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Shane Hermann (University of North Alabama) – Achievement Award - College Division
by Jeff McIntyre, Assistant Sports Editor at TimesDaily (Florence, Ala.)
 

Shane Herrmann has promoted numerous athletes who have gone on to win prestigious awards in his 14 years as assistant sports information director at the University of North Alabama.
 
Yet in late June it will be Herrmann who is honored. He will receive the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Achievement Award (for the college division) at the organization’s annual convention in Washington, D.C.
 
The award is annually presented to one associate or assistant media relations director in the University Division and one in the College Division who has made outstanding contributions to the field of college sports information and provided exceptional service to their institution or conference office. Nominees must have 10 or more years of experience in the profession. Long-time LSU athletic communications professional Kent Lowe is receiving the university division Achievement Award.  
 
“It is a tremendous honor,” Herrmann said. “There are so many really good SIDs just in our region – in the Gulf South Conference and further, so I can only imagine all across CoSIDA. To be recognized out of all of those great people is really neat.”
 
Herrmann said he was surprised when he received the news from longtime North Alabama Assistant Athletics Director of Communications Jeff Hodges.
 
“Jeff told me about the award a few years ago and told me he was going to nominate me,” Herrmann said. “Someone else got it that year, so I never asked about it again. Then a couple of weeks ago he stuck his head in my door and told me I had won it this year, so it was really neat.”
 
Herrmann serves as the primary media contact for the Lions’ volleyball, softball, men’s and women’s basketball and men’s and women's tennis programs. He also assists with football.
  “Shane's work has been crucial in the day-to-day and long-term success and promotion of our athletic teams and student-athletes,” Hodges said. “He fills so many roles on a regular basis and then always steps up to help anywhere else that he is needed. That's so important in athletics because you never know from week to week what type of things will pop up in addition to your normal full schedule.
 
“Shane has especially shined in post-season or tournament events that we've been called on to host,” Hodges added. “He has been a steady, dependable and energetic representative of our department for well over a decade and he is very deserving of this honor.”
 
Herrmann got his start in sports information working for Hodges when he was a student at UNA. After graduating in 1999, he worked as the sports editor for the Journal Record in Hamilton, Ala., for three years.

While he enjoyed his time at the newspaper, Herrmann was determined to get back into campus athletic communications. He took a job as a graduate assistant at Jacksonville State, a move which played a big part in him landing a job at UNA.
 
“After three years I knew I had to do something to get back in the business,” Herrmann said. “Jeff put me in touch with Greg Seitz at Jacksonville State, so I left a full-time job at the newspaper to be a GA at Jacksonville State. It turned out to be a good gamble because I was only there one year when the job came open here.
 
“In that one year at Jacksonville State I was able to learn all the stat programs which allowed Jeff to justify hiring me. Working with Greg Seitz also allowed me to get involved with the Alabama Sports Writer’s Association and the AHSAA (Alabama High School Athletic Association). I’ve continued to work with those organizations and I think that played a big part in me winning this award.”
 
In addition to his numerous duties at UNA, Herrmann has worked statistics and media relations at several Alabama High School Athletic Association events, including the state baseball championships from 2003-07 and Super 6 football championships from 2003-13. He has also served as the media relations coordinator for the AHSAA state softball tournament since 2008 and has been the official scorer for the AHSAA All-Star volleyball, soccer, basketball and softball games since 2005.
 
Hermann also annually represents UNA at the Alabama Sports Writers Association Convention.
 
Since coming to UNA, Herrmann has helped host multiple Gulf South Conference and NCAA Tournaments. He was also the official scorer at the 2006 NCAA Division II Elite Eight Volleyball Championships in Pensacola, Fla.
 
In 2016, he promoted the Lions' NCAA Division II national championship softball team, serving as the primary contact.
 
“The 2016 softball national championship was the highlight of my career,” Herrmann said. “At the end of the regular season I knew we were good, but I didn’t know we were national-championship good, so I wasn’t nervous about whether we could win it all. It was so amazing to see how everyone got behind the team. It was a great experience and those stories just wrote themselves.”
 
While many assistant sports information directors are always looking to make a move to further their career that is not the case with Herrmann, who has found a home at UNA along with his wife Jennifer, son, Kaleb, and daughter, Kaitlin.
 
“To be eligible for this award you have to be an assistant for 10 years, so I joke that it is an award for assistants who haven’t moved into a head job,” Herrmann said. “But my wife is from this area here and my family is happy here. Since I’ve been here in 2004 I have not once looked for another job.
 
“There have been opportunities to go other places, but my family and I are happy here and I love working at UNA. I’ll stay here as long as they will let me.”