Longwood University Athletics

FARMVILLE, Va. -- Boasting nearly two decades of experience in college athletics marketing, fan engagement and broadcasting, Brian Rushing joined the Longwood athletics department as the Director of Marketing and Fan Engagement, Longwood athletics director Michelle Meadows announced Wednesday.
 
Rushing comes to Longwood from Belmont Abbey in Belmont, N.C., where he was the Director of Athletics Marketing and Broadcasting. During his seven-plus years at the institution, Rushing held a multi-faced role as the director of the athletics department's marketing, sponsorship and fan engagement operations, as well as the broadcast voice of the Crusaders.
 
"We're thrilled to welcome Brian and his wealth of experience to the department," Meadows said. "He has a very diverse skill set, an impressive body of work, and a perspective on the role of college athletics that aligns with our values as a department and institution. Our marketing and external relations teams have made significant strides over the years in establishing Longwood athletics as a positive presence and partner within our community, and I look forward to seeing Brian continue to push our department forward in that area."​
 
In his new post, Rushing will oversee the department's in-game promotions and marketing for all Longwood athletics events, as well as community outreach to procure sponsorships, advertising and community engagement for the department.
 
Rushing will pursue those goals for a Lancer athletics department that is now in its eighth season as a member of the Big South Conference and has experienced significant growth in attendance at all athletics events during that time. Within the past two years, Longwood set the NCAA's regular-season field hockey attendance record with a crowd of 2,073 at the Aug. 24, 2018, game against Bucknell, and earlier this season set the school's women's basketball home-court record when 1,812 fans attended the team's Jan. 14 showdown against conference rival Radford.
 
"I'm excited for the opportunity to engage the Farmville community and promote Longwood University," Rushing said. "I'm hoping that my time here will be filled with opportunities to meld the Farmville and Longwood communities together, and certainly I'm grateful to Michelle Meadows and Katie Pate for the opportunity to be here.
 
"As a marketing unit, our mission will be a two-pronged approach where the people of Farmville will experience Longwood's athletics events in ways they haven't before, while engaging our students in new, unique ways they haven't experienced before either. Our focus will be on establishing a foundation in those two areas with an eye toward the opening of the Joan Perry Brock Center in 2022, which will give us a lot of momentum leading into that event and for years to come."
  
During Rushing's tenure at Belmont Abbey, the Crusaders experienced major growth and success in game day atmosphere, attendance at athletics events and advertising and corporate sponsorships, all within a heavily saturated sports market in the Charlotte, N.C., area. Rushing spearheaded all of those efforts and served as the point of contact for the athletics department's advertising sales and marketing.
 
In addition to that growth in sales, Rushing also procured and managed corporate sponsorships, founded and emceed numerous department and university events, and created the Belmont Abbey Sports Network. He served as play-by-play voice for more than 900 broadcasts and shows, as well as the Crusaders' postgame and halftime shows.
 
Additionally, Rushing is the owner of VoiceCarolinas Media Group, where he serves as a broadcaster and announcer and provides services in scriptwriting, consultation, and voice-over talent for commercial advertising.
 
Rushing comes to Longwood already acquainted with the Big South Conference, having worked for several conference institutions providing public address, play-by-play and studio hosting for various events. In total, he has lent his talents to more than 2,000 college and professional sporting events and shows, spanning baseball, basketball, softball, soccer, field hockey, volleyball, racing, and powerlifting. Along with Big South members USC Upstate and Winthrop, that work has also included Clemson University, the University of Kentucky and the Southern Conference, as well as minor-league baseball affiliates Greenville Drive and Hickory Crawdads.
 
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