Who's the Best Athletic Director in the Country? Posted Aug 17, 2017 About a year ago, I began a project to get a better handle on what makes a good athletic director and who the best ones are. I conducted two anonymous surveys: one with 15 of my media peers who cover college sports. The second was with 10 ADs themselves. What factors determine how effective these folks are at their jobs? And who are the best three ADs in the business? (ESPN.com)