Brigham Young University has selected a new leader for its athletic department.
Following a national search, Brian Santiago will succeed Tom Holmoe as BYU’s new director of athletics, the university announced in a statement on Tuesday, May 13.
“We are excited to build on the forward momentum and legacy of Tom Holmoe, who is retiring, with the appointment of Brian Santiago as BYU’s next director of athletics,” BYU President C. Shane Reese said in the statement.
“Brian has a track record of leadership and an ability to lead BYU Athletics as we navigate the complex and rapidly evolving waters of college athletics. It’s become clear to me throughout this search process that Brian will seek to strengthen BYU’s academic and spiritual mission, and he understands how it blesses the lives of our student-athletes.”
Santiago started his career at BYU in 1997 when he joined the men’s basketball coaching staff. He then moved into athletic administration, where he served as an assistant and associate athletic director.
In 2008, Holmoe appointed Santiago as a senior associate athletic director. He was appointed as the deputy athletic director in 2017, where he oversaw 10 sports, including both men and women’s basketball and volleyball, and led sports marketing and communications.
“I am humbled and honored for this responsibility and privilege to work alongside our coaches, staff, student-athletes and all of Cougar Nation,” Santiago said in the statement. “BYU is one of the premier athletic programs in the country, but it is so much more than that — it is part of BYU’s sacred mission."
Santiago continued: “We are blessed with incredible leadership in President C. Shane Reese and Vice President Keith Vorkink, as well as the university’s Board of Trustees chaired by the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We are here to build student-athletes academically, athletically, spiritually and to prepare them to go make a difference in the world. As an athletic department, we stand united in this charge.”
After graduating from Provo High School in Provo, Utah, Santiago earned an associate’s degree in accounting from Utah Valley State College (now Utah Valley University) and a bachelor’s in business administration with an emphasis in international business from Fresno State.
Santiago graduated with an master’s degree from BYU’s Marriott School of Management. He played basketball at both Utah Valley and Fresno State, where he led the Western Athletic Conference in assists and three-point shooting percentage. He was later named to the pre-selection Olympic team for Puerto Rico.
Santiago served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Dominican Republic. He and his wife, Kimberly, are the parents of four children.
BYU will officially introduce Santiago at a press conference on Wednesday, May 14, in Provo, Utah.
Holmoe announced his retirement as Brigham Young University’s athletic director on Feb. 11.
