March 12, 2025
Ferris State Associate Athletic Director Rob Bentley honored by College Sports Communicators for telling the Bulldogs story for 25 years
Ferris State Associate Athletic Director Rob Bentley is being honored by a North American sports communications organization for his 25 years of service to Ferris State Athletics, sharing the stories of student-athletes and championship teams.
Bentley was among athletics leaders saluted this week by College Sports Communicators, an association supporting communicators across intercollegiate athletics in the United States and Canada.
Bentley is the Ferris State’s longest-tenured sports information director and communications staff member.
Bentley has been the primary media relations contact for four Ferris State national championship teams, telling the stories for the 2018 NCAA DII men’s basketball national champions and for the NCAA DII champion Bulldog football team in 2021, 2022 and 2024.
“In a profession where the job is never done, Rob has always put student-athletes first, presented Ferris State in the most positive light, and provided a great voice to GLIAC radio and streaming broadcasts,” said Kris Dunbar, commissioner of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. “He is a helpful resource for SIDs at other schools and is a wonderful host to visiting teams. We are proud how Rob represents his university and GLIAC and thank him for his hard work during the past 25 years.”
Bentley has played a leading role in promoting six National Player of the Year honors in football – including three Harlon Hill Trophy recipients – and men’s basketball and hockey.
In addition to overseeing communications for 17 sports, Bentley is the radio voice of Ferris State football, men's and women's basketball and volleyball and the host of the Ferris Sports Update television show highlighting FSU Athletics.
The shows been aired live across the state on both broadcast and cable outlets for the past 15 years. Bentley also hosts the "Bulldog Blitz" football show and “Bulldog Beat” basketball radio shows.
Bentley has been honored five times as the American Volleyball Coaches Association's Division II Midwest Region Women's Volleyball SID of the Year for his role promoting the Bulldog volleyball program.
He's also received numerous national honors from both CSC and the National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators in each of the organization's annual nationwide awards programs for storytelling and digital campaigns and media guides.
Among his numerous honors, Bentley led the Bulldogs' involvement in the Michigan's 2013 "Best Sports Logo" contest sponsored by the Detroit Free Press with Ferris State eventually winning the competition over such iconic organizations as the Detroit Lions, Red Wings and Tigers among others.
Bentley serves on the university's Social Media Team and the Sports Leadership Institute Advisory Board for the university's sports communication program. He also is heavily involved in helping coordinate D2SIDA men’s basketball media polls.
A native of McCook, Nebraska, Bentley graduated from University of Nebraska-Kearney with a bachelor's degree in Journalism/Mass Communications in 1997. He received a master's degree in Education - Sports Administration from UNK in 1999.
Prior to his arrival at Ferris, Bentley was an assistant men's basketball coach at the UNK for three years. While coaching at Nebraska-Kearney, Bentley helped the Lopers compile a 65-25 overall record and an NCAA Division II Sweet 16 finish in 1999.