Michael Alford

Michael Alford, who has a remarkably broad-based career with championship organizations including serving as CEO and President of Seminole Boosters, Inc., was named Vice President and Director of Athletics at Florida State University on December 9, 2021.

During his 26 years in intercollegiate athletics and professional sports, Alford has held positions with the Dallas Cowboys, the University of Alabama, the University of Oklahoma, the University of Southern California, the Cincinnati Bengals and was Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics at Central Michigan University from 2017-2020.

Under Alford’s leadership since 2020, Seminole Boosters added over 2,000 new annual members, raised $15 million towards a new football operations center bringing the total commitments to over $55 million, and conceived and launched concepts to dramatically improve the fan experience at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Prior to his arrival at Florida State, Alford served as Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics at Central Michigan University from 2017-2020. He is credited with leading Central Michigan during the most successful fundraising period in its athletics history. Notably, Alford hired eight coaches at Central Michigan, four of whom went on to win conference coach of the year honors in their first two seasons. Alford also guided the renegotiation of CMU Athletics’ apparel contract which resulted in a 600 percent increase in revenue, spearheaded an all-time high in Chippewa Athletic Fund memberships and oversaw the department’s all-time fundraising record in 2018-2019 that eclipsed the mark set in 2017-2018 by 50 percent. He also spearheaded the fundraising and project oversight for the Chippewa Champions Center which was completed in 2021.

From 2012 to 2017, Alford was the Senior Associate Athletic Director for Development and Administration at the University of Oklahoma where he oversaw the Sooner Club, the principal fundraising arm of OU Athletics. The Sooner Club set annual giving records and increased membership to an all-time high under his leadership. He also played an integral role in the $160 million capital campaign for the renovation of the Gaylord Family – Oklahoma Memorial Stadium and the university’s football facility. In addition, Alford oversaw the men’s basketball program, which advanced to the NCAA Final Four in 2016, the men’s tennis program, which finished as runners up for the NCAA Championship three times as well as the Sooner’s women’s tennis program.

Before joining Oklahoma, Alford was Senior Director of Corporate Partnerships and Sales for the Dallas Cowboys (2008-2012). With the Cowboys, he cultivated corporate relationships that resulted in over $400 million in contractual revenue for the club. In his role, he managed all aspects of programming for Cowboys Stadium.

Prior to joining the Cowboys, Alford was the General Manager of Crimson Tide Sports Marketing at the University of Alabama (2004 to 2008). Crimson Tide Sports was responsible for the management of the media rights for Alabama. He provided oversight for all aspects of sales and marketing, including corporate sponsorships, radio and television, sports marketing, and the internet. He was also involved in contract design, negotiations and hiring of coaches, and the management and enhancement of ancillary revenue streams – including licensed apparel, merchandising contracts and concessions.

Alford also worked at ABC Broadcasting in Los Angeles, where he provided oversight of sports sales for both the Anaheim Angels and Los Angeles Kings radio networks. Before ABC, he was Associate Athletics Director at the University of Southern California, where he oversaw all aspects of marketing, corporate sales and media contract negotiations.

Alford’s first position in professional sports was Corporate Sales Executive with the Cincinnati Bengals. In this role, he was actively involved in all facets of the planning, construction and corporate sponsorships for Paul Brown Stadium. In addition, he provided oversight for Ticket Marketing, Group Sales and Hospitality. His first position in Intercollegiate Athletics was at the University of Cincinnati as Assistant Director of Marketing.

Alford played baseball at Mississippi State before transferring to UAB, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in Communication in 1993. He received a master’s in Athletics Administration from the University of Arkansas in 1995.

Alford is married to Laura, a collegiate volleyball student-athlete at Hawaii and former Division I head volleyball coach. They have three daughters Audrey, Ashley and Anna Leigh.