NATCHITOCHES – The Northwestern State athletics department has launched a multi-media rights partnership with Peak Sports MGMT to manage and sell sponsorship inventory, with Peak's Tyler Junell serving as general manager of corporate partnerships.
 
Peak Sports is an emerging firm in collegiate sports management, currently partnered with a dozen athletics departments and events, including three other Southland Conference members: Central Arkansas, Nicholls and Southeastern Louisiana.
 
The agreement between Peak Sports MGMT and NSU Athletics covers four years. It provides NSU's Demon Unlimited Foundation with a full-time general manager, based in Natchitoches and on campus, who will facilitate partnerships between businesses and NSU Athletics.
 
With Junell as the NSU manager, Peak Sports will manage and sell inventory for venue signage, program advertising, digital and web content, along with game and special events sponsorships.
 
Peak's president is Ryan Holloway, who worked as NSU's director of marketing and promotions under longtime Demons' athletics director Greg Burke from 2008-11.
 
"The combination of my professional connection with, and respect for, Ryan Holloway, and the track record that Peak Sports has registered with athletic programs similar to NSU under his leadership and guidance, makes this a good business opportunity for NSU and the Demons Unlimited Foundation," said Burke.
 
"The level of momentum that exists for our university and athletic program will create new revenue opportunities upon which Peak Sports, in collaboration with NSU, can and must capitalize. Resource acquisition, especially at the FCS level and in Louisiana, is vital to increasing and sustaining athletic success," said Burke.
 
He said the new venture with Peak Sports, combined with the newly initiated "Victorious" facility campaign, are critical steps to positioning NSU Athletics for unprecedented success.
 
"Greg Burke and Northwestern State played a vital role in my growth, development and understanding of collegiate athletics," said Holloway. "To say what Greg Burke has built is impressive is certainly an understatement.
 
"We have been anxiously seeking the best time to partner with Greg and the Demons, and that time is now. We partner with universities because of people and their visions for their programs and student-athletes. We are proud to be part of this vision and excited to raise revenue on behalf of Northwestern State Athletics."
 
Junell, who is completing work on his master's of business administration from West Texas A&M and owns a 2017 undergraduate degree from that institution, has been with Peak Sports for the past year. He served as an account representative for Buffalo Sports Properties managing over 100 accounts to generate revenue for West Texas A&M's athletic department.
 
Before joining Peak, Junell worked at Tulsa as a marketing and sales representative, implementing new strategies for ticket sales that contributed to a 200 percent growth in preseason group sales.
 
While an undergraduate, Junell served as a high school basketball coach at San Jacinto Christian Academy for three seasons.