Laird Veatch is an American university sports administrator who is currently the athletic director at the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou or MU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri, United States. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Univers ...

. Veatch was previously the athletic director at the

University of Memphis The University of Memphis (Memphis) is a public university, public research university in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1912, the university has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university maintains the Herff Col ...

Early life

Veatch was born in

Manhattan, Kansas Manhattan is a city in and the county seat of Riley County, Kansas, United States, although the city extends into Pottawatomie County, Kansas, Pottawatomie County. It is located in northeastern Kansas at the junction of the Kansas River and Big ...

, where he attended

Manhattan High School Manhattan High School is a public high school in Manhattan, Kansas, United States, serving students in grades 9–12. It is part of the Manhattan–Ogden USD 383 school district. For the 2013–2014 school year, Manhattan High had an enrollment o ...

. While in Manhattan, Veatch played baseball, basketball, football, and track. Veatch attended

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

, where he played football and was a captain for the football team his senior year.

Career

Veatch started his administrator career at the

University of Texas The University of Texas at Austin (UT Austin, UT, or Texas) is a public research university in Austin, Texas, United States. Founded in 1883, it is the flagship institution of the University of Texas System. With 53,082 students as of fall 2 ...

, where he assisted with the development program and external affairs while earning his master's degree. In 1997, Veatch began working at the

, eventually as the assistant director of development. In his first stint at Missouri, Veatch managed the Tiger Scholarship Fund. After a one-year stint at

Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...

, Veatch joined

Learfield Sports Learfield (often stylized as LEARFIELD) is a collegiate sports marketing company, representing more than 200 of the nation's top collegiate properties including the NCAA and its 89 championships, NCAA Football, leading conferences, and many of th ...

in 2003. Veatch started as general manager of Mizzou Sports Properties before becoming vice president for Learfield in

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

from 2006 to 2010. Veatch rejoined the collegiate world in 2010 as an associate director for his alma mater, Kansas State. He later became deputy athletic director in 2015 and interim athletic director in 2017 after the previous athletic director, John Currie, left for the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...

. During his time at Kansas State, Veatch oversaw an $85 million renovation to the west side of

Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium Bill Snyder Family Stadium is a stadium in Manhattan, Kansas. It is used for American football, and is the home field of the Kansas State Wildcats football, Kansas State Wildcats of the Big 12 Conference. It is named after the family of head co ...

and the construction of a $60 million football training complex. In 2017, Veatch joined the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...

as an executive associate athletic director. While at Florida, Veatch oversaw renovations for the university's softball stadium, and the construction of both a new baseball stadium and an athletic facility for football.

Memphis

In 2019, Veatch became the athletic director for the

. While at Memphis, Veatch hired Ryan Silverfield as head coach for the Memphis Tigers football team. Additionally, Veatch oversaw the beginning of a $200 million renovation for

Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, originally named Memphis Memorial Stadium, and later Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, is a football stadium located at the former Mid-South Fairgrounds in the Midtown area of Memphis, Tennessee, United States. The ...

, which is set to be completed in 2025. Veatch placed importance on securing NIL deals while at Memphis, concerned about the possibilities of players leaving for wealthier programs. One of the deals Veatch helped secure was a $25 million deal with

FedEx FedEx Corporation, originally known as Federal Express Corporation, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate holding company specializing in Package delivery, transportation, e-commerce, and ...

Missouri

In 2024, Veatch returned to the University of Missouri as athletic director. Veatch hired some of his colleagues at Memphis for positions at Missouri upon his arrival. Veatch listed his goals at Missouri to be "boost revenue without limiting expenses" and to achieve a higher level of financial independence from the SEC along with a larger budget surplus.

Personal life

Veatch received his

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

from Kansas State in 1995 in business administration and his master's degree from Texas in 1997 in sports administration. Veatch is married to his wife, Brandy, and has four children: Jordyn, Taylor, Sydney, and Dru.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Veatch, Laird Living people Players of American football from Kansas Kansas State Wildcats football players Memphis Tigers athletic directors Missouri Tigers athletic directors Year of birth missing (living people)