Jacob Dye joined Kennesaw State Athletics in April 2024 as Assistant Athletic Director for Marketing & Fan Experience. In his role, Dye oversees the department’s marketing and fan engagement efforts, leading strategies designed to drive attendance and revenue, strengthen the Kennesaw State Athletics brand and create memorable experiences for Owl Nation.
Dye provides strategic direction for the Marketing & Fan Experience department and serves as the primary marketing contact for Kennesaw State football and women’s basketball. He oversees comprehensive marketing plans, game presentation, promotions, fan engagement, email and digital marketing, student engagement, branding initiatives and other efforts supporting KSU Athletics’ ticketed and non-ticketed sports.
Since arriving at Kennesaw State, Dye has helped lead the marketing and fan experience strategy during one of the most significant periods in the history of Owl Athletics. His tenure has coincided with KSU's transition to Conference USA and the Football Bowl Subdivision, requiring the department to elevate its marketing, branding and game-day operations to support Kennesaw State's growing national profile.
Under Dye's marketing leadership, Kennesaw State has established new attendance benchmarks while building increased demand around Owl Athletics events. His work has included strategic ticket sales campaigns, targeted digital and email marketing, student engagement initiatives, promotional campaigns, theme games, giveaways and community outreach designed to grow attendance and strengthen connections between KSU Athletics, the university and the surrounding community.
Dye has played a central role in the marketing and presentation of Kennesaw State football during the program's transition to the FBS level. Marketing initiatives have helped generate record and near-capacity crowds at Fifth Third Stadium, including marquee games and milestone moments for the football program. His approach combines traditional sports marketing with data-informed digital outreach, creative promotions and targeted audience segmentation to build demand and create urgency around KSU Athletics events.
Beyond attendance, Dye has focused on developing a more cohesive and recognizable brand identity for Kennesaw State Athletics. His work includes strengthening the visual and promotional presentation of Owl Athletics across advertising, digital campaigns, in-venue presentation, promotional materials and fan-facing communications. He has also emphasized consistency in how KSU's brand is represented across sports while developing campaigns that give individual programs opportunities to build their own identities and traditions.
Dye's approach to fan experience centers on creating events that extend beyond competition. Through theme games, promotional giveaways, student-focused initiatives, in-game entertainment and traditions, his work is designed to make Kennesaw State Athletics events engaging and memorable while encouraging repeat attendance and long-term affinity for the Owls. He also oversees and develops student employees within the Marketing & Fan Experience department, providing hands-on experience in collegiate athletics marketing and live-event production.
Dye came to Kennesaw State from Loyola Marymount University, where he served as Associate Athletic Director for Marketing, Fan Engagement, Branding and Licensing. At LMU, he provided oversight for digital media, graphic design, licensing and branding, marketing and fan engagement, spirit squads and ticketing. He also represented LMU on the West Coast Conference External Affairs Committee.
During his time in Los Angeles, Dye helped LMU achieve record licensing royalties by expanding apparel offerings, developing new licensing agreements and increasing the availability of LMU-branded merchandise. He also played a role in the development of LMU's historic partnership with the Los Angeles Rams, which made LMU the first official higher education partner of the NFL franchise.
Prior to LMU, Dye served at the University of Denver, where he focused on campus engagement and in-event promotions while serving as the athletics department's liaison to Denver Sports Properties. He also chaired the department's Diversity and Inclusion Council and contributed to university-wide initiatives.
Dye previously held leadership roles with the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, where he directed marketing, communications and advanced media efforts across collegiate tennis. He led communications and media relations efforts spanning NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and NJCAA competition and helped position collegiate tennis for increased national exposure, including coverage on ESPN, ESPNU and Tennis Channel.
Dye began his collegiate athletics career at Mississippi State University, where he was part of a marketing staff recognized by the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators as Marketing Team of the Year in both 2016 and 2017. He later joined Southern Utah University, helping build the Thunderbirds' athletics marketing operation while contributing to ticket-revenue growth and record-setting attendance initiatives that received national recognition.
Throughout his career, Dye has developed experience spanning marketing strategy, fan engagement, revenue generation, ticketing, licensing, branding, communications, sponsorship activation and live-event production. His career has been defined by an emphasis on building brands, creating engaging fan experiences and connecting strategic marketing efforts to measurable attendance and revenue outcomes.
Dye earned a Bachelor of Business Administration from Mississippi State University and a Master of Science in Sport Management from Georgia Southern University.
He is an active member of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA), National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators (NACMA), College Sports Communicators (CSC) and International Collegiate Licensing Association (ICLA).
