Henderson Tabbed Sports Information Director of the Year
LA GRANDE, Ore. – Barrett Henderson, Assistant Director of Athletics for Sports Information, Media and Promotions at Eastern Oregon University, has been named the 2011-12 Cascade Collegiate Conference Sports Information Director of the Year.
Henderson, an EOU graduate, has been with the Mountaineers since 2009. During his tenure the athletic programs have seen an unprecedented increase in all forms of media coverage, as well as promotions due to Henderson’s efforts.
“I truly believe that the Cascade Collegiate Conference has some of the best Sports Information Directors in the NAIA, and to receive this award is an honor,” Henderson said. “The SID’s in this conference do such a great job, and I thank them for this honor and their continued support. My nomination would not have been possible if it was not for the outstanding student-athletes and staff at Eastern Oregon University as well, and for that I am also thankful. I love my job and enjoy coming to work every day because of them.”
This past year, Henderson parlayed the success of football and volleyball into enhanced statewide and regional coverage of programs that were at or near the top of league standings all season long. Volleyball provided for emotional coverage as the team rallied around the return of former Coach Kaki McLean-Morehead after the tragic loss of head coach Haley Pearce who passed away in a car accident in mid-July. Coverage of both programs included television from the Boise, Idaho area.
Game day promotions organized by Henderson brought record crowds to most all athletic events thanks in large part to the use of social media including Twitter, Facebook, blogs and a weekly radio show that Henderson co-hosted. Promotional events included; white out night, breast cancer awareness and retro night. Henderson, who also supervised the EOU Cheer/Dance and Drumline, made halftime entertainment and activities a much anticipated part of the Mountaineer athletic event experience.
“Through Henderson's efforts live video streaming of basketball, volleyball and football events were enhanced utilizing pre and post game shows, multiple cameras and the integration of commercials highlighting local, regional and national sponsors,” Cascade Collegiate Conference Commissioner Rob Cashell said.
EOUSports.com, the official web site for Mountaineer Athletics, saw over 200,000 visits, 81,000 unique visitors, and had a million page views for the third straight year. EOUSports.com averages 20,000 visits and 8,100 unique visitors per month. In addition, Eastern's official athletic Facebook and Twitter pages led the CCC in followers.
In 2011-12, Henderson enhanced the game day programs offering fans statistics on not just EOU, but its opponents as well. A notes page was added providing fans with bullet points and fun facts about records, feats, and achievements by the Mountaineers, along with updated stats. Programs offered sponsors space along with a page dedicated to Mountaineer athletic boosters.
This is the first SID of the Year award for Henderson with one previous nomination in 2010-11.