AMES — Iowa State University has selected Jared Benko as its next athletics director, turning to an administrator with experience managing major athletic budgets, setting fundraising records and navigating the financial changes reshaping college sports.
President David Cook announced the selection October 16. Benko, who has spent the past two years as executive deputy athletic director at Auburn University, is scheduled to begin October 30, pending approval by the Iowa Board of Regents.
He will oversee Iowa State’s 18-sport athletics program as the Jamie and Ellen Pollard Endowed Director of Athletics, with responsibility for its strategic direction, operations and leadership.
“Athletics is vital to the strength of our university,” Cook said. “Jared Benko brings the leadership experience and strategic vision to build on our success, support our student-athletes as students first and ensure Iowa State is well positioned for the future of college athletics.”
Benko arrives with more than 20 years of athletics leadership experience. His career includes serving as athletics director at Georgia Southern and deputy athletics director and chief financial officer at Mississippi State. At Auburn, he led day-to-day operations of a $228 million athletics department.
That financial background figures prominently in Iowa State’s announcement. College athletics departments are managing revenue sharing with athletes, name, image and likeness opportunities, fundraising demands and the costs of competing nationally.
At Auburn, Benko’s responsibilities included financial strategy, revenue generation, capital projects, NIL and revenue sharing. He also chaired the Southeastern Conference’s Lead Advisors Committee, working on revenue sharing, NIL and governance.
“Iowa State has a strong athletics foundation and I’m excited to serve as the next director of athletics,” Benko said. “Iowa State has competitive momentum, strong fan support and outstanding facilities. For me, this is an opportunity to build on that success while bringing a problem-solving mindset to a period of significant change in college athletics.”
His fundraising record includes four consecutive annual records at Georgia Southern, where he secured the three largest gifts in the athletic foundation’s history.
At Auburn, Benko negotiated a 10-year multimedia rights agreement with Playfly projected to exceed $230 million. He also helped coordinate ticketing, premium seating, events, corporate partnerships, philanthropy and NIL opportunities under a shared revenue strategy.
“The passion surrounding Cyclone Athletics and Iowa State University is obvious, and the department has shown that it can compete nationally while operating with discipline and creativity,” Benko said. “My approach is straightforward – be a great teammate, set clear expectations, communicate, listen, make decisions, and hold myself and others accountable.”
Benko was selected following a national search. Cook consulted an advisory committee that included university administrators, athletics and foundation leadership, an Iowa Board of Regents representative, business leaders and former Cyclone student-athletes.
Beyond overseeing the athletics department, Benko will advise Cook and represent Cyclone Athletics across Iowa State, the state of Iowa, the Big 12 Conference and the national athletics community.
A native of Watkinsville, Georgia, Benko earned a bachelor’s degree in sports studies from the University of Georgia in 2005 and a master’s degree in public administration in 2007. He and his wife, Sarah, have two sons, Hudson and Cooper.