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“Hail to the conquering heroes, Hail to the victors valiant, Hail, Hail to Michigan, the le
aders and the best”
Those are phrases from the famous fight song of the University of Michigan, phrases that will proba
bly b
e going ringing through the mind of
Bruce Madej as he marches out of his office for the final time on June 30, retiring after 34 years of service to the Wolverines.
Madej will have every right to walk away proud with a smile on his face and a happy tune on his tongue for a job well done at one of America’s most-storied athletic programs. He is the longest serving sports information directors in the history of the Michigan Athletic Department (1982-2010) and now U-M's Associate Athletic Director for Special Projects.
He will be honored on June 9 as a Lifetime Achievement Award winner during a luncheon at the CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) Workshop in Orlando. Fla.
While Madej’s involvement with CoSIDA on the national level has been limited because of his immense responsibilities at Michigan, his
influence on the sports information/media relations profession and his impact on the Big Ten Conference have been great.
"I'm thrilled that Bruce is getting this recognition from CoSIDA,” said Justin Doherty, a 2013 CoSIDA Hall of Fame inductee from the University of Wisconsin. “As a Detroit-area native and graduate of Michigan State, I have long been familiar with the impact Bruce made at Michigan. He was a friend and colleague to me for most of my career and I know he positively influenced the careers of hundreds of others. He was always ahead of the pack on technology and was always pushing new ideas. He's very deserving of the Lifetime Achievement Award.”
Madej was always willing to share his ideas and to assist other institutions with similar issues.
"I have had the privilege to be an integral part of many of the greatest moments in Michigan athletic history, yet those achievements rank a
distant second to the friendships and the relationships I have been able to build and maintain with student-athletes, coaches, department team members, 'M' letter winners, alums, supporters, fans and the media through the years," said Madej. "I have been especially blessed with those who have been close to me on a daily basis -- my family and the outstanding group of public relations and publication experts -- who made this career and lifestyle so rewarding."
The Michigan administration appreciates Madej’s efforts.
"Bruce has been a part of Michigan Athletics history for over 30 years," said Director of Athletics Dave Brandon, the final of five athletics directors for whom Madej served. "His contributions are many, and we look forward to celebrating his well-deserved retirement."
Madej first came to Michigan in 1978 as an assistant sports information director. After a brief stint with the American Power Boat Association as director of public relations and marketing for offshore racing, he returned to U-M in July of 1982, appointed by Director of Athletics Don Canham as the sports information director and remained as the head of that department until October 2010 when he became associate athletic director for special projects.
Madej now handles numerous social media, feature writing and other special projects for the department and the director of athletics. His latest project is working with design groups to develop written and interactive content for the technology at Crisler Center. He is also involved with the design and content team for the Schembechler Hall renovation.
As SID and media relations director, not only was Madej the head of public relations and spokesperson for the U-M Athletic Department, he also was responsible for the Michigan Athletic Department's cutting edge technology and new media.
U-M was one of the first university athletic departments to:
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Use computer stats as the official in-game and postgame statistics for college football (mid 1980s)
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Create a dedicated athletic website (1994)
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Report results for an NCAA Championship using the internet and computer results (1996, women's swimming)
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Allow 'bloggers' into the press box for athletic events (2005)
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Sell tickets via internet to a bowl game (Capital One Bowl, 2002 vs. Tennessee)
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Develop Twitter accounts for individual athletic teams (2009).
In 1989, Madej accepted responsibility for promotions and marketing and was named assistant athletic director by then Director of Athletics Bo Schembechler. He worked with Stu Mayer of Olympia Entertainment to bring the Michigan vs. Michigan State ice hockey game to Joe Louis Arena and later worked with Tom Wilson and John Ciszewski of The Palace to have Michigan play Notre Dame in Auburn Hills. Along with U-M Athletic Director Jack Weidenbach, Madej worked to create the WCHA/CCHA Ice Hockey Classic between U-M, Michigan State, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
In September of 2003, Madej was promoted to associate athletic director by Athletic Director Bill Martin.
He was rewarded for his dedication to the athletic department in 2001, receiving an honorary 'M' from the Letterwinners M Club.
Madej also co-authored the book 'Michigan: Champions of the West' with Rob Toonkel, Mike Pearson and Greg Kinney in 1997.
In 2012, he was honored with The Champions Award by Wolverines for Life, the University of Michigan's initiative to promote life-saving organ and tissue donation, helping forge the very successful relationship between the group and U-M Athletics.
A native of Dearborn, Mich., Madej graduated from Western Michigan University in 1974 and from the University of Detroit High School in 1970. He was a sports writer for both
The Ypsilanti Press and
The Ann Arbor News before joining Michigan.
He and his wife Suzette have three children, Mike (married to Libby Bryant), John and William. They also have one grandchild, Eli.