From UAlbany to Madison Square Garden: A Q&A with Qadeer Morgan
ALBANY, N.Y. (May 6, 2025) — Not too long ago, you could find Qadeer Morgan at Tom & Mary Casey Stadium, getting ready for a big game as a wide receiver for the University at Albany football team.
Now, the Great Danes alum spends most of his days inside the world’s most famous arena.
Morgan, who graduated from UAlbany in 2017 with a bachelor's degree in communication, is a senior manager of communications for the New York Knicks. He works at Madison Square Garden in New York City, where the Knicks play their home games. It is one of the most iconic venues in the world for sports, concerts and entertainment events.
Originally from Brooklyn, Morgan spent three seasons as a wide receiver with the Great Danes football team before becoming a manager for the men’s basketball team and interning with the UAlbany athletic communications department as a senior.
Working with UAlbany Athletics sparked his passion for a career in sports communications. He was able to land his first internship with the Rockland Boulders (now known as the New York Boulders), a professional baseball team in the Frontier League, and completed two more post-graduation communications internships with Octagon Sports and the Cleveland Browns.
He landed his first full-time position with the Buffalo Bills in 2019 as a communications coordinator and then spent two years with the Los Angeles Rams. He returned home in 2023 to work for the Knicks.
Morgan took some time from his busy schedule to talk about his passion for sports communications and his time at UAlbany.
What sparked your interest in attending UAlbany?
I was primarily interested in UAlbany because of football and because it is not too far from home in Brooklyn. I also valued how diverse of a campus it is, since I am from one of the most diverse cities in the country. From class to the dining halls or anywhere on campus, you see that everyone is different and nobody stands out. It reminds me of New York City in a nutshell, and that is something I’ve always loved about the University.
What made you interested in a career in sports communications?
I always dreamed of working in sports. I grew up watching professional teams like the New York Giants and the Knicks, and knew I wanted to work for a team of that stature, but I had never thought creatively about it.
It wasn’t until I met my mentor, who was working in the NFL, that I was really pointed in the right direction. He sat me down and told me how I could be as successful as him, but I needed to put in the work, and that it would not come easily. He challenged me to get more involved in school and build my resume.
When I was in college, I joined the Albany Sports Business Organization, which helped me to connect with professionals in the industry. I was able to attend workshops, career fairs and conferences where I learned valuable information, networked, and got more involved. My mentor motivated me to connect with the UAlbany basketball team and become a student manager, and then intern with the athletic communications department. He really gave me the blueprint on how to realistically build myself up and reach my goals.
How did you land your first professional internship, and what advice do you have for students interested in this line of work?
My internship at Octagon Sports marketing agency lasted a full year. For the first six months, I worked in global communications, and for the other six months I did consulting for BMW. I was able to land this internship by constantly applying to any openings they had. In this industry, you have to stay resilient. I would reach out to people and not hear back, I would not be accepted for various positions and internships, but I kept going until I was able to land this one.
At Octagon, I had great reviews from my bosses based on my work. I would use all the resources they offered and was applying to their internal job opportunities. I think they could really tell that I wanted to become full time and better myself. I would never just sit there and go through the flow, I would often work late and always strive to be my best self. Octagon would highlight their hard workers, so I was able to win Intern of the Month with them. This experience then propelled me to my next internship with the Cleveland Browns, and then eventually full time roles with the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams and now New York Knicks.
What are your favorite aspects of your career?
I love working with the athletes and helping them get their message across to the media. Most athletes are media trained, so I don’t have to prepare them too much, but I still have to work with them to make sure they mention key or important points.
My favorite memory from my career where I felt growth was back in 2021 when I worked with the L.A. Rams. This was a big year for the team, they had signed a bunch of big-name players and had high expectations. At one point, we were on a two-game losing streak and heading into Green Bay for a game we needed to win. But early that morning, I got a call from my boss saying he was sick and wasn’t going to make the trip. This put me into a bit of shock because I had never been on a road trip without him and I knew I was going to have to step up.
Long story short, we ended up losing the game. Prior to the game, a report came out that the quarterback Matthew Stafford was dealing with an elbow injury. He had always been great with the media, but for the first time all year, he asked me, “What should I say?” I was able to think of a response on my feet and we were able to resolve the whole situation quickly. This whole weekend experience of being without my boss and having to handle media inquiries after losing our third game in a row really helped me to grow.
Has there been a moment when you saw your work benefiting others?
I would say this also happened during my time with the Rams and my experience with cornerback Jalen Ramsey. Jalen had a reputation for being very tough with the media. He had previously had a notable three-to-four-week media holdout because he wanted a contract extension the year before I came to the Rams. He was regarded as the best cornerback in the NFL at this time. He would tell the media how he actually feels, which is not always for the benefit of the team, so I knew this was going to be a challenge.
After my first year with them, Jalen won the NFL’s “Media Good Guy” award. They would give this award to the person who was the best for the media, giving them real quotes and answers. He might have been brash at times, but he was giving them good quotes to work with. I felt that this was my biggest accomplishment, because my boss made it clear coming into the job that I would need to help him stay positive within the media. So, when he won that award, I was also able to share that experience because of the relationship we shared and how I was capable of helping him.