For a guy with a wealth of experience under his belt, Ben Broussard isn’t exactly well-traveled.
Upon being hired at the University of Colorado in 2017, Broussard had worked at just one other institution — LSU, his alma mater. He worked in Baton Rouge for 14 years in various roles, culminating that run as the vice president of development.
Broussard’s time at CU proved much shorter, as earlier this week North Carolina State announced it had hired Broussard as the executive director of the WolfPack Club, the university’s booster organization. Broussard oversaw the Buff Club at CU and held a number of titles in his relatively short time in Boulder, including senior associate athletic director, vice chancellor of advancement, and the men’s basketball sport administrator.
This week, Broussard discussed his time at CU with BuffZone.com, admitting the coronavirus pandemic that has shut down NCAA athletics played a role in Broussard reconsidering a few life priorities. The move to North Carolina allows his family to be closer to its southeastern roots.
“Looking at what the world looks like these days, being near family became a little bit more important,” Broussard said. “Early on I wasn’t interested in taking the calls at all. Then as this happened, I thought maybe I should start listening to what they have to say.
“I’ve had two jobs in the last 17 years,” Broussard said. “Leaving LSU was hard for me because it was home. So that was emotional from that standpoint. But this was hard because how much (athletic director) Rick George invested in me and how much him and his family have meant to me, and that whole guilt of letting someone down that you really respect. That was what was tough about this one.”
Broussard made an impact during his time at CU, leading the efforts that led to the $2 million endowment from the Scripps family for the school’s Leadership and Career Development program. That same year, CU landed a $3.1 million gift from the Crawford family to bolster the Buffs’ performance nutrition program.
“The work that our team at Buff Club does, there’s some great people there,” Broussard said. “They’re going to be doing whatever they can to support this place.”
Broussard also expressed bittersweet emotions at saying farewell to the men’s basketball program, as he was on most of the road trips the past few seasons.
“Over the last few years, working with Tad (Boyle) and that basketball program, that’s been a blessing for me,” Broussard said. “When I talked to Tad about this, Tad was great. Tad said he understands you have to make moves that are best for your family. In three football and basketball seasons since I got here, the amount of fantastic people — truly great people that I’ve been able to work with — it’s been a blessing. All the phone calls I’ve taken from donors the past few days have all been really positive. I’ve assured all of them that Rick George has a great plan and this place is on a great trajectory.”
Broussard said he is helping with the transition plan through his final day, which is May 1.
