Troy Dannen, a leading voice in collegiate athletics with extensive experience as an athletic director and deep ties to the Midwest and Big Ten, was announced as Nebraska's Director of Athletics on March 20, 2024.

Dannen previously served as Director of Athletics at the University of Washington, a fellow Big Ten institution. Previously, he was AD at Tulane, and before that led athletics at his alma mater, the University of Northern Iowa. Dannen brings Midwestern roots, having grown up on a farm just outside Marshalltown, Iowa.

“From my first conversation with Troy Dannen, I knew he was a perfect fit for Nebraska,” University of Nebraska Interim President Chris Kabourek said when Dannen's hiring was announced. “He is a fierce competitor, he holds himself and his programs to uncommonly high standards, and he cares personally about the success of student-athletes in sports, school and life. Troy sees the vision and momentum we have here at Nebraska, from our bold investments in facilities to our record success in the classroom to our bold plan to elevate our national reputation and competitiveness, and he is excited to be a part of it. I am thrilled that we've found someone who is 100% aligned with our high expectations and will be all-in on Nebraska.

“Husker Nation, we've found a winner in Troy Dannen. I can't wait to welcome him and his family to Nebraska.”

Dannen said: “Joining the Nebraska family is truly an honor. My family and I are humbled by the opportunity to be part of such a proud athletics program, institution, community and state. Growing up in Iowa, I watched a lot of Nebraska football on Saturdays with my family. I've spent a lot of time in the state and I've found that we share a similar approach to life, work and sports: Work hard, stay humble, compete and expect to win.

“There is a storied tradition at Nebraska, but more work to be done. I truly believe our best years are ahead of us. I couldn't be more grateful to Interim President Chris Kabourek for this opportunity. Chris has championed an inspiring vision for excellence across the University of Nebraska and he and I are completely aligned on where Nebraska needs to go in the future. I look forward to doing my part to helping Nebraska win championships across the board, graduate our student-athletes and elevate the world-class reputation of the University of Nebraska. I can't wait to arrive in Nebraska and get to work.”

Head Football Coach Matt Rhule said: “I'm so fired up about this hire. Interim President Kabourek has found exactly the right person to lead the Huskers forward. Troy sees what we see – that Nebraska is a special place, with special people, a great vision and the courage to be unabashed about wanting to win across the board. The fact that someone of Troy's caliber wants to join Team Nebraska will light a fire across our entire department. Let's go!”

Dannen has been at Washington since 2023. He's also in his fourth year as chair of the NCAA Football Competition Committee and as an Executive Committee member of the Football Oversight Committee.

From 2021 through 2023, Dannen served on the NCAA Constitution Committee and then the Division I Transformation Committee, as one of a small group of chancellors, presidents, directors of athletics, commissioners and Faculty Athletic Representatives across all three NCAA divisions tasked with charting a future path for college athletics. In 2022, Dannen was a finalist for Sports Business Journal's Athletic Director of the Year award, and he received the Distinguished American Award by the Sugar Bowl Chapter of the National Football Foundation.

He arrived at Washington after serving as Director of Athletics at Tulane University since 2015. While at Tulane, Green Wave student-athletes earned 49 All-American honors, won a national championship, 21 conference championships and earned 41 postseason appearances.

In 2022-23, Tulane football won their first American Athletic Conference football championship, and won the Cotton Bowl over USC, ranked 9th in the nation at that time. Men's basketball won 20 regular season games for the first time in two decades. Men's tennis advanced to its sixth NCAA tournament in seven years, both bowling and beach volleyball finished ranked in the Top 20, and baseball won the conference championship.

Tulane's football program participated in an unprecedented three consecutive bowl games from 2018-20, winning back-to-back bowl games for the first time in 128 years of football at the University.

In the classroom, Tulane student-athletes excelled at a high-level. At the end of the 2022-2023 academic year, over 68% of Green Wave student-athletes earned a 3.0 GPA or better, with a 93% Graduation Success Rate and a record-setting department Academic Progress Report of 992, with seven teams earning a perfect 1000 APR score.

Dannen spearheaded fundraising efforts and numerous capital projects at Tulane. He helped secure the largest unrestricted gift in Tulane Athletics history, an endowment gift which funds the operation of a new sport (sailing), and a $10 million lead gift for capital renovations, which is the second largest gift in department history. In addition, marketing and licensing revenue grew four-fold, and in 2022-23, Tulane football, basketball and volleyball set ticket sales and revenue records. Under Dannen's leadership, the Green Wave Club Annual Fund grew by 40% in terms of donors, and 45% in terms of dollars.

Increases in fundraising and major gift donors positively impacted capital project development and completion. A $13 million renovation to the Reilly Natatorium, home of the swimming and diving program, as well as $8 million in renovations to locker rooms and the Wilson Center sports medicine center were completed in 2023. Dannen also oversaw construction of a new dining facility, weight room, basketball and volleyball locker rooms. Tulane also completed a $2.4 million academic center renovation and a $5 million television and digital production center.

Dannen came to Tulane after serving eight years as the Director of Athletics at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) from 2008-15. During his tenure, the Panthers enjoyed success at both the conference and national levels, as UNI was recognized with 39 All-Americans, 13 Coaches of the Year and nine Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Players of the Year. UNI football, men's basketball, women's basketball, volleyball and softball combined to reach 15 NCAA tournaments and 20 postseason berths during that stretch. For his efforts, Dannen was recognized as NACDA's FCS Athletic Director of the Year in 2014.

Prior to his time at UNI, Dannen served as the Iowa High School Athletic Union's Executive Director for seven years.

Dannen graduated from UNI in 1989 with a degree in communications. He is married to Amy, and together they have four children: Elle, Emily, Holly and William.

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Haven Fields joined Nebraska Athletics as the Deputy Athletic Director/Chief Operating Officer in April of 2024.

Fields will serve as the day-to-day football administrator, assisting Head Coach Matt Rhule and his football staff. In addition to his role with the football program, Fields will oversee the Huskers Athletic Fund team and assist Dannen in managing the day-to-day operations of the athletic department.

Fields comes to Lincoln after joining Dannen’s Washington staff in January. With the Huskies, Fields led several external units including Marketing and Fan Engagement, Strategic Communications, Creative and Digital Services, Multimedia, and served as the Liaison for Learfield/Husky Sports Properties. Fields also played a role in assisting with the Huskies’ transition to the Big Ten with oversight of the Broadcast Operations that will produce a plethora of video productions.

Fields was the Football Sport Administrator for the 2024 College Football Playoff National Runner-Up and 2023 Pac-12 Champions. During his time at UW, Fields assisted in the hiring of new Head Football Coach Jedd Fisch and Head Men’s Basketball Coach Danny Sprinkle.

Before his appointment at Washington, Fields was the Deputy Athletics Director at Ball State University as the number two administrator in the department. He assisted in supervising the Cardinals’ 19 teams and 450-plus student-athletes. Fields oversaw several external areas (Athletics Communications, Marketing & Fan Engagement, Development, Ticketing Sales & Operations, and was the liaison to Learfield-IMG/Ball State Sports Properties).

Several of the team’s Fields worked with experienced record success from a revenue generation standpoint. Specifically, he worked as the sport administrator for the football and basketball programs. He administered the football program’s first bowl game win in school history in 2020, beating two top-25 opponents in that season. Ball State finished the year ranked in the AP Top 25 and made back-to-back bowl appearances for only the third time in the school’s history.

Fields led Ball State’s COVID-19 plan for return to campus, testing protocols that successfully allowed all programs to compete and finish their seasons. During his time at Ball State, he assisted in raising private support of more than $15 million and oversaw the athletic department’s most notable capital project to date--The Scheumann Family Indoor Practice Facility, which was fully funded through private support.

Prior to his time at Ball State, Fields worked at the University of Illinois as the Associate Athletic Director of Development. In his six years with the Illini, Fields assisted with the university’s $2.25 billion “With Illinois” campaign, $300 million of which was earmarked for athletics. The university campaign exceeded $2.7 billion, and the athletics portion raised $321 million.

Before his stint at Illinois, Fields worked at the University of South Alabama for over five years, where he assisted in the facilitation of the overall football operation for a start-up, Division I program, and transition to Football Bowl Subdivision. Fields began his time in collegiate athletics at Auburn, working for four years at his alma mater.

Fields played collegiate football for Auburn, earning the Zeke Smith Award (Auburn’s Defensive Player of the Year). He was an honorable mention All-SEC pick as a linebacker and earned a spot on the All-SEC Football Allstate “Good Works” Team. After college, Fields played two seasons of professional football in the Canadian Football League for the Hamilton Tigercats and British Columbia Lions.

Fields earned his bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology from Auburn in 2001 and later earned a master’s in Higher Education Administration/Sports Management. He and his wife, Dr. Mya, who’s an Assistant Dean for Purdue University’s School of Multidisciplinary and Professional Studies have two sons, Haven Jr. (7) and Hendrix (5).

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Tyler Kai was promoted to Deputy Athletic Director for Revenue Generation in July of 2024. Kai has oversight of all external facing areas with the athletic development unit, including major gifts, the annual fund, ticketing/premium seating and will serve as the liaison for the relationship between athletics and 1890.

Kai joined the Nebraska Athletic Department in August of 2021 as the Associate AD of Leadership Gifts & Capital Projects for the Huskers Athletic Fund. He led the overall major gift program for capital projects and endowments, securing major gift commitments from Husker supporters. In the Spring of 2023, Kai directed enhancements to the Nebraska Leadership Society including a rebranding, the introduction of new recognition levels, and enhanced member benefits to better serve the generous supporters of Nebraska Athletics.

Kai came to Nebraska from Tulane, where he served as the Associate AD for Development. He oversaw the Green Wave Club and Ticket Office, while creating the departmental fundraising and revenue generation strategy and setting annual goals. He also led the department’s fundraising effort by securing significant gift commitments for department priorities, including the Slatten Family Strength Center and Don & Lora Peters Academic Center renovations. Kai joined Tulane in March of 2017 to lead the day-to-day operations of the athletics annual fund including donor relations, stewardship and fundraising initiatives. The Green Wave Club’s membership and donations grew to record highs, under Kai’s leadership. In 2019, Kai led a comprehensive effort to refine Tulane’s priority seating model in Yulman Stadium, Avron B. Fogelman Arena in the Devlin Fieldhouse and Greer Field at Turchin Stadium.

Prior to Tulane, Kai served as the Assistant Director of Campaigns for the University of Tennessee. His primary role was identifying, cultivating and soliciting major gifts to benefit the athletics programs. During his term, the Tennessee Fund reached record years in annual giving, sold out of season tickets at Neyland Stadium and surpassed a three-year campaign goal of $147.5 million.

Kai earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Iowa State University and a Master of Science degree from Kansas State University. Tyler and his wife, Caitlin, have two children - Harrison and Liam. Kai was born in Pender, Neb and raised in Urbandale, Iowa.

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Derek Freeman was promoted to Senior Associate Athletic Director for Development in November 2023. Freeman leads and manages the athletics development and ticket office teams. He is responsible for raising gifts to support the mission, vision and strategic plan of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and will focus on the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of identified athletics donors.

Freeman has been a member of Nebraska Athletic Development since September 1998 and has held many roles. Most recently, Freeman was an Assistant AD for Internal Operations. Freeman’s responsibilities have included cultivating donor relations with the University’s top donors, managing all contributions to Nebraska Athletics including the Go Big capital campaign, supervising the online seat selection process (Seat Yourself), allocating parking for most ticketed sports, and providing the reporting and analytics for the Huskers Athletic Fund.

A native of Lincoln, Freeman earned a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration with an emphasis in management from Nebraska in May 1998. Married to the former Lindsey Soukup, Freeman and his wife have two sons, Brody and Gavin, and one daughter, Blake.

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Brenden Stai joined Nebraska Athletics in July of 2018 as a Director of Development. As a member of the Huskers Athletic Fund staff Stai is responsible for fostering relationships with donors in the state of Nebraska and the western part of the United States. Prior to his current role, Stai spent nine years as a private business owner and has had a real estate license since his playing days in the NFL.

A native of Yorba Linda, Calif., Stai has a deep connection with Nebraska as he was recruited to play football by Tom Osborne. Stai started his Husker career in 1990 and left after his senior season in 1994 as a national champion and consensus first-team All-American offensive lineman. Stai was a third-round pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1994 and spent five years with the Steelers. He was a member of their 1995 AFC Championship team that went on to play in Super Bowl XXX. Stai produced an eight-year NFL career that included stops in Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, Detroit and Washington.

Stai graduated from Nebraska in 1994 with a degree in criminal justice and a minor in business. Brenden and his wife, Jennifer, have two daughters, Christina and Brianna, and one son, Bryce, who is a defensive lineman at Ohio.

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Mattie Fowler Burkhardt was hired in February of 2017 as the Development Operations Director. Burkhardt was promoted to Senior Director of Development Operations in July of 2018 and again to Assistant AD - Annual Giving in January of 2022.

In her current role, Burkhardt leads the day-to-day operations of the annual fund within the athletics department including donor relations, fundraising initiatives, premium seating and hospitality, scholarship endowments, planned giving and the N Club. She also serves as the secondary sport administrator for Women’s Basketball.

Burkhardt is an active member of Women Leaders in College Sports and a 2020 graduate of the Institute for Administrative Advancement. Burkhardt is also in her ninth year as a TeamMates mentor.

A four-time team captain on Nebraska's softball team, the 2015-16 Nebraska Female Student-Athlete of the Year, and a 2016 first-team CoSIDA Academic All-American, Burkhardt graduated from UNL in May of 2015 with a bachelor's degree in business administration as a finance major and math minor. The Tucson, Ariz., native graduated with her MBA and a specialization in finance in May of 2017.

Mattie and her husband, Nick, welcomed their son, Beck, in the spring of 2022.

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Ousley serves as the Senior Director of Business Intelligence – Development & Ticketing, having been promoted in April of 2024. He originally joined the Nebraska Athletic Department as Director of Development in June of 2022.

His current responsibilities include leadership of initiatives that leverage data to enhance development and ticketing operations, overseeing fundraising financial operations, serving as the liaison with various departments, and building strong relationships with donors to secure gift commitments for key fundraising priorities.

As Director of Development, Ousley was responsible for fostering relationships with donors in Nebraska and the Great Lakes region, and secured gift commitments for capital projects, endowments, planned gifts, and current-use funds. 

Ousley came to Nebraska after previously serving as Assistant Director of Development, Major Gifts at Penn State's Smeal College of Business for four years from 2018-2022. He was responsible for the major gifts fundraising efforts in Western Pennsylvania, Arizona, and portions of the Midwest. He also led a comprehensive redesign of the unit's Giving Day strategy, resulting in successive records in participation and donations. During his tenure, the Smeal College raised record-breaking support that totaled over $95 million as part of the successful $2.2 billion university-wide campaign, A Greater Penn State.

Before Penn State, Ousley was a Development & Operations Coordinator for the Army A Club in 2015-2016 at Army West Point, where a record-breaking $5.6 million in annual support was raised during his time with the Black Knights. He also served as an Athletics Development Graduate Assistant at Ohio from 2016-2018 and assisted in producing a record total in annual contributions.

A member of the Nebraska wrestling program from 2011-2015, Ousley graduated from Nebraska with a bachelor's degree in nutrition, exercise, and health science and obtained a pair of master's degrees in business administration and sport administration from Ohio.

The Saginaw, Mich., native married former Husker swimmer Ciara Jenkins. The couple lives in Lincoln with their two dogs and one cat.

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Larisa Hart joined the Nebraska Athletics Department in July of 2023 as the Director of Premium Seating and Hospitality. Prior to joining Nebraska Athletics, Hart worked alongside the Huskers Athletic Fund team serving as the Hospitality Manager for the Huskers since January 2022 as an affiliate with REVELxp.

Hart continues to oversee premium seating and hospitality for the suites and club areas in Memorial Stadium, The Bob Devaney Sports Center, and Pinnacle Bank Arena for Nebraska Athletics. Hart works closely with the development team to ensure Husker fans have the best game day experiences.

Hart has extensive experience working in premium seating and hospitality spaces with both REVELxp and Pinnacle Bank Arena. During her time with REVELxp, Hart executed the highest level of service for Husker premium areas and was selected to manage the suites and pregame VIP experiences for the Big 10 Football Championship in 2022 as well as the Big 10 Men’s Basketball Tournaments in 2022 & 2023. At Pinnacle Bank Arena Hart served as the Premium Services and Catering Supervisor and coordinated onsite hospitality operations for the Husker Basketball teams, concerts and conventions, in addition to overseeing staff in the premium seating areas of the arena.

Hart earned her bachelor’s degree in Hospitality, Tourism & Event Management from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2015 and is proud to work at her alma mater in her current role.

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Samantha Rehurek joined the Nebraska Athletic Department as a Director of Donor Events & Stewardship in June of 2022.

Rehurek is responsible for managing all special events, stewardship activities, marketing and social media strategies and external and internal communication.

Prior to Nebraska, Rehurek led the planning and facilitated the execution of conferences and events for the Arbor Day Foundation.

Rehurek is the head coach of the lone high school girl's lacrosse team in Lincoln, the Lincoln Liberty Lacrosse Club.

Rehurek earned her bachelor's degree in hospitality management from Nebraska, with an emphasis in event coordination, customer service and marketing and a minor in leadership and communications. Samantha and her husband, Alex live in Lincoln with their two dogs.

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Kyle Bollig joined the Nebraska Athletic Department as an Assistant Director of Leadership Gifts in July of 2022. Bollig was promoted to Associate Director of Leadership Gifts in June of 2024.

In his current role, Bollig is responsible for advancing relationships with Husker supporters across the country, to secure gift commitments for capital projects, endowments and current-use funds.

Prior to Nebraska, Bollig served as Assistant Director of Development for the Green Wave Club at Tulane. In his role, Bollig coordinated priority seating renewal efforts and the execution of the department's 24-hour Giving Day.

Before Tulane, Bollig worked as an Alumni Engagement graduate assistant for the College of Business and an External Operations graduate assistant for the athletic department at Ohio. As a student at Kansas, he served as a student worker for three years in equipment services for Kansas Athletics.

A native of Olathe, Kan., Bollig received his bachelor's degree in business marketing from Kansas in 2019. Bollig earned master's degrees in business administration and sports administration from Ohio in 2021.

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Jenni Puchalla joined Nebraska Athletics in 2009. She currently serves as the Development & Ticketing Services Manager. In her current role, she works with donors and season ticket holders on a daily basis, while supervising the student-workers in the Development and Ticketing Office.

Originally from Norfolk, Neb., Puchalla earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees in English from the University of Nebraska. She and her husband Russ have two sons.

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Katie Glover joined the Nebraska Athletic Department as the Assistant Director of Annual Giving in June of 2022.

Glover provides assistance in growing Huskers Athletic Fund membership and overall annual fund support to Nebraska Athletics. Glover is also responsible for the creation and execution of all Huskers Athletic Fund correspondence that outlines the giving opportunities for current and prospective donors while creating awareness of the need for financial support.

Prior to Nebraska, Glover was an athletic academic advising graduate assistant for the LAKER Academic Success Center at Grand Valley State University. Here, Glover provided academic and personal skill development counseling to student-athletes and developed and implemented learning strategies to foster their academic development.

A native of Sioux City, Iowa, Glover was a member of the women's soccer team at Briar Cliff, where she served as a team captain for two seasons. Glover earned her bachelor's degree in business administration and sports management with a minor in legal studies from Briar Cliff University in 2020. Glover obtained her M.Ed. with an emphasis in college student affairs-leadership from Grand Valley State in 2022.

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Lydia Granahan joined the Nebraska Athletics Department in July of 2023 as the Assistant Director of Premium Seating and Hospitality. Prior to joining Nebraska Athletics, Granahan worked alongside the Huskers Athletic Fund team serving as the Assistant Hospitality Manager for the Huskers since August 2022 as an affiliate with REVELxp

Granahan continues to oversee the premium seating hospitality for Husker Football, Volleyball, Basketball, Wrestling and Gymnastics. Granahan works closely with the Huskers Athletic Fund development team to ensure the best game day experience for Husker fans.

Prior to joining the HAF team, Granahan interned at Thomson Reuters and the Academy of Country Music in the events department. While in this role Granahan managed riders and contracts, credentials and served as a production assistant for the ACM Awards and the ACM Honors. Granahan continues to assist the ACM in these programs as needed.

While earning her master's degree, Granahan worked at Achieve Physical Therapy - Sports Training in Omaha, Nebraska as an administrative assistant overseeing internal and external office operations including managing community events and company marketing.

Granahan earned both her bachelor's degree and master's degree in Event Management from Iowa State University in 2020 and 2021 respectively.

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