarching Athletics strategic plan, the employee will create and lead the planning and execution of communications related to public relations and media. This position will demonstrate competency in establishing relationships with key stakeholders involved with the football program - including, but not limited to media members, governing body heads, conference resources, NCAA employees, and sport-specific influencers and content strategists. These relationships will be critical in ensuring optimal coverage, attention, brand recognition, and publicization for external audiences. This role requires collaborative work and sport-specific media plan leadership across the department, including with coaches, senior leaders and campus entities. Internally, there is an emphasis on integrating with other content creators, Athletics digital ecosystems directors, Cal Athletics fundraisers and game day entertainment. Other duties include arranging and conducting interviews, maintaining and compiling records and statistics and serving as a team historian for football.

Application Review Date

The First Review Date for this job is: April 28, 2026

Responsibilities

Football Team Immersion:

• Engage with all members of the football team to understand student-athletes' personalities, talents, and strengths.
• Translate these insights into compelling narratives for public consumption.
• Identify key sport influencers and target audiences to expand reach and amplify visibility strategies.

• Develop, manage, and continuously refine a comprehensive media plan.
• Define messaging cadence, communication channels, content types, audience targeting, and timing.
• Ensure consistent and strategic promotion of teams.

• Collaboratively work with content creators, Athletics digital ecosystems directors, Cal Athletics fundraisers, and game day entertainment employees to synchronize all communication, publicity, and engagement.
• Keep a firm working knowledge of the overall strategy shared by these groups that, in totality, make up the external engine of Cal Athletics.

• Act as the primary public-facing contact.
• Manage incoming requests, coordinate coverage, and oversee updates to media plans.
• Maintain institutional knowledge of each program.

• Facilitate required statistical reporting, written materials, and sport-specific releases.
• Perform other duties as assigned in support of Athletics communications and engagement efforts.

• Advanced knowledge of program activity and best practices.
• Demonstrated problem-solving skills.
• Ability to multi-task and work effectively with frequent interruptions.
• Strong active listening skills.
• Excellent verbal communication skills in the English language.
• Excellent written communication skills in the English language.
• Proficiency in the use of computer applications relevant to job duties.
• Ability to create and execute a sport-specific storytelling strategy.
• Ability to create and follow a sport-specific media plan.
• Ability to define cadence of messaging.
• Ability to identify target audiences.
• Ability to select appropriate communication mediums.
• Ability to determine types of content.
• Ability to establish and manage schedules.
• Ability to quickly learn all facets of a sports program.
• Ability to understand personnel, trends, participants, and the national landscape.
• Ability to identify and engage critical audiences.
• Ability to thrive in a flexible, fast-paced, and dynamic work environment.
• Strong ability to create targeted content to support recruitment and retention.
• Experience using Facebook, X, TikTok, Instagram, and other social media platforms for storytelling.
• Strong collaboration skills.
• Ability to adjust schedules, timelines, content, messaging, and mediums as needed.
• Ability to respond to immediate and high-impact needs of a sports program.
• Knowledge of the NCAA and Power 4 landscape.
• Understanding of recruiting cycles, NIL trends, and student-athlete retention drivers.
• Working knowledge of concepts and principles of news and media communications.
• Ability to maintain current knowledge of applicable rules and standards of the Atlantic Coast Conference and the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
• Ability to comply with all rules and standards applicable to the Berkeley campus of the University of California and affiliated organizations.
• Demonstrated leadership skills to guide the strategic direction of storytelling across multiple platforms.
• Strong time management skills.
• Strong project management skills.
• Ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously from concept through completion.
• Bachelor's degree in related area and / or equivalent experience / training.

• This is an exempt, monthly-paid position.
• This is a full-time, Career position that is eligible for full UC benefits.

• To apply, please submit your resume and cover letter.

• Required to hold valid driver's license, have a driving record that is in accordance with local policies/procedures, and/or enroll in the California Employer Pull Notice Program.

• This is not a visa opportunity. This position does not include sponsorship of a new consular H-1B visa petition that would require payment of the $100,000 supplemental fee.