The Wolfpacker: An Independent Magazine Covering NC State Sports
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20 ■ THE WOLFPACKER en Broussard took over as executive director of the Wolfpack Club on July 1, 2020, at a time when there was great uncertainty about collegiate athletics being held in the coming year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly a year later, Broussard and his team, including associate executive direc- tor Buzzy Correll, have helped lead the Wolfpack Club through a challenging pe- riod with much success, thanks in large part to the generosity of its many members. Broussard and Correll talked with The Wolfpacker about the past year and the plans for the future. How have you and your family adjusted to living in Raleigh? Broussard: "It's been remarkable for us. We've been able to find a wonderful neighborhood to move into to raise our family. The West Raleigh Little League has embraced us with open arms, and our kids have made a bunch of friends as a result of it. "The city of Raleigh and the state of North Carolina have everything that any family needs to raise a set of kids and enjoy life. We are very, very blessed. Also, I am very proud that our fourth child, our daugh- ter Ella, was born in the state of North Caro- lina. Twenty-five percent of our children can officially say they were born and raised in North Carolina." What have been the major challenges the Wolfpack Club has faced this year, and what would you consider your successes? Broussard: "We are here to support NC State athletics, and we had a football stadium and a basketball arena where none of our fans could come and pull for the Pack. "Working with Boo Corrigan and our board of directors, we tried to find creative ways to engage our fans. We also wanted to get out of the office and see as many folks as we could at a time when a lot of people were not interested in visitors. "I think we did a great job of rallying around the athletics department to figure out ways to best engage our fan base to support our student-athletes. The work we did with Preserve the Pack and with the Guardian Wolves programs generated some revenue to help out our athletics department as much as we possibly could during a difficult time. "We were able to get a couple of pro- grams off the ground in the Foundation of Champions and the ImPack program that I think will be beneficial for the Wolfpack Club for years to come." Correll: "We tried to turn something from a negative into a positive. I think everybody is sick of Zoom calls, but we were able to have more collaboration with athletics. Our teams were able to meet more frequently to talk about challenges and discuss ideas. We were able to really stir that creativity, and our donors were responsive. They stepped up." How has moving your offices to Vaughn Towers worked out? Correll: "We have been here since last August, but our lease ended in October. We slowly moved. We had a lot of stuff in our old quarters we had to get rid of. Once we got over here, we couldn't have visitors, and we weren't full time in the office because of COVID. That was the most challenging thing. "June 14 was the first day everybody was expected back in the office. It was just a tremendous feeling to walk by somebody's desk or somebody's office and talk about the baseball game the night before in Arkansas. That buzz is back. "We are really excited people can come visit. We hope they will make an appointment because we are expected to be out and about. We don't want people to come by when we don't have the ex- pected staff here. "We're making the best use of a beautiful facility here at Carter-Finely Stadium." Broussard: "Every donor that we've had come by either to look at the seats they are about to buy or just to visit has enjoyed it. I would encourage more people to stop by and say hello." What have been your early impressions of the NC State fan base? Broussard: "Bobby Purcell, Buzzy and the board did a really nice job of letting me know what our fan base was like and what it meant to be a Wolfpacker. The national reputation of NC State is amazing, so I was coming in with pretty high expectations. "Our fans are fantastic people. They work really, really hard so that they can spend time with their families and friends, so that they can have time for things like NC State athletics that mean a lot to them and that they are very passionate about. "They have opened their arms and wel- comed me into their houses, their boats and their pig pickings. I'm going to steal a line from the Chancellor — they 'Think and Do' every day to make the state of North Caro- lina better and to make the student-athlete experience at NC State better. "That's what has been impressive to me. B Broussard (left) with ImPack donor John Nunnally of Cary at the College World Series in Omaha, Neb. PHOTO COURTESY NC STATE ATHLETICS THE FIRST YEAR Wolfpack Club Executive Director Ben Broussard And Associate Executive Director Buzzy Correll Discuss The Past 12 Months And Their Plans For The Future