Brocato Takes Over as Interim Athletic Director at Augusta University

Melissa Brocato has been named the interim athletic director at Augusta University.

Brocato works as an assistant athletic director for internal affairs. She also coaches the Jaguar softball team.

She came to AU Athletics in 1998 to coach softball. Over the years, she took on different roles — compliance coordinator, senior women's administrator, and Student-Athlete Advisory Committee liaison.

This isn't her first time in the interim athletic director chair. She held the position once before in 2022 and has sat on several campus committees.

Originally from King, North Carolina, Brocato started at Campbell University. She coached junior varsity softball there and worked as a graduate assistant for academic services. At Campbell, Brocato earned her bachelor's in exercise science, then a master's in education.

The school's athletics programs have done well lately. Major facility improvements have happened, including a multimillion-dollar redo of Christenberry Fieldhouse that included a performance center.

AU got back-to-back finalist nods for the NCAA Award of Excellence in 2024 and 2025. Student-athletes put in over 2,000 hours of community service during the 2024-25 year.

The department averaged a best-ever 3.38 GPA for the year. 

"Coach Brocato is competitive and has a passion for elevating Augusta University," said AU President Russell T. Keen, according to Jagwire. "She and the entire athletics department will have the full support of our leadership team as we work to elevate the experience of our students, coaches, and fans to one of unmatchable excellence."

A hunt for a permanent athletic director starts now.