Long before Mike Byker became the voice most closely associated with Dordt University athletics, he was a nine- or 10-year-old attending his first Defender basketball game.
Byker remembers watching Rick Vander Berg patrol the sideline that night. About a decade later, Byker attended Dordt and got to know Vander Berg as the university’s athletic director. Several years after that, Vander Berg hired him.
Now, 25 years after Byker began leading Dordt’s sports information efforts in 2001, the director of athletic communications has been named the Great Plains Athletic Conference Sports Information Director of the Year. Byker will also represent the GPAC as a nominee for the NAIA Sports Information Director of the Year award.
For Byker, the honor adds another chapter to a career built remarkably close to where his story began: on a farm between Ireton and Hawarden.
“It’s just surreal to think, you know what? 20 miles from where I grew up,” Byker told Sioux County Radio. “I’m able to have a vocation and a calling where I feel like I’m being used in a good way to work for others.”
Byker said he has occasionally wondered whether he could do the same work somewhere else. Ultimately, he has never found much reason to leave.
“I don’t know that I would want to do it somewhere else,” Byker said. “I love what I do here, and that’s been enough for me.”
From Faxed Results to a Media Network
The profession Byker entered in 2001 bears little resemblance to the one he leads today. Early in his career, results were sent by fax, information arrived through traditional mail, and live video coverage was considered a luxury.
Now, livestreams are expected, social media offers numerous ways to reach supporters, and audiences want more than scores and statistics.
“The appetite for information, for stories—we haven’t filled it yet,” Byker said. “There is just an appetite for people and individuals that want to know more and more about us, to know more about our athletic department, to know more about our vision and why we do things the way we do them. And we continue to try to feed that appetite.”
One of the clearest examples of that evolution is the Dordt Media Network. Under Byker’s leadership, the network has grown into an extensive operation covering Defender teams across the university’s athletic program.
Byker said the goal is not to devote resources only to sports attracting the largest audiences. He wants each team covered at a level reflecting the work its athletes, coaches and families have invested.
The coverage also seeks to tell a broader story about what happens to students during their years at Dordt.
“If we are just simply focused on the wins and losses, and we don’t focus on why we do these things and how people change in the time that they’re here at Dordt, from the time they’re 18-year-olds to the time they’re 22-year-olds, we’re missing the true story of what collegiate athletics can be,” Byker said.
GPAC Commissioner Corey Westra said Dordt has successfully adapted its coverage while maintaining a consistent level of quality throughout the athletic program.
“There’s Division I programs that are probably envious of the quality of that program,” Westra told Sioux County Radio. “That’s credit to Mike, it’s credit to Rich Lodewyk, it’s credit to all the student workers and the vision of the university.”
A Recognition Shared with Others
While the honor carries Byker’s name, he sees it as recognition of a much larger team.
“I think it’s a reflection of working with really good people and being surrounded by them,” Byker said.
That includes those working alongside him in athletic communications, as well as partners throughout Dordt’s marketing, advancement, facilities and technology departments. Byker also credited the coaches, athletes and students who help make the coverage possible.
Westra described Byker as the “dean” of the conference’s sports information directors. When a new SID enters the GPAC looking for guidance, Westra frequently points that person toward Byker.
“Mike is looked to by all of our SIDs in the league as the go-to,” Westra said. “He’s just a steady presence and a great person to go to for advice and counsel.”
In Dordt’s announcement, University President Dr. Erik Hoekstra said Byker’s impact extends beyond the voice heard during Defender broadcasts.
“Mike’s voice is synonymous with Dordt athletics, but his voice isn’t Mike’s greatest contribution,” Hoekstra said. “It’s his heart—for students, coaches, fans, and Dordt’s mission.”
Dordt Director of Athletics Darin Keizer called Byker a legacy leader and emphasized the personal investment he makes in the people he serves.
“I would go beyond just calling him a good sports information director,” Keizer said. “He is a transformational leader who cares deeply about our coaches and athletes beyond the game.”
Byker said his message to those who work with him is rooted in consistency rather than individual recognition.
“You show up day after day,” Byker said. “You win some, you lose some. Some things work really well. Some things don’t. But you keep showing up.”
A Friendship that Predates Dordt
For Westra, the honor also carries a personal significance.
Byker and Westra both grew up near Ireton and attended grade school together. Years later, while Westra was a Dordt student, Byker invited him to join the radio broadcasts of Sheldon Orabs football on KIWA. They spent a fall traveling together and calling games before their careers eventually brought them back together in the GPAC.
“When you have these hometown relationships with people, they never go away,” Westra said. “That’s a really neat deal. I’m just really proud of him and what he’s done.”
This is the second time Byker has advanced as the GPAC’s nominee for the national award, having also been nominated in 2017. The NAIA award winners are scheduled to be announced September 15.
Byker acknowledged that representing the conference is meaningful, particularly because he respects the other communications professionals working throughout the GPAC. But with Dordt’s fall seasons approaching, he says that he is ready to get back at it.
