Reid Sigmon ‘Has Been Fantastic’ for OSU Football

STILLWATER – It’s been said several times over the past few weeks that Mike Gundy is the happiest and in as good of a situation as he’s ever been in during his time at Oklahoma State.

He told the media last week he has a conference commissioner, a president and an athletic director who are all straight shooters, which allows him to do his job well.

His team playing well and finishing with 12 wins last season certainly helps, but it’s nice to be surrounded by people who are actively trying to make a situation even better than it already is.

 A large part of that equation, but someone who isn’t mentioned near enough is the Deputy Athletic Director / Sport Administrator for football and men’s basketball, Reid Sigmon.

Sigmon was brought onto the OSU athletic staff during 2021 and has already played a huge role in his short time in Stillwater.

"So, Reid [Sigmon] has been fantastic,” said head coach Mike Gundy. “I mentioned that we have a really good chain of command, in my opinion. You know, we have a president who is very supportive, we have an athletic director that runs this department, and he's learning on the run. Chad (Weiberg's) been fantastic, but you can't just show up as an A.D. and be an A.D, it takes time. You can start somewhere, but it takes time. He's learning. Reid has been huge for him because Reid works directly with football. Reid's a football guy. He's been at football schools; he understands what it takes. So, that's been a huge lift for us. And he communicates directly with Chad, and 95%, maybe more than that that ever goes on, doesn't come back on my desk, because they handle it, make good quality decisions. It's not always been, 'Yes, coach,' but there's a good decision made for whatever reason, even if it's not something that maybe we want. And he's been huge because he understands in the big picture, what it takes to be successful in football."

When Gundy said Sigmon’s a football guy, he means it. Sigmon has worked at both the college and NFL levels in multiple facets, including Director of Operations for Super Bowl 35, Executive Director for Super Bowl 39 and the Deputy Athletics Director for Finance and Operations/Chief Operating Officer for the University of Tennessee.

Sigmon graduated magna cum laude with a degree in politics from Wake Forest in 1996, then earned his MBA from the University of Florida in 2003. During his time at UF, Sigmon served as the president of the MBA Association and was a Matherly Scholar.

"So, most people we come across in life, if they're talking a lot and going really fast, they're trying to convince you that they're smart, intelligent. Smart people sit and listen and don't have to cover themselves. Reid just sits and listens. He's very intelligent. He's very analytical, and he has a lot of experience in what he does. So, he gets it. So, all he's doing is gaining information and spitting it back out if he needs to at some point, or he's already made a decision in his mind. He's just going to clear it through the boss and then bring it later. That's what he does. He sits and thinks and listens. What was was the cartoon guy, the mad scientist cartoon? Dexter's Laboratory. That's kind of like Reid. He figures it out. He's smart. He's like all this, and he comes up with a plan. But he's been fantastic for us, again, for two reasons. One, he's a good communicator. Two, he's been at big time football schools, and he gets it."

During Sigmon’s introductory press conference, Pokes Report spoke with Chad Weiberg about the hire. The two worked together for multiple years at Kansas State, so there was already a familiarity between the two.

“It's not just what he does, it is how he does it,” Weiberg said of Sigmon. “I think he will be a great part of our team and fit in really well with our team. He has a well-rounded background and experience that he will bring to our team. Certainly, it will be helpful (with the financial category), but he'll be part of a lot more than that.”