• 2015 CoSIDA Special Awards general announcement/release
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By Diane Nordstrom, University of Wisconsin Associate Director of Athletic Communications
Justin Doherty is the boss in many ways. Besides being a superfan of the original boss, Bruce Springsteen, Doherty served CoSIDA as its president in 2009-10 and was a member of the board of directors for 10 years. He is also the boss of the Wisconsin Athletic Communications office, serving as an associate athletic director in charge of external relations. All this in his 25 years as a member of CoSIDA.
“CoSIDA is a fantastic organization because of the membership, the people,” Doherty says. “CoSIDA fosters friendships, professional development and an exchange of ideas. We live in a world these days where communication skills have never been more important. CoSIDA is the one professional organization in college athletics where the ability to communicate effectively with a wide variety of people is taught and cultivated.”
A native of Southfield, Michigan, Doherty began his sports information career as a student at Michigan State under the legendary Nick Vista. He earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from MSU in 1988 and took a job as the sports editor of the
Marshall (Mich.)
Chronicle but after eight months knew that job wasn’t for him.
Doherty’s first full-time sports information job was at Northern Michigan University, where he was an assistant SID from 1990-92, working with the Wildcats’ 1991 NCAA championship hockey team. In 1992, he was named the sports information director at North Dakota, where he worked for two years before being hired at Wisconsin as an assistant SID.
Doherty was named the athletic communications director for the UW in 2001 and was promoted to assistant athletic director for communications in 2006. He was the day-to-day public relations contact for the Badger football program from 2001-07. During that time, Wisconsin played in six bowl games and Doherty promoted five Badgers who became finalists for major national awards, including Joe Thomas, the 2006 Outland Trophy winner. He moved into an administrative role in 2009 and was named associate athletic director for external relations in 2011
During his time at Wisconsin, Doherty earned his master’s degree in journalism and has authored four books about Badger football, "Tales From the Wisconsin Badgers," a collection of short stories about Wisconsin football; "The Wisconsin Football Vault" (with Vince Sweeney and Pat Richter); "The Dayne Game: Ron Dayne and the Greatest Day in Wisconsin Football History;” and “What It Means To Be A Badger,” a collection of first-person remembrances from Badger football greats.
As an administrator, Doherty has some inside knowledge and advice to athletic communicators in working with their supervisors.
“I think it’s important to realize we’re all on the same team,” Doherty explained. “Administrators have their jobs to do, just like everyone else, but at the end of the day everyone in a given athletic department should be about making sure student-athletes are having the best experience possible. I think keeping that in mind helps us all deal with the different issues that come up.”
In addition to overseeing the athletic communications, marketing, video services, Web site services, and facilities branding, Doherty is also the UW’s liaison to the Big Ten Network and trademark licensing. He also serves as sport administrator for men's basketball, following them to two straight NCAA Final Fours, as well as the men’s and women’s soccer programs.
After 25 years, Doherty says getting to know the student-athletes and watching their development has been the highlight of his career.
“At this point, I think the highlight is a continuing one,” explains Doherty. “I really enjoy watching our student-athletes come in as wide-eyed freshmen, make their journey through college with all its ups and downs, and then leave school with a degree and a level of maturity that probably didn’t seem possible four or five years earlier. It’s really cool to see that progression.”
Doherty has also seen a progression in CoSIDA in his 25 years as a member.
“I think the biggest, and most positive, change I’ve seen is in the image of the people in the profession,” Doherty says. “CoSIDA has always been a tremendous organization, but it is great to see CoSIDA changing and evolving as the college athletics industry changes and evolves. CoSIDA members are capable of a lot and it seems that the profile of the organization has been raised significantly.”
Doherty served on the CoSIDA board in what was undoubtedly the biggest changes the organization has seen since its inception. During his time, the organization added several full-time positions, including that of executive director, and also moved to be more closely aligned with the NACDA community, two things Doherty says were highlights of his time on the board.
“There were so many people I had the pleasure of working with and so many things I think we accomplished together,” said Doherty. “Certainly the other officers I served with were terrific and have all become good friends. Our executive director at the time, John Humenik, helped lead us through some transformative issues and events and I think we owe him a lot.”
Doherty was inducted into the CoSIDA Hall of Fame in 2013 and he was the recipient of CoSIDA’s 2011 Arch Ward Award. He was also the 2008 Scoop Hudgins Outstanding SID Award winner for outstanding contributions and service to college football.
Doherty credits his wife Martha and daughter Erin for “having always been so supportive and understanding when it comes to my profession. I’ll always be grateful for that.
“I think any of us also owes a debt of gratitude to people who have believed in us by hiring us. A few of those people for me are Nick Vista, Jim Pinar, Terry Wanless, Steve Malchow and Barry Alvarez.”
Working his way up from student assistant to associate athletic director, Doherty is the perfect example of how a SID can move up to become an administrator.
His advice to young athletic communications professionals?
“Don’t worry so much about the next job or the next one after that,” Doherty said. “My experience has been that if you concentrate on doing the job you have to the best of your ability, someone will notice and you’ll be rewarded.”