By: Phil Carden ('11)

Back in the summer of 2003, Jim Harris (’04) stepped into The Big South Conference office as the first of many OU interns. Since his tenure The Big South Conference has continually hosted yearlong fellowships and summer interns leaving only a few weeks a year in which a Bobcat isn’t roaming the office. The conference continues to be a great partner of the OU Sports Ad program by way of a 1995 alumnus and Associate Commissioner, James Companion. James and his staff have been a great asset for students to learn from and witness first-hand what it means to give back by offering valuable experience for aspiring industry professionals. Fortunately, this summer I have taken my place among the ranks of OU students to call Charlotte, NC a temporary home.

This position has provided me a new perspective on marketing and partnerships in the conference and collegiate landscape. Being the “Marketing Assistant,” my primary role is to support James Companion and the Director of Marketing, Chad Cook, in all matters related to Corporate and Collegiate Partners. A few of the duties this has entailed are constructing performance affidavits, attending sales meetings, activation, prospecting, proposal development, assisting with branding initiatives, and anything else that can be taken off of their loaded plates.   

A valuable aspect of my experience has come from being able to see their partnerships at all stages of development.  During my first weeks the staff was fresh off a conference tour with their new partner Glidden Professional Paints. Since their initial meetings at the member institutions several “progress reports” have taken place to discuss ways to ensure that the maximum potential ROI is reached. Needless to say, all signs point to a long and mutually beneficial relationship for Glidden and The Big South Conference. On the flip side, partaking in numerous sales meetings with their brand new partner Belfor, has allowed me to view the key initial steps of forming business relationships and working out a model that suits the interest of all parties. Similar to Glidden’s process, Belfor is set to begin their campus tours in the very near future and look to make use of the on-campus relationships developed within the conference office.   

When not assisting with the Corporate and Collegiate partners a lot of my time has been devoted to helping Chad prepare for the inaugural Big South 5K Road Race. Held in South Charlotte this October, the race will benefit Charlotte middle school athletic programs. With public school budgets being tightened, many have adopted the pay- to-play model for their student-athletes, which some children simply can’t afford (if interested in supporting the cause, more info can be found here: http://bigsouth5k.racesonline.com/).

Being the first year for the event, there was (and still is) much to be done. Everything had to be addressed from scratch: permits, schedules, event management plans, sponsors, media outlets, website development, marketing plans, etc. It has been great to be involved in the beginning steps of such a meaningful event and I can’t wait to see the results! 

Now that there are only a few weeks left in the summer my internship with the Big South Conference is coming to a close. These last two weeks will be a blur, as I will be traveling to the member institutions executing the State Farm Back to School Tour. The next Bobcat in line, John Brown (’12), will be joining me for the campus events to help with sponsor activation at the schools in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. In the world of intercollegiate athletics summer events are few and far between so it will serve as a nice warm up for Bobcat football on September 4th.

My time with the Big South Conference has been awesome and I’m extremely grateful for being afforded the opportunity. Though I was only in Charlotte for a few months it will be a tough place to leave. Then again, the destination from here will be Athens, OH and more time with all of my 2011 classmates for what will be an amazing 2nd year at Ohio University. Oh, how time flies…