Rachel Blunt joined the University of Arizona Athletics Department in May 2024 as Senior Associate Athletic Director for Strategic Operations. As a member of the Executive Team and the department’s Senior Woman Administrator, she provides leadership across internal operations and serves as the sport administrator for men's basketball and women's soccer.
Blunt came to Arizona after serving as Senior Associate AD for Student-Athlete Development and Championship Performance at the University of Missouri. There, she oversaw all student-athlete-facing departments, including academics, career and leadership development (Mizzou Made), nutrition, dining, equipment, sports medicine, and strength and conditioning. She also held sport oversight responsibilities for baseball, women’s basketball, volleyball, and men’s and women’s swimming & diving, and was a member of the department’s senior leadershipand leadership teams.
Prior to her time at Missouri, Blunt spent five years at Central Michigan University, where she served as Deputy Athletic Director for Administration and Senior Woman Administrator. In 2020, she stepped in as Interim Director of Athletics. During her time at CMU, she also contributed nationally through service on the NCAA Division I Legislative Committee, NCAA Modernization of Rules Subcommittee, NAAC Certification Committee, and multiple Lead1 working groups focused on NIL and governance reform.
Blunt began her career in compliance, holding roles at Southeast Missouri State and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. A four-year letterwinner in basketball at SEMO, she helped lead the Redhawks to consecutive Ohio Valley Conference championships in 2007 and 2008. She earned both her bachelor’s degree in sport management and master’s degree in finance from Southeast Missouri State University.
Originally from Dexter, Missouri, Blunt lives in Tucson with her wife, Ashley, and their two children, Rory and Oliver.