S4SC with Sonny Vaccaro Day 1 Recap

The 2014 Sport for Social Change Conference started off with a bang Thursday night!  Fans were blessed with a wonderful conversation between ESPN's Tom Farrey and basketball marketing legend, Sonny Vaccaro.  Vaccaro began his basketball marketing career with the Dapper Dan High School All Star Game in Pittsburgh, PA in 1965.  Dapper Dan was the first high school basketball all star game in the country; a groundbreaking idea by Vaccaro to help the public see the young basketball talent in the U.S.

Sport for Social Change Conference Preview

The Drexel Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU) will hold its second annual Sport for Social Change Conference, beginning on Thursday, Nov. 13 and concluding Friday, Nov. 14.

Thursday's portion of the Sport for Social Change Conference will feature a conversation with Sonny Vaccaro, the legendary sports marketing executive. The conversation will be directed by Tom Farrey, an enterprise reporter for ESPN and director of the Aspen Institute's Sport and Society Program. Vaccaro will speak about his involvement and thoughts about the Ed O'Bannon v. NCAA case.

Vaccaro and Farrey's conversation will take place at 6 p.m. in the Bossone Research Center's Mitchell Auditorium.

S4SC: ESPN and Aspen Institute's Tom Farrey to Speak at Drexel

Tom Farrey, director of the Aspen Institute Sport and Society Program and ESPN reporter, will speak at the 2nd annual Sport for Social Change Conference presented by the Drexel Sport Management Student Union (SMTSU) on Friday, Nov. 14, 2014, the SMTSU announced Tuesday.

The title of Farrey’s lecture is “The Aspen Institute’s Project Play & Promotion of Physical Literacy,” which will feature his work as the director of the Aspen Institute Sport and Society Program. He will deliver his lecture from 10-10:50 a.m. on Nov. 14.

NBA Extends Television Deal

On Monday, October 6, the NBA announced they had extended their television deals with Turner and Disney for nine years through the 2024-25 season.  This deal is said to be worth $24 billion and each team will receive $70 million over that time.  It appears to be a win-win-win for the league, teams, and players.

New NBA-ESPN/Turner Deal Cuts Cord

On Monday, the NBA struck a massive nine-year, $24 billion media right deal to extend current partners ESPN and Turner through 2024-25. The deal, impressive in its reach and its size, impacts a wide-range of people, including you and I. Kevin Draper summed up the different areas of high impact at Deadspin; it's thorough and well-worth the time to read. One of the major areas of focus in the deal is streaming rights, and the way the deal was negotiated, the NBA is preparing for a future where fans are pulling the plug on their cable televisions and opting for internet and mobile streaming.

Sport for Thought: #23

When LeBron James left his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers in 2010 for the Miami Heat, he decided  to exchange his #23 for #6. He said the number 23 should be retired throughout the NBA to give respect to arguably the greatest basketball player that has ever stepped foot onto a basketball court.

Guard the Post: The real star of the night

 

 

On Wednesday July 16th, 2014, all of the biggest stars hit the red carpet in Los Angeles for the 2014 ESPY Awards. Kevin Durant, Floyd 'Money' Mayweather, the NBA Champion San Antonio Spurs, Maria Sharapova, just to name a few. Some of these people are the biggest, most wealthy, and most talented human beings on the planet, but few were shining brighter than Stuart Scott.

Under Further Review No. 10 - Max Blau

This week's Under Further Review is adapted from an informational interview that I did with Max Blau for Dr. Giddings' Professional Portfolio class back in February, so note the different format. For anybody who has an interest in ever writing a freelance article, Blau's insight is extremely valuable. Enjoy!

Under Further Review: An Agenda Setting Review of the Michael Sam Coverage

On Sunday Feb. 9, the sports world was hit with one of the biggest news stories of the year: University of Missouri All-American defensive end Michael Sam said he is gay. Only two players in the five major sports had publicly come out prior to Sam – the NBA’s Jason Collins and the MLS’s Robbie Rogers. Sam, who recorded double-digit sacks as a senior and was honored as the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, is projected to be selected as high as the third round in this year’s NFL Draft, which would make him the first openly gay player to play in the NFL. The story was initially broken by ESPN and the NewYork Times, while Sports Illustrated followed closely behind, but further analysis reveals that each covered the news in unique ways.

Under Further Review: Michael Sam Steals the Show

"I'm not afraid to tell the world who I am. I'm Michael Sam: I'm a college graduate. I'm African American, and I'm gay." - Michael Sam

While the media was still trying to wrap their minds around the situation with Marcus Smart and those who were tired of the near-24 hours of coverage were taking in some action from Sochi, something happened. Changed happened. Former University of Missouri All-American defensive lineman and National Football League hopeful Michael Sam did something that no NFL prospect had ever done. He announced he is gay.

Guard the Post: Steaks and Sportsbiz, what else do you need?

Peyton Manning is maybe the most brilliant football mind of our generation. With that being said, he is notorious for his activity at the line of scrimmage; consistently calling audibles and motions is part of his game. This past weekend, Manning opened a "Pandora's box" that no one working in the Sports Business could have seen coming.

Under Further Review: NBC and ESPN trade rights

We see players traded nearly every day in sports. Unless a couple of super stars are involved in the swap, we tend to just ignore them. Outlets like ESPN, Fox Sports, CBS, NBC break the news about a lot of these player trades, something we're all used to by now. But rarely do the media outlets ever make trades like ESPN and NBC Sports made earlier this week when ESPN gave NBC the rights to the Ryder Cup in exchange for the ability to show English Premier League highlights.

Guard the Post: Why this College Basketball season will be the best ever

 

The 2013-2014 College Basketball season promises to be one of the best ever. National Letters of Intent combo-commitments, upsets,  growth of the mid-major, the best season-opening tournament in the history of season-opening tournaments, and the most highly anticipated Final Four ever. Sure, we have no idea what teams will make it there, but we do know, based on what we have seen through week 1, that it will be a crazy ride.

Take a Step Back and Say Thanks

Sport is such an interesting concept in our society. There are aspects of sport which are spectacular to witness, such as your favorite team winning the championship, experiencing a Cinderella team make a run in March Madness, or achieving a personal goal. Sport can teach us leadership, teamwork, strength, and the ability to overcome adversity. Along with all these benefits of sport, there are the areas of improvement. Governance structures in the NCAA and other leagues are questionable. Safety issues for players are becoming more relevant in the modern era of technology. Finally, the competitive drive in sport can be taken too far causing cheating, lying, and breaking the law. Despite all these pros and cons that are always at the heart of discussions about sport, there is one aspect that is way overlooked – professional athletes giving back to the sick and disabled.

Growing Pains For Fox Sports 1

After an impressive debut two Saturdays ago, FOX Sports 1 is learning quickly that competing with the established juggernaut that is ESPN is not going to be an easy task at all. FOX Sports 1’s debut success stemmed largely from the live UFC Fight Night card that pulled an impressive 1.38 rating, grabbing 1.78 million viewers according to Nielsen. The network’s version of SportsCenter, called FOX Sports Live, also had an impressive debut number with a 0.2 rating.

The Sports Biz Report - Episode 15 - Fox Sports 1 vs. ESPN

Under Further Review: Fox Sports 1 Ready For Launch

Fox Sports 1 launches on Saturday and you're probably waiting on the edge of your seat to see what the next 24/7 sports network has to offer, especially with the Evil Empire slipping further from the minds of avid sports fans. Nobody knows exactly what to expect from Fox Sports 1, but there's one thing we know for sure:

Fox Sports 1 will be FUN.

Leaving Your Mark: Search Firms Filling Head Coaching Vacancies

In a few different posts on this blog over the years, I have referenced recruiters and search firms in the sports and entertainment industry.  As some of you know, I worked at Turnkey Sports and Entertainment as a Senior Execuitive Recruiter for three years.  I completed searches from the Director-level up to C-level in the four major sports, MLS, motorsports, and collegiate marketing properties.  All of these positions were on the "business" side with no direct tie-in to the field or court.  

 

Under Further Review: Sports Media Carousel Keeps Turning

Your brain may be on summer vacation (don't tell your boss), but the sports world never sleeps.  Ever.  That's one of its greatest attributes, actually.  Sports media certainly does not sleep either, and in just two short weeks, there has been enough news to keep us all busy for a week.  Here are some major stories that you may have missed:

Under Further Review: Death of the Sports Highlight

Two weeks ago, Awful Announcing posed a simple question that, in theory, should have produced a simple answer.

Do we really want an old school highlights show?