Teaming up with

Hey there,

Boy, do we have a treat for you today! Today’s Expert interview is with the President and CEO of Seminole Boosters, Inc. Stephen Ponder. Ponder, has served in that role since June 2022 and for 11 months prior he served as the Executive Vice President before getting promoted.

He most recently served as Deputy Athletics Director at Ole Miss in 2016-17 and Senior Executive Associate Athletics Director from 2012-2016. While there, he led the ultra-successful Forward Together Campaign at Ole Miss that surpassed its $150 million goal by $20 million. He also was responsible for oversight and project management on a $100 million football facilities improvement project, a $95 million basketball facility as well as a baseball and a varsity sport facility.

Prior to Ole Miss, Ponder was Senior Associate Athletic Director for External Operations at Arizona State where he is credited with increasing athletics fundraising from $7.5 million when he joined the Sun Devils in 2006 to $25 million in 2012.

A 1989 graduate of NC State, Ponder worked for the Wolfpack from 1991-2006 rising to Associate Athletic Director and Associate Executive Director of the Wolfpack Club. Among his many accomplishments at NC State was securing $55 million for the expansion of the football stadium and $65 million to build a new basketball arena. Most recently, Ponder was with Balch Sports where he worked with high-level collegiate coaches and served as a consultant to intercollegiate athletic programs.

Stephen and his wife, Sloane, have two sons – Stetson and Stratton.

As always, we’d love to hear from you. Send an email to editor@nil-wire if you’re interested in business partnerships, or even if you just want to give us feedback.

— Cole, Justin and Collin

Interview with Stephen Ponder

You’re the CEO and President of Seminole Boosters, which serves Florida State. What does your job entail at the moment, and how has it changed since the introduction of NIL?

Like any job in college athletics, no day is ever the same. That is one trait that has remained consistent in this position. With NIL here to stay, we have many discussions at Seminole Boosters on how to market the importance of NIL to the Florida State fanbase. We want to be the leaders in all areas of the industry, especially NIL, and are working on the best solution to continue to market the importance of NIL for Florida State Athletics.

What affect has NIL had on Florida State boosters? Have there been any trend changes in donations?

NIL is now a priority for Seminole boosters. The effect of NIL on our donors and staff is it is just one more area for donors to consider donating. We always want the donors to give based on their intent, but we now ask them to continue supporting our Annual Fund and The Battle’s End.

Teaming up with

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Of course, Florida State has been one of the most successful NIL operations in the country. What, or who, do you attribute that success to?

We are thankful for the leadership of Bob Davis, Alan Flaumenhaft, Jim Owens, Parrish Owens, and many others. Their leadership at the beginning of the NIL era laid the foundation for success.NIL has changed the way college sports operate forever. Where do you see the future of college athletics headed?

There’s a lot of talk that collectives might become less relevant if Pay-for-Play is officially instituted. What would the transition from collectives to in-house NIL look like? Do you have thoughts on whether or not that would be a good, bad, or neutral development?

NIL can go in many directions. If college athletics is headed for pay-for-play, it would be a smooth transition at Seminole Boosters & Florida State. We have the staff, knowledge, and infrastructure to bring NIL operations in-house if that is deemed permissible.

Five years from now, what will college sports look like? What will be similar? What will be different? How will your job have changed?

College athletics will continue to be an exciting atmosphere that the country rallies around. The college athletic experience will be different for the student-athletes, but the product on the field will feel similar to fans. My job continues to change daily. There will always be a need to raise money in college athletics, but what might change is where the money is going, to operating costs, coaches, or student-athletes.

BATTER UP

Today’s Poll Question: