BOARD OF ADVISORS
Lead Host at Pac-12 Network
Ashley Adamson is one of the PAC-12's lead hosts and reporters. Reporting with the PAC-12 since its launch in 2012, Adamson hosts a variety of shows on the network including "The Pregame" a football talk show where she travels to all 12 schools in the PAC-12 over 13 weeks. Before starting at the PAC-12, Adamson was a reporter and anchor for WISH-TV in Indianapolis where she covered everything from the NFL to IndyCar.
Senior Vice President of Programming and Acquisitions at ESPN
Ilan Ben-Hanan is the Senior Vice President of Programming and Acquisitions at ESPN. Ben-Hanan has been at ESPN since 2002 and in his current position manages the ACC Network, ESPNU, Longhorn Network and SEC Network, setting the strategic direction for each of ESPN’s College Networks. Ben-Hanan is a member of the Sports Business Journal Forty Under 40 Class of 2017 and is also a proud alumnus of the University of Southern California.
Founder and Managing Partner
at Athlaw LLP
Samuel Katz is a Founding Partner of Athlaw LLP. and a graduate of USC Gould School of Law. Athlaw LLP. is a premium sports firm that specifically works with retired NFL players to help them understand the disability benefits available to them through the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement, He founded Athlaw in the kitchen of his mother's home while working with a retired NFL player filing a disability benefit claim. From there, the firm has taken off spreading amongst NFL players through word of mouth in NFL locker rooms.
Co-Founder of The Players Tribune
and the Gaming Society
Jaymee Messler currently serves as the CEO of the Gaming Society, a sports betting content platform which she co-founded with NBA great Kevin Garnett. The platform aims to democratize the betting landscape and generate fandom for womens sports through the advent of gamification. She is also the former president of The Player's Tribune which she co-founded with Derek Jeter in 2014. She began her career at Excel Sports Management as one of their first hires. She worked her way to becoming the Chief Marketing Officer, tasked with overseeing all branding, corporate relationships, athlete partnerships and more.
Former USC Football Long-Snapper and President at Engage LLC
Jake Olson is a co-founder and President of Engage LLC., where he is responsible for big picture strategy and partnerships. He is also a USC Football alumnus, where he made history across the nation in 2017, becoming the first blind college football player ever after snapping in USC’s game against Western Michigan. Olson also established his foundation, Out of Sight Faith, to help provide technology to blind schoolchildren.
Former Director of USC Sports Information
Tim Tessalone is a USC legend, working in their sports information department for 43 years. While he was a senior at USC he interned in the sports information office and two years post-grad returned to the staff. Tessalone worked as an assistant sports information director for five years before being named the Director of Sports Information and remaining in the role until his retirement in 2022. Tessalone was named to the USC Athletics Hall of Fame and is a member of the CoSIDA (College Sports Information Directors of America) Hall of Fame as well. Under his leadership, the USC Sports Information Department has played a huge role in establishing USC Athletics as leaders in Los Angeles sports, a difficult task in the No. 2 media market in the country.
Co-Founder and CEO of MyHuddle
Christina VandenBerg is the co-founder and CEO of MyHuddle, a company dedicated to providing mental training to athletes and coaches. She played Division I soccer for Harvard where she earned "Breakout Female Athlete of the Year" and led her team to back-to-back Ivy League Titles. Prior to co-founding MyHuddle, Christina spent a decade in the tech industry supporting various mental health and wellness-focused initiatives.