{
  "id": 4541644,
  "title": "BYU athletic department changes come at a critical time",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/byu-athletic-department-changes-come-at-a-critical-time",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-08-31T01:15:24.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Yahoo Sports",
    "slug": "yahoo-sports",
    "url": "https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/byu-athletic-department-changes-come-011524233.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "BYU athletic director Brian Santiago and head football coach Kalani Sitake recently announced a restructuring of the athletic department, marking a positive shift in the school's operations. The decision comes after weeks of sensitive drama between the two leaders and highlights the need for a more specialized and efficient approach to managing today's complex athletic landscape. As the school continues to grow and face new challenges, Santiago and Sitake will now report to Keith Vorkink, a vice president at BYU with expertise in spreadsheets, budgets, and capital management. The restructuring aims to address the various demands placed on BYU's athletic department, including the impact of NIL, revenue sharing, Big 12 media money, ticket sales, marketing, roster acquisition, recruiting evaluation technology, transfer portal research, contract signing, legal expertise, and roster retention. Similar to professional sports teams, BYU's athletic department now requires more specialized roles and a clear separation of basketball/football operations from broader business functions. This will enable the department to better navigate the unique challenges and opportunities presented by the modern athletic environment.",
  "summary": "Because college sports have so many professional traits today, including paid players, it requires an NBA or NFL approach to managing all of it.",
  "key_points": [
    "BYU athletic department restructured under Brian Santiago and Kalani Sitake",
    "New leadership reports to Keith Vorkink, expert in spreadsheets and budgets",
    "Restructuring aims to address NIL, revenue sharing, and other department demands"
  ],
  "editors_take": "The restructuring of BYU's athletic department, with clearer lines between operations and business functions, allows the school to better navigate complex challenges like NIL, revenue sharing, and media money.",
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}