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Todd Miles – University of Oregon, Associate Director of Athletic Communications
CSC 25-Year Award
by Kobe Mosley – College Sports Communicators Intern
Throughout his career,
Todd Miles has had to adjust to just about everything. Now in his 12th year at the University of Oregon as the associate director of athletic communications, he’ll be the first to admit his path didn’t come without twists and turns.
Looking back down the path he’s traveled now, it’s one he’s grateful to have taken. CSC recognizes Miles’s perseverance and service to the athletic communications field for the last two and a half decades by awarding him with a 25-Year Award.
After graduating from Gonzaga University in 1990 with a degree in broadcasting, Miles thought he would end up being a play-by-play broadcaster. While that was partly true, it did not go the way he had initially planned.
Todd Miles and his wife Staci take in daughter Larkin’s first sporting event at a Portland Winterhawks’ game with son Hatcher.
Starting out as a sports reporter and anchor, he worked at a TV station in Coos Bay, Oregon before eventually moving to Boise, Idaho. Following a change in leadership, Miles was let go from the Idaho station in January 1997.
Looking for his next opportunity, he would find it from a friend, Dave Hahn, who had just gotten a new job and was leaving his prior role as sports information director at the College of Idaho, then called Albertson College of Idaho.
“I still owe Dave Hahn a lot because he's the one that got me into the [college athletic communications] industry,” Miles said.
Hahn helped Miles set up an interview, which led to him getting the job in August 1997. In this new role, Miles wore several hats: associate athletic director, sports information director, ticket manager, and the athletic department’s primary fundraiser. He also served as the play-by-play announcer for men’s basketball and baseball.
Learning a lot of these new things on the fly, Miles turned to Hahn regularly for advice. Marty Holly, the athletic director and men’s basketball coach at the time, also became a mentor who was pivotal in Miles’s career.
“[Holly] took care of me, gave me an opportunity when I had no experience in this business … he gave me an important opportunity to let me learn on the job,” Miles said.
Even with the loaded plate that Miles had, he loved the work he was doing.
“To be honest, that might be my favorite job,” Miles said.
It was more than the work he did that made Miles love the job so much: it was the people. In addition to Holly, he became good friends with several of the coaches there — Tim Mooney, Shawn Humburger, and Mark Owen were names that came to mind.
“Those guys, in particular, played a big part in developing me [into] who I am … and they're still some of my best friends,” Miles noted.
After four years at the College of Idaho, Miles was given the opportunity to work as a sports information director at Boise State in 2001. Throughout his seven years there, Miles served as the primary contact for football, men’s basketball, men’s and women’s golf, and cross country. He also called men’s basketball games, did sideline reporting for football games, and hosted an hour-long talk show about Boise State athletics for a couple of years.
Miles gained another mentor during his time in Boise in
Max Corbet — CSC Hall of Famer, former CoSIDA president, and former long-time SID at Boise State. With this position being the first time Miles has worked on the NCAA Division I level, he appreciates the leadership style that Corbet used to help Miles grow as a professional.
“Max didn’t micromanage me; he let me make mistakes,” Miles said.
From there, and prior to getting to Oregon in 2012, Miles spent four seasons at Long Beach State University. As the assistant athletic director for media relations and broadcast services, he had several responsibilities, including supervising the staff and serving as the main point of contact for men’s basketball, men’s volleyball, softball, and men’s water polo.
Once he got to Oregon, Miles began to realize the difference in how the department was run compared to his other stops.
“It’s big business,” he noted.
With expectations so high, there isn’t much room for error. Rather than working in a tense environment, however, Miles characterizes working at Oregon as a family atmosphere despite the high standards. Simply put, Miles has pride in wearing the “O” on his chest.
“To see people react when you say you work at Oregon … it’s kind of a neat feeling,” Miles said.
When it comes to his own family, Miles understands that this profession makes it hard sometimes to find time outside of work. When he does have free time, he’s spending it with his wife, Staci, and two children, Larkin and Hatcher.
Just like their dad, the kids have begun to find a love of sports too. Hatcher, who named the family dog after MLB player and Oregon alum Ryon Healy, is the bat boy for the Oregon baseball team. Miles says that impact that the student-athletes have been able to have on Hatcher and Larkin is one of the greatest things about his job.
So, yes, this career choice requires long hours and more work than what may be in the job description. Yes, it requires you to rely on others, while also being capable of getting things done on your own. It requires you to be comfortable with being uncomfortable. So, what keeps Miles coming back?
“I love sports…” Miles concluded. “That's why this job has been great for me. It doesn't feel like a job.”
Gallery: (6-9-2023) Todd Miles, 25-Year Award