It took just over six months, but Arizona State has found its next athletic director.
Graham Rossini, Chief Business Officer and Executive Sr. Associate AD for Arizona State, has been promoted to lead Sun Devil athletics.
He has served that position since 2021 securing naming rights for multiple Sun Devil stadiums and was a part of the search committees to hire baseball coach Willie Bloomquist, volleyball coach JJ Van Niel and the extension of wrestling coach Zeke Jones.
Prior to this current stint with the Sun Devils, Rossini spent 13 years with the Arizona Diamondbacks as Vice President of Special Projects and Fan Experience, overseeing ticketing, corporate partnerships and special events. He was a key piece in the construction and maintenance of Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, as well as the hosting duties for the 2011 All-Star Game and 2013 World Baseball Classic.
Rossini is an Arizona State alum and first got his start within the athletics department as ASU’s Director of Baseball Operations in the early 2000s. He was a part of two College World Series teams, and Arizona State had five top-5 recruiting classes in the six years Rossini was in that position.
Rossini steps into a college athletics world that changes on a moment’s notice.
“We have entered an unprecedented era where the number and magnitude of changes in the college sports landscape are astounding,” Former athletics director Ray Anderson said in November as he stepped down. “As I approach 70, these are not matters that my leadership would be able to corral during my tenure. Continuity of leadership will be needed, and I am choosing to step aside to let the university find that leader.”
Rossini has a track record of being able to raise funds, and that focus has never been higher, whether within the department, for facilities and NIL collectives.
Kenny Dillingham, Bobby Hurley and Bloomquist have all publicly emphasized the importance of having sustainable NIL funds to help build upon the rosters as ASU transitions into the Big 12.
While it may have taken a long time to name Rossini, his name has been floated for months as the potential successor.
Now, it’s time for him to make his mark in this new chapter.
