College Sports Information Directors of America

Related Content
• Learn more about CSC Women at: CSCommunicators.com/CSCWomen
• CSC Women to Watch Feature Archive

---

 
This is part of our 2025-26 CSC Women to Watch series, a series which spotlights a variety of female members in our association. CSC Women is a College Sports Communicators (CSC) Member Resource Community, dedicated to serving the women in the athletics communications and creative field. CSC Women aims to encourage, empower and educate, while providing a positive and united presence for women in our field, both veterans and newcomers, and serving as their collective voice.
 

---

CSC Women to Watch
Katie Cavender
College Football Playoff, Assistant Director of Communications and Branding

by Colby Shannon, CSC Intern

The CSC staff and Women Steering Committee is excited to share that March’s Woman to Watch is Katie Cavender of the College Football Playoff! Cavender is in her eighth year with the CFP in her role as assistant director of communications and branding.
 

Cavender grew up in Nevada, where she later obtained her undergraduate degree in journalism from the University of Nevada. Her career started in an intern role with the Pac-10 conference where she served as a public relations contact for sports like baseball, swimming and diving, and tennis. Additionally, she was a member of the media coordination team for the 2006 Bowl Championship Series National Championship at the Rose Bowl. She later went on to join Boise State University where she worked in athletics as a facilities and game operations assistant, as well as the assistant media coordinator for what was known then as the MPC Computers Bowl (now the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl).
 

She obtained a Master’s of Education degree in intercollegiate athletic leadership from the University of Washington. Prior to joining the CFP, Cavender spent 11 years with the Mountain West Conference, the last five as the league's Assistant Commissioner of Advanced Media and Digital Strategy where she oversaw the conference’s digital presence across social, web and mobile platforms. 
 

During her time with the Mountain West, she contributed to the development and implementation of the Mountain West Network, which would go on to win three straight Emmy Awards in technical achievement from 2014-2016. Additionally, she was responsible for the Mountain West securing a spot on the Cynopsis Sports Leaderboard in 2015, which acknowledges the best sports social media campaigns nationwide, and she was a key member of the team that launched the first MW Football Championship Game in 2013.
 

In her role with the CFP, Cavender manages the organizations media relations, public relations, branding and marketing strategies, including direct oversight of its digital and social media portfolio. Under her leadership, the content creation team for thea 2022 national championship game became the first in Hashtag Sports Awards’ history to be named Social Team of the Year

Learn more about Cavender's invovlement with the CFP in our Q&A below.
 

 What has been a highlight of your career in sports communications?
KC: There have been so many meaningful moments, but one that stands out as a full circle moment happened early on during my postgraduate internship with the Pac-10 Conference. Our staff served as the media operations team for the BCS National Championship at the Rose Bowl Game, and little did I know at that time that it would be my first of now nine national championship games that I've had the good fortune to work on. There's nothing quite like a national championship, and that moment opened my eyes to how celebratory the culmination of a season is for everyone involved: from student-athletes and coaches to fans and media alike.


How has your involvement with CSC influenced your work with the CFP
KC: The connections I've built and the conversations I've had through CSC have not only fostered and strengthened relationships across the industry, but have helped me sharpen my storytelling instincts and draw inspiration from best practices across all divisions of college athletics.


Is there a female sports professional you admire, or who has inspired you? What do you admire most about them?
KC: There are countless role models who I have long admired, but one in particular is Kaitee Daley, who is Senior VP of Digital, Social and Streaming Content at ESPN. I've had the good fortune to work alongside her team, and what strikes me most about her is her drive and commitment to illustrating the value of digital storytelling as a means to build connection through sport. She has a deep-rooted understanding of the power of the platforms she oversees, and her path and leadership style have helped shape how I think about my own.
   

What advice would you give to younger female professionals who are new to the industry or looking to enter college sports?
KC: I am a firm believer in "return on investment". The more you pour into an opportunity, the more you stand to learn and gain from that opportunity. And, the more opportunities you are open to being involved in, the greater likelihood you'll have to network and grow. Even in those roles that may be less glamorous, you can glean so much as it relates to technical experience, communication and leadership -- and even learn what you may not want to do!

 

What are some of the challenges women in sports communications face when moving up the career ladder? Did you experience any of these challenges in your assent and how did you overcome them?
KC: Unfortunately, the challenges are real and are worth being cognizant of, including the realities of having to balance demanding professional schedules with personal responsibilities, and personal aspirations for that matter. What I've come to learn in my career is that balance is not unilateral and is not consistent from day to day and from person to person. Everyone's time "off the clock" is deserved and valuable, regardless of their circumstance or the role they hold at their place of work.

 

Where does your passion for sports communications come from?
KC: I grew up in a small town, and sports were always a huge priority for our community and a cornerstone of our youth. I also come from a family of athletes: I was a captain of my high school volleyball team and also played basketball; my brothers were three-sport athletes who went on to play on Boise State's offensive line; our mom was the first woman inducted into our high school's athletic Hall of Fame; and our grandma was a champion in high school rodeo, holding a record for nearly 40 years. There has always been something about how sports intersect with stories and connecting people, whether teammates, fellow fans or rivals that has captivated me. That feeling has never gone away and it's why I knew this was a field I wanted to devote my career toward.

Now that you’re in your eighth year with the CFP, what is the biggest lesson you’ve taken away from your early years with the organization?
KC: The CFP is a remarkable stage with interest and engagement at an all-time high, and being able to help create lifetime memories for internal and external stakeholders has taught me as much about leadership and communication as anything else in my career. There is always so much to learn in this fast-paced, ever-evolving industry, but one of my biggest takeaways is that relationships matter and can be built off of single moments. Having people in the trenches around you who are willing to lock arms with you, lift you up and even challenge you yields the most incredible of results. Additionally, the idea of preparation and leveraging the resource of time allows us to be nimble and adapt when the unexpected arises, and frees us up for more creativity to capitalize on.

 

 
Quick Hitters with Katie:
 

Your dream job as a kid: As a kid, I always knew I wanted to work in sports in some capacity. For a long time, though, I thought that path would take me to law school – I was convinced I’d become a lawyer and find my way into the sports world from there.

If you could travel back in time and relive one moment from your life, what would it be and why? I’m not sure how we got so lucky, but my family and I attended Game 5 of the 1997 NBA Finals – which also happened to fall on my birthday. Watching Michael Jordan battle through illness and scoring 38 points for the Chicago Bulls against the Utah Jazz is now one of the most iconic moments in sports history. At the time, I didn’t realize the magnitude, but I’d love to go back and experience that moment with a deeper appreciation from the perspective of a sports storyteller.

Favorite family traditions: My favorite tradition is Christmas Eve at our family’s ranch in northern Nevada. Every year, my grandma hosts our family and serves the same amazing menu. There’s something really meaningful about the consistency of that tradition – it’s a moment we all look forward to and one that’s stayed constant for as long as I can remember. 

Favorite professional sports team: I’ve actually never been loyal to just one team in professional sports – I tend to appreciate the game as a whole and what stands out to me are the personalities and the storylines. But, right now I am all in on Formula 1. I’ve had the good fortune of attending a handful of races in person (hoping for more soon) and at this point, I have more favorite drivers and teams than not and tend to find myself enjoying the entire grid.

Favorite holiday: I’d say both the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving. The Fourth is one of my favorite summer traditions, and Thanksgiving is a chance to pause and reflect. Both are meaningful in very different ways, but both also involve spending valuable time with family. 

What is your go-to takeout spot? I like to keep it flexible depending on the mood, but you can’t go wrong with great Mexican food or a really quality cheeseburger. Hard to beat either one!

Favorite spring activity: Any chance to spend time on a patio with family and friends, enjoying those perfect spring temperatures. That’s my favorite!