Mike Maziarz is in his 13th year at Illinois and his ninth year working with the Illini football program in 2024.

Maziarz leads a team of academic professionals who provide comprehensive academic support services for our Illini football student-athletes.  He and his team monitor academic progress, assist in evaluating continuing eligibility, and work closely with the coaching, recruiting, and personnel staffs to create a life changing student-athlete experience for our Illini football student-athletes.  

Under his leadership, Illini football student-athletes have broken multiple program records for academic success.  In the Spring 2024 semester, the team achieved a 3.12 GPA, which set a program record for highest team GPA in a semester.  During the 2023 season, the team earned a 3.03 GPA, the highest mark in a fall semester on record.  The team’s current streak of three straight semesters earning better than a 3.00 GPA is the first occurrence on record in program history.       

Maziarz, a Pana, Illinois, native, began his career at Illinois in 2012 as a graduate assistant in Academic Services.  Prior to transitioning to football, Maziarz served in an academic counseling role with the Illini men’s and women’s gymnastics programs and swimming and diving team and coordinated the student-athlete tutorial program from 2014-2016.  

A former baseball student-athlete, Maziarz’s academic credentials include a Master of Science in recreation, sport, and tourism from the University of Illinois, a Bachelor of Science in management from Millikin University with Summa Cum Laude distinction, and an Associate of Arts in journalism from Lincoln Land Community College.