College Sports Information Directors of America

John Painter — Maryville College (Tenn.) Assistant Athletics Director for Communications

CSC Hall of Fame Class of 2025 and Lifetime Achievement Award recipient

by Jay Stancil, Appalachian Athletic Conference Assistant Commissioner for Championships and Information / CSC Special Awards Committee member

"There have been a lot of people and students that have brought me joy in my career, but hiring John Painter (JP) has been up there with the most influential hires of my career. Not only did he provide stability and professionalism for our staff in athletic communications, but he was one of the best colleagues I've ever had. Even though he ‘worked for me,’ he taught me so much. John is a mentor, a friend, a sounding board, and a reality check. He leaves every place he's ever been better, and everyone who's ever worked with JP is very fortunate — and they know it."
- Sara Quatrocky, Virginia Commonwealth University Assistant Athletic Director for Development, former Maryville College Athletic Director

"Haywood Harris and I had the pleasure to have John as a member of the sports information staff at Tennessee as a student assistant and again as an associate SID. John was fortunate to have gained valuable experience during his career not only at Tennessee, but also at Auburn, the NCAA, Colgate and now at his final stop at Maryville College. He was a dedicated worker and loyal staff member to each of these organizations… I termed John an ‘old school SID’ who knew how to incorporate new ideas at each level of collegiate sports he encountered. Mild-mannered and courteous in every way and highly respected in the field, he remains a valued friend to me and many others."
- Bud Ford, University of Tennessee Historian Emeritus and former Associate AD for Media Relations, CSC Hall of Famer (2001), CSC Lifetime Achievement Award (2012), CSC Arch Ward Award (2006), CSC 25-Year Award (1991)

The old adage “A man is known by the company by the company he keeps” could not more aptly apply to any person than John Painter.

Wrapping up a career which spans over five decades, Painter has been surrounded by some of the best of the best.

“I’ve worked with nine CSC Hall of Famers,” noted Painter, Maryville College (Tenn.) Assistant Athletics Director for Communications. “Nine of them in the office.”

With that kind of pedigree around him, it is no surprise that Painter himself is joining their ranks, as he will be inducted into the College Sports Communicators (CSC) Hall of Fame this June.

“You don't realize it at the time,” Painter added. “You realize they’re good and great people in the profession, but looking back now they go like, I was among greatness. No question about that.”
 

In addition to going into the CSC Hall of Fame, Painter is receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award and is retiring at the end of the Maryville fiscal year this summer.

Painter began his professional career in Auburn media relations under CSC Hall of Famer David Housel. He then moved on to the NCAA where he served as the senior statistics coordinator for 11 years and as a communications coordinator for one year. At the NCAA headquarters, he worked alongside Dave Cawood and Jim Wright, both also CSC Hall of Fame inductees.

In 2001, Painter joined the staff at his alma mater, the University of Tennessee, and served alongside industry legends Haywood Harris, Bud Ford, and Debbie Jennings.

“We even had a year-long visit from Larry Happel from Central of NCAA Division III,” Painter noted. “He came and did a sabbatical with us, so that was a fourth (CSC Hall of Fame member) there at Tennessee.”

Painter’s next professional opportunity came in the Northeast at Colgate University in upper New York state. During his tenure at Colgate, he spent time with Bob Cornell and conference contact Roger Crosley, both of whom are CSC Hall of Fame members.

"Haywood Harris and I had the pleasure to have John as a member of the SID staff at Tennessee as a student assistant (1986-87) and again as an associate SID (2001-10),” said Ford, Tennessee historian emeritus after a long award-winning career in media relations there. “John was fortunate to have gained valuable experience during his career not only at Tennessee, but also at Auburn, the NCAA, Colgate and his final stop at Maryville College. He is a dedicated worker and loyal staff member to each of these organizations. One endearing trait of John was his willingness to always help with any request and his willingness to serve.”
 

It's been that willingness to help and serve that truly endears Painter to his coworkers and colleagues alike. He has never been one to turn away anyone who wanted to chat, learn, and share ideas.

“John has had an extraordinary career as a leader, mentor and friend to so many in this business,” said Olivia Coiro, assistant director of athletic communications at Syracuse. “He has made a lasting impact in our industry, especially advocating and uplifting women. JP is a true example of leading with purpose and leaves behind an undeniable mark on generations of college sports communicators. 

I am thankful to have met John Painter when I did and appreciate how much he influenced my career. John has been a tremendous friend, and it's always a good chat when we can get together and share some pints.”

The vast majority of Painter’s career has been spent at the NCAA Division I level, Including his days as a student worker, as his time at that level spanned nearly 36 years. In 2021, however, he pivoted and returned to his home state of Tennessee to take over the athletic communications office at Maryville, an NCAA Division III institution.

“There have been a lot of people and students that have brought me joy in my career, but hiring JP has been up there with the most influential hires of my career,” noted Sara Quatrocky, former Athletic Director at Maryville and current Assistant Athletic Director for Development at Virginia Commonwealth. “Not only did he provide stability and professionalism for our staff in athletic communications, but he was one of the best colleagues I've ever had. Even though he ‘worked for me,’ he taught me so much. John is a mentor, a friend, a sounding board, and a reality check. He leaves every place he's ever been better, and everyone who's ever worked with JP is very fortunate - and they know it.”
 

Having started in the industry in the 1980s, Painter has seen a vast number of changes with how things are done. For example, when he was a student worker at Tennessee, his job was to drive around the opposing SIDs to various media outlets to distribute video highlights to the area’s television stations. 

“(The opposing SID) had tapes, and he would pull in and we would go in there to the sports department and he would give him some highlights and a media guide and he would say, ‘Hey, we're going to be walking through at the stadium today at five if you want to come out,’” Painter explained. “Then we go to the next station, then to the next TV station, and then we would go to the newspaper.”

Painter added that following a baseball doubleheader, he would have to go back to the office to type out the stats to get the statistics printed and ready for the next day.

Through it all, Painter has embraced the changes.

“There's no question everything leads to efficiency,” he said. “You can do so many more things now that you couldn't do during my younger days in this career. Now, you are at a game and we push a button and the stats update, and I load them and the auto-generated season stats immediately on my computer.”

“I termed him an ‘old school SID’ who knew how to incorporate new ideas at each level of collegiate sports he encountered,” Ford said of Painter. “Mild-mannered and courteous in every way and highly respected in the field. He remains a valued friend to me and many others.”

Painter has long been an SID of the times, and now is his time to recognize him with a CSC Lifetime Achievement Award upon his well-deserved retirement and take his rightful place in our organization’s Hall of Fame.