Six-member College Sports Communicators Hall of Fame Class of 2024 highlights Special Award honorees
During his years the University of Connecticut (full-time from 1980-2009, part-time for nine years after),
Tim Tolokan was a maverick in athletic communications, a creative storyteller, and a mentor to hundreds of assistants and student-athletes – many who continue to work in college and professional athletics and at national media leaders. He was an early industry leader in licensing and marketing, beginning UConn's marketing and licensing processes in the mid-1980's.
Prior to coming to the UConn campus in 1980, Tolokan was a sports writer and editor at the
Norwich (Conn.) Bulletin. During his time working at Connecticut, Tolokan held the positions of associate director of sports information (1980-83), director of media relations (1983-86), associate director of athletics- communications (1986-2001), and associate director of athletics-licensing and traditions (2001-2008) before retiring from the full-time role in 2009. He also was curator of the Husky Heritage Sports Museum on campus. Post-retirement, he continued to serve UConn on a part-time basis as special assistant to the athletics dDirector until 2018.
A frequent attendee at CSC (CoSIDA's) national conventions, Tolokan's career at Connecticut saw him working with national championship teams and Hall of Fame coaches, while helping UConn become a national brand.
A member of the NCAA Men's Basketball Coordination Committee from 1984 to 2001, Tolokan received the 2000 Katha Quinn Award from the USBWA and also received the 2000 UConn Outstanding Contribution Award (the athletic department's highest honor).
He also was one of three national representatives from college basketball on the "Content Advisory Committee" for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame (Springfield, Mass.) re-opening in 2002. For his contributions and commitment to college athletics, Tolokan received the 2023 Dean of Sports Award by the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist (Connecticut).