As more and more changes come to college athletics, Michigan State is adding an experienced NFL administrator to its leadership group.

Michigan State hired former Detroit Lions counsel Jon Dykema, the athletics department announced Wednesday morning. Dykema is a Michigan State alumnus and former basketball student manager who worked in the Lions’ front office for the past 14 years.

“I’m thrilled to be returning to the place where my career in athletics administration began,” Dykema said in a statement provided through Michigan State athletics. “I’m very excited to start working with the coaches, staff and student-athletes across multiple sports at Michigan State, especially Coach (Tom) Izzo who has been a big supporter of mine since I was a student manager for the basketball program. At the same time, I’m incredibly grateful to the entire Detroit Lions organization for everything they’ve done for me and my family, including helping me develop the skills required for this job. I can’t thank (MSU athletic director) Alan Haller and his staff enough for this unique opportunity and look forward to being an asset to the athletics department moving forward.”

Experience with NFL compliance and contracts is a premium asset to Michigan State given the ongoing changes to the NCAA landscape. Dykema joins the Spartans in a newly created position, the executive senior associate AD specializing in student-athlete management. He is also an assistant general counsel. He’s no stranger to college athletics, either, having spent four years as Utah’s director of basketball operations from 2007 to 2011. Before that role, he spent a semester in Akron’s compliance office.

Dykema’s role will specialize in contracts for commercial partnerships; sponsorships; name, image and likeness (NIL) deals; media rights and the hiring of employees. He is expected to work with student athletes, administrators and even coaches — one of whom should be quite familiar to him. Dykema was a student manager for all four years up to his 2003 graduation, including for Izzo’s 2000 national championship team.

With revenue sharing beginning this upcoming season, the college landscape looks more and more like the professional ranks. That could and likely will include contracts for student athletes to govern that revenue share, a new development athletics departments around the country have to contend with. For Michigan State, it feels it has hired someone who can assist in navigating a period of immense change.

“With the constant evolution in college athletics and revenue sharing on the horizon, this is an incredibly important hire for Michigan State athletics,” Haller said in a statement. “Jon brings a wealth of experience working with contracts and the salary cap at the NFL level, where he has played an important role behind the scenes in the Detroit Lions’ success. He will be a great resource to Spartan coaches and administrators as we navigate our new landscape.”