Jaren Alnutt joined SIUE Athletics as the Assistant Director of Athletics for Championship Resources in January of 2026. Alnutt's primary responsibilities will be to grow the department's Cougars Champions Fund, support SIUE's 16 Division I programs, and to strategically grow the departments revenue streams to positively enhance the student-athlete experience.
Prior to SIUE, Alnutt served as a Development Graduate Assistant at Northern Illinois University, where he played a key role in enhancing donor engagement, restructuring membership initiatives, supporting major fundraising campaigns, and delivering premium game-day hospitality experiences. During his time with NIU Athletics, he assisted in initiatives that significantly increased revenue growth, expanded donor participation, strengthened communication outreach, and supported high-level special events.
Prior to joining NIU, Alnutt worked with the University at Buffalo Athletics Department as a Football Operations and Recruiting Intern from May 2023 to February 2024. In this role, he supported day-to-day team logistics, coordinated travel and team operations, assisted with recruiting efforts, and contributed to large-scale program planning including summer camps, official visits, and game-day execution.
Alnutt began his athletics career in academic services as an Academic Support Intern at Southeast Missouri State University from August 2022 to December 2022. While at SEMO, he assisted with academic monitoring, study hall oversight, student-athlete support services, and maintaining NCAA academic compliance standards—helping ensure a strong academic experience for student-athletes across multiple sports.
Through his development, operations, and academic support experience, Alnutt has built a foundation rooted in service, communication, and student-athlete support while contributing to meaningful departmental growth and engagement initiatives.
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
Ian Fried | Assistant Athletic Director for Recruiting & Pro Liaison | University at Buffalo
"Jaren is the kind of professional every athletic department wants in the building. He brings a rare combination of work ethic, trustworthiness, and relationship-building ability. Whether working with coaches, administrators, or student-athletes, Jaren consistently shows maturity beyond his years and a genuine commitment to helping a program run at a high level. He's dependable, detail-oriented, and someone people naturally gravitate toward…the type of staff member you know will make a department better from day one."
Sean T. Frazier | Vice President / Director of Athletics & Recreation | Northern Illinois University
"It has been a complete honor to have Jaren Alnutt a part of our athletic department. His passion, his discipline, his dedication to service has been exemplary. We will miss him but know that his pathway to the athletic director chair is imminent! Jaren is a rising star in our industry and we here at NIU were fortunate to be a part of his journey."
Chris Barker | Senior Associate Director of Athletics / Development & Revenue Generation | Northern Illinois University
"Congratulations to SIUE on making a fantastic hire! Over the last two years Jaren has assisted the NIU Huskie Athletic Fund in achieving historic milestones and there is no doubt he will be a valuable asset to SIUE and their growth as well!"
