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MAAC COMMISSIONER

TRAVIS TELLITOCCI MAAC Commissioner

Travis Tellitocci (pronounced Tella-toss-see) began his tenure as Commissioner of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) in May 2023, becoming just the fourth commissioner in Conference history. Since taking the helm, Tellitocci has guided the MAAC through a period of meaningful momentum and strategic growth. Under his leadership, the Conference welcomed Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University as full members beginning in the 2024-25 academic year, expanding the MAAC to an all-time high of 13 institutions. To position the Conference for sustained success in a rapidly evolving collegiate athletics landscape, Tellitocci led the development of a comprehensive strategic plan shaped by extensive input from across its member institutions. Nearly 3,500 stakeholders contributed to the process, ensuring the plan reflects the collective vision and priorities of the MAAC community.

A signature achievement of Tellitocci’s tenure has been the MAAC’s multiyear media rights extension with ESPN, expanding national exposure for student athletes across all ESPN platforms. The agreement features select regular season men’s and women’s basketball games and Olympic sport contests on ESPN, ESPN2, or ESPNU, and more than 500 events streaming annually on ESPN+ and the ESPN App. The agreement also marked the return of the MAAC Men’s Basketball Championship game to a primetime national television slot on ESPN or ESPN2 on Tuesday of Champ Week, with the Women’s Basketball Championship highlighted as a standalone broadcast on Monday. He also secured regional broadcast partnerships with SportsNet New York (SNY) and New England Sports Network (NESN), expanding the Conference’s exposure across key Northeast media markets and complementing its national package on ESPN’s platforms. Under Tellitocci’s leadership, the MAAC earned national recognition as one of only three conferences in the country named a C.A.R.E. Model Champion by the Knight Commission for connecting athletics revenue to the educational model of college sports. The Conference received the inaugural $25,000 Knight Commission C.A.R.E. Model Grant in 2024-25, followed by an additional $10,000 grant in 2025-26. These grants supported the launch of the MAAC’s inaugural Assistant Coaches Academy, expanding professional development and networking opportunities for assistant coaches across its member institutions. Tellitocci has successfully negotiated and secured premier venues for MAAC Championships across multiple sports. He signed a five-year agreement with Atlantic City, establishing the longest-term and most significant host-site partnership in MAAC Basketball Championships history. He also extended the partnership with Walt Disney World Resort and Arnold Palmer Golf Management, ensuring the return of the MAAC Men’s and Women’s Golf Championships to Disney’s Magnolia Golf Course. Additionally, he finalized a three-year agreement with Heritage Financial Park in Fishkill, New York, to host the MAAC Baseball Championship, renewing the partnership with the Hudson Valley Renegades, an affiliate of the New York Yankees. The Conference has also seen historic success in competition. Fairfield women’s basketball earned a No. 25 ranking in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, marking the first time a MAAC team has been nationally ranked in more than a decade. In 2024, the Conference made history by sending two teams to the NCAA Women’s Lacrosse Championship for the first time, as Niagara secured the automatic qualifier and Fairfield earned the MAAC’s first-ever at-large bid. Fairfield concluded the season ranked No. 23 in the ILWomen/IWLCA National Poll. Academically, the MAAC continues to rank among the nation’s top Division I conferences. In 2025, the Conference posted a 94 percent Graduation Success Rate (GSR), tied for third among all 32 NCAA Division I conferences alongside the ACC and Patriot League, trailing only the Ivy League (98%) and Atlantic 10 (95%). Tellitocci brings extensive experience across professional sports, collegiate athletics, and conference leadership. He joined the MAAC from the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC), where he spent more than six years as Assistant Commissioner for Football, Basketball, and Officiating. During his tenure, the OVC emerged as a multi-bid league in men’s basketball, highlighted by Belmont and Murray State earning NCAA Tournament berths and securing first-round victories in 2019. While at the OVC, Tellitocci served as tournament director for the men’s and women’s basketball championships and the baseball championship, and as tournament manager for the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament First and Second Rounds at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. He also served on the NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Competition Committee. Prior to his time at the OVC, Tellitocci was Deputy Athletics Director at MAAC member Marist University. He worked with all 23 Division I programs and oversaw business operations, marketing, media relations, broadcasting, licensing, and ticketing. Tellitocci began at Marist in 2006 as Assistant Athletics Director for External Affairs and progressively took on expanded leadership responsibilities, culminating in his appointment as Deputy Athletics Director. Tellitocci began his professional career with the New York Mets as Associate Producer for Scoreboard and Entertainment before transitioning into college athletics. He earned his bachelor’s degree in communication from Marist University in 2004 and completed his master’s degree in integrated marketing and communication at Marist in 2014. A native of Benwood, West Virginia, Tellitocci and his wife, Bobbi Sue, are the parents of two sons, Tyler and Hudson. The family resides in New Jersey.

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