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Frewsburg Native Pierson Takes Talents To Football Program At Illinois

By Scott Kindberg 5 min read

Patrick Pierson has met every challenge in the world of college athletics during the last two decades, a journey that has taken him from St. Bonaventure University to Florida Gulf Coast University, and from the University of Arkansas to the University of Oregon.

Now, the Frewsburg native is embarking on another one, this time at the University of Illinois.

Pierson, 39, was recently named the director of football branding and creative media for the Illini. What that means is that he will oversee all branding of the football team and its recruiting content, and will lead the program's efforts on name, image and likeness (NIL) reform.

"(Pierson) has always impressed me with his ability to relate to student-athletes and to coaches in helping them build the image they want to portray to the outside world," Illinois football coach Bret Bielema announced in a press release late last month.

See PIERSON, Page B3

"Pat will be heavily involved with the NIL and other things that will start with the recruitment of a student-athlete in high school, continue during his development here at the University of Illinois, and help prepare the young man for his life after the university.

"(Pierson) has been a great asset for several programs in the world of college football, as well as basketball, and we are glad to have Pat here as a part of our family."

Pierson, the son of Frewsburg residents Greg and Debbie Pierson, called the opportunity "rewarding."

"Probably the part of this job that was a key selling point with me was still having that interaction with the student-athletes," he told The Post-Journal last month. "In 17 years of communications, that was always my favorite part, to learn their personalities and all the things that go into what made them who they are today, their families and where they're from. Getting to do that here, that's the part that I was completely drawn to when Coach (Bielema) was describing the job."

Pierson said his new job at Illinois is "very close to a player-development role, but off the field."

He also acknowledged that not many collegiate programs currently have someone filling such a position.

"The word 'branding' is a very broad term," Pierson said. "What it really means is how do these student-athletes want people to recognize them? I'm going to work with them -- the coaches and the student-athletes -- on their brand and that's a lot of education and a lot of preparation for the potential of the NIL stuff that could get passed here soon."

Pierson has developed quite an "extended family" in collegiate athletics since receiving his high school diploma at Frewsburg Central in 2000.

Before arriving at the Champaign, Illinois campus from Oregon, the Robert Morris University graduate spent the last three years as associate athletic director/communications for the Ducks. The main media contact for the Oregon football team that won back-to-back Pac 12 titles and the 2020 Rose Bowl, Pierson managed a communications staff of six that promoted Oregon's 20 athletic programs.

Prior to Oregon, Pierson was the assistant AD/communciations at Arkansas from 2015-2018, where he worked with Bielema, who was then the Razorbacks' head football coach. Pierson started at Arkansas as the director of men's basketball communications from 2013-15 before transitioning to lead the football team's communications efforts and oversee the athletic department's communications office.

The transition from basketball communications to football communications with the Razorbacks was the result of an unexpected meeting with Bielema during a spring football practice.

"He came over to me -- we had never met -- so I was a little shocked he knew who I was," Pierson recalled. "(He said), 'I heard you're interested in this job. Is that true?'"

After practice, Pierson found himself in Bielema's office for what turned out to be a 45-minute conversation.

"He was so engaging," Pierson said. "He listened to every word ... He generally wanted to know who your family is, how you got to this point. He wasn't scared that I had never touched football. He was more concerned about creativity and being forward thinking and being proactive, and we just kind of hit it off from there."

Pierson had moved to Arkansas from Florida Gulf Coast, where he was the primary communications contact for the 2012-13 men's basketball team that made a run to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen under the famous #DunkCity branding to become the first No. 15 seed in NCAA history to advance to the Sweet 16. Named the school's director of sports information in 2010, Pierson was promoted to assistant AD for communications in 2012.

From 2007-2010, Pierson was the main basketball contact and sports information director at St. Bonaventure where he started his career in college athletics as assistant SID for the Bonnies from 2004-2007.

"In 17 years of communications, there weren't easy points, and I think from Florida Gulf Coast through Oregon, I can probably count on two hands how many vacation days I got, but it's all been worth it," he said. " ... I've been nervous every step of the way. You go in and you don't know what you don't know, but it's been fun. I would have never thought this profession in college athletics would take us to all four stops to almost all four corners of the United States and now in the Midwest.

"I'm very grateful for this next one and very grateful to be eight or nine hours from Frewsburg, New York."

Starting at /week.