Bryan Blair Vows to Build on What Makes Syracuse Athletics Special: Here’s How
On the “’Cuse Conversations” podcast, the new director of athletics explains why Syracuse is a special destination for talented student-athletes.
Before Bryan Blair became Syracuse University’s 12th athletics director, he was a walk-on, an undersized nose tackle for the Wofford College football team who, through hard work and determination, became a starter heading into his junior year.
Blair lost the starting role when his play didn’t meet his coach’s expectations, but his tenacity won out. Blair wound up reclaiming that starting role and was named a team captain for his senior season.
“I’m really proud of that journey. So much of what I went through as a student-athlete is emblematic of where we’re at today in college athletics, where you’ve got to find a way to yes,” says Blair, who started his new role on July 1. “You’ve got to find a way to push through adversity and rally your teammates to do something nobody else thinks is possible. That’s very much our plight today.”
With a strong background in student-athlete development and revenue generation, Blair came to Syracuse University with a reputation as a builder of championship programs, a generator of innovative revenue strategies and a believer in the transformative power of higher education.
As the Orange’s fall sports teams ramp up play, including Fran Brown’s football squad kicking off the season Saturday against the University of New Hampshire, Blair wants the University and Central New York communities to know that he has been working tirelessly to help Syracuse Athletics “get our swagger back.”
“This block S means something across this country. We are a big deal. We’ve got to embrace being a big deal and perform like the big deal that we are,” Blair says. “Among our student-athletes, coaches and support staff there is a shared alignment and understanding of what Syracuse Athletics looks like at its best and how it benefits this broader community and this campus. Syracuse Athletics is special.”
On the latest “’Cuse Conversations” podcast, Blair outlines his vision for the department, shares what success will look like this year and explains how people can get involved with One Orange Alliance, the Name, Image and Likeness marketing agency serving all 20 varsity sports.
When did you realize you wanted a career in college athletics?
I studied history before going to law school [at the University of South Carolina]. I would look up lawyers who were working in the sports business space that I could mirror, and I noticed that four or five of the major professional sports commissioners had law degrees. A lot of front office executives had law degrees. Increasingly more athletic directors had law degrees. The light bulb went off: I can combine those two spaces in a unique way and make myself stand out amongst the crowd.
What sets Syracuse Athletics apart from its peers?
We perform and compete at the highest levels of college athletics. We can win national championships here. You can be a student-athlete and play in front of 35,000 in the Dome and be celebrated and carried off the court by the students. You can compete for [football coach] Fran Brown and the team for a spot in the College Football Playoffs and play for a national championship. We are going to make this an environment where people want to stay.
What will define success this year?
Tangible improvements on the field and on the court but also laying the foundation to be the best version of ourselves relatively quickly. College athletics is changing rapidly. We need to become the best version of ourselves in the next three years. What does that look like to lay the foundation and to act quickly? Those are big questions facing all of us, but if we do this in the way that I know we can, we’re all going to be really proud of the result.
