STEPHENVILLE, Texas – Tarleton State Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations Grant Cohen has earned one of the most meaningful honors for young communications and creative professionals in college sports.
 
College Sports Communicators announced the recipients of its 30 Under 30 Class of 2024 on Tuesday, with Cohen one of 30 honorees nationwide. The honor recognizes emerging athletics communications professionals at all levels of college sports in strategic, creative and digital spaces, according to the CSC. It's the third year of the award, and this year there were a record 176 nominees.
 
To be eligible, an individual must be a CSC member, be 29 years old or younger on Dec. 31, 2024, and have not previously won the honor.
 
"The remarkable individuals recognized in the CSC Under 30 Class of 2024 represent a diverse and talented group of young professionals working in sports communications today," 2024-25 CSC President Kevin Trainor said. "This distinguished list of honorees features outstanding sports communicators from throughout our membership. Their innovative approach to blending traditional communications methods with content creation, social media and other emerging technologies will allow us to effectively connect with our audiences while also helping to shape the future of our organization and our profession. Congratulations to all of those included in this year's class!"
 
Of the 176 nominations submitted, this year's class includes 10 members from different levels of NCAA Division I, six Division II members, 10 Division III members, two NAIA members, one member from a Canadian institution, and one two-year college member. The average age is 27.1 years old. Honorees in the 2024 class were chosen by a voting group composed of the Executive Board of Directors, the Advisory Council, CSC staff, leaders from all CSC committees and selected past winners.
 
"Being part of College Sports Communicators 30 Under 30 Class of 2024 is a tremendous honor, and I am truly thankful to CSC and the Young Professionals committee for selecting me for this prestigious award," Cohen said. "I am grateful for every place that I have been at throughout my young career, but I am especially appreciative for the Tarleton State University family. I would like to give a huge thank you to Jake Withee for providing me with incredible guidance, support and for giving me the opportunity to be a Texan. To the administration, communications, marketing, and fan engagement teams at Tarleton, thank you for being in my corner and for all the tools you provide to make Tarleton State elite. I am especially appreciative to the coaches and student-athletes that I work with daily for trusting me to tell their stories and allowing me to help create a first-class experience in collegiate athletics. I can't wait to continue to work to make Tarleton State better for all Texan Nation."
 
Cohen is in his first season at Tarleton State, where he serves as the primary media contact for the women's basketball, men's golf and tennis programs, plus serves as the secondary contact for football. Cohen also leads media relations efforts to further Tarleton Athletics coverage and awareness, and additionally, assists in the game day operations for all other sports.
 
Prior to his arrival at Tarleton State, Cohen was the Assistant Director of Strategic Communications for the University of Nevada Athletics. Serving as the primary sports information director for women's basketball and women's soccer, Cohen increased social media engagement and led the reconstruction of NevadaWolfPack.com.
 
Returning to collegiate athletics in 2022, Cohen spent the 2021-22 season in professional tennis. As the Media Relations Manager for HolterMedia in Jacksonville, Florida, Cohen was media relations director for various professional tennis tournaments, including World TeamTennis, Spring Tennis Festival and the ATP Tour's Delray Beach Open. He also assisted with the media relations efforts with ATP Tour tournaments, such as the US Men's Clay Court Championships in Houston and the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati.
 
Cohen's professional sports background includes stints with teams from four professional sport organizations;  the Washington Commanders, Nashville Predators, NBA Summer League and the Reno Aces. Cohen began his athletic communications background as a student at Wichita State, where he worked with softball and men's and women's golf. Cohen worked as a graduate assistant at Belmont and served as the SID for women's soccer, baseball and men's tennis. His baseball game notes placed third in the nation for spring sports game notes in the 2021 College Sports Communicators Publications Contest.
 
CSC's press release, and the full 30 Under 30 Class of 2024 list, can be found here.