By Adam Brown
Sports Editor
adam.brown@hottytoddy.com.
Tom Hanks said it best when he played baseball manager Jimmy Dugan in the 1992 hit “A League of Their Own,” ‘There’s no crying in baseball.’ But he never said anything about singing.
Former Ole Miss hurler Brady Bramlett is taking his passion for the diamond and music and blending them into a career path he loves.
“Ever since I was young (baseball and music) have been one in the same,” Bramlett said. “My dad was an athlete and my mom was a singer, and I love them both.”
Bramlett did not have to choose between the two in high school, as he basked in the spotlight on stage and on the diamond.
“I took a year off from music my freshman year at Ole Miss but jumped back into it sophomore year,” he said. “Music really saved me and helped me to stay active and engaged on campus while I was not playing.”
Bramlett recently ended his tenure with the NCAA National Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) where he began working during the injury his sophomore season. From that experience, he was voted chair of the committee and started serving on the NCAA Division I Board of Directors.
“It’s what got me interested in working in athletics,” he said. “Working with that group of fantastic leaders really shapes you; it really taught me what it is to be a leader in athletics.”
His love for being a student-athlete and wanting to make a difference in the world of athletics causes him to make sure every student athlete has the best experience he or she can have, he said.
His new position as Assistant Director of Development in the Athletic Foundation centers around annual giving.
“One thing I have grown to love is that I get to work with people who got to watch me play, he said. “This is an opportunity to give back to athletics and really learn the department and learn the finances of athletics.”
In 2016, Bramlett was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 13 round but decided to forgo playing professionally and return for his senior season. During that year, he partnered with music professor Nancy Maria Balach and the Living Music Resource (LMR) program. She created a documentary about his love for baseball and music, and paired it with a concert.
“We created a documentary ‘He’s Got Great Pitch’ that dives into the similarities of music and sports,” Balach said. “It was a fantastic collaboration working with Brady because, clearly, you have a young man who is focused, intelligent and talented. He’s just one of those people that puts off a positive energy that you want to be around.”
This past fall, Bramlett took to the stage in Ole Miss Theater’s production of Chicago.
“It was a blast,” Bramlett said. “I fell in love with being on stage and all the theatrics of it was fantastic. It was really fun to get engaged in a true production of a show, and I would do that again in a heartbeat.”
Bramlett is taking on a new role as the executive managing director of LMR. He will partner with Balach to fulfill the business aspects of LMR—all the marketing, PR and assisting in day-to-day communications.
“It’s a fantastic program and a real 21-century approach to music and education, “ he said. “(LMR) is all kinds of music; it’s all varieties.”
Now Bramlett is apart of the SEC Network + as the color commentator for Ole Miss baseball. He was approached by Associate Athletics Director Kyle Campbell on National Signing Day about a spot opening up inside the TV booth as former All-American David Dellucci got the call for a spot in the SEC Network studios. Prior to this season, it had never crossed his mind about getting in front of the camera.
“It was really fun to engage in baseball from the on-camera perspective because I can talk baseball in my sleep,” he said.
A Career in Music and Athletics Strikes a Chord with Former Ole Miss Pitcher
