Story by Colton Primm '17
Growing up in Arkansas, it is every boy’s dream to be a part of the Arkansas Razorbacks. Although I was not quite fast enough for Coach Mike Anderson’s Razorback basketball team and not quite big enough for Coach Bret Bielema’s Razorback football team, my chance to be a Razorback would soon come.
After playing four years of Division III college basketball at Hendrix College, I was not ready to give up my involvement with sports. After applying and interviewing to the Ohio University Sports Administration program during the spring of my senior year, I was presented the opportunity to take a fellowship working in marketing for the University of Arkansas athletics department. Needless to say, I jumped at the opportunity.
Starting my fellowship in the summer gave me the chance to prove my worth to the department and gain more responsibilities by the time the fall rolled around. The summer included several grassroots marketing initiatives, including the Razorback Summer Caravan.
As part of the Summer Caravan, Arkansas Athletics engaged with fans from around the state by visiting all 75 counties in Arkansas. Other office duties during the summer included cleaning out the marketing closets and organizing offices (fun stuff!).
Little did I know, that after two months on the job of doing typical “intern” work, I would find myself as the field producer for the first ever live event on the SEC Network. Nor did I imagine myself helping create game day scripts and timing sheets for the first home football game just a few weeks later. Over the course of the year, my duties included involvement with football, men’s basketball, softball, and baseball, as well as being the secondary marketing contact and field/court producer for soccer and women’s basketball. In addition, I had the honor of working with the Southeastern Conference and SEC Network at the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament in Little Rock, Arkansas.
However, I took the most pride in my work as the primary marketing contact for gymnastics and men’s and women’s tennis. I had the opportunity to create and execute my own marketing plan over the course of the season, manage a budget, produce game scripts and timing sheets, and serve as the game director for those events. I even had the privilege of doing PA for the women’s tennis team!
My experiences of being a game director came with a lot of responsibility and pressure, which contributed to my growth as a leader, both personally and professionally. As a game day director for gymnastics, I collaborated with the video production crew, event management, PA, third party lighting production crews, and oversaw a large number of student workers to execute in-game promotions. My favorite promotions that I organized and executed for gymnastics were Daddy-Daughter Date Night, Flip for a Cure (pink meet), and 80’s night.
One of the greatest achievements during my time at Arkansas was setting the 11th-best home average attendance for the season of the 80 NCAA schools to host a home meet. We also posted the 11th-highest single meet attendance in the nation with 4,654 fans when we hosted Florida, which happened to be the 8th-highest attendance in school history.
My one year fellowship at Arkansas was an unforgettable experience and just what I needed in order to grow and better prepare myself for the prestigious Sports Administration program at Ohio University. Not only did I learn about the ins and outs of working in a big time college athletics department, but I discovered a lot about myself including areas that I like and areas that I am not quite as interested in.
By far, the best part about being at Arkansas was the opportunity to network and collaborate with those in both marketing and other areas of athletics as well. I met a number of amazing people including those in the business department, communications, ticketing, development, facilities, and event management that I will hold close relationships with for the rest of my life. In addition, the opportunity to work under the leadership of Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics and College Football Playoff Chair, Jeff Long is an experience that I am forever very grateful for. In concluding, I am proud to say that I was able to fulfill my boyhood dream of being a Razorback! Go Hogs!
You can contact Colton on email.
Class of 2016 Fellowship Summaries
Mike Caviston, University of Nevada, Reno
Courtney Ksiazek, Ohio University PMSA Program Fellow
Kelley Johnson, Ohio University Center for Sports Administration Fellow
Why Choose Ohio University Sports Administration?
1. The Curriculum: The MBA/MSA combination
The two-year MBA/MSA program prepares students for leadership positions by combining the business teaching of the Ohio University MBA program with sport-specific knowledge during the MSA program. This degree combination recognizes the growing complexity of the sports, facility and entertainment industries, and reinforces Ohio University's commitment to preparing students for the leadership challenges of the future. SportBusiness International recently ranked the program the #1 Overall Postgraduate Sports Course in the World.
The MBA phase of the program uses a problem-based learning style, immersing students in collaborative projects and working situations that are commonplace in the business world. Students learn basic business concepts in a real-life context, and develop skills in communication, collaboration and teamwork that are essential for success, while developing their ability to be creative, take initiative, and accept personal responsibility for their actions.
The MSA program combines classroom and practical experience to prepare individuals for leadership positions in the sport industry. An interdisciplinary approach gives students the freedom to choose courses of personal interest and build a foundation of knowledge in their desired career fields.
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