AMES, Iowa – President David Cook has selected Jared Benko as the next director of athletics at Iowa State University. Benko, who has spent the past two years as the executive deputy athletic director at Auburn University, will start on Oct. 30, pending approval by the Iowa Board of Regents. 

“Athletics is vital to the strength of our university,” Cook said. “Jared Benko brings the leadership experience and strategic vision to build on our success, support our student-athletes as students first and ensure Iowa State is well positioned for the future of college athletics.” 

Benko brings more than 20 years of leadership experience in athletics, including serving as athletic director at Georgia Southern, deputy director of athletics and chief financial officer at Mississippi State University, and leading day-to-day operations of a $228 million department at Auburn. 

“Iowa State has a strong athletics foundation and I’m excited to serve as the next director of athletics,” Benko said. “Iowa State has competitive momentum, strong fan support and outstanding facilities. For me, this is an opportunity to build on that success while bringing a problem-solving mindset to a period of significant change in college athletics.”

As the Jamie and Ellen Pollard Endowed Director of Athletics, Benko will provide strategic vision, executive leadership and operational oversight for Iowa State’s 18-sport intercollegiate athletics program. Benko will serve as an advisor to the president and ambassador for Cyclone Athletics across the university, the state of Iowa, the Big 12 Conference and national athletics community.

In his role at Auburn, Benko was responsible for financial strategy, revenue generation, capital projects, name, image and likeness (NIL) and revenue sharing and several other areas that touch the daily operation of the athletics department. Benko also chaired the SEC's Lead Advisors Committee, helping lead the conference on revenue sharing, NIL and governance.

At Georgia Southern, Benko set four consecutive fundraising records and secured the three largest gifts in athletic foundation history. At Auburn, he negotiated a 10-year multimedia rights agreement with Playfly, projected to exceed $230 million. Benko also helped pull ticketing, premium seating, events, corporate partnerships, philanthropy, and NIL opportunities into one revenue strategy instead of six separate ones. 

“The passion surrounding Cyclone Athletics and Iowa State University is obvious, and the department has shown that it can compete nationally while operating with discipline and creativity,” Benko added. “My approach is straightforward – be a great teammate, set clear expectations, communicate, listen, make decisions, and hold myself and others accountable.”

Benko, from Watkinsville, Georgia, earned a bachelor of science in sports studies from Georgia in 2005 and then a master of public administration in Athens in 2007. He and his wife, Sarah, have two sons, Hudson and Cooper.

Benko will meet with reporters on Monday, Oct. 19. The event is not open to the public, but the university community and Cyclone fans are invited to watch the livestream on the athletics website.

Benko was selected following a national search. President Cook consulted with an advisory committee in making the selection. Committee members include: 

• Tim Day, senior policy advisor and chief of staff to the president
• Chris Jorgenson, senior associate athletics director of operations
• Larissa Holtmyer Jones, president and CEO of the ISU Foundation
• Toyia Younger, senior vice president for student affairs
• Kurt Tjaden, president pro tem for the Iowa Board of Regents
• Dan Houston, retired chairman and president of Principal Financial Group
• Lisa Uhl, clinical assistant professor of veterinary pathology at Iowa State and former student-athlete
• Ryan Harklau, vice president for sales and distribution at Farm Bureau Financial Services and former student-athlete

“Jared Benko is an exceptional, known, and respected leader in D1 FBS Athletics.  He served as a transformational Athletic Director for Georgia Southern University from 2020-24 accomplishing record fundraising, record student GPA, record facility new construction and renovation, and overall competitive success.  These accomplishments and his decades of experience at the P4 level ensure his future success at Iowa State University.” - Kyle Marrero, Georgia Southern University President