TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Jeff Purinton’s career at Florida State began as a student in 1994, earning no money as a sports information intern answering the phones.
Now, Purinton will be working the phones as the school’s athletic director as he raises funds and negotiates deals to help Florida State grow and compete against Atlantic Coast Conference rivals Miami and Clemson as well as well-funded Southeastern Conference schools like Florida, Georgia
and Alabama.
“Finding every revenue stream, whether that’s jersey patches or sponsorships, and making sure we maximize those, that’s one thing that’ll be at the top of the priority list,” Purinton said Tuesday at his introductory news conference.
Purinton’s journey began at Florida State, and he later worked in communications with football coach Bobby Bowden and college baseball’s all-time wins leader, Mike Martin Sr. After a short run with the Orange Bowl, he spent 15 years working at Alabama alongside football coach Nick Saban.
His last two roles helped separate him from the pack, with Florida State president Richard McCullough stating they interviewed seven or eight sitting Power Four athletic directors. Purinton left Alabama to be Arkansas State’s athletic director from 2022-25 before spending the last year as Learfield’s executive vice president.
“He’s got the perfect background for exactly what we need here,” McCullough said.
Purinton's last job at Learfield, which advises colleges on media, technology and commercial strategies, is one that will prove beneficial. He noted that the Protect College Sports Act could be in jeopardy as the House of Representatives take on other priorities before the winter break.
The bill’s intention is to bring guardrails to college athletics, but it may fall short of the needed votes to pass.
“We have to be innovative,” Purinton said. “Everything changes every day. If the act doesn’t pass, which now seems less than likely, what’s the future going to be for all of college athletics? For our conference? So part of that is maximizing revenue, right? And then it’s also finding some ways to streamline some of our spending in the athletic department.”
Purinton is known for his time at Florida State and Alabama. But his three years at Arkansas State also shaped his thoughts on how to make big-picture decisions.
“One positive that I have that I can bring to the table is being at Arkansas State,” Purinton said. “We had to find some different ways to do things without spending a lot of money. The answer always isn’t just ‘Let’s go spend more and that’s our fix.’ It might be a way to do it a little differently on a cost saving side.”
Purinton will also have an active voice in the search for Florida State’s next football coach. McCullough dismissed Mike Norvell on Nov. 1, and he hired Parker Executive Search to assist with the hire of Purinton and the next football coach.
Purinton has seen success at Florida State and Alabama first hand. Now, he aims to lead not just the athletic department but help the football program find its leader for the future.
“I think Florida State can be the best athletics program in the country. We’ve seen it before,” Purinton said. "We need to arm our coaches and our programs with resources they need to have success and to recruit at a high level. But, to me, it’s an unlimited ceiling for Florida State University.”
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