Darrell Orand returned in 2025 for his second stint with the Alabama State University offiice of Strategic Communications and will serve as the Director of Strategic Communications for the Hornets.
Orand spent over eight years at Coastal Carolina as Assistant Director of Media Relations. He served as the sports information contact for men’s basketball, men's and women’s golf and as the secondary contact for the nationally-ranked Chanticleers football program. He has also worked with the men's and women's soccer programs during his time at CCU.
He has over 33 years of athletic communications and administrative experience. Before his time at CCU, he spent the previous six years at Alabama State University, where he served as the media relations director overseeing the media relations department and was a member of the senior athletic management team.
At ASU he spent time as the media relations contact for football, men’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country, track and field as well as baseball, tennis, golf and the women’s soccer and volleyball programs.
He was involved in the planning process at ASU as the Hornets built an on-campus 26,500-seat football stadium and added baseball and softball facilities and an on-campus soccer field in addition to upgrading the campus athletic facilities.
Orand also oversaw the addition of social media and video initiatives in 2010 as the athletic department expanded its coverage to ASU family, friends and the media.
A highlight of Orand’s time at ASU was the idea, direction and production of a live football signing day show that turned into a three-hour broadcast on the athletic website, bamastatesports.com, highlighting the ASU football signees.
Before his time at ASU, Orand spent over six years across town at Auburn University Montgomery as the Assistant Athletic Director of External Operations.
While serving as the chief promoter, marketer and sports information contact, Orand also was able to reach out to website entities for live broadcast of AUM soccer, basketball and baseball games beginning in 2006. He also oversaw the design of the AUM athletic website, aumathletics.com.
The Tennessee native spent four years in South Dakota as Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs at Dakota Wesleyan University. During his time at DWU, Orand oversaw all sponsorship's, fund raising, marketing, promotions, event and game-day management, as well as sports information and as the equipment manager and intramural director.
Orand also served the University as the director of the risk management team for the university and was involved along with the athletic director in the creation of a new insurance policy for student-athletes. He also was the point person on all athletic hires and oversaw all tournaments and events hosted by DWU.
Working in South Carolina was nothing new for Orand, who spent five years as the Director of Marketing, Promotions and Sports Information at Newberry College, an NCAA Division II program located in Newberry, S.C.
Orand has also spent time at ACC-member North Carolina State and OVC-member Austin Peay State University, where he received his master’s in communications and got his start in athletic communications under long-time APSU Hall of Fame member and SID Brad Kirtley.
He has also worked in several Men's Basketball NCAA Final Four events as well as working in several college football bowl games.
Before getting into collegiate athletics, Orand was a sports reporter and producer at WSMV Television in Nashville, Tennessee. He spent almost seven years at the award-winning station as a member of the award-winning sports team.
He graduated from Freed-Hardeman University where he received a B.S. in business administration and a B.A. in communications.
