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Past CoSIDA 25-Year Award Recipients
John Cade – Mississippi State University, Assistant AD/Communications
2019 CoSIDA 25-Year Award recipient
by Hunter Richardson, Duke University Assistant Sports Information Director
Editorial assistance by Sarah Fetters, Duke University Senior Associate Sports Information Director
A single decision, whether it be big or small, can greatly alter the course of one’s life. For
John Cade, that decision came in the fall of 1991 as a student assistant in the Mississippi State sports information office when he was posed with a question: tennis or golf?
That choice shaped the next 28 years of his career, as Cade became one of the more consistent figures in collegiate tennis circles, moving from a student assistant SID that first season to now serving as State’s sport administrator for men’s and women’s tennis. By his estimation, he has played a role in over 1,200 MSU tennis matches, seeing the best eras the sport has ever produced.
“I could not have gotten into it at a better time,” said Cade, who will be honored with a CoSIDA 25-Year Award at the June convention for his long-time service. “The men had just made the NCAA Round of 16 for the first time in 1991. Over the next 11 years, we had 10 teams that made the Round of 16, five-straight quarters, and two that were NCAA semifinalists. It was a very special time.”
But while Cade started out as a tennis SID, his career has been far from limited to involvement with tennis, or sports information, having developed a very diverse background. As Assistant Director of Media Relations from 1993-2004, he was State’s No. 2 football contact for nine seasons (including six bowl games and the 1998 SEC Championship), and the primary contact for women’s basketball and volleyball in 1995-96.
Intertwined in those 12 years, he was also an MSU media liaison at the 1996 Men’s Final Four, worked numerous State-hosted NCAA baseball regionals, and even threw in some marketing duties, all while completing his MBA in 1996. He also got to work with legendary MSU sports information director — and CoSIDA Hall of Famer — Bob Hartley during that period.
John Cade has spent the last 28 years working with Mississippi State Tennis in numerous capacities, currently as sport administrator for both Bulldog teams.
Cade transitioned into his current Assistant AD role in 2005, focused more on State’s digital communication efforts. In the past 15 years, he has overseen the department’s official web site
HailState.com, been involved in video streaming, MSU’s transition to the SEC Network, mobile apps, photography, and has served as MSU’s “acting historian”.
“You hang around long enough, you know where everything is,” Cade said jokingly. “If someone needs a document, photo or anything else related to our old teams, players or coaches, I probably know where to find it.”
Fast-forward to 2019 and the view is quite different than when he was a student. Having served as sport administrator for tennis since 2008, he oversees two of MSU’s most successful teams in recent years. Cade also still mentors students on the communications side, staying heavily involved in the sport — and area — which gave him his start.
The seeds for Cade’s journey to State were sowed long before 1991, however. He grew up in Port Gibson, Miss., went to high school in Clinton, then headed to Starkville as a freshman in 1987. He’s been a Bulldog from day one, mostly due to attending football games in Jackson as a youngster with his grandfather.
“Grandaddy took us to games in Jackson and it started there,” Cade said. “I knew Mississippi State was where I was going to college.”
However, working in athletics wasn’t the original plan. An accounting major early on, he became sports editor of
The Reflector, MSU’s student newspaper, through which he formed relationships with members of the MSU Athletic staff. Cade soon switched majors to sports communication, setting a new course for his career.
That decision led to his role as State’s tennis SID. And his experience during the next decade-plus would lead to what Cade considers to be possibly the most cherished accomplishment of his professional career — serving on the NCAA Division I Men’s Tennis Committee from 2001-04.
Cade’s friendship with Andy Jackson, MSU’s head men’s tennis coach from 1989-2001 (who has since been head coach at Florida and Arkansas), as well as the relationships Cade forged with coaches across the SEC, led to that appointment.
“Andy became a great friend during those incredible seasons we had,” Cade said. “Getting to know the coaches around the SEC, along with Andy’s backing, led to my seat on the committee. That nomination came from the SEC, with the support of all the coaches. It meant a great deal then and still does to this day.”
During his committee stint, Cade helped make selections for the NCAA team, singles & doubles championships each spring, along with rule changes, selecting future postseason host sites and more initiatives during summer meetings.
“It was a great experience,” Cade said. “At the end of the day, we’re making selections and seedings based on statistics. Having been knee-deep in exactly that type of data as our SID, I felt completely comfortable from the start.”
Another unheralded facet of Cade’s resume has been tournament management, which showcases what he feels are his greatest assets — attention to detail and a knack for logistics, planning and organization.
In addition to helping administer the NCAA Championships during his committee term, he has also served as tournament director for numerous SEC, ITA and NCAA men’s and women’s tennis championships that have been hosted at Mississippi State’s A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre during the last three decades.
But it’s not all about athletics. When work slows down briefly each summer, he and his wife, Vivian (a Starkville native), always hit the road for a trip — whether it be hiking through the mountains and trails of America’s national parks or traversing across the border to foreign lands.
“We certainly enjoy traveling,” Cade said. “And on top of what we’ve experienced personally, we’ve also had the benefit of enjoying many other locations due to my association with athletics.”
When not traveling, you can probably catch Cade, an avid tennis player himself, either on the courts or with his Labrador pup, Shadow. Prior to Shadow, it was his faithful black lab Indy (yes, he named the dog Indiana). And like his favorite actor — Indy himself…Harrison Ford — he also has a love of aviation, earning his private pilot’s license from the FAA in 2003.
All in all, Cade’s career has been nothing short of impressive. He has accumulated 25 CoSIDA publications and digital design honors for media guides, game programs and posters — 15 national and 10 regional — while also capturing three Best in the Nation laurels.
As his 29th year in collegiate athletics approaches, so does another batch of challenges and opportunities. But one thing is for sure: Cade will attack it with the same precision that brought him to where he is today. And its thanks — in large part — to one simple answer in 1991.