EL SEGUNDO, Calif. --- Silver Waves Media has announced its list of the Top Athletic Directors in America, and Ryan Berryman, who was formally named UNM’s 15th Vice President/Director of Athletics on March 4 after serving over two months in an interim capacity, was one of 70 ADs to make the list, and he is the youngest Division I AD on the list, and he currently is the second youngest Division I AD in the country.
Berryman was also one of only two Mountain West ADs on the list, joining Erick Harper of UNLV. Berryman’s two predecessors at UNM, Fernando Lovo and Eddie Nuñez, were also honored.
While Berryman hasn’t been on the job all that long, he has certainly made his mark. He led legislative efforts for improvements at University Stadium and worked collaboratively with his team on both a viral 1990’s Retro Night promotion at Lobo Basketball, as well as a 10-year naming rights partnership with Nusenda Credit Union valued at an average of $1.74 million annually, with University Arena to be officially known as The Pit – Powered by Nusenda beginning with the 2026-27 basketball season.
The Retro Night promotion is up for a national award for best promotion in Division I for the past academic year.
He famously got his start as a student manager for the men's basketball program in 2012, serving on the support staff that won back-to-back Mountain West Championships. He later served as a student regent on the UNM Board of Regents, where he served as vice chair of both the Finance and Facilities Committee and the Academic and Student Affairs Committee.
Berryman rejoined UNM Athletics in March 2025 as Deputy Athletic Director and Chief Operating Officer, bringing recent Power 4 conference experience and deep familiarity with Lobo Athletics. Prior to returning, he served as Senior Associate Athletic Director and Chief Financial Officer at the University of Washington, where he led financial planning and business operations during the program's transition into the Big Ten Conference.
He is a three-time graduate of UNM, holding an undergraduate degree in marketing and operations management from the Anderson School of Management, earned summa cum laude, and master's degrees in business administration and sports administration, both also earned summa cum laude. He also graduated with distinction from the UNM Honors College. He previously attended East Mountain High School in Sandia Park, NM.