Brian DeBenedicts is entering his 18th year at the University of Toledo and first as Director of Player Development & Community Engagement on the Rocket women’s basketball staff. DeBenedictis will assist or coordinate numerous aspects of the women’s basketball program, including serving as alumni event and community service coordinator, creating recruiting and monthly mailouts, overseeing team managers, the mentor program and social media postings, coordinating team meals on campus and pass lists for all games and assisting with academics, banquets, camps, marketing and promotions, on-campus recruiting and fundraising. He will also continue to coordinate all aspects of team travel, which he has done for the last 15 years.
In addition to his new responsibilities, DeBenedictis will remain the Athletic Communications Director for the women’s basketball program. He will oversee communications for the Rockets, and is responsible for all media relations, publications, website management and new media for the team.
“Brian’s meticulous work habits, professionalism and outstanding people skills are a welcomed addition to our staff,” Head Coach Tricia Cullop said. “I’m thrilled he has decided to join us in a newly created position.”
An active member of CoSIDA, DeBenedictis assumed the position of assistant director for media relations at UT in 2000, and was promoted to associate director of communications in 2013.
As the Associate Director, DeBenedictis was the primary communications contact for the women’s basketball and men’s golf programs, while also serving as the secondary contact for football. He also oversaw a graduate assistant that works with women’s soccer, baseball, women’s track & field and men’s and women’s cross country teams.
In his role, he designed the layout and produced editorial material for the 250-page women’s basketball media guide, as well as the 100-page women’s basketball and 118-page football game programs. DeBenedictis also had a significant role in the athletic department’s social media planning and operation, increasing the amount of activity on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat and assisted in nationally publicized stories featured in publications such as USA Today, Associated Press, Sports Illustrated, The New York Times, New York Daily News and NCAA Championship Program. He also served as one of the executive producers for a monthly television show “Rocket Roundup,” which provides exclusive behind the scenes access to University of Toledo Athletics and was the primary media coordinator and championship manager for first and second round of the 2014 NCAA Women’s Basketball Championship.
Prior to working at UT, DeBenedictis completed a two-year internship in the sports information office at Purdue, where he covered women’s soccer, men’s tennis, men’s and women’s swimming & diving, men’s and women’s golf, women’s track & field and wrestling. He was also the secondary contact for men’s basketball.
DeBenedictis is a University of Toledo graduate, earning a bachelor’s degree in communication with a concentration in public relations and a minor in marketing in 1998. He is continuing his studies at Toledo, pursuing a master’s degree in recreation & leisure administration.
He is married to UT’s Senior Director of Administrative Operations for the Office of the President Katie (Abdulovic) DeBenedictis. They make their home in Sylvania with their two sons, Ethan (7 years old) and Grady (8 months), and a daughter Audrey (4 years old).
