By Reilly Cahill

Sports and Society Initiative held its first Lunch ‘N’ Learn of the 2025-26 academic year, featuring Danny Kraft, director of creative design for Maryland football.

Lunch ‘N’ Learns provide Ohio State students opportunities to meet and hear from professionals in the sports industry. 

Kraft, a 2024 Ohio State graduate with a degree in industrial design, worked as a student for the Ohio State football and athletics graphic design team. He also worked in athletics graphic design as a freshman student at West Virginia University, before transferring to Ohio State. 

During the session, Kraft detailed his current role with Maryland football, as well as his experience at Ohio State, and gave advice to students about how to stand out to employers post-graduation.  

Kraft is the creative mind behind graphics for Maryland football’s social media account, as well as materials for recruits and Maryland coaches, including head coach Mike Locksley. 

“One part of my job is social media, and another part of my job, which is probably more important and a bigger beast but does not get the glory, is recruiting,” Kraft said. “Every week, we send a good luck to every single player that we are possibly recruiting.”

Here are the takeaways from Kraft’s Lunch ‘N’ Learn session.

Taking advantage of opportunities 

From Kraft’s time working for Ohio State athletics and football graphic design teams, he was able to gain valuable experience through new skills and connections that led him to his current role with Maryland. 

Kraft said that at Ohio State, if students want to have a successful career in their field going forward, it’s important to say yes to opportunities that are presented.

“You’re at Ohio State, which is the land of opportunity,” Kraft said. “There are so many things to do here, there are so many chances you have to learn things and meet great people. Don’t be hesitant to try new things.”

In his first years working at Ohio State, Kraft did not have a paid position, but he said he was “paid” in relationships and exposure that he got from the industry. He was a paid intern in his final year with the football program, when he served as the head designer before graduation.

Advice for post-graduation 

Before Kraft graduated from Ohio State, he created a portfolio of his work and posted it on X. He said his work reached attention, leading him to getting in contact with employers who were looking to hire him. 

Once he started getting interviewed for the position, Kraft understood that it was important to be true to himself to stand out. 

“You need to be confident in who you are,” Kraft said. “Don’t try and oversell yourself, but know what you know.”  

In the sports industry, Kraft said that it’s important to build solid relationships because of how small the industry is and how connected everyone in it is.

“Always try to be conscious of who you’re dealing with, especially in the sports world, because it’s such a small community and we all talk,” Kraft said. 

How Kraft developed graphic design skills 

Kraft started out doing graphic design for his high school hockey team, the Bishop Watterson Eagles. From then until his current role with Maryland football, he has advanced his graphic design skills, primarily through two ways: reaching out to other designers and through YouTube tutorials. 

Kraft stressed the importance of reaching out to other graphic designers to complement their designs and learn from them. 

“If there’s something you really want to learn from someone, most of the time they want to teach you,” Kraft said. 

Kraft’s biggest piece of advice for how he improved his work would be to research and learn from other designers.

“My biggest thing is (to) figure out something you see someone else doing and try to replicate that in your own way,” Kraft said. 

Danny Kraft's designs can be found at his website, dannykraft.com. Follow him on Instagram and X.