OVC New School Presentation

OVC: PREPARED FOR GROWTH

• EXCITING FUTURE FOR THE CONFERENCE.

• OVC HAS BEEN ACTIVELY AND THOUGHTFULLY FOCUSED ON MEMBERSHIP GROWTH. WE ARE AHEAD OF OTHERS IN THE PROCESS.

• THE OVC IS THE EIGHTH OLDEST DIVISION I CONFERENCE (1948).

• THE OVC WILL CELEBRATE OUR 75TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2022-23.

• THE OVC IS A PRESIDENT-LED LEAGUE.

WELCOME TO THE OVC

A COMPETITIVE CONFERENCE

At the OVC, we:

• provide a competitive environment for our student-athletes to be successful at the Division I level while gaining experiences that provide lessons for life.

• are dedicated to integrity on and off the playing field.

GREAT GEOGRAPHIC FOOTPRINT

ST.

• OVC’S FOOTPRINT IS MOVING A BIT FARTHER NORTH AND WEST.

• CREATING A THREE-MARKET PRESENCE WITH NASHVILLE, EVANSVILLE, AND ST. LOUIS.

EVANSVILLE

• EASY ACCESS TO FAMILY AND FANS TO ATTEND COMPETITIONS AND CHAMPIONSHIPS. NASHVILLE

CLOSE PARTNERSHIPS WITH EVANSVILLE

• THE FORD CENTER HAS SERVED AS THE HOME OF THE OVC MEN’S AND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS SINCE 2018.

• THE MEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME CROWD OF 10,525 IN 2019 ESTABLISHED A NEW OVC TOURNAMENT ATTENDANCE RECORD. THE PREVIOUS RECORD WAS SET THE NIGHT BEFORE WITH 8,145 FANS IN ATTENDANCE. • THE WESSELMAN TENNIS CENTER HOSTED THE 2021 OVC MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS AND WILL HOST THEM AGAIN IN 2022.

A COMPETITIVE BALANCE ACROSS THE CONFERENCE

NATIONAL LEVEL SUCCESS

Over the past six years, the OVC has placed multiple teams in the NCAA Championship fields of these sports:

• Baseball

• Men’s Basketball

• Football

• Rifle

Over the past six years, the OVC has won NCAA Tournament games in the following sports:

• Baseball

• Men’s Basketball

• Women’s Basketball

• Football

• Soccer

• Softball

• Volleyball

NATIONAL LEVEL SUCCESS

Success at the National Level

• In 2019, two OVC schools (Belmont, Murray State) participated in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship, with both schools picking up a victory.

• In 2018 the Tennessee Tech baseball team became the first OVC squad to advance to the Super Regionals (coming up one win shy of the College World Series). The Golden Eagles finished that year ranked No. 11 nationally.

• Over the past six years, OVC programs have been nationally-ranked in media/coaches polls in these sports: baseball, men’s basketball, women’s basketball, men’s and women’s cross country and football.

• Six times in the past nine years, an OVC team has competed at the NCAA Cross Country National Championship.

• Murray State’s Linette Holmslykke advanced to the NCAA Women’s Golf Championship in 2019.

• Twice since 2013, two OVC men’s golfers have advanced to the NCAA National Championship.

OVC GRADUATES AT THE NEXT LEVEL

JA MORANT (Murray State), 2020 NBA Rookie of the Year and star point guard for the Memphis Grizzlies.

ROBERT COVINGTON (TSU), only active NBA player from an HBCU.

JIMMY GARRAPOLO

(Eastern Illinois), NFL quarterback who led the San Francisco 49ers to Super Bowl LIV in 2020.

OVC GRADUATES AT THE NEXT LEVEL

SCOTT STALLINGS (TN Tech), winner of the 2011 PGA Greenbrier Classic and a three-time winner on the PGA Tour.

ALEC MILLS (UT Martin), threw a no-hitter for Chicago Cubs in 2020.

CHELSEY PERRY (UT Martin), a twotime OVC Player of the Year, plays for the Indiana Fever.

OVC RECOGNITION VS. COMPETITORS

In a 2021 survey of college sports fans in this region:

• 46% of individuals surveyed associated the OVC with football, 8 points higher than the ASUN Conference and 16 points higher than the Southland Conference

• 34% of individuals associated the OVC with basketball, second only to the Big South Conference

• 68% of respondents had a positive view of the OVC, top amongst the ASUN, Big South, Southern, and Southland Conferences

GOVERNANCE AND ADMINISTRATION

• THE OVC IS LED BY AN ENGAGED, ACTIVE, AND COLLABORATIVE GROUP OF PRESIDENTS AND CHANCELLORS.

• THE BOARD WORKS WITH COUNCIL OF DIRECTORS OF ATHLETICS. • OVC STUDENT-ATHLETE ADVISORY GROUP MEETS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR TO ENSURE STUDENTATHLETES’ VOICES ARE HEARD AND CONCERNS ARE ADDRESSED.

• NATIONAL ENGAGEMENT.

STRONG

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

• The Finance Committee governs the OVC’s finances. The conference starts each fiscal year (July 1 to June 30) with net cash reserves of a sum equal to $60,000 multiplied by the number of member institutions in the conference.

• Before the end of the fiscal year, the Conference distributes to its full members all remaining net revenue received during that fiscal year.

• Funds earned by the OVC through the NCAA Basketball Tournament's Performance Fund are distributed to the members.

• Currently, the OVC has earned three basketball performance units and gives CFP money. The conference will receive those units for four additional years.

• The OVC is in year three of a seven-year contract with ESPN. Most years, the OVC Finance Committee recommends the members receive a media distribution or new media equipment, subject to the Board’s approval.

NCAA DISTRIBUTIONS

FOCUSED

Administrators and coaches place a premium on education and graduation, with student-athletes graduating at a higher rate than the student body.

COMMITMENT TO STUDENT-ATHLETES

COMMISSIONER’S HONOR ROLL

A record 1,672 OVC student-athletes achieved at least a 3.25 GPA during the 2019-2020 academic year.

OVC ACADEMIC MEDAL OF HONOR

Presented to a record 292 OVC student-athletes in 2020.

SUPPORT

A core value of the OVC is providing the necessary resources to help student-athletes to be well-balanced, healthy, safe and reach their fullest potential in life.

NATIONAL VISIBILITY

• The OVC has a multi-year media rights agreement that includes a minimum of 650 conference events per year on ESPN+ as well as a linear TV package on the ESPN Family of Networks.

• The OVC began a sponsorship with IMG College in 2008. Now known as Learfield IMG College, the rights deal gives the national company exclusive management of the OVC’s sponsorship sales.

• The OVC produces multiple weekly radio segments that are shared throughout the conference to help promote league schools, coaches, and student-athletes.

STRATEGICALLY LOCATED

The OVC has a geographically friendly footprint, anchored by a triangle of strong metro markets. This enhances our natural rivalries and adds to the opportunity for increased visibility for our member schools across the region.

• The OVC has been located in the Nashville area since 1979, placing the conference in one of the most desirable places to live and also in one of the top tourist destinations in the United States. And it is one of the fastest growing metro areas in the U.S.

• The OVC has a strong presence in the St. Louis, one of the key markets for travel in the midwest.

• Evansville has been home to the OVC’s basketball championships since 2018 and the tennis championships since 2020.

INTEGRITY AND CHARACTER

• Leading in Sportsmanship: in 1995, the OVC was the first conference to implement a Sportsmanship Statement.

• The statement has become a model for others to follow across the nation and has answered the challenge of the NCAA Presidents' Commission to improve sportsmanship in collegiate athletics.

• In 2003-04, the OVC began to honor the Conference institution selected by its peers to have best exhibited the standards of sportsmanship and ethical conduct through the Institutional Sportsmanship Award.

WE CARE

Every year the OVC provides professional development opportunities for studentathletes, coaches and administrators through a variety of outlets:

• League-wide Leadership Training with Dr. Becky Bedics

• Annual Student-Athlete Well-Being Summit (including sleep doctors, dietitian and mental health experts).

• Women’s Professional Development events, including Female Coaches.

• APR and Certification workshops.

• Web streaming/Broadcast training

LEADING THE “RIGHT WAY”

Longstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion

Program to develop women and minority professionals

NOW IS YOUR TIME

Joining the OVC means:

• ENHANCING ALL OF YOUR ATHLETIC PROGRAMS.

• A COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABLE GROWTH.

• THE DEDICATION TO THE BETTERMENT OF ALL SCHOOLS AND STUDENT-ATHLETES.

• THE CONTINUED FOCUS ON DOING THINGS THE RIGHT WAY, NOT THE EASY WAY.