FSU Hires Next Athletic Director With Alabama, Bobby Bowden Ties

Florida State is hiring Learfield executive vice president Jeff Purinton as its next athletic director, according to 247Sports. ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported that the Seminoles were targeting Purinton for the job.

The university has not yet made an official announcement but is expected to do so later today.

FSU will announce Purinton’s hire later today. https://t.co/TQe1ynBePW
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) November 9, 2026

The move would bring Purinton back to the athletic department where he started his career. He spent 15 years at Alabama and led Arkansas State’s athletic department before joining Learfield, where he oversees partnerships with SEC schools.

At Florida State, he started as an assistant in sports information and eventually became the football program’s primary sports information director from 2004 to 2006.

Florida State has been without a permanent athletic director since dismissing Michael Alford in September. Meanwhile, Bruce Warwick has led the department as interim AD as the university conducts its athletic director and head football coach searches in tandem.

Purinton Got His Start at Florida State

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Purinton became a graduate assistant in 1998 after earning his bachelor's degree at FSU and joined the staff full time the following year, working with football coach Bobby Bowden and baseball coach Mike Martin.

His first season on the full-time staff included FSU football's victory over Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl to clinch the 1999 national championship

He became the football program’s sports information director in 2004 and worked in that role until 2006 before leaving for the Orange Bowl Committee.

Purinton also worked with Nick Saban at Alabama and led football communications before being named deputy athletic director there.

After Alabama, he took over as Arkansas State’s athletic director in 2022, holding the official title of vice chancellor for intercollegiate athletics.

Learfield hired Purinton as an executive vice president in 2025. He oversees the company’s partnerships with SEC schools and leads a multimedia rights team that works with those schools on revenue growth and name, image, and likeness opportunities.

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