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Past Rising Star Award Recipients
Tyler Cady – Syracuse University, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Rising Star Award – University Division
by Liv Coiro – Syracuse University, Assistant Director for Communications // 2018 CSC Rising Star Award recipient
Tyler Cady is one of the most dedicated and hard-working professionals you will meet, but you probably haven’t because he keeps his head down. He’s never looking for a pat on the back or praise, which is what makes learning that Tyler is a 2023 recipient of the College Sports Communicators Rising Star Award even more special.
He hates the spotlight, unless it’s when he’s delivering a hot take in the office to whoever is around. Most days for Tyler start early and end quietly in his office. Sometimes I forget he is there, except for when I hear a can crack and know he’s opened his second Blue Monster of the day or when he bounces a lacrosse ball against the wall that divides his office from mine.
Tyler was the very first friend I made at Syracuse when I was hired five years ago, and I couldn’t imagine my time here without him.
Tyler Cady with John Desko, Syracuse’s retired men’s lacrosse coach who served for 22 seasons (from 1999 to 2021).
I can speak for everyone in our office when I say Tyler is the model modern-day athletic communications professional that we all look up to. His unique way to perfectly blend the traditional aspects of our profession and the ever-changing digital landscape is what makes him who he is.
He grew up in Central New York, attending football and men’s basketball games at our university’s Carrier Dome in the 90s and early 2000s, never imagining he would one day lead the communications efforts for that same Syracuse University football program.
A native of Whitesboro, New York, Tyler came to Syracuse in 2014 as an intern after getting his feet wet in the profession at Canisius in Buffalo. He earned his bachelor’s degree in communications from the University at Buffalo in 2012 and began graduate school at Canisius where he volunteered as an intern his first year, before being elevated to athletic media relations graduate assistant for the 2013-14 school year.
From the day he stepped foot on SU’s campus, Tyler has evolved as a young professional into an experienced leader among his peers. He has been instrumental in the growth of the department’s social media efforts as the landscape of college athletics has evolved over the last decade. Tyler continues to play a key role in the implementation and execution of our department’s digital and social media strategies. He mentors the students and interns who work in the communications office and challenges his coworkers to step out of their comfort zone to get better each day.
Tyler began at Syracuse as an intern working with a variety of sports including women’s ice hockey and women’s tennis while assisting with football duties. Eventually, he moved on to field hockey, cross country, track and field and men’s lacrosse.
During his first year as a full-time employee at Syracuse, Tyler led the coverage for Syracuse’s field hockey national championship, the first national title won by a women’s team in Syracuse history. At the same time, the men’s cross-country team claimed the first national championship in program history nearly 400 miles away in Louisville. That’s right, he covered two national championships in one day in his first year as a full-time SID!
In September 2020, Tyler took over as the day-to-day primary contact for the football team. The timing was unfortunate, as it was the season impacted by the pandemic. However, he managed to put out fires throughout the year while also continuing as the men’s lacrosse and cross country/track contact as the department worked through staff challenges due to the pandemic.
Tyler never hesitates to volunteer his time to help others. This semester alone, he has helped our new men’s lacrosse athletic communications contact move into the role with a smooth transition. He has volunteered to stat games, clip highlights and set up press conferences, and he even traveled to Greensboro, N.C., with me for the 2023 ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament to assist as a secondary athletic communications contact.
In a time where young professionals are moving jobs and searching for new titles, Tyler has done the opposite. He has grown and risen at Syracuse, where he is respected for his dedication, passion and work ethic by the coaches, student-athletes, and staff members he works with.
Tyler is so deserving of this Rising Star award, and I speak for all of us at Syracuse when I say we are so proud of him.
Gallery: (4-19-2023) Tyler Cady, Rising Star