Chris King founded CK1 LLC to help collegiate athletic departments, professional sports franchises, and sports business leaders operate with greater financial discipline, commercial agility, and technology clarity.
Chris King brings 30 years of Division I executive experience, including 17 years as a Division I Director of Athletics. His work has included complex budget oversight, revenue development, fundraising, conference alignment, academic and competitive excellence, organizational leadership, and high-stakes institutional decision-making.
Chris has served in senior-level administrative roles at the University of Alabama, the University of Central Florida, and Liberty University, and was a two-time Division I Director of Athletics at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) and Robert Morris University (RMU). That path spans P4, G6, FCS, and I-AAA institutions — departments with materially different budgets, governance structures, and competitive pressures.
As a 2x NACDA Athletic Director of the Year, Chris has been recognized for program turnarounds, record-setting fundraising efforts, championship culture-building, and macro-level execution across evolving athletics environments.
CK1 reflects that operator-first perspective. The firm is built for leaders who need confidential, experienced support as they navigate a sports industry undergoing structural change.
Scale matters when you are evaluating an advisor. The scope of the departments Chris has led — and the range of institutional models he has worked inside — is what allows CK1 to calibrate guidance to the reality of your organization rather than to a single operating context.
Seventeen years as a sitting Division I Director of Athletics at UTRGV and Robert Morris University, with full enterprise responsibility for budget, personnel, revenue, compliance, and institutional relationships.
Senior-level administrative roles at the University of Alabama, the University of Central Florida, and Liberty University.
Operating experience in P4, G6, FCS, and I-AAA departments — including non-football institutions, where the revenue and alignment math is fundamentally different.
Two-time NACDA Athletic Director of the Year, recognized for program turnarounds, record-setting fundraising, and championship culture-building.
CK1 works directly with leaders who need clarity, discretion, and practical guidance rooted in real athletics executive experience.