As college football returns to stadiums across the country, Garrett Klassy begins the season from a place he could hardly have imagined while growing up on a dairy farm outside New Glarus.

The 1994 New Glarus High School graduate is now the director of athletics at Fresno State, leading a Division I program with 18 sports into its first season in the Pac-12 Conference. Fresno State recently reinforced its confidence in Klassy by extending his contract through June 2031.

Klassy sees the agreement less as a reward for what he has accomplished than as a commitment to what comes next.

“I do not look at five years as security,” Klassy said. “I look at it as five years of opportunity and responsibility. The university has entrusted me with something that means an incredible amount to this region, and I want to make sure we maximize this moment.”