{"id":2602,"date":"2025-07-23T00:12:31","date_gmt":"2025-07-23T10:12:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/?p=2602"},"modified":"2025-07-23T00:12:31","modified_gmt":"2025-07-23T10:12:31","slug":"ahead-of-the-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/ahead-of-the-game\/","title":{"rendered":"Ahead Of The Game"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"

Photo Courtesy Hawai\u2018i Athletics<\/p><\/div>\n

S<\/span>ports have always been a part of Matthew Elliott\u2019s life. <\/span><\/p>\n

As a youngster growing up in Framingham, Massachusetts, he and his whole family were fans of the Boston teams and would often go to see the Celtics and Red Sox play. He grew up playing basketball and in high school he competed in varsity soccer, wrestling and tennis. Then, while pursuing his degree in law, jurisprudence and social thought at Amherst College, he became a member of the school\u2019s varsity rowing team. <\/span><\/p>\n

With his passion for sports and more than a decade of experience in Division I athletics administration\u00a0 <\/span>\u2014 including 13 years at UCLA, where he held positions as chief strategy officer and senior associate athletic director for internal operations \u2014 Elliott was the perfect choice to be University of Hawai\u2018i at M\u0101noa\u2019s new athletics director. <\/span><\/p>\n

Elliott was selected by UH president Wendy Hensel out of more than 100 applicants, and the UH Board of Regents unanimously approved his appointment on June 16. He officially started his new role on June 30.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s one of those moments that I\u2019ll remember for my entire life,\u201d says Elliott when asked how he felt about being offered the position. \u201cShe (Hensel) was so kind and gracious on the phone and just so optimistic about what was ahead of us and the opportunity for this program and to feel like we get to be a part of the future of the athletics department.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cGiven my experience, having worked in athletics for a long time and knowing how important the athletics department and the university overall is to our entire state and to our community, it felt like a really exciting moment and a really great opportunity to be able to work in college sports, to do something here at UH that would have such an impact in connectivity to our whole state,\u201d he says. \u201cI just love college sports. It\u2019s such a great environment for students to be able to have these amazing experiences that have changed their lives and do it while they\u2019re playing sports but increasing their education.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

As athletics director, Elliott\u2019s key responsibility is, first and foremost, to create the student-athlete experience. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, we\u2019ve been doing it for a long time,\u201d he says, \u201cbut just to focus on how do we provide all the resources and support for our student-athletes to be able to thrive? That\u2019s the No. 1 priority.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond that, he hopes to generate revenue. Selling tickets, cultivating partnerships with corporate sponsors, raising funds from donors, and being good members of the the Big West Conference and the Mountain West Conference \u2014 these are all things Elliott says can bring resources to the Athletics Department and help student-athletes and coaches be successful.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAs the athletics director, you\u2019re looking at that big picture and figuring out where UH fits and how we\u2019re prepared for whatever the changes are going to be,\u201d he notes. \u201cAnd then, you\u2019re building a team. You\u2019re working with a staff and all the different, talented and skilled people who do different things in the department. There are so many different skills that have to come together to make an athletics department work and being a kind of leader or captain to that team is really critical so you\u2019re all working in the same direction. You\u2019re all aligned and all figuring out what the plan is together.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

While bolstering the student-athlete experience is crucial, Elliott also hopes to create opportunities so UH teams can go out and win, and thus bring the community together.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI want UH Athletics to be a source of pride for everybody in this state to feel like, \u2018I\u2019m a part of that. I\u2019m a part of that program. I\u2019m proud of what our student-athletes and coaches are doing.\u2019 And it\u2019s just a source of joy where we come together for a football game or volleyball game, and you get to be around those crowds and all those people, and watch the student-athletes perform. It\u2019s really <\/span>exciting.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

A<\/span>lthough Elliott and his family moved to Hawai\u2018i in 2022 so that he and his wife, Allison, could raise their then 2-year-old son, Kai, here \u2014 it wasn\u2019t his first time in the Aloha State. <\/span><\/p>\n

Upon finishing law school at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law in Chicago, he accepted an offer to do a federal clerkship in Honolulu for the late U.S. District Court Judge Alan Kay. This happened in 2005, which is also when he met Allison, who grew up in Honolulu and graduated from Punahou. <\/span><\/p>\n

Elliott has also worked as senior director of policy and public affairs at Hawai\u2018i Community Foundation. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI have so much respect for that organization,\u201d he says. \u201cThey do incredible work there.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

E<\/span>lliott says the best part of his new role is being around people. At UH sporting events, he enjoys watching fans interact with student-athletes. <\/span><\/p>\n

When he\u2019s not busy with his new duties, he can be found at the beach or park with his \u2018ohana. As a family, they also enjoy attending Kai\u2019s soccer and baseball games. Elliott also loves to cycle \u2014 in fact, his favorite areas to bike are Hawai\u2018i Kai and Makapu\u2018u.<\/span><\/p>\n

He concludes with this message to the community, \u201cI\u2019m so grateful. I just thank everybody for their support. I\u2019ve heard so much optimism and positivity about this program and about our student athletes. I\u2019m really grateful for that. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI would love folks to feel that they\u2019re a part of it in whatever way is right for them. We welcome you to our games. We welcome you if you want to watch on TV \u2026 We want to be the team for everybody and we hope we can find a way to engage with each and every one of you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sports have always been a part of Matthew Elliott\u2019s life. 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