In the latest edition of the Sports Innovation Journal, the editing staff called out for a special issue focused on the current state and future of governance in intercollegiate athletics. With Name, Image, Likeness coming to the forefront, the college athletics landscape has changed, and we called for researchers to provide us their studies focused on College Athletics Governance.
Below is the abstract and link to each research article published by these fantastic authors:
Host Dr. Geoffre Sherman sits down with Chris Scroggins of Esports Development and Growth Enterprises (EDGE). Scroggins discusses the origins of his career in esports as a fan, a player, and a professional researcher. Chris was a member of a small team that implemented an esports program at Shenandoah University at a time when esports was still growing into the mainstream, this effort not only led to a one-of-a-kind degree program and esports facility, but also inspired the formation of EDGE. Shenandoah University was the first program in the world to have a dedicated esports venue, an academic major, and a varsity level team – positioning the school as a leader in esports studies and competition. EDGE allowed the group of experts that implemented the esports program at Shenandoah to share their methods with other educational institutions to help further legitimize scholastic esports and create esports advocates across the country. Scroggins discusses the stigmas and obstacles that esports face and must overcome to further grow into a mainstream pastime and how the benefits of Esports far outweigh the perceived negatives.
During the Spring semester of 2022, students in the Sports Management Consulting senior capstone class at IUPUI were tasked with reimagining the entire youth and high school sports ecosystem in a partnership with the Center for Sport Transformation and renowned coaching expert Dr. Wade Gilbert. Students set out to understand the needs and challenges faced by youth sports stakeholders through interviews. Each student conducted 4 interviews with student athletes, parents, coaches, school officials, and Athletic Directors, reaching a total of 100 interviews as a class.
In this publication of the Sports Innovation Journal, authors Bradley Baker, Anthony Pizzo, and Yiran Su explore the emergence of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) in the sports industry. NFTs are a form of digital ownership that is recorded to a permanent ledger on blockchain. NFTs have transformed from free digital art pieces to highly valued and sought-after collectibles in a matter of years. Baker and his fellow authors explore the emergence of league-based NFT marketplaces, such as NBA Top Shot, and examine how this new trend can lead to exciting and lucrative revenue generating opportunities for sports leagues, teams, and athletes alike. This article serves as a research primer for sports academics and professionals who are interested in finding a use for NFTs within their organizations. Click here to access the full article in the Sports Innovation Journal.
By Anshuman Dixit, IUPUI Informatics graduate student
Indy Eleven had a difficult season last year where it managed to finish 6th in their Eastern Central Division despite a good start to the season early on. Out of the 31 teams in USL championship, Indy Eleven came 25th with a record of 9-8-15 in their 32 match season.
As the new season commences this week, let’s look at the performance of Indy Eleven in the 2021 season in more depth and understand what really went wrong for Max Rogers and co.
My name is Austin Anderson and I’m a data science intern for Upper Hand. This is my first real foray into the industry and it has already taught me so many valuable pieces of information that it’s really hard to condense them all into one coherent blog post.
by The SII Team
On March 4-5, the IU Indianapolis Sports Innovation Institute and the Monon Development Group collaborated to develop creative and innovative concepts that could be included when it opens in March 2023. Students from the School of Informatics, School of Computer Graphics Engineering, School of Health and Human Sciences, and others came together to develop ideas that could shape the development of Monon | 30 to make it a destination experience.
Monon | 30 is a $100 million mixed use development on the Monon Trail corridor at 30th & Fall Creek Parkway at the intersection of the Monon and Nickle Plate trails in Indianapolis. The mission of the Monon Development Group is to eliminate blight and create inspiring mixed use property projects designed to benefit the workforce and the surrounding neighborhood. The site will feature food & beverage, commercial, entertainment, and public activity offerings in addition to residential apartments. The Monon 30 Project aims to redefine entertainment in Indy and become a destination experience by creating a casual, economical, flexible, and multipurpose environment. Monon | 30 is a multi-functional, always innovative and never-the-same-twice space for Indiana by Indiana.
Relevant concepts students created included programming, retail and restaurant concepts, tourism attractions, sports and physical activity, engineering and design concepts, application of technology to the visual and physical environment, thematic storytelling in the built environment, and other suggestions for interest and activity.
Students grouped together, ideated, and delivered a five-minute pitch to project developers, industry experts, and community residents at the end of the sprint. Ideas with merit and students with passion for their ideas will have an opportunity to connect with various stakeholders to further develop ideas created during the sprint.
by Dallas Hutchinson and Andrew Marion, IUPUI Informatics graduate students
We are interested in predicting the number of wins for each NBA team after the All-Star Break. The post-All-Star stretch is arguably one of the most important parts of an NBA Season. This is the time that each team has its final roster after the NBA trade deadline. Each team is trying to fight for playoff positioning, or “fighting” for the worst record and draft lottery positioning.
Mark LaBarbera, Athletic Director at Valparaiso University, recently announced his retirement at the end of the 2021-2022 academic year. LaBarbera joined the Sports Innovation Podcast Intercollegiate Athletics Special Series for a deep dive on the institutional processes and behind-the-scenes decision-making in changing their nickname from the Crusaders to the Beacons amidst controversy.
