LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The University of Louisville's Cardinal Athletic Fund, the fundraising arm of the athletic department, has added six new staff members to its staff to increase the overall efforts of the department, Vice-President/Director of Athletics Josh Heird announced on Tuesday.

The department hired Brody Barnum, Ryan Jacob, Duvante Lane, Grayson Miller, Larry O'Bannon and Watterson Young to bolster department.

Brody Barnum (Assistant Director of Development)

Barnum joins the Louisville staff after spending a year as a development intern with the UNC Rams Club. During his time in Chapel Hill, he helped serve on the front line of communication for the Ram's Club 19,000 members. He also worked extensively with the ticket office, member services and the annual fund while helping secure multiple $25,000+ gifts towards capital projects.

Prior to UNC, Brody worked with the Learfield affiliate at Washington State where he helped coordinate hospitality areas and corporate commitments for home football and basketball game days. While working with Learfield, Barnum was also a student intern for the Washington State Cougar Athletic Fund. As a student intern, he helped organize and host donor events and activities.

Brody, a former baseball student-athlete at Washington State, graduated in with his bachelors degree in May of 2021.

Ryan Jacob (Assistant Director of Development)

Ryan joined the Louisville staff after a short term at TCU. During his time in Fort Worth, he served as a graduate assistant for the athletic compliance department where he helped monitor NIL activities to ensure NCAA compliance regulations. He also assisted with eligibility and helped coordinate student-athlete transfer records.

Before making his way to Fort Worth, Jacob was a student intern with the Tennessee Fund for over 3 years. He raised and collected over $1.2 million in annual athletic donations and ticket sales. He also helped coordinate VIP lounges and suites for football, basketball and baseball home games.

Ryan earned his bachelor's degree at Tennessee in May of 2022 and his master's from TCU in May of 2023.

Duvante Lane (Associate Director of Development)

Duvante Lane joined the Cardinal Athletic Fund as Associate Director of Development, Major Gifts. In his current role, Lane will be tasked with soliciting major gifts for Louisville Athletics as well as increasing premium seat sales at both L&N Stadium and the KFC Yum! Center.

Prior to Louisville, Lane served as the Director of Leadership Giving with the University of Memphis Athletic Department. At Memphis, he was responsible for soliciting gifts for Memphis' priority projects and assisting with the strategic direction of the Tiger Leadership Circle.

Before arriving in Memphis, Duvante work the University of Maryland as the Assistant Director of Business Operations at from 2021-22. Prior to that, he spent time as Development Assistant at the University of Tennessee and Development and Marketing Assistant at Butler University.

Lane, a native of Evansville, Ind., earned his bachelor's degree in human movement and health science education from Butler in 2017, where he was an all-conference running back for the Bulldogs. He earned his master's degree in Sports Management from the University of Indianapolis in 2021 while working as a graduate assistant in compliance and business operations. Lane also participated in the NCAA's Emerging Leaders seminar and was a member of the Black Student Leadership Institute at the University of Indianapolis.

Grayson Miller (Assistant Director of Development)

Grayson joined the Cardinal Athletic Fund as Assistant Director of Development. Prior to joining the Cardinals, Miller served as a Development Assistant for the Tennessee Fund. While in Knoxville, he helped the annual fund staff for Tennessee Athletics while managing a donor portfolio.

Before his time in Tennessee, Miller was a defensive graduate assistant for the Ohio and Ohio State football programs where they won the 2020 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, the 2021 Sugar Bowl and the 2022 Rose Bowl. Some of his coaching responsibilities include scout team coordination, film breakdown, and on-campus recruiting.

Miller earned his bachelor's degree from Michigan State in 2018 where he was a 4-year letter winner for the Michigan State football program. He earned his master's degree at Ohio State in 2021 while working as a graduate assistant for defensive back and linebackers.

Larry O'Bannon (Assistant Director of Development)

O'Bannon, a former UofL men's basketball standout, is joining the Cardinal Athletic Fund after a long and prosperous professional basketball career.

O'Bannon went undrafted in the 2005 NBA draft after a successful career with the Cardinals. During the summer of 2005, he played for the Seattle SuperSonics and the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Summer League. In August of 2005, he signed his first professional contract with Serbian club Crvena Zvezda where he played one season and won the Serbian Cup. Over the next 15 years he played for 18 teams in both Europe and South America.

Upon finishing his professional career, Larry worked in the accounting department for Global Payments Inc. in Atlanta, Ga.

O'Bannon, a Louisville native and Male High School standout., earned his bachelor's degree in accounting from Louisville in 2005, where he helped lead the program to a Final Four appearance. He earned his master's degree in business management from the University of Louisville in 2023.

Watterson Young

Watterson joined the Cardinal Athletic Fund after spending the last two years as the Customer Success Representative for the Learfield affiliate CLC in Atlanta, GA. Young managed over 20 accounts for the industry leading Name, Image, & Likeness disclosure platform, COMPASS NIL. Watterson worked with schools such as the University of Alabama, Texas A&M, and Mississippi State.

Prior to his work at CLC, Young served as a sales rep for Devoted Health as well as the Assistant to the Athletic Director at St. Thomas. Watterson also work as a game day staff members for the Florida Panthers in Sunrise, Fla.

Young earned his bachelor's degree from Louisville in 2018 from where he played for the men's soccer program. He earned his master's degree at St. Thomas in 2020 while working in the athletic department.