AMHERST, N.Y. — Vice President for Athletics Traci Murphy recently announced the following changes within the Daemen University Division of Athletics, which go into effect August 19. Mary Margaret Johnson has been promoted to Director of Athletics Communications, while Max Sacco has been named Assistant Director of Athletics Communications.
Johnson takes over as director following the departure of Tom McDermott, who recently decided to move on in order to pursue other opportunities. Mike Miranto will continue his supervisory role as Senior Associate Athletics Director for Communications & Operations.
McDermott spent the past two years as Director of Athletics Communications at Daemen after previously serving as a consultant within Daemen's athletics communications office for 10 years. His career has spanned nearly four decades, having previously worked at Arizona State University, Southern New Hampshire University, Rochester Institute of Technology and the Buffalo Bills.
Johnson will now oversee the dissemination of information related to the university's 17 intercollegiate athletic teams. She will be responsible for the daily maintenance of Daemen's online presence and oversee the department's media relations - specifically providing relevant information to local, regional and national media outlets.
Johnson came to Daemen in the summer of 2022 from WIVB-TV in Buffalo, where she has served as a digital media reporter for three years. While at WIVB, she shot and edited video packages for Western New York high school and collegiate sports. Her efforts were recognized with the 2021 Allen Wilson Media Award, which is awarded annually for outstanding coverage of high school football in Western New York. A 2016 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, she spent three years at KTAB-TV in Abilene, Tex. as a sports report/anchor prior to joining the WIVB sports team.
In her two years at Daemen, she has been responsible for the creation and distribution of digital content, including graphically designed images & produced video content used on the Daemen athletics website and social media platforms. She has also served as the primary media contact for several teams and has managed the social media accounts for all Daemen athletic teams.
Sacco comes to Daemen from Canisius University, where he served as a graduate assistant in the athletics communications office for the past two years. While at Canisius, he served as the primary media contact for women's basketball, volleyball, rowing and women's lacrosse, and the secondary contact for men's lacrosse. Sacco created graphics, game recaps, weekly game notes and maintained historical data for his assigned sports. In addition, he managed the social media accounts for his assigned teams and the main athletic account, @GoGriffs.
Prior to Canisius, Sacco gained valuable experience as an intern in the athletics communications office at both Long Island University and Molloy University. He also spent time as an in-game producer for the New York Islanders Radio Network for over two years. A native of Long island, N.Y., he earned his bachelor's degree in public relations from Hofstra University in 2022 and his master's degree in sports administration from Canisius this past spring.
Daemen University features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 17 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.
