Kyle B. Kallander is in his 27th year as Big South Conference Commissioner in 2022-23, a tenure that has seen year-to-year growth in marketing and television, an enhanced digital presence as well as unparalleled success on the field and in the classroom.  He is currently the second-longest tenured commissioner of a Division I conference.

Kallander’s development of a long-term strategic plan, which allows the Big South to position itself as unique amongst its peers, brought football to the Big South in 2002 as well as women’s lacrosse in 2012-13 -- with both sports enjoying national success within five years of existence.  He embarked on an updated strategy in 2015 to transform the Big South into the premiere non-FBS conference in the Southeast and spearheaded the most comprehensive rebranding of the league’s identity in 2017.

He has solidified membership to double-digit totals for 14 consecutive years with the additions of High Point, Gardner-Webb, Presbyterian College, Longwood and USC Upstate -- as well as the return of charter member Campbell University in 2011.  Kallander’s long range vision has also included technological advancements, as the conference introduced its first live streaming event in 2005 and has consistently provided video offerings of more than 900 annually through a partnership with the member institutions, as well as the creation of several online and social media platforms.  Ongoing equipment upgrades have elevated these productions to “TV-ready” levels, while the emphasis on video integration has allowed the conference to expand its reach globally as well as serve as a model for peer conferences to emulate.  Kallander has also pushed initiatives around student-athlete wellness, such as an annual Health & Safety Summit that began in 2016, and has emphasized diversity within the conference with the creation of Big South “Connection” networking events in 2017 and 2019.

He also directed the Conference’s current initiatives to address racial inequality and social injustice that exists nationally.  The league has developed an official position campaign on anti-racism measures -- S.O.U.T.H, which stands for Support, Opportunities, Unity, Transparency, Honest conversation, as well as the creation of a task force to address racial matters, and ongoing programs to support and engaged these important issues.  Kallander also developed an Equity Study Committee to continually monitor and evaluate Big South Conference operations to identify any issues that should be addressed from an equity perspective, and to make recommendations to the governance structure to remedy any shortcomings.

Kallander has presided over some of the most pivotal events in the league’s history both athletically and academically.  During his tenure, the Big South:

  • Has had one team National Champion (baseball);
  • Has had nine individual National Champions;
  • Had a Big South member ranked No. 1 in the national polls in 2014 and 2015 (football);
  • Has reached the NCAA “Sweet 16” in men’s soccer, women’s basketball, baseball and women’s lacrosse;
  • Started football and reached the FCS playoffs in five years and eventually gaining an automatic bid;
  • Had two teams reach the FCS playoffs in the same year five times, and advancing in the playoffs seven consecutive years;
  • Had a team advance to the FCS quarterfinals five times (2013, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018);
  • Has had three teams qualify for NCAA competition in the same sport in the same year (men’s soccer and men’s golf);
  • Had its first at-large NCAA Tournament selection in volleyball (2017), and first NCAA Volleyball Tournament victory (Spring 2021);
  • Has had a softball team reach the Regional Championship game five times;
  • Had a women’s golf team advance to the NCAA Championship three times in a six-year span;
  • Has placed two teams in the NCAA Baseball Regionals nine times;
  • Had members defeat the No. 1-ranked football and baseball team in the nation;
  • Had its first-ever NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament first round win among four overall victories;
  • Has had a baseball team earn a No. 1 seed and host an NCAA Regional and Super Regional;
  • Had a doubles team advance to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Women’s Doubles Championship;
  • Had an individual reach the round of 32 in the NCAA Men’s Singles Championship;
  • Had its first All-Americans in men’s and women’s cross country, and men’s tennis;
  • Had a league-record 45 student-athletes earn All-America distinction in 2021-22;
  • Has had women’s basketball, men’s soccer, softball, baseball, women’s soccer, volleyball and women’s lacrosse televised for the first time;
  • Had the women's basketball championship game televised on a national linear network for the first time in 2022;
  • Had a Big South-record 13 student-athletes achieve Academic All-America status in 2003-04 and 2013-14;
  • Has seen year-to-year record APR Recognition Awards and Graduation Success Rates
  • Had its first-ever national finalist for NCAA Woman of the Year;
  • Saw seven programs receive at-large NCAA postseason berths in 2012-13;
  • Live video streaming of conference events to elevate the league’s exposure to new audiences via new integrated digital platforms, including ESPN+;
  • Expansion and renovation of current conference headquarters that includes the Big South Network production studio

The conference has produced more All-Americans since Kallander took office, while increasing its share of Academic All-Americans and All-District selections.  For the last seven years, more than 55 percent of the league’s student-athletes have achieved at least a 3.0 grade point average -- including a record 64.83 percent in 2019-20, while several student-athletes have been recipients of various Postgraduate Scholarships during his timeframe.  Kallander has also successfully integrated the conference’s profile with the member institutions’ general student body, notably through the development of the Big South Academic Consortium, which sponsors the annual Academic College Bowl among league members and the Big South Undergraduate Research Symposium.  Furthermore, the Big South has been providing a Graduate Fellowship for postgraduate studies to one male and one female graduating student-athlete for more than a decade.

Nationally, Kallander has been heavily involved in several organizations and committees.  He was named to the NCAA Football Competition Committee in July 2020, and previously served on the NCAA Football Oversight Committee and NCAA Division I Baseball Committee -- including Chair for the 2011-12 season.  He was also a member on the NCAA/USOC Task Force, which examined the decline of Olympic sports programs at the nation’s college and universities, chaired the NCAA Olympic Sports Liaison Committee, was a member of the NCAA Committee on Women’s Athletics, and was twice a Vice President of the Collegiate Commissioners Association (CCA) from 2001-03 and 2011-12.

To this day, Kallander continues to secure aggressive television packages through relationships with ESPN and its various networks.  The partnerships have brought the Big South new and enhanced television exposure for its member institutions and student-athletes, and coupled with the Big South Network, the league’s exposure is seen by a worldwide audience.  Kallander successfully negotiated a seven-year TV deal extension with ESPN through 2025, which has expanded the number of Big South events on ESPN platforms.  The agreement includes a minimum six events per season on ESPNU – a majority of which are primetime men’s basketball telecasts, as well as the league’s Baseball Championship game.

Named the Big South’s third commissioner on June 24, 1996, Kallander formed the Big South Marketing Group (BSMG) upon his arrival, a partnership with member institutions that enables the conference to develop an integrated marketing strategy and offer comprehensive corporate partnership packages.  The Big South Business Group (BSBG) was also created, involving the Chief Financial Officers from each member institution.  The BSBG explored ways that members can benefit through working together and with conference corporate partners.  Kallander has overseen a revision of the league’s governance structure and has been instrumental in securing record sponsorship revenues throughout his tenure, and has been innovative in developing and executing a public relations plan for the Big South, which has resulted in increased exposure, both on a regional and national level.  On the field, the conference has added four Championship sports under Kallander -- men’s and women’s indoor track & field, football and women’s lacrosse.
 
Kallander came to the Big South after serving as Southwest Conference Commissioner during the 1995-96 season.  Under his guidance, the Southwest generated more than $22 million in revenue, an all-time record.  Kallander was also directly responsible for negotiating and implementing television agreements with CBS, Raycom and Prime Sports Southwest for the 1995-96 football and basketball seasons.  He successfully administered the league’s postseason basketball tournaments, which attracted its largest attendance since 1990, and also served as Tournament Director for the 1996 NCAA Men’s Basketball Midwest Region First and Second Round Games in Dallas.

He began his collegiate athletics career at his alma mater, the University of Washington, in 1985, where he served as Director of Advertising & Promotions, as well as Director of Compliance, before joining the Southwest Conference in 1992 as Assistant Commissioner.
  
Kallander received a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Physical Education in 1980, and a Master of Science Degree in Kinesiology in 1982, from Washington.  He is married to the former Lisa Dallosto and has two sons, Stefan, and Tristan.