Diana Sabau Named Big Ten Conference Deputy Commissioner & Chief Sports Officer

ROSEMONT, Ill., March 15, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Big Ten Conference has named Diana Sabau deputy commissioner and chief sports officer. Effective May 1, 2021, Sabau will oversee the administration of all 28 Big Ten Conference sponsored sports, which includes managing affiliate memberships, competition, scheduling, championships, sportsmanship, officiating, and awards. Further, she will oversee the sport administrators for football, basketball, hockey Olympic sports and officiating. Her role was created in 2021, making Sabau the first Big Ten Conference chief sports officer in the 125-year history of the conference. She will be based at Big Ten Conference headquarters in Rosemont, Illinois.

As deputy commissioner and chief sports officer, Sabau will ensure all Big Ten Conference decisions and actions are focused - first and foremost - on serving the health, safety, well-being and academic achievement of our student-athletes. Sabau will foster collaboration among all coaches, athletic directors (ADs), staff and the COP/C in her service as a key conference liaison to all Big Ten coaching groups and administrators, including the Administrator's Council, Senior Woman Administrators, ADs, bowl partners, coach's groups, Sports Management Committee and the NCAA.

In her management of the Gender Equity Action Plan for the conference, Sabau will transform the conference through the creation of sustainable, equitable and equal opportunities for our student-athletes, the member institutions and its partners.

"I am thrilled to hire a deputy commissioner and chief sports officer who has over 27 years of collegiate athletics experience, knowledge and relationships," stated Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren. "Diana is a proven leader with integrity and creativity. Her reputation as a hard-worker, collaborator, and trusted counsel are critical elements to serving our members and growing the conference."

Prior to joining Big Ten Conference, Sabau served as senior deputy athletic director for The Ohio State University Department of Athletics, one of the nation's most successful and comprehensive athletics programs with 36 fully funded varsity sports and more than 1,000 student-athletes.

"During Diana's tenure at The Ohio State University she evolved into an excellent administrator with unique talents and skills that cannot be replaced. She enjoyed a diversity of experiences that afforded her the ability to be exceptional in so many areas," said The Ohio State University Senior Vice President & Wolfe Foundation Endowed Athletics Director Eugene D. Smith. "Her service at OSU was more than as a steward; her passion and commitment to excellence were stellar."

The four years that Sabau served as football sport administrator, the football team won four consecutive Big Ten championships, participated in the college football playoffs, and garnered numerous academic accolades and achievements.  

Sabau reinvigorated and redefined the women's ice hockey program at The Ohio State University. As sport administrator, she conducted a national search for a head coach and recruited Nadine Muzerall. Muzerall was twice named coach of the year in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA), first in 2018 and, again in 2020. Also in 2020, The Ohio State University women's ice hockey team achieved its best season ever, advancing to the NCAA Women's Frozen Four for the second time under Muzerall, and winning the first WCHA championship for the program. Further, every single member of Muzurall's team earned the OSU Scholar Athlete (grade-point average of 3.0+) distinction in 2020 and again in 2021.

As department liaison with The Ohio State University Office of the President, Sabau worked with its chief of staff and communications team to develop collaborative and wide-range messaging and crisis management plans. She provided student-athlete advocacy and insight to influence policy decisions made by the senior management council, a collective that included leaders from government affairs, the office of the general counsel, student life, communications and marketing, business and finance, talent and culture, administration and planning, as well as leaders from select academic departments.

As television liaison for The Ohio State University athletic department, Sabau was responsible for bringing ESPN "College GameDay Built by The Home Depot" back to campus on select game days for live, remote pre-game coverage.

As senior deputy director, Sabau was responsible for the department of athletics revenue generation. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she demonstrated steady leadership and forward-thinking, closing a multi-million-dollar term extension between concessionaire Levy Restaurants and the university. Prior, she brokered an unprecedented, multi-million-dollar partnership agreement with NIKE and the university.

Also, as deputy director, Sabau coordinated the overall The Ohio State University athletics brand messaging and managed partnership agreements with Learfield IMG, NIKE, Gatorade, CBS digital, Coke and the Big Ten Network. Further, she oversaw the departments of ticket office, out-bound ticket sales, fan experience and promotions, marketing and social media, video services, as well as the OhioStateBuckeyes.com website. Her deputy director responsibilities included athletics brand messaging coordination, strategic planning, maximizing partnerships for the student-athlete experience, tracking trends in technology for business advancement, and public relations.

Big Ten Conference (bigten.org) is an association of world-class universities whose member institutions share a common mission of research, graduate, professional and undergraduate teaching and public service. Founded in 1896, Big Ten has sustained a comprehensive set of shared practices and policies that enforce the priority of academics in the lives of students competing in intercollegiate athletics and emphasize the values of integrity, fairness and competitiveness. The broad-based programs of the 14 Big Ten institutions will provide over $200 million in direct financial support to more than 9,800 students for more than 11,000 participation opportunities on 350 teams in 42 different sports. Big Ten sponsors 28 official conference sports, 14 for men and 14 for women, including the addition of men's ice hockey and men's and women's lacrosse since 2013.

SOURCE Big Ten Conference

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