MIAA Launches New Collaboration with Brentwood Partners

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. -- The Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) has entered into a partnership with Brentwood Partners, LLC, becoming the first NCAA Division III conference to collaborate with the organization.

Founded in 1888, the MIAA is the nation’s oldest collegiate athletic conference and is home to a proud tradition of academic and athletic excellence. This new partnership reflects the league’s continued commitment to innovation and enhancing the student-athlete experience.

Brentwood Partners, LLC, a sports consulting firm established in 2013, collaborates with conferences and university athletic programs to help increase their revenue and support for their student-athletes.

"The MIAA has always been about more than just competition — it’s about community, tradition, and opportunity," MIAA Commissioner Jason Horn remarked. "Our partnership with Brentwood Partners creates new ways for corporate and community leaders to engage with our member institutions and student-athletes, while generating resources to grow and enhance the student-athlete experience."

Led by former collegiate athletic administrators Michael Waddell and Keith Tribble, Brentwood Partners offers strategies that go beyond sponsorships. The firm focuses on revenue innovation, fan engagement, NIL programs, brand building, content creation, and executive searches.

Tribble commented, “Our goal is simple—we want to help programs succeed on the field, in the classroom, and in the marketplace.”

"This collaboration highlights the MIAA’s rich history and bright future, while cultivating partnerships that benefit everyone involved," noted Horn.

Through this partnership, the MIAA will work alongside Brentwood Partners to identify opportunities for growth and to further enhance the student-athlete experience across "America's First Conference".

North Carolina Sports Network Enters Year #3 Smart Talk. Bold Voices. Deep Roots.

Founded in 2023 by veteran sports journalist David Glenn and accomplished athletics executive Mike Waddell, the North Carolina Sports Network (NCSN) was built to deliver something that had been missing from the sports media landscape: a smart, authentic, and locally rooted voice focused entirely on the people, teams, and traditions of the Bold North State.

In an era of media cutbacks and out-of-market decision-makers, NCSN is unapologetically regional. They spotlight the coaches, athletes, rivalries, and fans who make North Carolina one of the greatest sports states in the country.

From the Atlantic Coast Conference to the Carolina Panthers… from Tobacco Road basketball to Friday night lights… from golf courses to short tracks… if it matters to North Carolina sports fans, we’re there—on camera, on the mic, and on-site.

Why “Bold North State”?

Co-founder Mike Waddell created the phrase Bold North State as this venture launched, following more than two decades living in branding-forward states like Texas, Florida, and New York.

“Other states have big slogans—‘Don’t Mess with Texas,’ ‘I ❤️ NY,’ ‘The Sunshine State’—but North Carolina? It has more to offer than all of them. Better weather. Beaches and mountains. Better food. Better schools. Better music. And better people,” Waddell says.

From Andy Griffith to Billy Graham, Richard Petty to Michael Jordan, Stuart Scott, Charles Kuralt, James Taylor, Luke Combs, and George Clinton—North Carolina’s contributions to culture and sports are second to none.