CENTER VALLEY, Pa. – Learfield announced Thursday that industry veteran Paul Michinard will serve as general manager for Patriot League Sports Properties. The Patriot League is represented exclusively by Learfield for marketing and sponsorship initiatives, a partnership that runs through 2020.
Michinard, who recently joined the League offices having served in a similar capacity at Rutgers University with IMG College, will oversee the Patriot League’s rights. Learfield is dedicated to driving corporate partner relationships, selling certain League assets, as well as overseeing on-site marketing and promotions at all 23 League Championship events. The Patriot League also tapped Learfield to produce radio spots and online banner advertising for its member schools to use this current academic season in celebrating the League’s 25th Anniversary.
Prior to serving two years as senior account executive with IMG’s entity representing Rutgers Athletics, Michinard served nearly 13 years with Getty Images in New York, most recently as account manager. Prior to that, he was Getty Images’ brand manager of sports, a role in which he was responsible for leveraging partnerships and revenue growth for its collegiate and professional relationships. He also was a sales manager, MSG Collection for Madison Square Garden in New York.
“We are excited to have Paul in our League offices. We’ve enjoyed our partnership with Learfield and consider them an outstanding partner continually aligned with our business objectives, goals and ideals,” said Patriot League Executive Director Jennifer Heppel.
“Paul is the perfect fit to guide us in growing the Patriot League brand, our partnership assets and overall revenues,” said Keith Bradshaw, Learfield vice president. “Bringing him to the Patriot League offices marks the first time we’ve positioned a general manager on site, and we anticipate continued great work with him being right there.”
Full Patriot League member institutions include American, Army West Point, Boston University, Bucknell, Colgate, Holy Cross, Lafayette, Lehigh, Loyola Maryland and Navy. Associate members include Fordham in football; Georgetown in both football and women’s rowing; Massachusetts Institute of Technology in women’s rowing; and Richmond in women’s golf. Learfield Sports holds individual multimedia rights agreements with Army West Point, Bucknell and Fordham.
Patriot League member institutions are among the oldest and most prestigious in the nation. Alumni from Patriot League colleges and universities have played a leadership role in the shaping of our country. In the classroom, the Patriot League’s full-member institutions, individually and collectively, consistently rank among the top Division I programs in the NCAA Graduation Rates Report. Since 1998, the Patriot League has ranked first among all Division I conferences offering scholarships in student-athlete graduation rates according to the NCAA Graduation Rates report.
Learfield has long been immersed in the collegiate athletics landscape. The company manages the multimedia and sponsorship rights for more than 120 collegiate institutions, conferences and arenas, in addition to supporting athletic departments at all competitive levels as title sponsor of the prestigious Learfield Directors’ Cup. Learfield also provides its collegiate partners access to professional concessions and ticket sales; licensing and trademark consulting; digital platform expertise; and venue and technology systems through its affiliated companies. For more about Learfield’s partners, history, businesses and career opportunities, visit learfieldsports.com.