New Mexico State University’s College of Business will welcome its first Executive-in-Residence in spring 2026, bringing marketing veteran and former Aggie student-athlete John Cordova in for Spring semester to share his wealth of expertise with NMSU college students.
Cordova – former Group Director of Sports Management at The Coca-Cola Company – will train MKTG 354: Sports Marketing, an in-person course that may give college students a behind-the-scenes have a look at how marketing technique powers fan engagement, sponsorships and world model partnerships throughout main sports activities properties, together with the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, the Olympics and the FIFA World Cup. He can even co-teach a piece of BUSA 1110: Introduction to Business for first-year enterprise college students.
Cordova’s appointment marks the launch of the College of Business Executive-in-Residence program, which brings skilled trade leaders to campus for a semester-long visiting school time period. Executives-in-Residence train of their skilled space, mentor college students, help outreach with the enterprise neighborhood, and help with the school’s student-development initiatives in skilled improvement and ethics.
Bryan Ashenbaum, Dean of the College of Business, was past excited that Cordova accepted the decision. “John brings a wealth of experience and enthusiasm to the role, our business students will be learning first-hand from a top executive and pioneer in sports marketing.”
Cordova mentioned the invitation got here as a shock after years of short-term educating engagements at different establishments. “I’ve accepted these types of assignments before at other universities, but they were limited to a week of teaching classes,” he mentioned. “When Dean Ashenbaum called me, I assumed he was asking for a week. Instead, he was looking for an entire semester – and I’m honored to have been asked.”
He added that whereas he’s the school’s inaugural Executive-in-Residence, he hopes many different NMSU alumni will comply with. “Some of my best professors were individuals who had real-life experience in business, and I hope I can bring that same perspective during my time back on campus,” Cordova mentioned. Cordova brings greater than 40 years of management expertise within the sports activities marketing trade. At Coca-Cola, he led negotiations with the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, FIFA and the Olympic Games. His profession additionally consists of roles with Major League Baseball, the Milwaukee Brewers and Miller Brewing Company.
Returning to NMSU holds private that means for Cordova, who has spent many years giving again by endowed scholarships and campus engagement. “I was fortunate and privileged to have the opportunity to attend and graduate from New Mexico State University on a football scholarship, and I never forgot the opportunity I was given,” he mentioned. “Giving back has always been top of mind, and now I have the opportunity to do so with students in the classroom.”
Cordova credit NMSU with laying the muse for his entry into sports activities enterprise, even earlier than the sphere existed in its fashionable kind. “There was no industry called ‘sports marketing’ when I was a student,” he mentioned. “My management degree and MBA prepared me from a general business standpoint, and the specialization came later.” He recalled being instructed he didn’t want one other diploma to break into the sphere. “When I applied to the only sports marketing master’s program at the time, at another university, the director said, ‘You already have an MBA from New Mexico State – there’s nothing more we can teach you.’ That’s when it hit me, NMSU had already prepared me academically; it was up to me to go out and earn the opportunity.”
Looking forward to the spring semester, Cordova mentioned he’s keen to information college students by the realities of the sports activities trade. “I have seventeen weeks to take these students through my 40-plus years in sports business – the lessons learned, challenges faced and opportunities seized,” he mentioned. “My goal is simple: to show students what’s possible when you bring passion, commitment, curiosity and persistence into this field. At a minimum, I hope we explore something that guides their career path – and maybe even changes their life.”
Cordova beforehand served as a graduate assistant for NMSU’s soccer program in 1980 and 1981 and later as a graduate assistant within the College of Business in 1982. His return now brings his profession full circle – from scholar, to trade chief, to mentor in the identical school rooms the place his journey started. Spring 2026 course registration opens later this educational 12 months.
For extra info, contact the Department of Marketing on the NMSU College of Business.