Dann Kabala - Vice President, R NIL - Staff Directory

Staff Directory

Dann Kabala

Title:
Vice President, R NIL
Email:
Phone:
412-298-3793

Dann Kabala serves as Vice President, R NIL for Rutgers Athletics, leading the department’s Name, Image, Likeness strategy and expanding opportunities for Scarlet Knights student-athletes.

Kabala brings more than two decades of experience across collegiate athletics, roster management, player relations, recruiting operations, and NIL management. He joins Rutgers from Penn State, where he most recently served as Director of Player Relations (Revenue Share/NIL) for football. In that role, he led NIL strategy, negotiated player agreements, supported NIL budget planning and helped position the Nittany Lions as a national leader in student-athlete revenue generation.

At Rutgers, Kabala will oversee the R NIL program, working closely with Athletics leadership, Scarlet Assets Management Company (SAMCO), marketing, communications, development and external partners to build a comprehensive NIL ecosystem that supports student-athlete brand growth, education and long-term value creation. His role will be central to aligning NIL efforts with the department’s broader branding, fan engagement and revenue objectives.

During his time at Penn State, Kabala played a critical role in securing major donor commitments, expanding NIL participation and supporting teams that consistently competed at the highest level, including a College Football Playoff semi-final appearance and New Year’s Six bowl games. In addition to overseeing the football program’s revenue share and NIL department, Kabala also managed the 5th quarter/player development program, which focuses on life skills, academics, career prep and personal growth beyond football.

Prior to his time at PSU, Kabala served as director of player personnel at Pitt from 2012 through 2017. With the Panthers, he oversaw the recruiting department, managing its budget and coordinating travel logistics for all official and unofficial visits. He also assisted with the program’s transition into the ACC. Kabala also served as the assistant director of football operations/recruiting & eligibility at the University of Arkansas from 2009-12 where he helped build the 2011 team that finished ranked No. 5 in the country.

Kabala holds a Master of Business Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and a Bachelor of Science in sports marketing and management from Indiana University.