MOBILE, Ala. – University of South Alabama Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann announced on Thursday the hiring of Jeff Cummings as Associate Athletic Director for Development.

Cummings has worked in multiple development roles the last five years, coming to South after serving as Assistant A.D. of Development and Major Gifts at Tulane since 2019.

In his role with the Green Wave, Cummings was responsible for managing the strategic development and execution of major gift planning and solicitations for the Olive & Blue Society, generating $500,000 in commitments in the fall of 2020 while helping add over 100 new members to the group his first year with the school.  He also oversaw strategy, execution and stewardship of all premium seating for Tulane football, basketball and baseball, and was part of a fundraising team that had the largest ever single-year unrestricted donation revenue for Tulane Athletics in the 2021 fiscal year.

Cummings was the Director of Development for Major Gifts at Missouri from 2018-19, and the previous year he served as Arkansas State's Director of Annual Fund & Premium Seating.

"We are excited for Jeff to join our leadership team," said Erdmann. "His progressive background in development and ticket sales at various institutions, combined with his energy and interpersonal skills, makes him a perfect fit for our needs.  I look forward to working together as we enhance our development efforts and grow our season ticket base."

A 2007 graduate of LSU, Cummings first worked as a marketing and promotions assistant for the New Orleans Zephyrs in 2008 and at Tulane the following academic year.  After taking a hiatus from athletics — when was a sales associate at First NBC Bank — he served as Assistant A.D. for Ticket Operations at Louisiana Tech from 2012-15 before becoming the Director of Member Services at Texas A&M.

Cummings and his wife Samantha have two children, daughters Audrey and Avery.

For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).

Join the South Circle, the unrestricted giving option of the University of South Alabama Athletics.  Contributions to the South Circle directly support all 17 sports in addition to various support programming. For more information on how you can join visit: http://jaguarathleticfund.com/give

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