PROVO, Utah – BYU Director of Track and Field/Cross Country Ed Eyestone has announced the hiring of David Rasmussen as director of operations. Rasmussen returns to his alma mater with more than 12 years of NCAA Division I experience in college athletics.
“David brings a real extensive skill set into play for our program,” Eyestone said. “He’s very organized and great at supervising events. A law degree isn’t a job requirement, but the fact he has one is an added bonus. We’re very excited to get him back in the fold and to build on the success we’ve had as a program.”
Originally from South Jordan, Utah, Rasmussen graduated Magna Cum Laude from BYU in 2007 with a bachelor’s degree in communications, emphasizing in print journalism. In 2010, he obtained his Juris Doctorate from Penn State Law.
Rasmussen worked directly with BYU track and field/cross country for three years (2014-17) as the program’s director of compliance. He supervised NCAA rules and regulations for all student-athletes, coaches and staff members.
A passionate runner since high school, Rasmussen now races in marathons, recently qualifying for and completing the 2019 Boston Marathon.
“I’m thrilled to be able to return to BYU, especially to work with the track and field and cross country programs, which I have long admired,” Rasmussen said. “I’m thankful to Coach Eyestone and Liz Darger for giving me this opportunity. It means so much to me to be able to work for this institution, and to help further the mission and values of BYU.”
As the BYU track and field/cross country director of operations, Rasmussen will oversee recruiting, meet management, team travel, scholarships and roster management, team functions and a variety of other day-to-day responsibilities for the men’s and women’s programs.
Rasmussen comes to BYU from San Jose State where he was the senior associate athletic director for compliance since 2018. He oversaw all compliance operations at SJSU while serving on the senior staff. He ensured department and university compliance with all California State University, NCAA and Mountain West Conference rules and regulations. His role also included monitoring and coordinating recruitment efforts for new student-athletes.
Prior to his time at SJSU, Rasmussen worked as a director of compliance at Penn State University (2017-18). He revised the department’s academic evaluation process, utilizing new evaluation mechanisms and monitoring procedures, resulting in the successful recruitment of highly-talented students. On the side, Rasmussen also taught Mass Communications Law at Penn State for one year as an adjunct instructor (2018).
Rasmussen spent a combined six years working in BYU’s compliance and registrar’s offices. As a director of compliance (2014-17), he managed daily operations and oversaw compliance for 10 Division I teams. During this time, Rasmussen also taught Media Ethics, Law & Responsibility as an adjunct instructor for the BYU School of Communications (2015-17). As an athletic eligibility coordinator (2011-14), Rasmussen was charged with monitoring and certifying the academic and continuing eligibility of all of BYU’s NCAA student-athletes for the university registrar’s office.
Rasmussen’s previous work experience also includes one year as an athletics compliance coordinator at the University of Utah (2010-11), two years as an athletics compliance graduate assistant at Penn State University (2008-10) and an internship with the NCAA national office’s academic and membership affairs division (2010).