ST. GEORGE, Utah-Wednesday, during a press conference, Dixie State University president Richard D. Williams named Ken Beazer as the new athletics director. Beazer had previously been serving as the interim athletic director at the St. George-based institution.

This comes at a key interval for Dixie State as they are transitioning to a new name, Utah Tech University, for the upcoming academic year.

Williams made the announcement of Beazer following a national search that entailed the services of several Trailblazers student-athletes.

The decorated Beazer brings a litany of accomplishments to the table.

Beazer, a native of Ephraim, commenced his life in athletics as a student-athlete at Manti High School and later nearby Snow College, playing football for the Badgers.

Beazer continued his athletics career as a defensive back at Weber State, graduating in 1989 with a degree in broadcast communications.

He then earned his Master’s degree at Washington State in 1991.

He served as Snow’s defensive coordinator from 1993-1995 and then became the athletic director at Snow College from 1995-2001.

His travels then took him to Utah State where he served in varying roles within the athletic department. During his time at Logan, the athletic department obtained its largest capital campaign in history.

Beazer then became the athletic director at Southern Utah University from 2006-2015 and played an instrumental role in the Thunderbirds’ acceptance into the Big Sky Conference in 2012.

Beazer, during his remarks, alluded to the existent rivalry between SUU and Dixie State. He then stated the athletic department needs to implement numerous upgrades to the various intercollegiate athletic programs on campus.

He also stated that the goal at Dixie State is to strive for championships and “personal bests” in various sports.