Mike Waddell is an American professional sports executive who is the

founder Founder or Founders may refer to: Places *Founders Park, a stadium in South Carolina, formerly known as Carolina Stadium * Founders Park, a waterside park in Islamorada, Florida Arts, entertainment, and media * Founders (''Star Trek''), the ali ...

of Brentwood Partners, LLC, a sports consulting firm, where he is currently of counsel. Previously Waddell was President of the

Orlando Apollos The Orlando Apollos were a professional American football franchise based in Orlando, Florida, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF), which began play in February 2019. The team played its home games at Spectrum ...

of the

Alliance of American Football The Alliance of American Football (AAF) was a professional American football minor league. The AAF consisted of eight centrally owned and operated teams in the southern and western United States, seven of which were located in metropolitan are ...

. Following the AAF's folding, Waddell also worked with

World TeamTennis World TeamTennis (WTT) is a mixed-gender professional tennis league played with a team format in the United States, which was founded in 1973. The league's season normally takes place in the summer months. Players from the ATP and WTA take a ...

on a contract basis through Brentwood Partners to provide counsel to the

Orlando Storm The Orlando Storm is a World TeamTennis (WTT) franchise founded in 2019, owned by the league. The team was one of two expansion teams to enter the league in 2019 alongside the expansion Vegas Rollers. The Storm plays their home matches at the USTA ...

in advance of the team's second season in 2020.

Early life, education, and family

Waddell was born in

Hickory, North Carolina Hickory is a city located primarily in Catawba County, with formal boundaries extending into Burke and Caldwell counties. The city lies in the U.S. state of North Carolina. At the time of the 2020 census, Hickory's population was 43,490. Hickor ...

and graduated from The

Asheville School Asheville School is a private, coeducational, university-preparatory boarding school in Asheville, North Carolina founded in 1900. The campus sits on amid the scenic Blue Ridge Mountains and currently enrolls 295 students in grades nine throug ...

in 1988. He went on to play football at

Guilford College Guilford College is a private liberal arts college in Greensboro, North Carolina. Guilford has both traditional students and students who attend its Center for Continuing Education (CCE). Founded in 1837 by members of the Religious Society of ...

where he earned his bachelor's degree in sports management in 1991. Waddell continued his education later in his career at

Ohio University Ohio University is a Public university, public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confeder ...

where he completed a master's degree in sports administration in 2010.

Career

Waddell began his career in college athletics as a radio and television broadcaster at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

from 1991 to 1994, the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...

from 1994 to 1997,

Appalachian State University Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...

from 1997 to 2000, and the

United States Military Academy at West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

from 2000 to 2001. Waddell served in executive positions in the athletics departments at the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

from 2001 to 2006, the

University of Cincinnati The University of Cincinnati (UC or Cincinnati) is a public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio. Founded in 1819 as Cincinnati College, it is the oldest institution of higher education in Cincinnati and has an annual enrollment of over 44,00 ...

from 2006 to 2010, as the Director of Athletics at

Towson University Towson University (TU or Towson) is a public university in Towson, Maryland. Founded in 1866 as Maryland's first training school for teachers, Towson University is a part of the University System of Maryland. Since its founding, the university h ...

from 2010 to 2013., the

University of Arkansas The University of Arkansas (U of A, UArk, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Fayetteville, Arkansas. It is the flagship campus of the University of Arkansas System and the largest university in the state. Founded as Arkansas ...

from 2013 to 2014, and the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

from 2014 to 2016. Waddell relocated to Orlando in 2018 after serving as Vice President at

Richmond Raceway Richmond Raceway (RR) is a , ''D''-shaped, asphalt race track located just outside Richmond, Virginia in unincorporated Henrico County. It hosts the NASCAR Cup Series, NASCAR Xfinity Series and the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series. Known as ...

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...

from 2016 to 2018, where he oversaw the reformation of the ticketing, marketing and communications units, and founded the first-ever NASCAR track owned eSports team. Waddell made the transition to pro sports in 2018 when he was named President of the

of the

(AAF) on August 4, 2018 and remained in this position until the AAF ceased operations in April, 2019. On March 25, 2020 Waddell agreed to terms with the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The E ...

Allen Americans The Allen Americans are a professional ice hockey team headquartered at the Credit Union of Texas Event Center in Allen, Texas, which currently plays in the ECHL. The team was founded in 2009 in the Central Hockey League (CHL) where they played ...

to become the club's President and Alternate Governor. He was elevated to Governor in March 2021. In April of 2022, Waddell was named Senior Associate Athletic Director at

Campbell University Campbell University is a private Baptist university in Buies Creek, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (Southern Baptist Convention). Southern Baptist ConventionColleges and Universities sbc.net ...

References

External links

Brentwood Partners Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Waddell, Mike Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Akron Zips athletic directors NASCAR people Towson Tigers athletic directors Guilford College alumni Ohio University alumni Orlando Apollos