VERMILLION, S.D. — Keegan Kempf has been tabbed the next Director of Operations for the football program, head football coach Travis Johansen announced Wednesday morning. Kempf comes to Vermillion after a two-year stint at the University of North Carolina in football operations.  
 
"We are thrilled to welcome Keegan to the University of South Dakota. His exceptional organizational skills and unwavering dedication to winning make him a perfect fit for our program," noted Johansen. "Keegan's commitment to excellence will undoubtedly elevate our team as we strive to reach the pinnacle of FCS football."
 
Kempf started at North Carolina in May 2023 as a football operations assistant for the 2023 season. In April of 2024, he was promoted to Assistant Director of Football Operations where he became more involved with the operations of the Tar Heel football program. In his time in Chapel Hill, he helped oversee the UNC travel party in securing team hotels, rooming lists, scheduling. He served as the head of the travel party and worked with the Tar Heel coaching staff on day-to-day needs of the football program.
 
"I'm thrilled to be coming up and joining Coach Johansen's staff at South Dakota," said Kempf. "We had some great conversations and I'm excited for his vision and plan for the program! I am looking forward to coming to Vermillion and seeing the great things this program has to offer."
 
Following graduation, he served as a football operations graduate assistant at the University of Utah for the 2022 football season. There he got involved with the day-to-day operations of handling a football program.
 
As an undergrad at Ohio State, Kempf was a football program volunteer. In August 2021, he was a football operations intern at the University of Ohio.
 
Kempf is a 2022 graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in business administration. He earned his master's degree in finance from the University of Utah in 2023.