Alumni Spotlight: Brooke Brennan

Finding FSU

Brennan is originally from Aurora, Illinois, and first arrived at Florida State in 2017 after being drawn to the university’s First-Year Abroad program. “Coming to such a great university, having the opportunity to get in-state tuition and study abroad for a whole year was absolutely a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she said.

She earned her bachelor’s degree in communication and media studies. “I always had a knack and wanted to do social media, PR, media communication studies,” she said. “But I always found myself writing papers about sports, researching sports. That was my personal interest.”

The intersection between communication and sports became the perfect foundation for her graduate studies, and ultimately, her career.

At the end of her junior year, Brennan learned about FSU’s Sport Management program and connected with Dr. Katie Flanagan, teaching faculty in the Department of Sport Management, to learn more. Ultimately, Flanagan inspired Brennan to stay and pursue her master’s.

“It was like a whole new world,” Brennan said. “All my classes were about sports. We were doing things interesting to me, things I cared about so much. My master’s took hard work, but it didn’t always feel like school. It felt like passion projects.”

Entering the Field

Her classroom knowledge was bolstered with plenty of hands-on opportunities. During her senior year in Fall 2020, Brennan began working with FSU’s athletic communications and sports information team, giving her a chance to discover her niche in social media and digital storytelling.

“I was so lucky to work under Steve Stone in athletics because he said, ‘What do you want to do? What do you want to learn? Let’s make sure you can do all of the above,’” she said. “He gave me so many opportunities to explore within sports media and figure out what direction I wanted to go.”

Brennan helped manage media efforts, PR, social media, photography, and other digital content for various athletic programs at FSU, namely women’s volleyball, women’s basketball, and men’s basketball. Brennan also credits her Sports Media and Rhetoric class and Sport Management faculty, including Dr. Katie Flanagan, Dr. Kylee Studer O’Daniel, and Dr. Jason Pappas, with fueling her drive and ability to pursue a job in the NBA.

“My professors were the absolute best and helped us get connected to resources, shared jobs with us, and connected us with alumni,” she said. “Your work experience, network, and professional development matter just as much as the classroom work, and they really emphasized those things. It pushes you outside your comfort zone and prepares you for the sport industry, which is hard to get into and stay in.”

Her early experiences in the sports industry also included an internship with SLAM Magazine.

“For me, SLAM was the pinnacle of professional basketball media. They’re all about the culture, and the culture of events in sports is what I’m most interested in,” Brennan said. She found the internship through an FSU alumna, Camille Buxeda, who encouraged her to apply and interview.

“The semester I graduated, I was working for SLAM and FSU men’s basketball at the same time. The dominoes were falling into place, and balancing both of those internships was the moment I thought, ‘I might really have a chance to do this,’” she said. “Social media and photography in the NBA are so sought after, but I really felt like I could.”

Breaking into the NBA

That drive and experience carried her into professional basketball. Just days after commencement, Brennan moved to Oklahoma City to begin her role with the Thunder.

“I started in January 2023. I moved out on a Wednesday—it was a quick transition from Tallahassee to Oklahoma City,” she said. “That first half of the season was learning, getting my feet under me. First season, first real job, trying to figure things out. My second season, 2023–24, was possible because I’d built that foundation.”

By her second year, Brennan was running social media on game nights, traveling with the team, and expanding her responsibilities in photography and video production. As if covering 82 games per season in addition to preseason and postseason isn’t enough, her role also extends to the Thunder’s G League team, the Oklahoma City Blue, which won a championship in 2024.

“All your hard work goes toward something really cool,” she said. “Getting to this place of being comfortable and confident, while applying knowledge from the classroom, job experiences, and Florida State network—that’s been a big combination. I even cross paths with FSU alumni on the road.”

Full-Circle Reflections

For Brennan, the Thunder’s championship win wasn’t just about being a part of basketball history; it was about seeing her persistence pay off.

“The goal was always basketball. People laughed at me, told me I wouldn’t make it, all those things,” she said. “But basketball has always been my favorite sport to be around, and you have to grow, you have to be willing to hand out credentials at games and do scoring tables at soccer to work your way through sports information.”

And though she doesn’t play a role in what happens on the court, she’s grateful to be part of the organization’s success. “When you set goals for yourself, winning a championship is never on them because I don’t control what happens on the court,” she said. “I never thought it would happen. I never wanted to think that and risk the disappointment if it didn’t.”

From her first year abroad as a student to hoisting a championship banner with the Thunder, Brennan’s journey thus far has been fueled by resilience, gratitude, and the connections she made at FSU.

“The people I’ve seen in the NBA, it’s been great to reconnect with them, but I also keep in touch with a lot of other people—if we had classes together, studied abroad together, worked together,” she said. “The alumni base is so strong within Sport Management. It’s something I would never take for granted. I also don’t think, when you’re at Florida State, you realize how impactful that will be.”