The Football Business Manager

Running a football program at the Division I level takes a lot of coordination. That's where the Football Business Manager comes into play.

This time of year Rocket football coaches are travelling all over the country, looking for the best prospects to match team needs. At the same time dozens of prospects are coming to campus on official visits to meet with coaches and tour the University of Toledo.

Someone has to schedule all of this travel across the country and setup these official visits. That's where the UT Football Business Manager, Katie DeBenedictis, comes in.

Katie was hired as the Football Business Manager at the University of Toledo in August of 2003, after graduating from Bowling Green State University with a degree in Sports Management in May of 2003.

What drew Katie to a career in sports?

"Throughout my childhood, I was involved in sports," Katie told Rocket Digest. "I played softball on community teams and on school teams from 8th through 10th grade. I also played volleyball from 7th through 12th grade and played three years of Junior Olympic volleyball during high school."

Katie studied sport enterprise at Bowling Green. Her final requirement prior to graduation led her to an internship in the University of Toledo Athletic Department. Upon graduation she looked to the University of Toledo once more, and became the Football Business Manager.

In July of 2006, Katie married Brian DeBenedictis. Brian is an Assistant Athletic Media Relations Director at the University of Toledo.

So what does a Football Business Manager do? First let's take a look at "In-Season" responsibilities.

"My main responsibility during the season is coordinating all aspects of team travel for both home and away contests," Kaite explained. "Many of these tasks are done well in advance such as booking hotels, charter planes and busses, and arranging meals."

Katie travels with the team to each contest and coordinates every detail from start to finish. This included coordinating travel for two bowl games in the 2004 Motor City Bowl and the 2005 GMAC Bowl.

During the "Off-Season" responsibilites change.

Once the season ends, recruiting season begins and that is a busy time for Katie. "I book all flights, cars, and hotels for our 10 coaches and their travel to different recruiting areas all over the country," Katie said.

She also makes the travel arrangements for recruiting travelling into campus for official visits.

"I assist our Recruiting Coordinator, Doug Downing, with setting up all aspects of the official visit weekends," explained Katie. This includes setting up restaurant reservations, van rentals, campus tour busses, and hotel arrangements.

Katie is also active in terms of monitoring and organizing all financial issues in regards to the summer football camps and spring clinic at the University of Toledo.

Katie is the co-director of the Rocket Football Alumni Golf outing that is held every summer. "(the golf outing) is the major fundraiser for the University of Toledo Football Program," Katie told Rocket Digest.

As the Football Business Manager, Katie spends the majority of her time working closely with the coaches. "Each coach has an additional responsibility other than their coaching on-field position and I am somehow involved with each," Katie said.

She explained, "these include the golf outing, banquet, recruiting, facilities, and travel. I also work with the director of each summer camp to ensure the camp is run smoothly and all aspects are organized and completed."

Katie says it is crucial for her to keep strong relationships with each coach so that every event, issue, or project is done correctly. "I feel that a coach's number one priority should always be to prepare our players for the game ahead of them," Katie added. "My job is to keep all the outside distractions and logistics under control."

When you think about it, the Football Business Manager is a very crucial position for the University of Toledo. There is a lot of coordination that must take place, and Katie needs to make sure it happens smoothly.

On top of all that, she still has plenty of day-to-day responsibilities. She places all office orders, including office supplies, print materials, and video equipment. She acts as the liaison between the Athletic Department and the football office in issues regarding employment, human resources, accounts payable, marketing, and sports information. She also processes all expense reports and keeps track of the football budget and spending.

The Football Business Manager is not in the public eye, but as you can see it is the heart and soul that keeps the football program running smoothly.