Dr. Jason Cable is a transformational athletics executive, enterprise leader, and revenue builder who has positioned Alabama State University Athletics as one of the most dynamic and successful programs in the HBCU and NCAA Division I landscape.Â
Since being named Vice President and Director of Athletics on July 22, 2021, Dr. Cable has led Alabama State through a period of historic competitive achievement, record-setting academic performance, significant revenue growth, expanded corporate partnerships, innovative student-athlete programming, and broad-based brand elevation.
Known for combining CEO-level operational discipline with a people-centered leadership style, Dr. Cable has strengthened every major dimension of the athletics enterprise. His leadership spans fundraising, sponsorship growth, strategic planning, facilities enhancement, academic performance, student-athlete development, NCAA governance, conference administration, community engagement, and culture building. He is regarded as an accessible, innovative, and enterprising leader who can align coaches, staff, student-athletes, donors, university leadership, corporate partners, and community stakeholders around a shared vision for sustained excellence.
At Alabama State, Dr. Cable led the development and launch of the department’s strategic plan, Strategic Dominance, a comprehensive framework designed to align resources, culture, competitiveness, academic achievement, and student-athlete success. Under his direction, Alabama State Athletics has become a national model for competitive success, academic accountability, innovation, equity-centered opportunity, and institutional pride.
Dr. Cable has demonstrated exceptional capacity as a fundraiser and external relations leader. Under his leadership, Alabama State Athletics launched its first athletic-led fundraising campaign, welcomed more than 500 new Hornet Club investors, and generated more than $500,000 in direct annual campaign support for student-athletes. The department also created the Hornet Student-Athlete NIL Fund, which raised more than $500,000 in its first year to support student-athletes in the evolving NIL landscape.
His tenure has produced unprecedented growth in sponsorships and philanthropic engagement, including a 500% increase in corporate sponsorships, a 300% increase in overall athletic donations, the largest single-donor gift in athletics history, the largest single-donor gift to the Women’s Basketball program, and the university’s largest corporate sponsorship ever, valued at $954,000. Alabama State also secured the largest event guarantee for an HBCU classic, the Magic City Classic, at $1.5 million.
Dr. Cable has expanded the athletics brand through creative and entrepreneurial partnerships. One example is the Woodford Reserve Hornet Blend partnership, which generated $33,000 in 72 hours and strengthened the department’s ability to connect athletics, alumni pride, brand affinity, and revenue generation. His experience also includes serving as principal investigator for The Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics Achieving Racial Equity grant awarded to Alabama State University in February 2022, reflecting his ability to connect external funding with equity-centered advancement in college athletics.
Alabama State Athletics has achieved historic competitive success under Dr. Cable’s leadership. The department has captured 33 SWAC championships during his tenure and won the James Frank Commissioner’s Cup three times in four years. Alabama State also earned the Sadie Magee/Barbara Jacket Award four consecutive years and was named HBCU Sports Program of the Year, recognition that underscores the department’s sustained, broad-based excellence.
The 2024-25 academic year marked one of the strongest all-around performances in Alabama State Athletics history. Men’s basketball won the SWAC Tournament for the first time since 2014 and captured the program’s first NCAA Tournament victory in school history. Football delivered a 10-2 season, Alabama State’s first 10-win campaign in 21 years. Men’s tennis also won an HBCU National Championship, further demonstrating the department’s championship reach across sports.
Since Dr. Cable’s arrival, Alabama State has produced 231 All-SWAC performers, 200 SWAC Players of the Week, 23 All-Americans, 18 All-Region selections, 12 Coach of the Year honorees, 28 Player of the Year honorees, and 17 student-athletes who advanced to the next level of their sport through the draft or free agency.
Dr. Cable’s leadership has produced a sweeping academic transformation. Alabama State earned the SWAC Academic Achievement Award for the fifth consecutive year, while a record 74% of student-athletes earned a 3.0 GPA or higher. A historic 243 student-athletes reached that benchmark, contributing to the highest APR score in department history at 972.
Seven Alabama State programs posted perfect 1,000 single-year APR scores, and every team exceeded a 930 multi-year APR. These results reflect strong retention, accountability, academic infrastructure, and student support. Alabama State student-athletes also completed more than 1,600 community service hours, generating nearly $58,000 in economic impact, while Taliah Wicket earned the prestigious title of SWAC Woman of the Year.
Dr. Cable has made innovation a defining feature of Alabama State Athletics. He launched the Hornet Student-Athlete NIL Fund, positioning Alabama State as a leader among HBCUs in student-athlete NIL support. He also created the 4 for 40 Initiative, a student-athlete development platform built on the principle that four years at Alabama State should prepare student-athletes for the next 40 years of life.
His student-development portfolio includes a $100,000 NCAA grant to expand mental health, nutrition, leadership development, and facilities; a partnership with global education brand McGraw Hill to provide personalized career coaching and leadership training; continued expansion of the Her Development Program for female student-athletes and staff; and implementation of a nutrition station for all student-athletes.
Under Dr. Cable’s leadership, Alabama State became the first NCAA Division I institution to sponsor varsity women’s flag football, reinforcing the university’s commitment to access, opportunity, and forward-thinking program development. Alabama State also became the first HBCU to distribute Alston Awards, further demonstrating Dr. Cable’s commitment to student-athlete welfare and competitive positioning.
Facilities, Campus Impact, and Community Engagement
Dr. Cable has advanced a championship-caliber facilities agenda designed to improve recruiting, performance, the fan experience, and student-athlete development. Facility enhancements have included new video boards for football, softball, and baseball; state-of-the-art floors for volleyball and men’s and women’s basketball; new batting cages for baseball and softball; locker room upgrades; a state-of-the-art indoor golf facility; new turf for practice and competition fields; renovated weight rooms for football, fall sports, and basketball; and extensive branding upgrades across athletic facilities.
His leadership has also extended athletics’ impact across campus and the broader community. Dr. Cable helped establish one of the nation’s first full-service YMCA facilities located on a university campus, enriching both Alabama State and the surrounding community. He also championed Cost of Attendance support for Alabama State student-athletes, positioning ASU as a leader among HBCUs and FCS programs.
Conference, NCAA, and Administrative Leadership
Before joining Alabama State, Dr. Cable served as Senior Associate Commissioner for Administration at the Southwestern Athletic Conference. In that role, he provided vision, leadership, and operational support across corporate sponsorships, fiscal affairs, personnel, strategic planning, public relations, academics, NCAA legislation, and conference operations. He helped secure and manage major corporate partnerships with organizations including NASCAR, Academy Sports, BBVA, Alabama Power, the City of Birmingham, and Toyota.
Dr. Cable also helped create and execute the strategic plan for the SWAC conference office and served as primary administrator for football, men’s basketball, baseball, men’s and women’s tennis, and the SWAC COVID-19 advisory committee. His conference-level experience gives him a rare enterprise perspective on governance, compliance, sponsorship, competitive operations, and institutional alignment.
His broader career includes successful athletics administrationÂ
roles at Alcorn State University, Jackson State University, Livingstone College, Savannah State University, and the MEAC. At Alcorn State, he served on the president’s cabinet, acted as principal investigator for a $900,000 NCAA AASP Grant, secured more than $2 million in supplemental funding, developed corporate partnerships with NASCAR, Allstate, NUCOR, USTA, and Walmart, and helped raise the department’s overall GPA to an institutional-best 3.24.
Dr. Cable also created the nation’s first academic degree program in NCAA Compliance and Academic Progress Reporting and established the Student-Athlete and Family Enhancement Center, an academic support, personal development, and refueling facility dedicated to student-athletes and their families.
Governance, Boards, and National Service
Dr. Cable has served on numerous national, regional, and community leadership bodies, including the NCAA Division I Council, NCAA Committee on Legislative Relief, NCAA Strategic Vision and Planning Committee, NCAA AASP Selection Committee, NCAA Education and Engagement Working Group, FCS Regional Advisory Committee, YMCA Greater Montgomery Board, River Region Boys and Girls Club Board, Salute to Veterans Bowl Board, and Montgomery Kiwanis Club.
Education and Personal Background
A native of Huntsville, Alabama, Dr. Cable is a proud graduate of Alcorn State University, where he was a standout student-athlete. He earned his Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration from Jackson State University in 2019. He is the father of one son, Jayden Alexander Cable.
