Brent McMillian had his reservations on coming back to Augusta University. Nearly two decades ago, McMillian walked the campus as a student. Because of that experience and understanding what the school offered back then, the opportunity to work there as an athletic director wasn’t initially exciting to him.
And then McMillian came to visit the campus during the hiring process.
“Just seeing how the campus has transformed in 20 years, because it is not the campus I remember and the culture isn’t what I remember,” McMillian said, “I started getting excited about building it up even more and turning it into something that I would have been proud of as a student.”
McMillian was sold. On May 11, 2026, he signed on to become the fourth athletic director
in Augusta University’s history. Prior to, the Greenbrier High School graduate spent nearly seven years at Lipscomb University as senior associate athletic director for external engagement and revenue generation.
During that time, he saw Lipscomb athletics ticket sales, corporate sponsorship revenue, and unique viewership numbers for home game broadcasts rise significantly. McMillian believes he can replicate those successes at AU in an effort that will improve the overall athletics experience.
Much of the success stemmed from grassroots relational marketing. Simple tactics such as interacting directly with the community, partnering with local businesses, and word-of-mouth advertising is replicable in any market. The returns from that effort was evident when the program raised $100,000 in a day during “Giving Day,” an event that was coordinated by McMillian.
Additionally, there are talks about bringing both NIL deals and revenue share opportunities (specifically for the Division-I golf programs) to student-athletes in the coming years. By bringing this to the table, it not only would set apart AU from most Division-II programs that don’t offer any type of NIL opportunities, but it would also help its teams become and stay nationally relevant in the pursuit of championships.
That, McMillian says, is the main goal he hopes to achieve during his time as athletic director. In a college athletics landscape that has been dominated often by big spenders, he believes his ability to raise money and generate revenue for the school will help AU become the program “everyone is chasing.”
“I want to be top third of the league every single year in every sport, [competing] for a conference championship,” McMillian said. “That’s just the standard we have to get at.”
McMillian says that the school is about “80%” of the way to becoming competitive not just within the Peach Belt conference, but throughout the entire NCAA. He’s ready to help get the athletics department past the finish line in that regard. And if his track record at his previous job is any indication, it won’t be long until Augusta University athletics is back in contention for titles year after year.
“It’s something that our student athletes can be proud of and feel like we know what we’re doing,” McMillian said. “We have a gameplan, and we’re going to take the best care of them. And for the community, it’s something that they can buy into and really get behind and see some tangible impact.”
This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Augusta University AD Brent McMillian has bright vision for Jags' future
