Brian Santiago
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Athletic director |
| Team | BYU |
| Conference | Big 12 |
| Biographical details | |
| Education | Utah Valley University (AS) Fresno State University (BS) Brigham Young University (MBA) |
| Playing career | |
| Basketball | |
| 1992–1994 | Fresno State |
| Administrative career (AD unless noted) | |
| 2008–2017 | BYU (senior associate AD) |
| 2017–2025 | BYU (deputy AD) |
| 2025–present | BYU |
Brian Santiago is an American college athletics administrator and former college basketball player. He is the athletic director at Brigham Young University, a position he has held since 2025. Santiago played college basketball for Fresno State University.[1]
Early life and education
Santiago graduated in 1988 from Provo High School in Provo, Utah, where he was an all-state player on the 1987 state championship basketball team.[2] He played both basketball and baseball at Utah Valley University, earning All-Conference and All-Region honors in both sports. He then transferred to Fresno State, where he led the Western Athletic Conference in assists and three-point shooting percentage, finishing second nationally in three-point percentage at 50%.
After college, he played professionally for three years with the Arecibo Capitanes in Puerto Rico's Superior Basketball League and was named to the Puerto Rico national team’s pre-selection Olympic roster.[3]
Santiago earned an A.S. in accounting from Utah Valley University, a B.S. in business administration with an emphasis in international business from Fresno State University in 1995, and an MBA from BYU's Marriott School of Management in 2001.[4]
Career
Santiago joined BYU's athletic department in 1997 as a member of the men's basketball coaching staff under head coach Steve Cleveland. In 2001, he transitioned into an administrative role. He was promoted to senior associate athletic director in 2008 and later served as deputy athletic director beginning in 2017.
In May 2025, Santiago was appointed as the university's new athletic director, succeeding Tom Holmoe. His appointment followed a national search led by BYU president C. Shane Reese, who reportedly interviewed over 50 candidates.[4][5]
On August 27, 2026, BYU announced that Santiago was removed from the chain of command for BYU football, with the BYU head football coach, Kalani Sitake, reporting directly to a university vice president instead of Santiago.[6] This followed several weeks of reported friction between Santiago and Sitake.[7][8]
Personal life
Santiago served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Dominican Republic. He is married to the former Kimberly Blackburn.[9]
References
- ↑ "Brian Santiago". BYU Athletics - Official Athletics Website - BYU Cougars.
- ↑ "Brian Santiago". speeches.byu.edu. Retrieved September 9, 2025.
- ↑ "Brian Santiago (2002) - Hall of Fame". Utah Valley University Athletics. Retrieved 2026-05-23.
- 1 2 "Brian Santiago Named BYU Director of Athletics". BYU Athletics - Official Athletics Website - BYU Cougars. 13 May 2025.
- ↑ "BYU has found its replacement for longtime athletic director Tom Holmoe". May 13, 2025.
- ↑ Harmon, Dick; Walch, Tad (2026-08-27). "BYU restructures athletic department; school vice president will oversee football program". Deseret News. Retrieved 2026-08-28.
- ↑ "Gordon Monson: Rumors? What's the truth about BYU AD Brian Santiago and his apparent spat with Kalani Sitake?". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2026-08-28.
- ↑ "Gordon Monson: Hey, BYU, give Kalani Sitake what he was promised". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2026-08-28.
- ↑ Ashton, Jacob (2026-05-04). "What you might not know about BYU AD Brian Santiago". BYU Daily Universe. Retrieved 2026-05-23.