From A&M To Under Armour, Aggie Returns To Discuss Career In Sport Marketing

A former student and leader in sport marketing shared his experience going from a student in the Department of Health and Kinesiology to being a top executive at three of the major sporting goods brands in the world as part of the seventh annual Department of Health and Kinesiology’s Distinguished Lecture Series (DLS).

David Heath graduated with a Bachelor’s from Texas A&M in 1976 and earned his Master’s in Physical Education in 1979. He then became the first full-time assistant athletic trainer for Aggie Athletics. After his time at Texas A&M, Heath spent several years with Adidas and Nike before retiring at the age of 55. After a call for help from a former colleague and friend, Heath came out of retirement and is currently the senior vice president of sales at Under Armour.

Heath focused much of his presentation on the mentors that shaped his time at Texas A&M and others who influenced his career. He says he knows he would not be where he is today without those influences and people he has been exposed to along the way. “It’s the networking opportunities and the people you meet along the way that will make the biggest impact on your career,” said Heath.

One of those opportunities came about five years after he started working in the sports marketing field. Heath says he had long dreamed of becoming a trainer in the NBA. One afternoon, he got the call he had always hoped for. A Texas A&M graduate, and team doctor for the Houston Rockets, called Heath to tell him the trainer for the San Antonio Spurs took another job and it was Heath’s if he wanted it. After 24 hours of deep thought, Heath turned down the job. He says it’s important to follow your passion even if it does not lead where you originally had planned.

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