A former University of Colorado Boulder Athletics employee was arrested Monday and accused of embezzling more than $9,500 from the school’s Nike program.
Cory Randall Hilliard, 54, faces one count of embezzlement of public property, one count of theft and one count of first-degree official misconduct, according to a . Hilliard is in custody with bail set at $7,500 after turning himself in Monday morning at the Boulder County Jail, according to jail records.
Hilliard, the former Senior Associate Athletics Director, is accused of taking $9,510.50 from CU Boulder’s Nike Elite program between 2021 and 2025, the release says. He used that money to buy Nike products and ship them to a house in Superior, according to an arrest affidavit.
Each CU Athletics employee gets $625 to spend on Nike products every year, as part of the school’s sponsorship deal with the company, the affidavit says. Hilliard had full access to the Nike Elite program’s $90,000 budget, and used that to steal more money, according to the affidavit.
A CU internal audit shows Hilliard spent more than his allotted $625 for four years in a row, starting with $729 over his limit in 2022, the affidavit says. He is accused of spending even more each year, having spent $6,011 over his allotment in 2025, according to the affidavit. At the time, Hilliard’s salary was $200,000, CU officials said.
The items were mostly similar sizes of men’s clothing, the affidavit says. Hilliard told internal auditors in July 2025 that he spent more money than he was supposed to, and that he spent it on himself.
When speaking to a CU Police officer on July 28, 2026, Hilliard said he was working to repay the debt, the affidavit says.
Another Athletics employee was working to assess Nike Elite spending during contract negotiations and found that Hilliard appeared to have spent $6,300 in one year, according to the affidavit. When that employee looked at individual transactions, he found the clothing purchases with consistent men’s sizing.
When that man’s supervisor brought the findings to CU Athletics Director Rick George, George notified the university on July 22, 2025, prompting the internal audit, the affidavit says.
CU Boulder and the CU Police Department investigated Hilliard by checking his financial records, interviewing other Athletics Department employees and looking at transactions Hilliard made with his Nike Elite account, according to the release.
Hilliard left CU in August 2025, according to CU Athletics spokesperson Steve Hurlbert.
Hilliard was hired last December as chief financial officer of USA Swimming, according to The Associated Press. The organization put him on leave Monday after learning of his arrest.
CU is actively working to update its policies with its Nike Elite program to reflect the internal audit’s recommendations, Hurlbert said. That policy is expected to be finalized by the end of this week, he said.
“CU Boulder does not tolerate fiscal misconduct in any form and once CUPD was notified it took immediate investigative action,” CUPD Chief Ashley Griffin wrote in the release.
Hilliard is scheduled for a review hearing in Boulder County District Court on Wednesday, according to online court records.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
