What Should Utah State Expect From Diana Sabau

A new athletics director is in town

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With Diana Sabua in place, the Utah State Athletics leadership team is finally complete. Guiding the university into the next chapter of Aggie athletics will be President Elizabeth “Betsy” R. Cantwell, Vice President & Athletics Director Diana Sabau, Associate Vice President & Deputy Athletics Director for External Affairs Jerry Bovee, and Executive Associate AD – Internal Affairs/Senior Woman Administrator. Sabau took her post on August 21st. 

It’s difficult to predict how Sabau will fit in at Utah State or exactly what her tenure will look like. Her resume seems to promise that she will increase revenue, enable comprehensive success and win with integrity, and build a strong brand.

This is her first time serving as an athletic director, so she has plenty to prove and with no direct ties to the university adjusting to the culture at Utah State could be an imposing task. However, that should cause too much concern. While her lack of experience in this specific role shouldn’t be ignored, neither should her long track record of administrative success. Furthermore, any worries about culture should be eliminated by two simple facts. The first is that she understands a winning culture. The second is that she has Jerry Bovee. 

Her strong, dynamic, thorough style of servant leadership should facilitate multidisciplinary success across the department. Working with her is a talented team of individuals ready to lead the Aggies into the future. 

Sabau will be operating with a much smaller budget than the one she was accustomed to in Columbus. Coincidentally, this may be one of the first things she can address and fortunately, she is very well-equipped to do so. She has proven deal-making ability, fundraising prowess, and strong business acumen. At Ohio State, she worked closely with Learfield, CBS, and the Big Ten Network, among other companies, and she brokered an unprecedented multi-million-dollar deal with Nike. 

Her work with Learfield is significant as Utah State recently announced an extension with the company. Additionally, her high-level experience with television providers might be exceptionally useful in the coming months and years. With conference realignment showing no signs of slowing down, having a well-connected leader with relationships and experience in the television industry could be key. 

In her introductory press conference, she emphasized branding, something Ohio State and the Big Ten both excel at, and she has an ambitious vision for Utah State. Utah State already has a strong brand and she seems to want to paint the nation Aggie blue and fighting white. 

Her unprecedented deal with Nike while she was at Ohio State is a bright spot on her resume and her relationship with the company is something the Aggies should be excited about. 

Utah State is a Nike school and Nike is a big part of what the school is trying to do. Utah State recently unveiled new football jerseys with deep and meaningful ties to the strong history of Aggie football. Although this process unfolded prior to Sabua’s arrival, it shows the university’s commitment to its visual brand identity. Sabau’s shared commitment, combined with her experience, will be very helpful in the school’s efforts to define itself on a national stage.  

Utah State’s original Nike contract in 2008 was a defining moment during a time period when the school was undergoing major changes. In the years surrounding 2008, the school, under new leadership from Gary Andersen, was seeing a resurgence on the football field, shifting from the WAC to the Mountain West, and redefining its position in the landscape of college athletics. The new logos and wordmarks, accompanied by new uniforms from Nike, were a significant part of that transition. Since then Nike has become a significant part of Utah State and its brand. 

Although her resume is impressive, and her experience and expertise seem to line up seamlessly with the goals of the university, she hasn’t yet had the opportunity to serve as an athletics director. It’s an incredibly tough and demanding job, and there is really no way to indicate if an individual will be successful in the role. 

Being an AD is arduous in its own right, but with the added uncertainty of the ever-changing world of sports, the position could be even more challenging. Change is constant, but it seems that the rate of change is accelerating and it is becoming increasingly difficult to predict, or even adapt to, changes across the college sports landscape. 

College sports is entering a time like no other and she will be in a new role for her. Even the most seasoned and tenured administrators are struggling to keep up with the changes across the NCAA. 

Beyond that her relative lack of experience in this specific position, culture might be one of the bigger concerns going into her impending tenancy. She has no ties to Utah State University, the state of Utah, or even the West. This is no secret and it was addressed during her press conference. Shawn Harrison of The Herald Journal addressed the question everyone was thinking and asked Sabau if she had any ties to the region and what made her interested in the university. 

Sabau elaborated on her desire to come to Utah state by responding, in part, “I drove in (to campus) and I started to feel it. I started to feel the respect and the tradition of campus, but yet a newness, a boldness that surrounded each corner… There is a sense of pride that is unmatched and there is a sense of affinity and loyalty to Aggie athletics.”

In a city of under 55,000, at a school with over 135 years of unique history, and in an area where many of the athletes take two school years off between signing and reporting on campus culture is a valid concern. 

Luckily, Ohio State and Utah State share one very important cultural trait. Both love to win games. This is something Sabau might not fully grasp the complexities of Utah State’s culture, at least not immediately, but she knows how to put competitive teams in the field of play, she knows how to bring home trophies, and she knows how to raise banners. 

Any gaps in her understanding of the culture will aptly be filled by Jerry Bovee.

Bovee, a native of Northern Utah and a graduate of Ben Lomond High School, is a true-blooded Aggie and has proven himself as a talented athletics administrator. He had been serving as the Interim Athletics Director since November of 2022. 

Bovee earned his bachelor’s degree in business finance from Utah State in 1992 and began his career in athletic administration at Utah State.

Prior to returning to Utah State, he was at Weber State where he served as Athletics Director for 10 years. Before his time at Weber State, he was the Assistant Director of the Utah High School Activities Association. 

Bovee has been around for some of the program’s highest highs and lowest lows, so he knows what the athletic department should look like when things are going well, and what it might look like when things are on the brink of taking an unpleasant turn.

He was here for Utah State’s meteoric 2018 season which included nearly unprecedented football success and a resurgence in basketball after a short, but unnerving hiatus. 

He was also here for the gut-wrenching 2020 season and the accompanying bounce-back year in 2021. 

In addition to extending the Learfield contract, hiring Danny Sprinkle as the head basketball coach, and his other accomplishments as Interim Athletics Director, Bovee had two flagship moments that showed just how in touch he is with the Utah State fanbase. 

The first was Jaycee Carroll’s jersey retirement and the second was bringing the broadcast for football and men’s basketball games back to KVNU.

Bovee was a strong candidate for the permanent position, but as the university made its decision, Sabau, with her reputation and experience, was too good to pass up. When Sabau was hired, Bovee offered his congratulations to Sabau and expressed his support and excitement. 

For her part, Sabau returned the praise. She did not hold back her appreciation for Bovee during her introduction or during the Q&A portion of her press conference saying, “Transition is hard, but I am thankful, as many of you are, for the leadership of Jerry Bovee and Amy Crosbie.” 

It’s not often that a school ends up with two of its finalists on staff, but Utah State managed to pull it off. Utah State is incredibly lucky to have both Diana Sabau and Jerry Bovee leading the Aggies. 

The bottom line is that while Sabau has plenty to prove in her next endeavor, she has given the Aggies every reason to trust in her. While working at a premiere institution that prioritized academic and athletic brilliance, Sabau had ample opportunity to learn from her experience. Plenty of what was implemented at Ohio State, under Sabau’s watchful guidance, should be emulated at Utah State.

It is safe to predict she will bring a strong and unique leadership style. A leadership style that she refers to as “servant leadership.” Gloria Nevarez, the commissioner of Mountain West Conference, even referred to her as a “consummate servant leader.”

Hopefully, she feels, and instills, a sense of urgency. Utah State has no time to waste. She has a great team behind her and shouldn’t have any problem accomplishing the goals and exceeding expectations.

Diana Sabau, with Jerry Bovee at her side, has an opportunity to launch Aggie Athletics into a bright future. Joined by President Cantwell, Amy Crosbie, and the rest of the executive staff, the leadership group heading the Utah State Aggies is ambitious, smart, well-connected, passionate, capable, and has a great understanding of Utah State’s position, goals, and unique culture.

Story originally appeared on Mountain West Wire