Athletic Management 25.4 by Momentummedia

June/July 2013

Vol. XXV, No. 4

$7.00

More Fun for Fans Adding alcohol to concession sales

1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

A YEAR OF CELEBRATION

› Preventing Sexual Violence › Success as an Interim › Banning Cell Phones › Sports Med/Training Innovations

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Circle No. 100

Contents June/July 2013

Vol. XXV, No. 4

1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

Join Us In celebrating our 25th year of publication!

43 28

COVER STORY

More Fun for Fans

As college athletic departments look for ways to enhance the game-day experience and boost revenue, more and more are allowing alcohol sales at their contests. Some are finding it also helps with crowd control.

PROGRESSIVE PROGRAMS Leaders

Against Violence

Can coaches play a role in stopping violence against women among their student-athletes? This athletic director has found the answer to be yes.

FUNDRAISING

Selling Breakfast

Partnering with a local company, Middleborough (Mass.) High School is thinking outside the box by selling something inside a box.

Look for this special logo throughout the issue.

Debating two vs. three

5 Marketing

New idea for pricing tickets

8 Leadership

Checking in with Vic Cegles

10 Team Rules

Coaches ban cell phones

12 Progressive Programs

LEADERSHIP

Top of their Game

Especially when they are new to the profession, coaches can struggle in many areas. At this NCAA Division III school, a special program is helping them reach their full potential.

SPORTS MEDICINE & TRAINING

Safe and Strong

The fields of sports medicine and strength and conditioning have become integral parts of an athletic department over the past 25 years. In this article, we present the top 25 innovations in these two areas.

PRODUCT NEWS

Fitness Facilities

WARMUP

5 Officiating

Emerging through sports

Q&A

15 Tom Shirley Philadelphia University GAMEPLANS

21 Being an Interim AD

By Nona Richardson

25 Strategic Planning

By Tom Jeffrey

Our product section focuses on fitness facilities, washers and dryers, and equipment storage, as well as whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s new in the industry. You can also preview exhibitors at the NACDA and AEMA conventions.

72 Advertisers Directory On the cover Football fans cheer on the home team at West Virginia University, which started selling beer at games in 2011, a trend discussed in our cover story, beginning on page 28.

77 Web Site Directory 80 Next Stop: Web Site AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 1

Editorial Board VOL. XXV, NO. 4

JUNE/JULY 2013

Elizabeth “Betsy” A. Alden, PhD, President, Alden & Associates, Inc. Dan Cardone, Athletic Director, North Hills High School, Pa.

PUBLISHER Mark Goldberg

James Conn, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Dept. of Health & Human Performance, Central Missouri State University Robert Corran, PhD, Director of Athletics, University of Vermont James Cox, Facilities and Events Coordinator and Adjunct Professor, Barry University

EDITOR IN CHIEF Eleanor Frankel ASSOCIATE EDITOR Dennis Read ASSISTANT EDITORS RJ Anderson, Patrick Bohn, Kristin Maki, Mary Kate Murphy

Joan Cronan, Former Women’s Athletic Director, University of Tennessee Roger Crosley, Director of Communications, ECAC Bernie DePalma, Assistant Athletic Director/Head Athletic Trainer/Physical Therapist, Cornell University

ART DIRECTOR Pamela Crawford CIRCULATION DIRECTOR David Dubin

Tom Douple, Commissioner, Mid-Continent Conference

PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Maria Bise

Jay Gardiner, Commissioner, Southern Athletic Association

GRAPHIC ARTIST Trish Landsparger

Dale Gibson, EdD, Chair, Dept. of Education and Sport Management, Tusculum College

PREPRESS MANAGER Neal Betts

Tom Gioglio, EdD, Director of Athletics, East Stroudsburg University Mike Glazier, Partner, Bond, Schoeneck & King

BUSINESS MANAGER Pennie Small

Steve Green, Deputy Director of Athletics, Northwestern University

SPECIAL PROJECTS Natalie Couch, Dave Wohlhueter

Kevin Hatcher, Athletic Director, Cal State San Bernardino

ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT Sharon Barbell

Phillip Hossler, ATC, Athletic Trainer, East Brunswick High School, N.J. E. Newton Jackson, Jr., PhD, Associate Provost, University of North Florida

MARKETING DIRECTOR Sheryl Shaffer

Dick Kemper, CMAA, Executive Director, Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Bob Knickerbocker, Athletic Equipment Coordinator, Michigan State University John Knorr, EdD, Professor of Kinesiology, former Director of Athletics, St. Edward’s University Donald Lowe, MA, ATC, Chairman of the Board, College Athletic Trainers' Society Robert Mathner, PhD, Assistant Professor, Sport Management, Troy University Tim Neal, Assistant Director of Athletics for Sports Medicine, Syracuse University Fred Nuesch, Coordinator of Athletic External Affairs, Texas A&M-Kingsville Jamie Plunkett, Head Athletic Trainer, Allegheny College Chris Ritrievi, Vice President of Development, Indiana University

BUSINESS & EDITORIAL OFFICES 20 Eastlake Rd., Ithaca, NY 14850 Phone: (607) 257-6970, Fax: (607) 257-7328 e-mail: info@MomentumMedia.com ADVERTISING SALES ASSOCIATE Diedra Harkenrider, (607) 257-6970, ext. 24 ADVERTISING MATERIALS COORDINATOR/ SALES Mike Townsend, (607) 257-6970, ext. 13

Matthew J. Robinson, EdD, Associate Professor/Director of Sport Management Program, University of Delaware Calli Theisen Sanders, EdD, Senior Associate Athletics Director, Iowa State University Terry Schlatter, EMC, Equipment Manager, University of Wisconsin Tim Slauter, CMAA, Assistant Principal, West Lafayette High School, Ind. Michael Slive, Commissioner, Southeastern Conference Donald Staffo, PhD, Professor, Health, Phys. Ed., & Rec., Stillman College Ellen Staurowsky, EdD, Professor of Sport Management, Drexel University William F. Stier, Jr., EdD, Director of Sport Management/ Coordinator of Sport Coaching, State University of New York at Brockport Lou Strasberg, University Travel Coordinator, The University of Memphis E. Michael Stutzke, CMAA, Athletic Director, Sebastian River High School, Fla. Michael Thomas, Director of Athletics, University of Illinois Troy Tucker, Athletic Director, Northampton Community College Michael Vienna, PhD, Athletic Director, Salisbury University Randy Warrick, Athletic Director, University of South Carolina at Aiken William Whitehill, EdD, ATC, Director, Athletic Training Curriculum, Middle Tennessee State University Sister Lynn Winsor, BVM, CMAA, Athletic Director, Xavier College Preparatory, Ariz. Tom Yeager, Commissioner, Colonial Athletic Association

2 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

Athletic Management (ISSN 1554-2033) is published bimonthly for a total of 6 times a year, by MAG, Inc., 20 Eastlake Rd., Ithaca, NY, 14850. Athletic Management is distributed without charge to qualified high school and collegiate athletic program and athletic facilities personnel. The paid subscription rate is $24 for one year/six issues in the United States and $30.00 in Canada. The single copy price is $7. Copyright ©2013 by MAG, Inc. All rights reserved. Text may not be reproduced in any manner, in whole or in part, without permission of the publisher. Unsolicited materials will not be returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. Periodicals postage paid at Ithaca, NY, and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Athletic Management, P.O. Box 4806, Ithaca, NY 14852-4806. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.

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Circle No. 102

WarmUp Officiating

TWO VS. THREE High school athletic directors have debated for years whether to use two or three officials at their varsity basketball competitions. This winter, the Utah High School Activities Association (UHSAA) wrapped up a fiveyear pilot program focused on finding an answer. Prior to 2008, Utah schools used two-person crews exclusively. The UHSAA started the project by distributing surveys to coaches from each of the state’s five classifications to gauge their interest in switching to three officials. Only those from the boys’ 5A division agreed to participate. After seeing the results, coaches from boys’ 4A joined

on in 2009. Although girls’ basketball coaches had voted against the idea previously, the UHSAA’s Executive Committee decided to add threeperson crews in 3A, 4A, and 5A boys’ and girls’ postseason play in 2011 and 2012. Mike Petty, Supervisor of Officials for the UHSAA, was a supporter of the pilot program from the beginning. “The three-person system makes game management better,” he says. “Each official has a smaller area to cover than in a two-person crew. The additional set of eyes on the court picks up fouls that frequently get missed, such as illegal off-ball screens and thrown elbows. The game becomes cleaner and safer.”

Northwestern University men’s basketball fans purchased tickets to the Wildcats’ final two home games through a new program called “Purple Pricing.” In the never-ending quest to properly price tickets, Northwestern University may have found a helpful new method. Taking dynamic pricing in a new direction, the school experimented with a type of reverse Marketing auction for selling tickets to its final two 2012-13 men’s basketball home games.

WHAT PRICE IS RIGHT?

Under the system, which was developed by a pair of economics professors at the school and called “Purple Pricing,” ticket prices are initially set at a high price. If not enough tickets are sold, the school can reduce the price as often as they want before game day. Once a final price is reached, that figure is applied to all previous sales. Fans who had paid more than the final price are given a refund. “Each buyer is guaranteed to pay the lowest price, regardless of when they buy tickets,” says Shawn Sullivan, Director of Sales and Marketing for Northwestern athletics. “There is no incentive for a buyer to wait and see if the price will go down, as with other dynamic pricing systems.”

SJ CARRERA(TOP); RICK BOWMER/AP PHOTO (BOTTOM).

Tickets for the Feb. 28 game against Ohio State University, traditionally a top draw at Northwestern, were set at $35 before the Purple Pricing plan was announced in mid-February. The Purple Price started at $70 before settling at $37. Tickets for the Penn State University game a week later started at $28, the same price as before the new system was unveiled, and finished at $20. “We didn’t do this to sell more tickets, but for data collection To watch a video and analysis,” Sullivan says. explaining“Purple “It gave us the opportunity Pricing” to ticket to learn exactly the optimal buyers, go to: price point rather than havbit.ly/10WmE9Q. ing to guess at it. We found that in some cases, such as the Ohio State game, there are fans willing to pay more for Northwestern basketball tickets than what we were charging.”

›

Lone Peak High School and Alta High School compete in the 2013 5A state championship game in Utah, which has been studying the effects of using three basketball officials instead of two.

AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 5

WarmUp In addition, Petty believes using three officials allows veterans to keep working longer and helps rookies learn faster. “A two-person crew requires more running,” he says. “I know of situations where referees who were ready to retire stayed on after moving to a three-person system. “In the past, we’ve also had problems keeping newer refs because it took years for them to move beyond the j.v. level,” Petty continues. “But now that we’re using three referees, our younger officials often get assignments with two of our veterans, which should help them learn and rise more quickly.” On the other hand, detractors say three officials see too much, leading to an overabundance of foul calls that lengthens games. Some coaches are also concerned about having quantity over quality. They feel having to fill more officiating

slots will bring inexperienced referees to varsity courts.

tive. And because boys’ games in class 4A and 5A had three officials throughout the regular season, some people even raised the possibility of the disparity being a Title IX violation.

One of the biggest factors that has led some athletic directors to support the twoperson crews is cost. Officials in Utah receive $56.50 for a varsity game, in addition to being compensated for part of their traveling expenses. To accommodate the pilot program, referees agreed to take a five-dollar pay cut, but it would still cost schools upwards of $1,000 more per season to hire a third official for both boys’ and girls’ basketball home games. Another challenge the Utah pilot program faced moving forward was gender equity. Three-person crews weren’t introduced to girls’ basketball until the postseason of the third year. Because they were accustomed to playing with two officials during the regular season, several squads said the change was disrup-

In addition, a number of girls’ basketball coaches believe their games already get lower-quality officials, so adding one more would not be helpful. “The biggest issue for [girls’ teams] was that we wanted our officials to be drawn from the same pool as varsity boys’,” Deb Bennett, Athletic Director and former girls’ basketball coach at Skyline High School in Salt Lake City, told the Deseret News. “We weren’t against three refs as much as we were against getting more inexperi-

›

enced officials. Can’t we have some equality in officiating?” “All of our referees go through the same training and are certified,” counters Petty. “But I have no control over whether a ref chooses to work boys’ or girls’ games.” Utah coaches and administrators are now being asked for their final reactions to the pilot program, and the UHSAA’s Executive Committee will vote on whether or not to continue expanding the use of three officials in June. Citing studies that show no increase in game length or number of fouls called, Petty is pushing for Utah to join North Carolina and Alabama as the only states to require three referees at the high school varsity level.

Check the blog section of our Web site in late June for Utah’s final decision: www.AthleticManagement.com

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Leadership

MAKING CONNECTIONS 1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

Fundraising is in Vic Cegles’s blood. Entering his eighth year as Athletic Director at Long Beach State University, Cegles has helped increase annual fundraising revenue every year, thanks to his restructuring of operations. He also secured a $2 million cash gift, the largest in department history.

Back in 1989, when he was Assistant Athletic Director for Development at Arizona State University, Cegles wrote an article for our second issue of (College) Athletic Management. The topic was identifying prospects for fundraising campaigns. We caught up with Cegles this spring to find out what has changed when it comes to securing donors. “There’s a lot more sophistication in terms of identifying prospects today,”

he says. “Back then, it was all about finding contacts through volunteers and word of mouth. While those are still important, now you can use technology to help identify people. “For example, you can have your development office give you a list of alumni who live in ZIP codes where you know the home values are typically $1 to $2 million,” Cegles continues. “That makes it a lot easier to identify good prospects.”

Normally, you would not confuse Aberdeen (S.D.) Roncalli High School Athletic Director Tom Murphy with a member of the Bee Gees. But the day after the school’s girls’ basketball team “stayed alive” to capture its first regional title in over 40 years, Murphy, as he promised, showed up to school wearing a

8 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

But for all the changes brought on by technology, Cegles says the heart of fundraising is the same as it was in the late 1980s. “In the end, success in fundraising is always about establishing relationships,” he says. “So you have to find the best way to connect with people. Is it through their family? Is it golf? Is it their love of the

disco-ready pastel yellow leisure suit straight out of the 1970s. “Midway through the season, the team asked me if I would break out what they call my ‘banana suit’ if they won the region and advanced to the state tournament,” says Murphy, who last wore his vintage threads to a girls’ basketball practice in 2012 after the team clinched the Northeast Conference title. “I said, ‘No problem.’ It was the least I could do after something so historic—it would be the first trip to the state tournament in our girls’ basketball history.” Sure enough, the team beat Milbank High School in the Region 1A championship. As the winning school’s athletic director, Murphy handed out postgame awards to each Roncalli player at midcourt. “As I was giving the girls their awards, they were hollering ‘Banana suit! Banana suit!’ at me,” says Murphy, who is retiring at the end of this school year. “And they were really excited to see me walking the halls in it at school the next day.”

university? Is it their business? I think I’ve been somewhat successful in fundraising because I find a way to connect with people.” Those connections have also helped Cegles advance in his career. At Arizona State, he moved up the ladder to become Senior Associate Athletic Director before leaving in 2002 to work as an agent with Gaylord Sports Management, which represents Phil Mickelson and other professional athletes. “I spent a year there, but the job just didn’t fit me,” Cegles says. “Sometimes you have to step away from what you’ve been doing to appreciate what it means to you. I found I really missed being on a college campus. I learned that I like being

Murphy says the initial request to dig deep into his closet came after the wife of Head Girls’ Basketball Coach Derek Larson described the suit to

Fashion Front

A GROOVY PROMISE last year’s team. “Ashley was a student here back in the late ’70s and early ’80s when I coached basketball,” Murphy says. “Those days, leisure suits were in style, and I used to wear it to games from time to time, which she remembered.” The sight of Murphy going retro with his bright yellow suit—made by his wife in 1977— was certainly a hit for the Roncalli players, but he says the 2013 team’s accomplishments will be an even stronger memory. “They made history for themselves and our program that night,” he says. “And I was happy to be part of their moment.”

ABERDEEN AMERICAN NEWS(bottom)

Aberdeen (S.D.) Roncalli High School Athletic Director Tom Murphy dug deep into his closet this winter to celebrate a big win by the girls’ basketball team.

Cegles says technology has also changed the interaction with donors and prospects. “We have more ways to communicate now than 25 years ago,” he says. “We do regular e-mail blasts to our donors, and when we want to make more direct contact, we can send a personal e-mail or text message. It’s just a lot easier to get a hold of people now.”

WarmUp around young people who are competing every day, and I love being around coaches.” Cegles soon returned to college athletics, serving as Athletic Director at Temple University from 2003 to 2006 before heading to Long Beach State. Since his arrival, the 49ers have won three of the past four Big West Commissioner’s Cup trophies and posted the league’s best APR score in 2011-12.

JOHN FAJARDO

Cegles says the skills involved in finding great coaches and staff members are similar to those needed for fundraising. “It’s still about relationships,” he says. “You have to know they share your philosophy about coaching and teaching kids while doing things the right way.

Writing for this magazine 25 years ago, Vic Cegles (left) offered advice on prospecting for donors. He remains a leader in athletics fundraising today—above, he presents a Long Beach State University donor with a thank-you memento for his $2 million gift.

“To make sure they’re a good fit, I’ll talk to people I know,” Cegles continues. “I may call the equipment manager or an assistant track coach at their school and ask, ‘What can

you tell me about this coach?’ Since I’ve been in the business a while, I have a lot of contacts, which is really helpful.” Among Cegles’s closest contacts are his sons, who are following in their father’s footsteps. Casey—who also recently celebrated his 25th birthday— is Assistant Director for Athletic Development at Old Dominion University and Vic, 27, is Assistant Athletic Director for Development at Virginia Commonwealth University. “We talk about the business a lot,” Cegles says. “They’re both very talented and I’m proud of them.” And as he looks back over his career, Cegles hopes his sons have experiences similar to his own. “I can honestly say I never had a bad day at work,” he says. “I’ve certainly had some tough days, but I’ve never started one thinking, ‘Boy, I don’t want to go to work today.’”

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Circle No. 105 AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 9

Gender Equity

little progress When the first issues of (College) Athletic Management were published in 1989, “Women in Intercollegiate Sport,” an ongoing study of women’s participation and employment in college athletics, was 12 years old. An article we published that year relayed some grim statistics from the study: The percentage of females coaching women’s college teams had dropped below 50 percent, 83 percent of athletic departments had a male at the helm, and 32 percent of departments had no female athletic administrators.

1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

In the years since, the percentage of female teams guided by a female head coach has dropped further, to 43 percent in 2012. For an updated perspective on the topic, we turned to Cary Groth, Athletic Director at the University of Nevada, who we’ve interviewed on numerous occasions throughout Athletic Management’s history. “I think the biggest factor is that salaries for coaching women’s sports have become competitive, so those jobs are attractive to both genders,” she says. “Another factor is work-life balance. I’ve had women coaches tell me they’re leaving to start a family or that their children are at a critical age so they want to be at home more. But I’ve never had a male coach tell me that.”

›

Groth says the number of women in coaching will increase only if athletic directors make a concerted effort to find them. “If I’m looking for a women’s soccer coach, for example, I’m going to call my colleagues and ask about their strong female assistant coaches, because there aren’t many female head coaches in the game right now,” she says. While the number of female athletic directors has increased slightly in the last 25 years to 20 percent, Groth points out that most of these

The athletes didn’t know each other well. His solution? Take away players’ cell phones during bus rides to road games.

“Unlike previous years where the players were close, we had a more scattershot collection of kids,” Svenson says. “I wanted to come up with a way to encourage them to communicate face-to-face, Team Rules and the more I talked about it with my staff, the more a cell phone ban made sense.

NO phone zone

“We started reminiscing about how, when we were players, we thought road trips were a lot of fun,” he continues. “We would learn new things about teammates and hear fun stories. It’s something we wanted our players to experience for themselves.” Understanding the importance of cell phones to today’s teens, Svenson carefully introduced the idea, talking about it with players and their parents at the team’s preseason meeting and explaining it through an e-mail notification. To his surprise, everyone quickly jumped on board.

“I didn’t receive any negative feedback,” he says. “I think by explaining that it was not a punishment but an opportunity to help them grow, players understood what we were going for.”

Retiring University of Nev ada Athletic Director Cary Groth talks about the declining number of female head coaches. gains are in NCAA Divisions II and III. After she retires in June, there will be only four female athletic directors at Division I FBS schools. “We simply have to create more opportunities for women to get into the profession,” she says. “If people hadn’t done that for me, I wouldn’t be sitting in this chair today.”

For more on “Women in Intercollegiate Sport,” visit: acostacarpenter.com.

10 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

Looking over his team at the start of last season, Ryan Svenson, Head Boys’ Basketball Coach at Hillsboro (Ore.) High School, saw a problem.

Svenson also made sure he addressed parents’ safety concerns. “I gave the parents all the coaches’ cell phone numbers and told them to contact us if there was an emergency,” he says. “It helped that most of our road games are only 20 to 30 minutes away, and the longest trip is about an hour. It’s not like the players would be out of contact for long.” As the season progressed, Svenson noticed the policy was having the desired effect. “The guys were interacting with each other on the bus a lot more,” he says. “When we were traveling to our playoff game in February, I heard a shuffling sound coming from the back. It turned out that several of the guys had been playing cards for weeks. I can’t remember the last time I saw that.” Even though the players got their phones back once they reached their destination, Svenson saw a carryover effect in the locker room. “They didn’t often have their phones out before the game,” he says. “They really bought into that time being about the team. “Overall, it’s brought the players closer together,” Svenson continues. “This past season was the first I can recall where we didn’t have any chemistry or communication issues, and I think the cell phone policy was a big reason why.” Scott Waller, Head Boys’ Soccer Coach at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., also has a cell phone

WarmUp ban in place for road trips. However, he uses a slightly different approach with his squad. He allows players to keep their phones on short road trips, but for any game more than two hours away, athletes hand them in and don’t get them back until they’ve returned home. “I’ve had this policy in place since 1998,” Waller says. “Back then, there was only one kid who had a cell phone, but everyone else on the team was bugging him to use it during trips so they could call their girlfriends or parents. It got to be a distraction. “I’m okay with players using their phones on shorter trips because they’ve told me it helps them get into the mindset they want before games,” he continues. “But we go on a lot of long road trips and that’s when team bonding can really take place, so I collect their phones then.” Like Svenson, Waller introduces his policy each year by talking with parents, sending them a letter detailing the rule, and giving them his number in case of an emergency. When he gets pushback, he talks with the athlete individually. “I usually sit those guys down and explain to them that this is part of the commitment they

Before long road trips, boys’ soccer players at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C., hand over their cell phones to Head Coach Scott Waller, who says the policy helps with team bonding. make to their teammates,” Waller says. “That has a better effect than saying, ‘This is the policy. Follow it.’” Waller also reminds his athletes to be proactive and make any needed calls ahead of time. And he will issue a punishment for a player who breaks the rules. “A few

years ago, a kid snuck two cell phones on the bus so he could call his girlfriend, whose name was Caroline,” he says. “When we caught him, we had him call her and leave a message while the whole team sang ‘Sweet Caroline’ in the background. We haven’t had a problem with players breaking the rule since then.”

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AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 11

Progressive Programs

springboard To Success Coaches and administrators have long touted the ability of sports participation to open up doors for student-athletes outside the athletic realm. To further that message, Illinois Central College (ICC) hosted a panel discussion this past winter where campus and local community members who were college student-athletes shared how sports helped shape them personally and professionally. Called “Emerging Through Sports,” the event was organized and sponsored by the ICC Diversity Department and

Minority Retention Committee and was part of a larger annual African-American History Month program. Tony Wysinger, the school’s Assistant Athletics Director and Head Men’s Basketball Coach, was its moderator. “When I was playing, a coach told me, ‘Don’t let sports use you, use sports to get where you want to go in the world,’” Wysinger says. “A lot of kids only think about that in the context of going on to play professionally. There are a number of local community members who played sports

and have gone on to successful careers outside of athletics. We wanted to highlight their stories to open kids’ eyes up to other options.” The discussion took place on the school’s main campus and was attended by close to 90 people, a mixture of ICC students and faculty, local high school and middle school student-athletes, and community members. A.J. Guyton, who was a four-year starter on the Indiana University men’s basketball team, briefly played in the NBA, and currently is a Retention Coordinator at ICC, served as host. There were three panelists. Ericson Beck played college basketball at the University of South Alabama for two years and became an advisor in ICC’s Diversity Retention & Transition department in December 2012. Jonelle McCloud is a former women’s basketball student-athlete at the University of Illinois who later played overseas, earned a master’s degree, and was an assistant women’s basketball coach at Florida State University before becoming the manager of Proctor Recreation Center in Peoria, Ill. Tiffany Mack is an assistant coach on the ICC cross country team who ran track and field and cross country at Bradley University.

Illinois Central College Head Men’s Basketball Coach and Assistant Athletics Director Tony Wysinger (above) moderated a panel discussion at the school aimed at helping student-athletes understand how to “use sports to get where you want to go in the world.”

12 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

Wysinger recalls that Beck’s remarks resonated especially well. “I was in a back-and-forth with Ericson about how sports helped him achieve success, and he mentioned that basketball taught him to focus on the negatives of his game, because that enabled him to think about mistakes he wanted to avoid repeating,” Wysinger says. “That’s completely opposite to the message a lot of kids get, which is to focus on what they do well. I think people appreciated hearing a different perspective.” McCloud’s story was also wellreceived. “Hearing Jonelle

speak about the time she spent playing in Italy, Germany, and France surprised a lot of kids,” Wysinger says. “Most of them never think that globally, and she showed them that opportunities exist outside the U.S. But she was also able to connect the things she learned in sports, such as work ethic and team attitude, to skills she utilizes in her current career.” The event also provided a quick history lesson. Before the panel discussion, the audience watched a video clip of the 1966 Texas Western College men’s basketball team, which was the first squad in NCAA history to have an allAfrican American starting lineup. “We wanted to bridge a gap for kids who don’t have an understanding of the historical impact sports can have,” Wysinger says. The school publicized Emerging Through Sports through an e-mail blast to more than 400 community members, as well as through posters placed around the ICC campus. Kyle Bright, an Admissions Representative at ICC, helped organize the panel and says the feedback was very positive. “The people I spoke with afterwards were pleased and said they learned a lot,” he says. The key to making the event successful, according to Wysinger, was to find speakers who could relate personal stories, rather than read generic concepts from notecards. “You want people who can talk from the heart,” he says. “That’s how you keep the audience invested and engaged, especially younger kids. They will tune out speakers who tell them the same things they’ve heard before. “We had a question and answer session, and we told the kids beforehand that we expected three questions from the audience,” Wysinger continues. “That also helped them be more engaged.”

WarmUp While the shift to pass-heavy offenses has added excitement to high school football, there has been a problematic side effect: Contests often run later into the evening as incomplete passes stop the clock more frequently. In response, the 18-team Greater Western Ohio Conference (GWOC) will move up the kickoff time of their games this fall a half-hour, to 7 p.m.

david RICHARD/AP PHOTO

“Our school administrators looked at this issue for months,” says GWOC Commissioner Eric Spahr. “J.V. games in our conference are played Saturday mornings, and when a j.v. player dresses for a varsity game, then has to get up early Saturday for another game, they are fatigued. Now they can get to bed sooner and be more rested for the next day.” Another positive to the move is increased media coverage. “Our local

newspapers have earlier deadlines for their Saturday morning editions,” Spahr says. “Games that start at 7 p.m. are more likely to conclude before those deadlines, which helps us promote the results and the players.” One question centered on whether the move would have a negative affect on attendance. But Spahr says the potential for a few fans to be upset at an earlier game time doesn’t outweigh the overriding concern of player health and safety. “While some fans may not like it at first, they’ll adjust,” he says. “There are fans who remember when games started at 8 p.m., and they were able to adjust to the 7:30 time. Unfortunately, there’s no magic start time that will please everyone. Ultimately, our first concern is our student-athletes, and we made this move with them in mind.”

Game Scheduling

This fall, the Greater Western Ohio Conference will start games one-half hour earlier. Member Trotwood-Madison High School competed in the state championship game (above) last year.

Starting earlier

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Q & A

Tom Shirley PHILADELPHIA UNIVERSITY 1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

In 1989, the same year (College) Athletic Management began publication, Tom Shirley was embarking on the start of what would be a long and successful career as an administrator and Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Philadelphia University. Now, 25 years later, he’s become a mentor to others in athletic administration and has racked up more than 400 wins coaching the Lady Rams. Shirley got his start in athletics at DeSales University, where he spent eight years as Athletic Director and Head Women’s Basketball Coach before taking the positions of Associate Director of Athletics and Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Philadelphia. Three years later, he was promoted to Director of Athletics. Shirley has served on the NCAA Division II Management Council and Championships Committee and as President of the Central Athletic Collegiate Conference Athletic Directors Council. In 2007, he was named the NACDA Division II Northeast Region Athletic Director of the Year, and two years ago he began serving as a mentor in a program to help minority and female D-II athletic administrators further their careers. In this interview, he talks about his career path, why he runs his athletic department as a “democratic dictatorship,” and starting a scholarship in his father’s name.

AM: When you arrived at Philadelphia 25 years ago, what was your approach to leading the athletic department? Shirley: A lot of times, athletics can get caught up in a “We’ve always done it this way” mindset, and I don’t believe in that. When I got here, I told myself that while I still wanted the school to abide by the same core principles, I didn’t want to do things just because that’s how they were always done. That’s why we’ve made significant changes over the years. We left the former New York Collegiate Athletic Conference in 2005 and joined the Central Athletic Collegiate Conference because we knew it was a better geographic match for us. We also dropped the women’s soccer program from varsity status and added several sports—volleyball, rowing, and track and field—that were a better fit for the school.

What did you see on the horizon for NCAA Division II when you started at Philadelphia? Back then, I thought we were firmly entrenched as the “discount” division, which I felt was a great place to be. My sense was that families viewed D-I as “free,” and D-III as a level you had to pay to compete at, while at D-II student-athletes could get a quality education at a discount and their parents could still tell their friends their kid received a scholarship.

a lot of different people in my role as athletic director. I also felt like there was more job security as an administrator. Now, more than 30 years later, I’m still doing both.

What’s your philosophy on running an athletic department? It has to be a democratic dictatorship. The democratic part comes when you make it clear that you’ll engage in discussion, listen to differing opinions, and respect others’ knowledge. For example, if I’m talking about insurance claims with my head athletic trainer, I need to acknowledge that she knows more about it than I do and treat her as the expert. I don’t act like the smartest person in the room just because I have the biggest title, and the people I work with appreciate that. Another way to be democratic is to give options when solving a problem. For example, if a coach comes to me and says “I want to play these five schools on these five days,” I look at the schedule. If I see that doing so will give the team six road games in a row

I also thought that as higher education got more expensive and enrollments dropped, D-III would eventually morph into a structure more like D-II and start providing athletic scholarships. But that hasn’t happened, and I think D-III schools are going to struggle in the future because they don’t give athletic scholarships.

Did you always want to be an athletic administrator?

Shirley continues to coach women’s basketball and serves on the NCAA Women’s Basketball Rules Committee.

No. When I took the athletic director position at DeSales, I told the president I also wanted to coach the women’s basketball team. When he gave me the go-ahead, I figured the school would be a pit stop in my coaching career and that I would move on to a D-I school within a few years. But I quickly grew to like working with

AthleticManagement.com | June/July 2013 15

and cause the student-athletes to miss four days of classes, I know I can’t allow it. But instead of just saying no, I lay things out for the coach and explain, “That’s going to be tough on the team. Why don’t you pick between these two teams for a game on this date and we can find a home game for the other date?”

There was a slight majority in favor of accepting the criteria, and even though some people wanted to continue discussing, I decided that a majority was enough to finalize the decision.

What’s been the biggest change in college athletics over the past 25 years? The watering down of high school athletic accomplishments has really hurt the college game. It seems like kids get trophies for finishing in 11th place, and that makes them think they’re better than they are. Reality hits those kids hard when they get to college and they’re the last person off the bench.

“Here, I’m like a general practitioner in a doctor’s office. I get to do a little of everything, and I find that rewarding ... At a smaller school, I feel like I can make a difference. There’s not a lot of red tape.”

How can coaches avoid recruiting players with a me-first mentality?

Coaches have to recruit players who listen and appreciate the opportunities the coach is providing. One of my rules as a coach is that if I call or text a recruit and don’t hear back, I move on to the next one. If I don’t take that approach, then I send the athlete a message that she is in control and that she is good enough to get away with that.

But at the end of the day, you’ve got to decide when there’s been enough discussion and it’s time to take action. That’s the dictator part. Recently, my staff and I were debating one of the criteria for our new retired jersey policy, and we took a vote to resolve the matter.

Why did you join the D-II mentoring pro-

Your Sport, Our Court

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gram two years ago? When I started as an athletic director in the 1980s, there wasn’t really a template for how to do the job, so we all had to figure it out on our own. As I go into the autumn of my career, it’s time for me to give back, and this is a great way to do it. If someone’s willing to listen, I’ll share anything with them.

What did you gain from your time on the Management Council? One of the biggest benefits was meeting people from all over the country. Sometimes everyone in a region does things the same way, so it’s good to pick the brains of people from a different area. One year, for example, a few of us were complaining about the costs associated with bringing fall sport studentathletes back to campus over the summer and housing them. Another athletic director said that his school decided to not bring the athletes back until the dorms opened and the RAs returned, which was two weeks prior to the start of the semester. Doing so saved them a good deal of money.

Why did you start men’s and women’s track and field teams in 2012? The reality is private colleges are increasingly dependent on tuition for funds. So you have

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Q & A to attract more students to your campus, and athletics is one way to do that. We knew we’d have a solid base of existing athletes from our cross country team, and we didn’t need any new facilities. After talking it over with the administration, they decided it would be a good idea to add the sport to our operating budget.

How have you kept facility costs down? I’ve been successful at bartering for facility usage. For example, the school has a membership at a local country club, and we have an arrangement so the golf team can practice and play there at no cost, which has grown into a nice partnership. We also have an agreement with a nearby tennis facility where we rent court time. We do some community service there, and we get some signage at the facility in return. For me, it’s all about using available resources to your advantage.

We put out the best product we can, but we acknowledge it’s a product of a certain quality. If fans are interested in something of that quality, they’ll enjoy our games. If not, we don’t worry about it and hope they have fun at the Villanova game. That said, we do work hard to connect with youth groups in the area. For example, we often invite a few to compete on our court at 11 a.m. on a basketball game day. After they play, we take them to the dining hall for lunch, introduce them to some of the players, and then host them at our game that afternoon. We want to send the message that they

could be a student-athlete here in the future.

Have you ever thought about being an administrator in Division I? No, because D-I is too specialized. At that level, if you’re in charge of fundraising, that’s all you do. Here, I’m like a general practitioner in a doctor’s office. I get to do a little of everything, and I find that rewarding. I also like handling a smaller staff. And at a smaller school, I feel like I can make a difference. There’s not a lot of red tape, just commonsense management. I see myself finishing my career here.

How did the scholarship in your father’s name get started? In April of 2008, President Spinelli asked me to have a beer with him after work. When we met, he told me that he wanted to start a scholarship in my name. I declined because I didn’t think I was worthy of something like that. Instead, I suggested starting one in my father’s name. He had a great influence on me growing up, teaching me the value of being firm but fair. He passed away in 2004 and I thought the scholarship would be a great way to honor him. This April, President Spinelli and I had another beer to celebrate the five-year anniversary of the scholarship.

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What do you see as the biggest challenge for Division II athletics in the future? Getting schools on a level economic playing field. There are some departments that are fully-funded with full-time coaching staffs, while others get by with minimal funding and part-time staffs. Future generations of athletic directors will have to be professional fundraisers, and they’ll need to be focused on connecting with wealthy people to bring in more money.

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What’s the key to being a great fundraiser? You have to establish a relationship with someone by calling them even when you don’t need anything. Too many athletic directors will call a potential donor and say, “How are you? What have you been up to? Listen, while I have you on the phone …” That’s the wrong approach. I’ll call up someone to congratulate them on getting married. After calling them a few times over the years just to check in, one day I will ask for money. Because I’ve already established a good relationship, they’re more willing to give.

With so many college and professional teams in the area, how do you get fans to attend your school’s games?

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Q&A

What’s the best way to wash athletic uniforms and laundry?

Q & A with Steve Leib, Sports Laundry Systems Having spent 30 years as a teacher and coach at both the high school and collegiate levels, Steve Leib understands the challenges facing athletic facilities. As a college football coach he has witnessed the struggles of processing athletic laundry and the problems associated with bacterial infections among athletes. As sales director for Sports Laundry Systems, Leib shares his knowledge of uniform and athletic laundry care and urges athletic facilities to select laundry systems that will properly clean and disinfect.

Q. Athletic laundry is just like any other laundry isn’t it? Why does it take special care? A. This question requires a two-

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Center, people with MRSA infections stay infected for just under 10 days. An athlete with MRSA can’t practice or participate in games during that time. So, first, athletic laundry is not the same as most other laundry. It’s laden with sweat, body fluids and sometimes blood. It can be contaminated with bacteria that can spread to others if not handled properly. So it must be cleaned and disinfected quickly. And it shouldn’t lay around in piles waiting to be washed. Second, today’s athletic uniforms are comprised of fabrics that don’t do well if bleached or over-dried at high temperatures through traditional means of disinfection. The nature of the fabrics demand special care so they look good and last a long time. This also makes athletic items different from typical laundry.

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Q. What are manufacturers of today’s athletic uniforms recommending when it comes to cleaning them?

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be the right job for me—and therefore I accepted the interim title. If I had been an internal candidate for the permanent position, I would have declined the offer to be interim director.

GARY HOVLAND

My initial step upon taking over my new duties was to ask for very clear direction on my role. In some situations, upper-level administrators may decide no progress can be made until a permanent athletic director is named. At UC Davis, the administration felt this approach could hold the department back for the immediate future.

Big Chair to Fill

Serving as an interim athletic director provides unique challenges and opportunities. Here’s how to do more than keep the seat warm for the next occupant. By Nona Richardson In early 2007, I joined the athletics staff at the University of California, Davis as Senior Associate Athletic Director, overseeing Student-Athlete Support Services and serving as Senior Woman Administrator. Little did I know that four years and two months later, I would become the Interim Director of Athletics and hold that title for the next 15 months. In May 2011, Athletic Director Greg Warzecka announced his retirement after 16 years in the position. I was asked if I would take his job on an interim basis, and I said yes. That decision was not made lightly, and the following year was filled with ups and downs. Being an interim athletic director can be a great opportunity, but a good strategy is needed to make it a successful endeavor.

Taking on the Role When I was offered the interim position, I wasn’t given a lot of time to respond, so I quickly analyzed what was in front of me. The main question I asked myself was: Do you want to put your hat in the ring for the permanent athletic director position? I thought failing to get the job after being a candidate could be a negative in the long term. It could lead me to question myself. It could also create animosity towards the person who did get the job, which could be uncomfortable for the new hire and ultimately, uncomfortable for me. I decided to not apply for the permanent position—the size, scope, and magnitude of our department meant it would not

Therefore, my supervisor gave me latitude to run the department as I would if I were the permanent athletic director, with some limitations. General philosophical tenets were easy and transferable to the next person: be competitive, strive for excellence, do the right thing, and balance the budget. I was also allowed to make changes that would impact long-term success: hiring, contract negotiations, and outlining program expectations. From there, I thought about the big question facing anyone in an interim position: How do I run the department in an effective way from what some might see as a powerless position? I learned to know who my internal allies were. These individuals would see things going on in the department that I missed while I was in meetings and talking with constituents. They let me know when I might need to head something off and when I had to strike down any rumors. I also used my experience to my advantage. Having been a part of the departNona Richardson is Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator at the University of California, Davis. She can be reached at: nerichardson@ucdavis.edu.

AthleticManagement.com | June/July 2013 21

ment following our transition from NCAA Division II to Division I, staff members saw me as an experienced insider. My cumulative time as a student-athlete, coach, and administrator at various D-I institutions gave me further credibility. Finally, I made sure to have an open door for those anxious about the changes

while growing with the intention of competing for yearly championships.

Tips for Success The best part about being the interim athletic director was that it forced me to pick up my game in areas that will help me as I continue my career. Here are the skills I focused on most:

The most difficult thing about being in charge is that final decisions rest with you ... The biggest lesson I learned was to not make those decisions in a vacuum. I took advantage of others’ eyes and ears and made them part of the discussions.

ahead. Even though we had been in D-I for four years at that point, we were still transitioning to higher expectations and a new culture. I reiterated, as often as needed, that we were continuing with the qualities that have made us relevant,

Communication: Soon after accepting the interim position, I met with the head coach for each of our 23 sport programs. I got to know what they were anxious about and what they were hungry for. I made sure they understood

very clearly the new expectations in D-I. And I continued that one-on-one communication as often as possible. Along with interacting with coaches, I needed student-athletes and other stakeholders to feel comfortable with my leadership. The key here was a lot of face-to-face communication, which has become an anomaly in today’s tech-savvy culture. Our coaches, student-athletes, and staff needed to see me and have access to me beyond a smart phone or computer. There was enough angst going on throughout the search process—accessibility was one thing I could control. Delegating: I quickly realized I could not juggle all that was on my plate and thus I needed to delegate well. Keeping things close to the vest would only limit what the department could accomplish on my watch. Knowing who to delegate to is an important part of the equation. I worked hard to understand the strengths of the individuals around me and who could get tasks done in a timely manner. At the same time, I had to know the results of the delegation, because I was ultimately responsible. The tricky balance was keeping things moving while

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GamePlan Leadership making sure the correct directions were being taken. It felt as if I was in meetings 90 percent of the day, and for the most part I was. For meetings or conference calls I was not able to be part of, I relied on my associate athletic directors. I also leaned heavily on my executive assistant, business manager, and internal human resources director. I tried to carefully pick and choose those critical areas that needed my direct attention, then delegate the others to my staff, who I found were eager to take on the responsibility. Making decisions: The most difficult thing about being in charge is that final decisions rest with you. As a second-incommand, you may have input, but you do not have to carry the burden of large decisions. When you sit in the athletic director’s chair, you own every decision that is made—and some will be unpopular. The power bestowed upon you is great, but the burden of outcomes when individuals are affected is greater. The biggest lesson I learned was to not make those decisions in a vacuum. I took advantage of others’ eyes and ears and made them part of the discussions. I was especially careful to include my supervisor and our legal counsel in changes that would affect the long-term direction of the department. That may seem like overload, but when the dust settled, I was glad that I kept other people in the loop.

Serving as the interim athletic director for 15 months was an opportunity that I appreciated experiencing. It was not easy, nor was it glamorous, but it felt great to make important decisions that helped move our program forward. I had good days, tough days, and days where I question why in the world I agreed to do this. Then, before many moments passed, I would remember why: the student-athletes, the competitiveness, the rivalries, the fans, the alumni, and the university. I did it because I love intercollegiate athletics and all that it has to offer.

Reach out for help: My involvement with NACWAA and the number of awesome women who are a part of that organization provided me plenty of shoulders to lean on and phone numbers to call. With the breadth of experienced women in the profession, there was no shortage of people I could turn to for advice. You should never feel as though you have to lead alone, because there will usually be someone who has experienced life in your shoes before you have. There is no sense in re-creating the wheel when the spokes are already in place.

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One area where help was critical was the non-renewal of a coaching contract. After lengthy conversations with my supervisor, we determined that not renewing coaches who were failing to move in the right direction was in the best interest of the department. Changes in our coaching ranks were pretty rare up to that point, so this was a major shift. It was also complicated by those coaches who had split contracts as lecturers on the academic side. There was some initial pushback from parents and alumni when we began the non-renewal and delicacy was needed in handling the contract as it had a lectureship side. Having legal counsel involved in the scripting of communication proved to be invaluable. Campus involvement: Each school differs in how it views its athletics program, so an athletic director’s involvement beyond the department could be limited or global. During my time as interim, I was part of several groups—the Student Affairs Leadership Team, the Vice Chancellors Cabinet, and the College of Deans and Vice Chancellors Cabinet. Being a part of these teams meant a lot of meetings— weekly, daily, even hourly. As time consuming as they were, it was crucial that I was fully present and working toward synergy with others.

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GamePlan Strategic Planning

signed on to help had great ideas and only good intentions.

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Many times in our work, we isolate the public and shut them out of our decisionmaking process, but this leads to less than optimum results. Once the community knows you are listening to their ideas, they will offer more support. It is a customer approach to running an athletic department, with the final result being more hands on deck to help with fundraising, increased volunteering at events, more booster club members, and so on.

Many Hands

We started the strategic planning process by inviting the community, coaches, student-athletes, and school staff members to a meeting. Topics addressed were: the purpose of the strategic plan, expectations of committee members, and a timeline for completion. Over 50 people signed on to help, with 27 of them hailing from the community.

Asking for community input when developing a strategic plan may seem like a risky maneuver, but for this author, many pens made lighter work.

Our first step as a committee was to get answers to six questions that would help define the Bucyrus athletic department. They were:

By Tom Jeffrey

1. What do you value/like about the Bucyrus athletic programs?

While college athletic departments and local school districts routinely establish strategic plans, high school athletic programs donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t commit to the endeavor as often. It can seem too time consuming when our days are already full to the brim with important tasks. However, in order to lead our high school programs in a proactive way, developing a strategic plan is critical. Without goals and objectives, we are just walking around in the dark throwing darts at an unseen target. You must know what you want to accomplish to be successful. For those reasons, we developed a strategic plan here at Bucyrus (Ohio) High School two years ago. Using the same framework the district incorporated when developing its strategic plan, we included many constituents and came up

with ideas that would help our program improve in several areas.

2. What do you expect from the Bucyrus athletic programs?

Formulating a Plan

3. What concerns do you have about Bucyrus athletic programs?

The key to making the process meaningful is to get involvement and support from everyone with a stake in the athletic department. This includes employees of the school as well as community members. At first, the coaches may feel that opening up the process to the community will leave them vulnerable to personal attacks. As the leaders, it is our job to set the tone and expectations so this does not happen. We found that involving the community was not negative, but very helpful in defining our goals and figuring out strategies. The community members who

4. What recommendations do you have that can improve our athletic programs? 5. If you could push a magic button and change something about Bucyrus athletics, what would it be? Tom Jeffrey is Athletic/ Activities Director at Bucyrus (Ohio) City Schools and a former football and basketball coach. He can be reached at: tjeffrey@ bucyrusschools.org.

AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 25

GamePlan Strategic Planning 6. What do you always want to see, hear, and feel in our programs? What do you never want to see, hear, and feel in our programs? At the first meeting, we passed out a survey with these questions. We asked the

of backgrounds to answer the questions. There can be some hesitation to do a survey like this due to fear that it will only stir up negatives. We stressed that any feedback should be directed at the athletic department as a whole and not attack one particular program or coach.

The process helped us understand what was most important and thus where to direct our energies. It also allowed us to build better relationships with community members who helped put the new ideas into place. people present to answer the questions individually, and then we formed groups of five to seven to discuss the topics further. Each group put their main points of discussion on Post-it easels. Separate from this gathering, we collected more data, asking coaches, athletes, and community members from a wide variety

Once the data was collected, the committee identified common threads in the answers to the questions. It became very evident what was important to the community about our athletic programs during this part of the process. Our respondents valued history and tradition, competitiveness, hiring and retaining good coaches, up-to-date facilities, and

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teaching leadership, citizenship, sportsmanship, scholarship, and character. From these common threads, we constructed five categories of goals and asked committee members to join groups that each worked on further defining and implementing a goal. The groups were in charge of creating a SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Timebased) goal along with steps to accomplish it, the person most responsible, needs to accomplish the goal, length of time required, and evidence that the objective has been completed.

Strategic Solutions The goals have led us to implement new policies and traditions. Overall, the process helped us understand what was most important and thus where to direct our energies. It also allowed us to build better relationships with community members who helped put the new ideas into place. The goals and new initiatives are as follows: 1. The creation of a comprehensive plan to develop the competitiveness of our student-athletes so they expect to win. This will be aided through the creation of:

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2. A thorough analysis of current facilities, coming up with short- and long-term needs and prioritizing items to provide better athletic spaces. 3. A new process for hiring and evaluating coaches that retains highly qualified and motivated coaches who have strong characters. This will be aided by: A hiring selection committee that includes community members and one studentathlete from the team who will forward the top two candidates to the superintendent and two school board members for review n Providing money for professional development for coaches n Honoring coaches through a “Coach of the Year” awards program (based on self-improvement, character, high values, and program development) and rewarding coaches for years of service to the district n Showcasing the athletic program in more substantive ways. n

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4. Honoring tradition and garnering community support through a spirit committee, increasing student involvement at events, and exit interviews of seniors. 5. Developing a process of measurable standards on teaching leadership, citizenship, sportsmanship, scholarship, and character. This will be aided by creating: Leadership programs/opportunities Community service projects for each sport n Student mentoring programs n Applying for the Harold A. Meyer Sportsmanship Award run by our state association. n n

Many of the concrete goals in the strategic plan have now been implemented, and the remaining challenge is to make sure the ideas continue to be relevant. I do this by reviewing the plan periodically. In addition, every decision we make as an athletic department sends us back to the plan. It is also revisited at athletic council meetings and head coaches meetings. Overall, the process was well worth the time and effort. Many people might be nervous about what community members will say at the initial meetings, but it was a great experience for me. The community has been very supportive, which has allowed the athletic department to grow.

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MORE FUN FOR FANS As college athletic departments look for ways to enhance the game-day experience and boost revenue, more and more are allowing alcohol sales at their contests. Some are finding it also helps with crowd control.

Since 2011, football fans at West Virginia University have been able to purchase beer at home games, but they must also abide by the “High Five Rules,” which prohibit behavior associated with excessive drinking. “We’ve had fewer incidents of drunkenness and police involvement,” says Athletic Director Oliver Luck.

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COVER STORY

By Mary Kate Murphy Shortly after being appointed Athletic Dir ector at West Virginia University in 2010, Oliver Luck called a meeting with the campus and local police departments to learn of any public safety issues at the school’s athletic events. The first thing they suggested was eliminating the “pass-out policy,” which allowed fans to re-enter a football game after leaving at halftime. “Many people were going out to the tailgating areas, chugging hard liquor, and then heading back into the stadium, where no alcohol was sold,” says Luck. “By the middle of the third quarter, our security personnel would start getting notifications for ‘Code V’s,’ meaning vomiting in the stands. This behavior was having a

negative effect on the atmosphere of our events. Some fans even told me they no longer wanted to bring their children to Mountaineers football games.” Eager to stop the binge drinking at halftime but not wanting to alienate well-intentioned fans who just wanted to have a beer, Luck proposed a compromise: selling beer inside the stadium, combined with a no pass-out policy. The idea, which elicited both cheers and jeers, was implemented at football games in 2011 after much discussion. The results were overwhelmingly positive. In 2010, the number of police cases during the first four home games was 68. That number dropped to 24 for the same timeframe in 2011. Calls made to the AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 29

COVER STORY

police during this period decreased 15 percent and arrests went from 78 to 62. In addition, revenue generated from beer sales at Milan Puskar Stadium has netted Mountaineer athletics well over $1 million over the course of two seasons. “We earn money in two different ways,” says Luck. “By combining alcohol profits with the additional revenue from alcohol sponsors, we profited about $750,000 the first year and between $750,000 and $1 million the second year.” Traditionally, most college athletic departments have not sold alcohol at their events. The thinking is that doing so will increase over-consumption and promote

and liquor in the parking lot outside the stadium. Part of our job as educators is to teach our students how to function in the real world. That means you don’t drink until you’re 21, and if you do drink, you must drink responsibly.” Colorado Mesa University recently began selling beer at its home baseball games, with intentions similar to those at West Virginia. The idea actually originated from the school’s Associated Student Government. The administration agreed because it viewed in-stadium beer sales as an opportunity to reduce the number of drunk fans, says Colorado Mesa Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator Kris Mort. “We have bleachers in left field that are outside the confines of our stadium,” she says. “Students would bring beer and drink for nine innings, which led to a lot of harassment of opposing outfielders. By selling beer within the stadium, we’re hoping to draw more fans into the venue where we can control who is purchasing it and how much they consume.” Joining Colorado Mesa this year was the University of Texas-Arlington, which now offers beer and wine at men’s and women’s basketball games and women’s volleyball matches in its newly constructed College Park Center. Athletic Director Jim Baker believes that, in addition to helping athletic staff control fans’ consumption, the sales deter students from sneaking alcohol into sporting events. “You can’t monitor what people are drinking when they hide flasks in their purses or boots,” he says. “Our fans now know they can buy alcohol at our games, so hopefully they are less inclined to bring any in with them.” Another big reason to sell alcohol at athletic events is to appeal to alumni and adults in the community. “We are competing for entertainment dollars,” Baker says. “I think we offer a pretty good product—we have a brand new arena, moderate ticket prices, and a hospitable staff—and fans can enjoy an adult beverage while watching a sporting event. The Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers are in our backyard, so our spectators are used to the professional experience, and that’s what we’re trying to provide.” Increasing entertainment value was also a big factor at the University of Maine, which introduced alcohol sales on a limited basis last football season. “There have been persistent indications from fans that they want great food, more fun activities at football games, and an opportunity to consume beer,” says Robert Dana, Vice President for

“We opened a Bavarian Beer Garden at our home football games this fall for fans over 21. Besides beer, there is food and live music, so the alcohol becomes a secondary aspect of the experience.” a drinking culture. However, the number of colleges and universities adding alcohol to their concession stands has more than doubled in the last decade. This trend shows no signs of letting up as schools continue to explore the possibility. WHY DO IT?

Luck had the backing of local law enforcement when he began pushing the idea of selling alcohol at football games. But public opinion leaned the other way. “After we presented our proposal to the Board of Governors, they allowed an open comment period so people could respond to the idea,” he says. “About 300 comments came in, and they were two-to-one against it, primarily because they felt universities should be above any association with alcohol, and they were concerned about the existing culture of underage and binge drinking on college campuses.” Luck kept that feedback in mind as he moved forward with his idea. “We certainly need to have a sensitivity regarding alcohol use among college students,” he says. “But the reality is, if you attend a college football game, chances are you will see beer, wine, Mary Kate Murphy is an Assistant Editor at Athletic Management. She can be reached at: mkmurphy@MomentumMedia.com.

30 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

Student Affairs. “So we opened a Bavarian Beer Garden at our home football games this fall for fans over 21. Besides beer, there is food and live music, so the alcohol becomes a secondary aspect of the experience. It’s more about providing a convivial, positive social environment where mature adults are given access to something they enjoy.” Although the beer garden is geared toward adult fans, the decision to allow it was a university-wide collaboration. “We vetted the idea with various on-campus constituencies, such as student-athletes, our university police, student organizations, and support groups to determine what type of alcohol to serve, when to serve it, and where the venue could be located in the stadium,” says Dana. “We decided to limit offerings to beer and allow fans to consume it only in the garden. We have a police officer stationed at the entrance providing bracelets for fans over 21 to show they can drink and to keep people from leaving the area with beer.” The Bavarian Beer Garden made a profit in 2012, and the revenue was put back into the venue to improve it for next season. “We’re adding plants and lights to increase the ambiance,” says Dana. “Some of the money is also going to subsidize food costs so we can continue to sell specialty items like turkey legs, bratwurst, and fried dough. We’re trying to make it as great an experience as possible, because we want it to become a permanent part of our football program.” Utica College leads NCAA Division III schools in attendance for men’s ice hockey and has been offering alcohol at its games since starting the program in 2000. Athletic Director David Fontaine says the school has had little problems with behavior in the stands. “Beer sales have become part of the overall Utica hockey experience, but we also try to teach the importance of responsible behavior,” he says. “Our fans enjoy it, and they don’t want it taken away, so I think they’re careful to drink responsibly.” To ensure appropriate behavior at West Virginia games, Luck and local law enforcement created the “High Five Rules.” Posted on signs in tailgating areas and on cards distributed by police officers before and during games, the rules outlaw certain activities such as excessive drinking or drunkenness, foul language, and ignoring the instructions of event staff. Fans who don’t abide are escorted out of the stadium and/or tailgate area. FACTORS TO CONSIDER

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and monitoring practices. Baker started by looking at how other schools made it work. “We’re moving to the Sun Belt Conference this summer, so we talked to the University of Louisiana-Monroe and the

one time, and sales stop halfway through the competition. We suggested implementing the same regulations in our presentation to our administration.” With the help of his concessionaire and local alcohol control board, Luck put in place many of the same restrictions when West Virginia started selling beer. “Our food service firm runs the concessions of several professional teams, so it has a lot of experience selling beer and made sure we understood correct sales practices,” he says. “We also worked with a branch of the West Virginia Alcohol Beverage Control Administration. They helped us set up our sales and occasionally send an agent to our games to check on the beer stands and make sure we are operating properly.” Mort works closely with her concessions staff as well. “All of the servers have taken courses on recognizing and preventing intoxication, underage drinking, and drunk driving,” she says. “They are licensed bartenders who work at our other on-campus

“Athletic directors are starting to realize they don’t have to do things just because it’s the way they’ve always been done ... Students are drinking anyway, so we need to pull our heads out of the sand.” University of South Alabama about how they run their beer sales,” he says. “Both schools use similar restrictions. Vendors check the ID of anyone who looks like they could be under 40 years of age. Each individual is permitted to buy no more than two beers at

events, so we trust them.” To address the problem of fans drinking at baseball games and then driving home, Colorado Mesa publicizes its on-campus transportation system. “We can monitor who drinks and how much they drink, but once people leave our arena, I can’t make sure they get home safely,” Mort says. “So we heavily promote MavRides to our fans, which is a free taxi service available to all of our students and staff. If an individual has too much to drink at one of our baseball games, they can call for MavRides, and a cab will take them anywhere on campus.” One of the ways Utica makes sure fans stay safe at hockey games is through the presence of uniformed police officers, although they aren’t there just because of beer sales. “We started having them at games to control the large volume of people in attendance,” says Fontaine. “However, is their presence helpful in monitoring alcohol consumption? I think so.” Because of uncertainty over how fans would respond to beer sales, Luck increased the security presence at Mountaineers home games. Additional police were hired to patrol

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tailgate areas, catch fans trying to sneak alcohol into the games, and prevent underage drinking in the stands. “After every game, I met with police to go over any issues,” he says. “We were very focused on getting the operational side right. Sometimes that costs extra, but it was more important to do things the right way than be unprepared and risk an incident.” High beer costs also help keep things from getting out of hand. At West Virginia, 12-ounce domestic bottles sell for $7 and local craft brews cost $9. UT-Arlington offers domestic drafts for $6 and premium labels for $7. “Students don’t have the money to buy a bunch of beers during a game,” says Baker. “If an individual is 21, he or she can buy a 12-pack at the store for $15. At one of our basketball games, $15 will get you two beers. It provides a nice balance because our students can enjoy a drink, but the price keeps them from over consuming.” TURNING OFF THE TAPS

While more and more college athletic departments are finding success with selling alcohol, is it a good move for all schools? Gene Smith, Athletic Director at Ohio State University, says no, and has been moving his school in the opposite direction. When Smith was hired in 2005, the school was having some issues with excessive alcohol consumption by fans, particularly at football games. “We didn’t enforce the city and county open-container laws, so people drank freely in the streets and tailgate areas,” he says. “This led to high numbers of confrontations, citations, and arrests. We want to have a respectful, family atmosphere at our games, and prolonged alcohol consumption made this difficult to accomplish.” So Smith started implementing changes. Beer was already banned in Ohio Stadium, and Ohio State outlawed alcohol consumption at tailgates, revoked the policy that allowed re-entry to fans who left the stadium at halftime, and terminated all advertising and sponsorship agreements with alcohol companies. In addition, event security started cracking down on illegal alcohol use at football games. “We began to enforce the laws in the tailgating areas,” Smith says. “If our security personnel saw an individual carrying a 12-pack of beer, he was fine. But once he got to the tailgate area and cracked open a can, we had a problem. We’ve also been more thorough in checking fans at the gates to prevent them from sneaking alcohol into the stadium.” These practices have helped decrease the number of arrests, citations, and medical

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ore than half of NCAA Division I schools permit alcohol advertising at athletic events in signage, in programs, or on radio broadcasts—twice the number that allow alcohol sales in their facilities. Sponsorship from beer companies in particular can bring in a lot of revenue. However, 100 NCAA coaches, 59 university presidents, and 239 athletic directors signed a petition in 2008 to keep college television and radio broadcasts free from such advertising, claiming that because of problems with drinking on college campuses, alcohol and higher education shouldn’t mix. What’s the right move? At the University of Maine, Vice President for Student Affairs Robert Dana makes sure all alcohol advertisements at his school’s events have meaning. “Our in-stadium signs must be about alcohol abuse prevention,” he says. “We use

some of the generated revenue to fund alcohol and substance abuse prevention programs on campus.” Oliver Luck, Athletic Director at West Virginia University, doesn’t see a problem with having alcohol advertising at college sporting events. “I used to run the Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer,” he says. “We played in the University of Houston’s football stadium for six years, and it had a big Budweiser sign hanging behind one of the goals. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘That sign has been there for 20 years and there has been no controversy about it,’” he continues. “The Houston fans didn’t drink any more than anybody else, and the money they got for that sign probably made a lot of sense for the school. Walk through a tailgate at any college football game in the country and you’ll find beer. It is as much a part of the experience as it is at the professional level.”

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incidents at football games. And after a few years, the fans started coming around to the idea. “Our fans were resistant to the change initially,” Smith says. “At first, security was pretty heavy-handed and there were several arrests. But over time, the new policies became a part of our culture that the fans have embraced. “From the beginning, we weren’t looking to take the fun out of the game-day experience,” he continues. “We simply wanted to ensure certain fans wouldn’t take alcohol consumption to a disrespectful or confrontational level.” Cutting all ties with alcohol advertisers resulted in a loss of revenue, which Smith anticipated. “We understood and accepted that would be a possibility,” he says. “In fact, we had to buy out some contracts and fill the advertising spaces with institutional messages. The financial impact was a concern, but at the end of the day, our fans’ safety was more important.” While Smith’s approach has worked for Ohio State, he doesn’t condemn other schools that offer the sale of beer in their stadiums. “If my school had a smaller stadium where tailgating wasn’t a large factor on game day, I might feel differently about the issue,” he says. “It depends on the environment of a particular university. Athletic directors who put adequate controls in place and ensure the safety of their fans should go ahead with the idea.”

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MOVING FORWARD

At West Virginia, the addition of alcohol sales has been a win-win. The revenue generated has gone toward the operating costs of the athletic department, paying for scholarships, funding coaches’ salaries, and purchasing new equipment for West Virginia’s 16 varsity sports. “And we’ve had fewer incidents of drunkenness and police involvement,” says Luck. Mort also is pleased with the results at Colorado Mesa and could see making a similar move for football or basketball games in the future. “Times have changed and people’s mentalities have changed,” she says. “Athletic directors are starting to realize that they don’t have to do things just because it’s the way they’ve always been done. I can certainly understand the conflict of interest that many administrators face. But students are drinking anyway, so we need to pull our heads out of the sand.” After a successful inaugural season for the Bavarian Beer Garden, Dana feels more schools may want to recognize the advantages of selling beer at their events. “The distribution of alcohol is actually a control function,” he says. “Instead of people being left to their own devices at tailgates and in the stands, colleges and universities can manage consumption by controlling distribution.” n

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PROGRESSIVE PROGRAMS

Leaders Against Violence

Can coaches play a role in stopping violence against women among their student-athletes? This athletic director has found the answer to be yes. By Ron Barney

MaxPreps/Dennis Stiff

n March, when two high school football players in Ohio were convicted of rape, national headlines brought the news into everyone’s consciousness. Young people were made aware of the dire consequences of their actions and inactions. Adults gained insight into what was going on with today’s teens. I don’t know how most coaches and athletic directors reacted in terms of talking about the incident with their own studentathletes, but here at Mesa Verde High School in Citrus Heights, Calif., there was immediate discussion on almost all boys’ teams. This came naturally and was expected by our student-athletes. The reason our coaches and athletes were eager and willing to talk about the case was because dialogue on the broader topics involved was already happening. A few years ago, we implemented a program called Coaching Boys Into Men (CBIM) that teaches male student-athletes their role in stopping violence against women. The initiative has been extremely powerful in helping our athletes become leaders on this issue, and it has changed the culture of our school. WHAT IS CBIM?

CBIM is a proactive program that addresses the problem of violence against women through education and discussion. Tapping Football players at Mesa Verde High School have become leaders on their campus in building and modeling respectful relationships with women.

AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 37

into the power of sports and the influence of coaches, CBIM equips coaches with tools to help them teach male athletes how to build respectful, non-violent relationships. My involvement with CBIM began in 2009 when I was contacted by researchers from the University of California-Davis who were just beginning to test the program. They asked if the Mesa Verde football team would join a few other high school squads

CBIM presented a golden opportunity to help make a difference. We started the program with the 45 players on our varsity football team. Another football coach at Mesa Verde and I went to a CBIM seminar to learn more about the program and how to deliver its lessons. We found out the aim of CBIM is to teach respect, integrity, and non-violence in an effort to develop solid, responsible

Although the trial occurred during the football off-season, when the verdict in the Steubenville, Ohio rape case was handed down, we called an all-team meeting the next day. We met during lunch to talk about our reactions and what we might learn from the situation.

I began by giving them a short synopsis of the case and the verdict. Then I asked players some questions to elicit their reactions and ideas for preventing sexual violence at Mesa Verde. Here are some of the questions I posed: >

What do you know about the Steubenville incident?

How did the incident affect the individuals involved? The team? The school?

What were the consequences of social media and what the world would think?

What can we do at Mesa Verde so this kind of incident does not occur here?

If one or more of you came upon a similar situation, how would you handle it?

It was an unbelievable discussion, with many insightful comments from our student-athletes. It was also a wonderful reminder of the importance of what we’ve been doing to be proactive on this topic.

in being the first to try CBIM and judge its effectiveness. My initial reaction was that I did not have time to do this. One more thing on my full plate would likely be unmanageable. But after reading a little about the program, I became interested. As a lifelong coach and educator, I have heard many stories and witnessed incidents of violence against women. Ron Barney is Athletic Director and Head Football Coach at Mesa Verde High School in Citrus Heights, Calif., as well as Athletic Director for the San Juan Unified School District. A 37-year coaching veteran, he has served as chair of the Golden Empire Football League for 12 years and has also coached baseball and basketball. He was honored with the Michael D. Gebhardt Coaches Award for spirit, sportsmanship, and dedication in 2011. He can be reached at: rbarney@sanjuan.edu.

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real & now

I developed the lesson for the lunch-time meeting based on the training cards we used for our Coaching Boys Into Men sessions. This involved coming up with questions for the student-athletes to respond to based on what I wanted them to take away from the discussion.

student-athletes who will become upstanding citizens. Its core goal is to inspire men to teach boys the importance of respecting women and that violence never equals strength. The program also develops leaders by training athletes in how to intervene. Our players became confident in changing a situation instead of looking the other way. This not only empowered our players, but changed the school climate. The CBIM lessons taught our young men on the team to become leaders against violence towards women, and they in turn created more leaders. After a year or so of using the program, we noticed the number of fights and suspensions went way down and there was calmness and a sense of safety on our campus. The impact

of the program was bigger than I thought it would be. The change it has brought to our school is simply amazing. COACH AS TEACHER

One of the main components of the program is that coaches—as opposed to specially trained facilitators—teach their athletes the CBIM messages. Because we spend at least two hours a day with our teams, what better person is there to relay these lessons? In addition, most coaches already have the athletes’ respect and serve as male role models. The first step of CBIM is simple training for the coaches that supplies them with many teaching tools. One is a series of training cards to help lead weekly discussions with athletes throughout the season. Each lesson is meant to last at least 10 to 15 minutes, and there is flexibility in the implementation. Some coaches present the sessions before or after— or even during—practice, while others hold them at lunch time. Here at Mesa Verde, I conduct my lessons with the football team every Monday afternoon after a Friday contest. We watch game film for about one hour and 15 minutes, and then we do a CBIM lesson. This is a great time for us since we are fresh and ready to go after the weekend, and we are in a classroom so I have my team’s undivided attention. Sometimes the sessions last up to 30 minutes if there is a lot of discussion, but the extra time is always worth it. Along with the formal lessons, coaches are asked to make respect and leadership a constant theme within their team. To help with this, there is a CBIM kit called a Playbook, which includes facts and information about relationship violence and abuse, teachable moment scenarios, and tips and tactics on how to talk to your athletes. For example, if I overhear a young man speaking disrespectfully to a female or read a news story related to sexual violence, I will have a meeting with my athletes to discuss it using tools from the Playbook. (See “Teachable Moment” on page 40.) If we are going to talk the talk, we also have to walk the walk. I am really proud to report that our coaches have stepped up their game in modeling good behavior. They are careful to choose the right words in all conversations, call out any athlete who is disrespecting women, and not joke about something that is not a joke. It has forced our coaches to improve their own leadership, which has made them better coaches. We always send a form letter home with our athletes to get permission from their parents to be part of the program. So far we have had all our athletes on board.

PROGRESSIVE PROGRAMS

After using CBIM for several years, I’m frequently asked, “How do you find the time to implement the program?” I had the same concern when first approached about this initiative. But as a coach striving to constantly instill lifelong lessons, I also want to teach morals and values. CBIM gave me all the tools I needed as a coach to achieve that goal. The question I ask back is, “How can you not find the time?” LESSON PLANS

Talking about violence against women can be difficult. CBIM provides a sample introductory speech that can be helpful. It goes like this: I want to talk to you about your responsibilities on this team and my expectations of you. This season we’ll not only be focusing on your development as athletes, but also on your development as young men. This includes how you carry yourself and how you treat others, particularly women and girls like your girlfriend or your sister. Periodically, I want to talk to you guys about some of these things and focus on how we can better show respect to ourselves, teammates, and others.

The lessons cover these topics: 1. Respect 2. Personal responsibility 3. Insulting language 4. Disrespectful behavior towards women and girls 5. Digital disrespect: cell phones, texting, photos, videos

For each topic, there are a series of questions and talking points the coach can use to begin discussion and encourage athletes to share personal stories and thoughts. When you first get started, players can be apprehensive. But once you break the ice and get some of the athletes in a dialogue, more athletes start talking.

Along with the formal lessons, coaches are asked to make respect and leadership a constant theme within their team ... It has forced our coaches to improve their own leadership, which has made them better coaches. 6. Understanding consent 7. Bragging about sexual reputation 8. The responsibility of physical strength 9. When aggression crosses the line 10. There is no excuse for relationship abuse 11. Modeling respectful behavior towards women and girls.

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The first lesson is on respect. Here are the questions that get the conversation going: > What does respect mean to you? > How can you show respect to your teammates? > How can you show respect to your friends and family? Your girlfriend? > How do you show respect even to

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people you don’t know, like at a restaurant or a mall? Talking points include the following: > I care about how you act on and off the field. > Respectful behavior means treating others how they want to be treated. > Showing true respect involves everything you do—how you speak, how you act, how you think, and the way you present yourself to others. > As athletes, people will watch you, and many will look up to you. The language you use, how you act, and how you treat other people is very important. > I want you to keep up with your schoolwork, be polite to your teachers, and respect women and girls. The final lesson is on modeling respectful behavior towards women. Here are some of the questions used to generate conversation: > What are ways you can show respect in your relationships with women and girls?

> How can you watch out for each other and make sure your teammates are responsible on and off the field? > What can you do if you hear your friend being disrespectful towards a girl or another person? > As someone other players and students look up to in this school, what are ways you can share these principles of respect with others? Talking points include the following: > You can show respect to others in many ways, like valuing and supporting their personal boundaries, decisions, and individuality. > By showing respect towards women and girls in your language and actions, you’re not only doing the right thing, you’re setting an example for others. > If you witness one of your teammates using inappropriate language or behavior or being disrespectful to a girl, don’t join in on it. Call him on it.

During a time out at practice, Jennifer, a freshman on the tennis team, is walking alone across the gym floor toward the east entrance. She’s known to the guys to be attractive. While you’re adjusting the VCR to show your players a video on teamwork, some of your boys in the back notice Jennifer and start howling, whistling, and making inappropriate comments. You notice that she is uncomfortable and perhaps a little scared, but she holds her head up and continues through the gym. Step in as soon as the behavior starts.

Taking the time to put an end to what your players may have viewed as innocent fun is a preventative step toward educating boys about respecting women and girls. The next step is to go into further detail at a subsequent meeting or practice. >

Explain that taunting women and girls is degrading and that they should not be belittled because of how they look or what they choose to wear.

Mention that most women do not welcome that type

Coach: All right, cut it out! Player 1: Coach, we’re just playing. Besides, look how she’s dressed. She’s asking for it. Coach: Catcalls and jeering aren’t playing. And how somebody dresses isn’t asking for anything.

Player 2: But Coach, she’s hot! Coach: If you like the way she looks, wait until after practice and go up and tell her—by yourself. She might even appreciate it. What you guys were doing was just trying to impress each other with how funny you are. That’s not the way we impress each other on this team. We do that by treating each other with honor and respect and by treating women the same way. Is that clear?

Team: Clear, coach! of attention and are probably fear ful of defending themselves. >

Point out that, as members of a team, they should know how important it is to respect others. Tell them that the same holds true in real life and that they must always think about how their actions affect other people.

Finally, let them know that the men you admire are those who treat women and girls with honor and respect. — Mary Kate Murphy

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teachable moment

When coaches are faced with an inappropriate situation among their own players, sometimes they may not know how to react. The following Teachable Moment from the Coaching Boys into Men (CBIM) Playbook provides an example of what to do when one or several of your players step over the line.

> If you witness a situation and it makes you feel unsafe, don’t get involved directly. Ask an adult for help. > Think of ways you can share the principles of respect—teamwork, responsibility, integrity, non-violence—with your community. > You are all part of something positive at this school. Your commitment to respect is also a responsibility—defend it and share it. At the end of all the lessons, your team can sign a pledge to affirm its commitment. We make a big poster with the pledge on it and have all involved athletes and coaches sign it. It is displayed for everyone on campus to see. The pledge states: I commit to take a stand against relationship abuse, and I believe that violence is neither a solution nor a sign of strength. I understand that by treating everyone with respect, I am a role model to others. By taking this pledge, I publicly denounce violence against women

PROGRESSIVE PROGRAMS

and girls. A world of respect starts today and it starts with me. However, the program is not over after signing this pledge. Coaches should continue to talk about the issues at every opportunity. In addition, the program should be repeated every year as new students join a team. Veteran student-athletes do not find this boring, but rather become leaders in the discussions in ensuing years. Even if the lesson is the same, new things are brought up and learned because of the different experiences of everyone involved. REACHING FURTHER

After the first year our football team went through the program, the next step was to get other coaches and athletic teams on board. The boys’ basketball and track and field teams signed up immediately. Baseball and wrestling have since joined as well. I am also Athletic Director for the entire San Juan Unified School District, which includes nine high schools counting Mesa Verde. Currently, four other high schools in our district have begun implementing the program.

Part of our success in growing CBIM is due to recruiting allies in our efforts. We’ve received the support of district leadership and upper-level administrators, as well as our booster club. Local TV and radio stations have produced stories about the program and its impact on student-athletes. Dockers, a branch of Levi Strauss & Company, came to our school and shot a short film about the problem of violence against women and the CBIM program, which it then posted on its Web site. My personal involvement with CBIM has grown, as well. Last year, I trained 38 coaches on how to implement CBIM in Alaska, which had received some federal funding to tackle its statewide problem with violence against women. I have remained in contact with many of the coaches, and they feel the program is making a difference. I will be going back to Alaska in June to teach 50 more coaches in the city of Juneau about the program. Colleges and universities in California have become interested in the program, and I spoke about CBIM at a meeting of all the campuses in the University of California system. I offered suggestions on how they might

want to implement it at their schools. As the meeting went on, I could see there is a great need for this program at the college level. One of the most rewarding outcomes of CBIM is that our athletes carry its message with them. In my first group of football players, we had a young man who became the leader of our CBIM program. He was honored as Youth Leader of the Year in California for his efforts. Three young men who were also on that first team spoke to the California State Legislature on behalf of the program and the need to implement it in all schools. I am proud to say I have students in college now who are spreading the message that CBIM delivers. My experience with CBIM has been nothing short of amazing. At times, I’m overwhelmed at the effect we can have as athletic directors and coaches in a young man’s life, a team, a school, and a culture. I have been in education for 37 years and I have seen many changes in our society. The need for teaching young men to respect women has never been greater, and Coaching Boys into Men will give you the tools to make a difference. n

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FUNDRAISING

When the Middleborough (Mass.) High School All-Sports Booster Association held its monthly meeting last August, President Patrick Sclafani had a new fundraising initiative to present. The group had been searching for a project that would generate the $20,000 it annually contributes to athletics while requiring the least amount of work. Sclafani pitched an unconventional solution: selling breakfast cereal.

The fundraiser would entail partnering with a new business in our area called Community Crunch. This company produces the cereal and the boxes it comes in, which would feature a photo of our high school, our logo, and advertisements for local businesses. We would also get to name the cereal. Community Crunch would keep all advertising revenue, a portion of which covers their production costs. Our booster club,

in collaboration with the school athletic department, would sell the cereal and retain all money from sales. We went ahead with the idea and decided to call our cereal Sachem Crunch after our Sachem mascot. A cereal sale was an opportunity to do something beyond our usual fundraisers, and it appeared to be a no-lose situation—there was no possibility of losing money, and a good chance of bringing in the goal of $20,000. In the process, we’ve learned Middleborough student-athletes Kyle Ohrenberger and Kelsey Hardiman pose with a box of Sachem Crunch, their school’s unique new fundraiser.

Selling Breakfast

Partnering with a local company, Middleborough (Mass.) High School is thinking outside the box by selling something inside a box.

By David Paling & Michael Perry

AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 43

a lot about partnering with an outside group for fundraising and the pros and cons of doing something out of the ordinary. BACKGROUND CHECK

Before signing on with Community Crunch, we did some research on the com-

pitch his plan, primarily targeting their athletic departments. “The first school willing to try my idea was Leominster (Mass.) High School,” he says. “At that point, I thought I could sell both the ads and the cereal, giving the school a cut of the proceeds. This was a mistake. I had no idea how difficult it would be to sell the boxes of cereal. I was an outsider in Leominster and didn’t have the local connections necessary to get this done. Everything I tried was largely ignored. “I also had problems with graphics, the listing of proper nutrition information, kosher certification, product liability insurance, and delivery schedules,” Friend continues. “The ad sales went okay, so in the end, Leominster received about $2,500. The benefit for me was that I learned the hard way to turn the sales portion of the process over to the schools. People were far more likely to buy from the local group needing funding than from me.” That first try led to the agreement Community Crunch now uses with partnering schools. The brief written contract signed by both parties indicates the company will sell advertisements, produce and deliver a specific amount of cereal, and assist with designing items like order forms, flyers, banners, and posters. Schools can name the cereal and will assume the responsibility for selling it. The company retains all ad revenue—the smallest ad space is 1.75 square inches at $595 and the largest ad space is 3.6 square inches at $2,395—while the school keeps the cereal sales revenue. The school decides on the amount of cereal it wants, the graphic design on the boxes, and all sales procedures. Community Crunch enhances its product by placing shoppers’ guides inside the boxes. These guides include a copy of each advertisement along with some coupons. The tactic is intended to increase cereal sales and provide an extra marketing tool to the advertisers. We also asked about the actual cereal. “When we began, it was a mix of granola, raisins, corn flakes, and almonds,” Friend says. “We weren’t sure if the taste had a general appeal, so we also began offering multigrain O’s, which are similar to Cheerios. The cereal is all natural, fortified with vitamins and minerals, and low in sugar. In my opinion, it’s a great tasting cereal.”

The company retains all advertising revenue, while the school keeps the cereal sales revenue. The school decides on the amount of cereal it wants, the graphic design on the boxes, and all sales procedures. pany and its dealings with other schools. This was extremely helpful for making decisions on how to structure our promotional and sales efforts at Middleborough. We started by asking Community Crunch owner Andy Friend for his story. He relayed that he had over three decades of business experience, which included ad sales and owning two companies. In 2009, he had shut down his most recent enterprise (selling ads that appeared on local maps, which was hurt by the advent of GPS and a slow economy) and was pondering what to do next. A resident of Saugus, Mass., Friend was also concerned about his community’s financial struggles. He had three children attending the public schools, where athletes were paying high participation fees. There was little chance of adding more funding to schools by passing any tax-rate cap override in the blue-collar town. While eating bowls of cereal with his family one morning, the idea to create a successful business that would also help schools was born. He wondered: Why not sell ads that would appear on cereal boxes, a product that is a staple in most households, and forge an agreement with an organization in need, which would receive a portion of the proceeds? Friend began reaching out to schools to David Paling is the retired Director of Athletics, Health & Physical Education from the Middleborough (Mass.) Public Schools and a frequent contributor to Athletic Management. Michael Perry is serving in his second year as the Director of Athletics, Health & Physical Education for Middleborough and can be reached at: mperry@middleboro.k12.ma.us.

44 JUNE/JULY JUNE/JULY 2013 2013| |AthleticManagement.com AthleticManagement.com

LEARNING FROM OTHERS

We liked Friend’s background and his thinking, so our next step was to ask specific schools how their partnerships with the company were panning out. We found that Community Crunch had learned a lot from the growing pains it had endured in Leominster. By the time Friend called on Braintree (Mass.) High School Athletic Director Mike Denise in 2010, most of the glitches were gone. Friend had figured out what information he needed to include on the boxes and fine-tuned his relationship with a cereal manufacturer in California. He even copyrighted his idea. Community Crunch had evolved from a one-man band to a core group of 12, mostly full-time, workers. “I shared the project with our boosters,” Denise says. “We saw the cereal as a novelty item since our school and logo would appear on the boxes. We felt that our students and alumni would be interested in buying it.” Denise and his boosters requested 3,000 boxes, deciding to sell them for $3 each and call it Wamps Crunch after the school’s mascot. Once the cereal was delivered, Denise gave each of his 500 fall sport athletes six boxes of cereal to sell. This large, teenage sales force went to parents, relatives, friends, and

We are asking each athlete to sell 10 boxes at $4 each. The student-athlete who sells the most will have his or her user fee waived, an incentive worth $175. youth soccer and football games in search of buyers. Once athletes sold their six boxes, their name was entered into drawings for gift cards Denise purchased from a local plaza. What was the bottom line at Braintree? Two thousand boxes were sold, yielding a profit of $6,000. The school donated the leftover cereal to a local food bank. “I think the biggest challenge in selling the cereal was taste,” says Denise. “This cereal was unknown to the buyer, so there may have been some hesitance there.” Next, we talked with Bob Rodgers, Athletic Director at Whitman-Hanson (Mass.) Regional High School. His partnership with Community Crunch hit a few bumps at the beginning. “Our first shipment came later than expected,” he says. “We missed out on a big sales opportunity at our fall parent/athlete preseason meeting.”

FUNDRAISING

OUR TURN

Before we could sign an agreement with Community Crunch, we had to get approval

from our superintendent of schools. It was an easy sell, since she knew the athletic department needed financial support. Plus, our contract specified that no costs would be borne by the school, and the boosters were willing to shoulder responsibility for managing the project. At Middleborough, we are hoping to capitalize on both the evolution of Community Crunch and the previous experiences of other schools. We’ve looked at what’s worked and what hasn’t to create the perfect partnership for our situation. One thing we are doing differently is having our student-athletes presell the cereal. This avoids needing to get unsold boxes back. We are asking each athlete to sell 10 boxes at $4 each, for a total of 5,000 boxes. The student-athlete who sells the most will have his or her user fee waived, an incentive worth $175, and we’ve ordered T-shirts for other top sellers. From Community Crunch, we’ve asked for delivery installments. The first shipment will only be 1,500 boxes. This way, we won’t have to find storage space for all 5,000 boxes we’ve ordered, and we can spread the process out to include athletes throughout the year. It also ensures the cereal won’t get stale. Along with asking our student-athletes to sell boxes, we are working on establishing retail sales sites. So far one local merchant has agreed to do this, and we are hoping for several more. Unfortunately, our area supermarkets have not come on board as they are

When it comes to selling something new and different as a fundraiser, there are several important areas to consider:

Price What price will your customers be willing to pay for your product? Will they spend more than what a similar product costs because it supports the athletic department or may be a keepsake? Adding one or two dollars to a sales price can quickly add up to larger overall profits.

MARKETING It’s important to review all possible sales and marketing oppor-

tunities and exploit them. Will counting on your athletes to sell the product work at your school? Would area businesses be willing to set aside a dedicated sales area for you? Can you get free publicity through media outlets?

SALES TEAM If your athletes are your sales force, take the time to convince them that this is a task worth performing well. Just as a coach seeks to motivate his or her squad, you must create the necessary level of enthusiasm within all your teams so that everyone becomes eager to play their part. What sales incentives would work at your school?

unable to separately quantify these sales. We’re also considering collaborating with other school organizations and clubs, perhaps allowing them to sell cereal and retain a portion of the profits. We don’t want to have any leftover cereal, and we don’t want to let our advertisers down. To make sure we maximize all possible promotion and sales opportunities,

Enough ads were sold, but it required a delicate balance. We have to be careful about how much we ask from our local businesses. we are working closely with the boosters. Currently, they are partnering with Community Crunch to establish a Web site that will include links to all the advertisers. Ads promoting the fundraiser will appear in the local newspaper, and we continually make announcements within the schools and during parent meetings. The ad sales process was successful but not without wrinkles. Some Middleborough business owners were initially skeptical, thinking the telephone calls they received were a scam. And a few were put off by “sales people that were too aggressive,” prompting

SALES SITES Examine all areas with heavy foot traffic. Would local supermarkets be willing to let you sell your product outside their stores? Are polling sites in your town a feasible sales location? How about open house nights in your schools? Local fairs and festivals?

ACCOUNTABILITY With money being exchanged, the usual paper trail must be established to withstand any future audit that might take place.

Savvy Selling

In addition, due to a production error, the school received the granola mix rather than the multigrain O’s. “I had some staff members sample the cereal before we decided which one we wanted,” Rodgers says. “The mix got a lukewarm response so we planned for the O’s. My concern was that if people didn’t like the way it tasted, they wouldn’t be repeat customers, and to an extent, that rang true.” Rodgers gave the cereal to members of the school’s captain’s council to sell at $5 a box. These team leaders set up at town polling sites in November, hoping to intercept all the voters who came through. They also sold boxes at the school’s Thanksgiving Day football game. “We’ve managed to sell 600 boxes so far, with all the money going to the athletic department,” says Rodgers. “But at this point, I’m also letting teams sell them as fundraisers, and they can keep the money to make team purchases.” Rodgers decided to go in a different direction with the design on the boxes than other schools. Rather than using the school picture and logo, he assembled a photo collage of his athletes. Permission slips signed by all parents provided the necessary latitude to use a student’s likeness for publicity purposes. “I wanted the cereal to be representative of our athletes, and I wanted people to know the fundraiser was for athletics,” Rodgers explains.

AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 45

SPORTS FUNDRAISING MEDICINE

us to do a little damage control. Friend is working on making his sales team better. “We try to personalize the ad sales process,” he says. “We make appointments by telephone

ger than this fundraiser. Bob Rodgers echoes this sentiment. “You can’t go to the same well too many times,” he says. “There is a danger of alienating the people you rely upon for support.” Now that we’re in the midst of the project, cautious optimism is in the air. “This event has the potential to be our biggest fundraiser ever,” says Sclafani. “We’ll explore every sales opportunity and try to sell all 5,000 boxes because we need the revenue. We also owe the businesses in our town who were generous enough to purchase ads our best effort to sell every box.”

For athletic directors everywhere, the question is whether it’s a good idea to partner with a fledgling fundraising operation. We hope to have provided some insights. then make site visits as part of our routine.” When the day was done, enough ads were sold to fill both sides of the cereal box, but it required a delicate balance. We have to be careful about how much we ask from our local businesses. We rely on them for golf tournament sponsorships, and they buy ads in our fall sports program booklet. Our relationship with them lasts a lot lon-

JURY STILL OUT?

Friend recently attended a booster meeting at Middleborough, extending his business card to the membership and inviting them to call if needed. People wanted to know about unique sales approaches other schools have used. He told them that the Winchester (Mass.) High School cheerleaders set up shop at the town’s waste disposal area on weekends

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and sales were brisk. He pointed out that the Peabody (Mass.) booster group was motivated enough to sell 4,500 boxes. “It is not complicated to sell boxes of cereal for $4,” he said. “You just have to get them in the hands of your kids.” Still, Whitman-Hanson’s Bob Rodgers is mulling over what he’ll do to move 4,000 more boxes. He’s looking forward to a promised switch from the mix to the O’s. At Braintree, Mike Denise is not planning to repeat the fundraiser, citing the difficulty of having to manage an untrained sales staff of 500 young people. That being said, Friend is confident his idea has legs. Community Crunch has worked with more than 30 schools to date and is hoping to expand, with inroads being made into Connecticut and Rhode Island. When the business started in 2010, the early glitches led to a Better Business Bureau rating of C. That rating has since been upgraded to A-. For athletic directors everywhere, the question is whether it’s a good idea to partner with a fledgling fundraising operation. We hope to have provided some insights with this new idea that has come to our area. n

LEADERSHIP

Top of their Game Especially when they are new to the profession, coaches can struggle in many areas. At this NCAA Division III school, a special program is helping them reach their full potential.

By Dr. Mike Davenport Coaching can be a tough career, and that’s nothing new. But right now, it is more challenging than ever. It often feels like the profession of coaching is under fire on a national stage. Because of the misdeeds of a few unethical coaches, quality coaches often find themselves under the microscope and having to defend their every move. It has placed an extra layer of pressure on good, well-intentioned coaches.

In addition, coaches are asked to do more than ever before. They need to sell their program to recruits and an increasing number of stakeholders. They must deal with social issues that affect student-athletes. And many are also required to fundraise. These responsibilities, along with the pressure of winning, have been shown to increase the stress coaches feel and contribute to burnout. This is a very real phenomenon that can hamper their performance,

negatively affect health, and cause good coaches to leave the profession. In response, we’ve created something exciting here at Washington College. It’s an innovative, engaging, and hopefully very educational program to support and reenergize our coaches. It is also designed to help them take their game to the next level. This may sound like “professional development,” and in some ways it is, but we don’t call it that. Mention professional

Washington College coaches are now taking the time to put their philosophies and approaches on paper. AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 47

development to coaches and they run for the nearest locker room, bolting the door behind them. For coaches who are already stretched to—or beyond—their limits, professional development sounds boring and time-consuming. And the term “coaching education” is almost as bad. So we decided to call it something different. We are using the title, “The High Performance Program for Division III Coaches.” Yes, I know. That sounds like we are just focused on winning more games. And sure, that’s part of our intentions. But it is not the main motivation behind this program. It is part of a broad strategic plan to bring excellence to our athletic department and to help our coaches perform at the highest level— especially in critical areas such as recruiting and retaining top student-athletes. The program is also a chance for Washington College to recognize that our coaches

are more than just a commodity. They are a wonderful resource, and when they are energized and empowered, they can do amazing things both on and off the playing field. Additionally, by helping our coaches, we show them that we care. Our goal is to create a program that supports coaches in gaining experience and knowledge in a wide range of areas. It is our hope that this initiative will help every coach at Washington College reach their full potential and feel supported in their endeavors. We also believe it will reduce the pressure they feel, which can help with retention. PIECES OF THE PUZZLE

The program includes seven components, each with a distinct purpose. The expectation is that, over time, every Washington coach will strive to be proficient in each one.

During what turned out to be my final year, things really fell apart. It took all the energy I could muster just to keep myself and the team together. Some days I struggled to even get out of bed. When things started to go bad I began blaming the kids— and especially their work ethic—for our lack of success. “They just won’t do what needs to be done,” I complained. “They need to work harder, spend more time getting stronger, and get in better shape.”

Mike Davenport, EdD, is Director of Rowing, Head Coach of Women’s Rowing, and Assistant to the Athletic Director for Professional Development and Compliance at Washington College. He has been coaching for 33 years, and has worked on the coaching staff of several national rowing teams. He writes about professional sustainability for coaches at: www.coachingsportstoday.com and can also be reached at: mdavenport2@washcoll.edu.

of all, I had absolutely no idea why something that had been so wonderful just months before was now suddenly so awful. When the season was over, I did the only thing that I could think of—I threw in the towel. I believed that the athletes had won, and I had lost. I felt inside that I was a good coach, but I resisted the temptation to stay and try to make things better because I felt that one more year of coaching would kill me. My second tour as a coach has been quite different. I accepted an invitation to a regatta only because it would have been impolite to refuse, and once I saw the rowing shells, I knew I had to return to coaching. I’ve been back for 27 years, and the factor that made a difference was coaching education and development.

I felt that the athletes were purposely making it hard for me to coach, and I began to despise them for it. So I did what many coaches do when they find themselves in similar situations—I worked harder. I spent more time watching videos, planned overly intense workouts, and pushed the athletes constantly.

I know this time around what I did not know the first time—that there are specific things a coach must do to remain successful and happy in the profession. This includes having a strong support network, being professional in and out of the office, caring about your image, and learning as much as you can as often as you can.

The end of that final year was an awful experience for me, as it surely was for the athletes. Not only was I not enjoying what I had previously loved to do, but I was constantly getting sick. I couldn’t sleep. I had a twitch in one eye that I couldn’t shake. I began to disassociate myself from the athletes I was coaching, my friends, and my family. Worst

I learned these things through the coaching education programs that I tapped into, along with caring and supporting athletic directors. Coaches can’t make it alone, and the advice I’ve received from others has made all the difference in my ability to thrive in the profession.

48 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

proof positive

I started my coaching career in 1978 and left five years later, a burned out shell of a coach. I had been coaching a rowing team at a small, private college, and we were very successful my first four years. We won many top races, the athletes were having fun, and I really enjoyed what I was doing. But slowly it became more difficult to win, and I found I had to work harder and harder just to remain competitive.

1. Coach Philosophy Platform (CPP): The purpose of the CPP is to help coaches craft a statement that frames their approach. The statement communicates who the coach is, how they coach, how they conceptualize their role and the athlete’s role both in and out of the competitive setting, and how they will translate those beliefs into action. We call it a “platform” since the statement will actually be presented in different formats (written, verbal, video) and become a stage that the coach stands upon. The statement can start with something as simple as: “The reason

LEADERSHIP

I coach is ... ,” and then expand with specifics. It will be a living document that can change over time and potentially be several pages long. The platform becomes the first piece of the Coaching Portfolio (see component 4). Our belief is there will be several benefits to creating the CPP, including: > An aid for end-of-the-year coach evaluations. The evaluator could use the CPP to compare the coach’s beliefs to his or her actions and the team’s performance. > As a reflection document. The CPP gives a coach a greater awareness of his or her strengths and areas needing improvement. > In case of negative issues. When problems arise, the CPP can give important background information about the coach’s intent and knowledge. > To assist with the hiring of new coaches. The athletic department could have candidates fill in a blank CPP in order to get more insight into each coach’s ideas and methods. 2. Coach-Mentor Program: The focus here is to aid new and younger coaches in their transition into the department, espe-

cially with regard to time management, coaching skills, life-work balance, and competitive pressure. A secondary focus is to give coaches who are struggling a supportive and understanding resource. The mentors will be three to four experienced coaches from the department. The position will be voluntary and we will offer training. The mentors will be organized in an informal manner, which we feel will foster more buy-in. The mentor will not try to solve problems brought to him or her, but instead make suggestions and recommendations to the mentee about resources they could use. For example, a coach who comes to a mentor with a family issue might be referred to Human Resources or Health Services to talk to trained counselors. They may also be referred to resources outside the institution. At the same time, the mentor could provide moral support for the mentee while also offering advice in areas of his or her expertise, if needed. The benefits of the coach-mentor program will be: an accelerated learning curve for the mentee, reduction of workplace

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stressors and distractions, learning opportunities for both the mentor and mentee, and improved communication and function of coaches within the athletic department. 3. Continuing Education Workshops: It is obvious that continuing education is critical for coaches. It helps them stay current on the latest advances in their sport, learn of health and safety developments, and make connections with others. We have already begun implementing this component. Within a six-week period this spring I developed three one-hour workshops. One focused on Title IX issues and was presented by a college staff member; another was on food intolerances and athletes, given by an expert from a local community college; and a third from our college’s health care insurance carrier discussed sexual harassment in the workplace. We also had a nationally known sports nutritionist come to speak. Leslie Bonci, the Director of Sports Nutrition at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for Sports Medicine, spent an hour with coaches and athletes sharing her wealth of knowledge and advice on sports nutrition. Following

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SPORTS LEADERSHIP MEDICINE

that, she sent each head coach a packet of information about nutrition specific to their sport. Another topic we’d like to present in the future is effective communication, since it can help coaches be in sync with their ath-

during the end-of-the-year coach evaluations. It also pushes the coach to take ownership of his or her career development. 5. Coach Outreach: Athletics are said to be the front porch of an institution, and a coach is often the first person to greet a

A coach’s reputation is critical to his or her success and career—especially with regard to recruiting ... We hope to post photos of coaches during practice and competition, community service events, or speaking engagements online in our social media channels and also display them within the college. letes, and also improve how they interact with non-coaching staff and administrators. Two other possible workshops could be: building and managing relationships, and hiring and retaining good assistant coaches. We have also started monthly meetings, in which experts from within the college come to talk to our head coaches. These gatherings are a great opportunity for coaches to learn more about the different departments within the school and to bolster relationships between faculty and coaches. For example, in a recent meeting, a professor in economics shared details about the major, what students need to do to succeed in it, and information we can use when we recruit student-athletes who may be interested in economics. In terms of off-campus opportunities, we promote and support our coaches who attend continuing-education sessions within our conference, at their national conventions, and at regional coaching clinics. We believe that when coaches interact with others outside of campus, it can be a great learning opportunity. 4. Coaching Portfolio: This is an organized presentation of the coach’s education, skills, and work samples, such as practice, recruiting, and fundraising plans. The portfolio can be used in evaluations, job searches, and in pursuit of continuing education. Mine was very helpful to me when I applied to and was accepted into my doctoral studies program. Portfolios are an effective way to display accomplishments and current projects, but they take time and effort to create. Our hope with this component is to find ways to help coaches construct professional-looking portfolios more easily. We believe the development of a coaching portfolio can help to focus discussions 50 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

visitor who appears on the porch. With our coach outreach component, we hope to help coaches find an outlet for ideas or concepts they have, while providing assistance to community groups in our area. This could entail a coach speaking at a Character Counts seminar. Or it might involve setting up local coaching clinics. We believe the coach and the college would see improved branding through this positive exposure. 6. Reputation Management: A coach’s reputation is critical to his or her success and career—especially with regard to recruiting. The purpose of this component is to establish a practice of monitoring the reputation of a coach in the media (primarily online). Although there are services that do this, we are currently looking to accomplish it in-house by establishing an automated online-monitoring plan for “mentions” of our coaches. How will we use the positive content we find? We hope to post photos of coaches during practice and competition, community service events, or speaking engagements online in our social media channels and also display them in visible areas within the college. We will also promote the extracurricular activities of coaches. In terms of negative mentions, our belief is that action should be taken. If the information is incorrect, then asking for a retraction and/or apology may be in order. If it’s an opinion or subjective in nature then hopefully the abundance of positive information will overshadow one or two negative pieces. We also hope to bring in speakers to help educate coaches on reputation management, public relations, and interacting with the media. As with the coach outreach component, improved positive exposure for the college and coach are our goals.

7. Effective Recruiting: Doing a great job recruiting is a necessity in collegiate athletics. This component will educate coaches on best practices and include regular evaluation of their recruiting efforts. There are numerous aspects of effective recruiting on which to focus, such as ethics, establishing a working model, collaborating with other departments within the college, and establishing a consistent message. The benefits of this component could have a positive impact on individual teams and the department as a whole. PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

One of the first questions an athletic administrator will likely have about the program is what it costs. Our approach with programming is to go lean. We hope to accomplish as much as possible with the program using in-house resources. If that cannot be done, we will attempt to secure funding. A second question is how to get coach buy-in. Although the program is still in its infancy stage, the response from our coaches has been mostly positive. Veteran coaches, I thought, would be resistant to the program, but this is not the case. I believe the veteran coaches see the benefits for themselves, the department, and their assistants. I also believe they feel the program is based on sound principles and is created with their best interests in mind. The newer coaches seem to be more reluctant to accept the program. I think this is due mostly to time concerns and their focus on on-field success. A third question is about organization. At our school, I have taken the lead in strategizing and organizing the program, even though I am primarily a coach and not an administrator. Why me? I love coaches, coaching, and personal development. And I have been studying this topic for years (my doctoral thesis was on the longitudinal effect of the competitive season on coaches). I also find it fun. Finally, others wonder how we might measure the effect of our efforts. That is the million-dollar question, and we are working on measureables now. We know they are important and ideas are being considered. As we continue on our journey of implementing this new program, what motivates me most is supporting today’s coach. The vast majority of coaches are well-intentioned, caring people who, yes, like to win, but in reality, coach for more important reasons. Those good coaches deserve to be supported. Even though times are tough and money is tight, resources dedicated to educating and helping coaches develop can yield great returns. n

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1988

2013

CELEBRATING

YEARS

Safe and Strong

The fields of sports medicine and strength and conditioning have become integral parts of an athletic department over the past 25 years. Here, we present the top 25 innovations in these two domains.

By Dennis Read

Few areas of an athletic department have more day-to-day contact with athletes on all teams than sports medicine and strength and conditioning. And there is no off-season in either one. Both fields have also shown tremendous growth since we published the first issue of (College) Athletic Management in 1989. At the time, certified athletic trainers were certainly common at the college level, but not at the high school level. And dedicated strength coaches were still considered a luxury typically reserved for the largest college athletic departments. As part of celebrating our 25th year, Athletic Management presents a rundown of the top 25 innovations in sports medicine and strength and conditioning over the past quarter-century. This list was developed in consultation with veteran athletic directors, athletic trainers, and strength coaches at the high school and college levels who both helped identify the biggest trends and rank which were the most significant.

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Concussion management It wasn’t long ago that a concussion was waved off as “getting your bell rung,” and football players would laugh at teammates left woozy from a big hit. Now we know that concussions are traumatic brain injuries and can have devastating long-term impacts. We also know that evaluating a concussion and determining when it’s okay to return to play are critical decisions. As

Advances in rehab procedures and power racks rank among the top innovations in sports medicine and strength training over the past quarter-century.

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SPORTS MEDICINE & TRAINING

a result, testing products have been developed to help establish a baseline level of cognitive and other functions that a concussed athlete must reach before returning to action. At the same time, other innovations are helping identify athletes who may have suffered a concussion. These include impact monitors, which indicate an athlete has received a blow that could cause a concussion. And there’s been an increased emphasis on protective equipment, such as better helmets for football players and head protection for sports like soccer and baseball.

2 Heat stress prevention In the past 25 years, more than 50 athletes (high school, college, and professional) have died due to heat-related illness. But increased awareness of its dangers and products aimed at its prevention and treatment should help save lives over the next 25. New guidelines adopted by the NCAA and many state high school athletic associations are designed to reduce the risk of heat illness during preseason summer practices, especially in football, by requiring an accli-

matization period, reducing the number of days with multiple practice sessions, and calling off practice when weather conditions get too dangerous. In addition, several products are now on the market to help prevent heat illness, including portable hydration units, powerful fans, misting and cooling systems, and body temperature monitors. Cooling tanks are also available to treat heat illness immediately by immersing an overheated athlete in cold water.

3 Surgical & rehab

procedures Thanks to advances in surgical techniques and rehab protocols, injuries that signaled the end of an athletic career 25 years ago are almost viewed as routine now. For example, returning to action after ACL reconstruction has become so common that the question usually is not whether an athlete will return, but how few months can it take. And the rise of arthroscopic surgery means that recovery times for many procedures are measured in weeks instead of months.

4 Power racks

It’s a rare weightroom these days that doesn’t feature power racks as a centerpiece. These versatile units allow athletes to lift weights safely, effectively, and efficiently, helping schools get the most out of their strength training facilities. Although early versions were basically cages with adjustable metal pegs to hold barbells before and after lifts, today’s power racks can be decked out with a wide array of space-saving attachments and accessories, such as chin-up bars and pull-up handles, weight plate storage systems, dip stations, and squat bars.

MRSA prevention & treatment While MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) has been a problem in hospitals and nursing homes for decades, it hit the athletic world hard as the 21st century began. An increasing number of cases were reported as the 2000s progressed, with Dennis Read is an Associate Editor at Athletic Management. He can be reached at: dr@MomentumMedia.com.

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some even resulting in death. In response, a wide range of antimicrobial products were developed to help rid bodies, equipment, and surfaces of MRSA. These include cleaning products such as wipes and sprays as well as soaps and detergents. In addition, companies began adding antimicrobial protection to equipment and facilities, such as protective pads, locker room surfaces, and even synthetic turf.

Weightroom flooring With an increased focus on strength training for enhanced performance, athletes are spending more and more time in weightrooms, and schools are doing all they can to make these facilities an attractive place to be—often starting from the bottom up. Today’s weightroom floors are a far cry from previous generations. Gone are dingy gray floors and hard surfaces. Manufacturers can now produce floors in any school’s colors. Many rooms feature the school’s logo inlaid directly into the floor, building school spirit while also catching the eye of recruits. The benefits are not just aesthetic, though. Modern rubber surfaces are easier

on athletes, and the floors cost less, last longer, handle heavier weights, and absorb sound better than ever before.

Protective apparel While jerseys get all of the attention from athletes, a newer type of clothing may have a greater impact on their performance: protective apparel. In addition to providing compression, protective clothing developed over the last 25 years integrates padding directly into garments. This way, athletes in sports with little padding, such as basketball, can have comfortable, unobtrusive protection in key areas such as the elbows, arms, and ribs. The extra level of padding can also help players in full-contact sports such as football, lacrosse, and ice hockey.

8 Monitors & analyzers

What you don’t know certainly can hurt you when it comes to sports medicine and conditioning, but there’s little left unknown, thanks to the wide variety of monitors available to today’s athletes. Pulse and heart rate monitors are key tools in ensuring an athlete is performing the right

loads at the right volumes during workouts. Body composition analyzers, meanwhile, can pinpoint an athlete’s fat and muscle levels and have played a crucial role in the current weight management system used in wrestling. Strength coaches have also benefited greatly from the development of technology that measures the velocity of weights during lifts, allowing them to better monitor an athlete’s effort and output during training.

9 Automated external

defibrillators (AEDs) Perhaps no single innovation has saved more lives in such a simple way over the past 25 years than the automated external defibrillator (AED). Athletes, coaches, officials, and spectators have all received lifesaving treatment from these devices, which use electrical shocks to correct abnormal heart rhythms that can cause death. Designed to be used by anyone, many models feature audio prompts that tell users exactly what to do. With units available for about $1,000, AEDs are common sights in gyms and stadiums across the country, and

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many communities have held fundraisers to obtain them for their facilities.

10 Sports drinks

Originally developed as a way to replenish an athlete’s body with water, carbohydrates, and electrolytes lost through sweat during exercise, sports drinks have evolved over the last 25 years into a diverse array of products. New formulations target an athlete’s specific needs before, during, and after practices and competitions and some have also become recovery beverages, thanks in part to the addition of protein. They have even gone beyond the traditional “drink” label with the introduction of gels that provide many of the same benefits as their liquid counterparts.

11 Aquatic therapy

Whirlpools, hot tubs, and cold tubs have been commonplace in athletic training rooms for well over a quarter-century. But aquatic therapy today extends to a wide array of equipment and treatments that help athletes recover faster from injury and soreness. The introduction of fiberglass therapy tanks has allowed schools to have freestanding above-ground installations as well as dug-out pools. Many tanks also have windows on the sides, providing easy underwater observation of athletes. Another major innovation has been the introduction of underwater treadmills, which allow athletes to do cardiovascular work without stressing tender joints.

12 Athletic training

coverage The year after we began publication in 1989 marked a watershed moment for athletic training as that was when the American Medical Association recognized it as an Allied Health Profession. This brought new credibility and prestige to the field and led to better understanding of how athletic trainers could help an athletic department. Today, most all colleges have an athletic training staff and more

and more high schools are hiring athletic trainers on a full- or part-time basis, or contracting with a clinic or hospital for athletic training services. As a result, athletes are better protected than ever before, coaches no longer have to be the first line of response, and athletic directors can sleep a little better at night.

13 Cold compression

Combing two staples of athletic injury treatment, cold compression therapy has helped decrease the time it takes athletes to recover from injury. Both compressing the affected area and cooling it at the same time speeds the body’s natural healing process. Cold compression systems range from sleeves and wraps to devices that encase entire limbs and automatically circulate cold fluids to maintain proper cooling levels.

14 Free-weight equipment

There’s nothing new about lifting weights to increase strength, but the options in this equipment have grown greatly over the last 25 years. One of the biggest innovations has involved the materials used. Rubber weight plates and dumbbells have gained in popularity over the years since they are gentler on floors and platforms than their steel counterparts. Meanwhile, adjustable dumbbells can save space in the weightroom and speed athletes’ workouts since they can be changed more quickly. Another change has been the emergence of kettlebells, a favorite strength tool in Russia for decades that has surged in popularity in the U.S. with the increased emphasis on core training.

15 Protective braces

From the introduction of hinged ankle braces in 1989, to the development of lightweight knee braces that can be used prophylactically, protective supports and braces have kept countless athletes performing with confidence. The hinged ankle brace, for example, keeps the ankle

A quick look at the top 10 innovations in sports medicine and strength training over the past 25 years. 1. Concussion management 2. Heat stress prevention 3. Surgical and rehab procedures 4. Power racks 5. MRSA prevention and treatment 6. Weightroom flooring

7. Protective apparel 8. Monitors and analyzers 9. Automated external defibrillators (AEDs) 10. Sports drinks

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from moving side-to-side, while still allowing full movement in other directions. Modern construction techniques mean braces are stronger than ever before, while new materials provide comfort that was unimaginable 25 years ago.

16 Core training

One of the big buzz words in strength training over the past 10 years has been the core. Composed of the abdominals, hips, and back, the core supplies much of the body’s strength and stability and serves as the link between the upper and lower body. As a result, athletes in all sports are putting more emphasis on exercises that build the core, such as sit-ups, crunches, medicine balls throws, and squats.

17 Weight-lifting platforms

The saying goes that form follows function, but both go hand in hand when it comes to weight-lifting platforms. Originally developed to protect weightroom floors, these platforms now provide aesthetics and safety as well. The platform clearly delineates a lifter’s space, reducing the risk of accidents

and injuries. The fashion trend for platforms has been to place them flush in the surrounding flooring with either a wood or heavy-duty rubber insert, often with the school’s colors or logo. This new approach provides a fresh look to training facilities, while also being easier to clean and maintain.

18 Recovery

Over the past 25 years, new research on recovery has helped coaches better understand its importance. And while nutrition plays a large role in helping athletes bounce back quickly after workouts and competitions, there are other ways to help them recover more quickly, such as getting enough sleep and including off-days in strength training programs. In addition, massage has become a common method of reducing pain and stiffness by helping muscles and other soft tissue recuperate more rapidly.

19 Steroids & PEDs

In 1990, U.S. federal law declared anabolic steroids to be controlled substances, but the move did little to stop the use of steroids

and other performance enhancing drugs (PEDs). As various steroid scandals rocked professional sports in the 1990s, the NCAA tightened its testing polices while expanding its reach. Today, all Division I and II athletes are subject to year-round testing by the NCAA, and 90 percent of Division I schools conduct their own testing programs. In addition, three states have implemented testing of high school athletes, a move that was approved by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1995.

20 Plate-loaded strength

training machines A generation ago, strength training meant lifting free weights, but the introduction of plate-loaded equipment in the early 1990s offered a new way to get stronger. By having weight plates placed on machines that situated users in the optimum position and limited movement to certain prescribed directions, athletes could safely train without fear of injury from performing lifts incorrectly. Some of these plate-loaded devices, such as glute-ham machines, have also allowed athletes to train specific muscle groups in ways not possible with free weights.

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SPORTS MEDICINE & TRAINING

21 Laser therapy

Increased use of laser therapy in rehab has helped reduce the amount of time athletes spend in the athletic training room. Some sports medicine professionals use this technology, which is a form of light therapy, to help heal the damaged tissue that occurs with strains, sprains, and bruises. The laser light reduces pain and inflammation and promotes healing in a new and exciting way.

22 Cardio machines

Long a staple of conditioning regimens, treadmills and other cardio-related machines have taken on new looks over the past quarter-century. The ability to incline the platform has opened the treadmill to far more rigorous workouts. And computer controls allow coaches to pre-program workouts for athletes rather than relying on them to manually make changes. The introduction of elliptical trainers in the 1990s, which quickly evolved into elliptical cross-trainers, provided a way to work both the upper and lower body at the same time while reducing strain on the joints that can result from running on a treadmill.

23 Bodyweight training

While much of our focus on innovations over the past 25 years has been on new products and equipment, the development of bodyweight training reflects quite the opposite—it uses the weight of a person’s body, combined with gravity, to provide an effective workout. In addition to a resurgence in the use of traditional calisthenics like sit-ups and push-ups, the past quarter-century has seen the development of straps to suspend users in a wide range of positions that force them to work against gravity. These systems have been especially helpful for coaches who don’t have access to a weightroom but still want to develop their athletes’ core, strength, balance, and endurance.

24 Nutrition & supplements Many athletic directors can remember when a steak was considered a healthy pregame meal, and that was the most anyone talked about nutrition. But today’s athletes benefit from a wealth of nutritional options for improving their performance. Especially important is the window immediately after a game or workout when the body needs both

protein and carbohydrates to help muscles recover. There is also the continued introduction of new nutritional supplements on the market, ranging from amino acids to weight-gain aids. Athletes must exercise caution when using supplements depending on what their respective governing bodies allow. For example, the NCAA allows the use of creatine, but schools cannot provide it to athletes. And the NFHS Sports Medicine Advisory Committee opposes the use of dietary supplements for the purpose of athletic advantage, but no states ban use by high school athletes.

25 High-performance

training facilities Increased sport specialization among high school athletes has not only resulted in the fading away of three-sport athletes. It’s also helped create a new industry of high-performance training. Once reserved for professional athletes, high-performance training facilities have opened their doors to high school athletes in recent years, especially in urban and suburban areas. n

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Benefits of NIAAA Membership Ad 2012_Layout 1 9/24/2012 1:07 PM Page 1

Benefits to NIAAA Members The national professional organization dedicated solely to services, assistance and development for the providers of secondary school “Education Based Athletics” programs.

Opportunities

Professional

• NIAAA Committee Membership – 12 committees plus, 2 ad-hoc committees. • Field Renovation Program – Members may apply for consideration to have an outdoor field renovated by members of the Sports Turf Committee. • IAA – Opportunity to submit articles for publication. • Student Scholarship/Essay Program – Open to students in schools where the Athletic Director is an NIAAA member. Female and male recipients at State, Section and National levels. • NIAAA/Mildred Hurt Jennings Endowment – Opportunity to contribute. Portion of funds utilized for professional growth outreach initiatives. • In-Service Program – Offering selected LTI courses adapted in 90 minute or 4 hour presentations. Available to school or district staff. Topics include14 legal duties, time management and interpersonal relationships. • Quality Program Award – Option after having taken LTC 799 to participate in a process of athletic program assessment offering Exemplary Program recognition. • Invited Assessment Program – Opportunity to have team of professionals evaluate each facet of a school or district athletic program.

North Central Accreditation NIAAA is the first association accredited by NCA CASI. Leadership Training Institute Educational curriculum of 36 courses taught at national and state conferences, institutes and NIAAA webinars. Students can earn CEUs, through a master’s degree through select universities. Certification Program Four levels of professional certification including Registered, Certified and Certified Master Athletic Administrator. National Athletic Directors Conference Annual Conference hosted in cooperation with the NFHS offering educational, services, informational leadership and networking opportunities. Hall of Fame Induction and recognition of individuals that have strongly impacted the profession of athletic administration.

Web Site Benefits at : www.niaaa.org

Interscholastic Athletic Administration Magazine Professional journal providing high school and middle school leadership practical assistance from athletic administrators in the field, research based study, NIAAA member information, regular columns and best practices. Awards Program Recognition levels for athletic administrators at both state and national levels. Media Materials Electronic and print materials available to assist the professional in a number of areas. Professional Outreach Program Conducted in cooperation with state athletic administrator associations as outreach to targeted demographic areas through the NIAAA Endowment. Offering of LTI (501-502), RAA Certification, one year NIAAA membership, with 10 percent of participants receiving registration and lodging scholarship to the national conference. Public Service Announcements Promoting education based athletic programs.

• Dedicated to NIAAA information and program offerings. Links to key affiliates. • Member Services – Online opportunity through NIAAA database to view personal account, find members, order materials or initiate/renew NIAAA membership. Opportunity to post a resume, open dates, job openings and equipment for sale. Use “message board” to post questions, share ideas and gather information, as well as respond to questions posted by other members. • Registration and information regarding the annual National Conference. • Athletic Administrators Outfitters (AAO) is a shop offering logoed NIAAA apparel. • Buyers Guide – Online site for preferred companies with contact information and links. • The Role of the Principal in Interscholastic Athletics – Free 12 minute video through link on the NIAAA Web site. Produced in cooperation with the NASSP and NFHS. • Calendar of scheduled events for both state and national athletic administrator associations. • State Leadership Directory – Listing of key contact individuals within states. • Archived IAA magazine for research and reference.

Direct Benefits to Members • $2,000,000 liability insurance. • IAA is a quarterly magazine provided as part of membership. • $2,500 Life Insurance. • Membership kit for first-time registrants. • A Profile of Athletic Administration – 28 page booklet available at no cost, providing purpose of position and description of how AD position should be structured and supported.

• National Emergency Network – Assistance available in cases of accident or medical emergency while traveling. • Continued cutting edge development through NIAAA 3rd Strategic Plan. • eNews – Electronic newsletter offered 10 times annually at no cost. • Numerous educational print materials.

• Research expressing importance of education based athletics. • Direct communication to members through social media. Cost Reductions • Lower registration cost for National Conference. • Reduced premiums on AFLAC cancer and accident insurance.

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• Reduced cost for certification applications. • Discounted rates offered on Mutual of Omaha Long Term Health Care. Added inclusion in Tuition Rewards and Care Options Assistance.

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Over the past several decades, CoverSports has continued manufacturing in the U.S., and is adding more manufacturing jobs in Philadelphia. CoverSports has responded to the dynamic marketplace, specifically by adding its printing capabilities. The trend in the market is brand awareness, so the company is offering its customers the option to add lettering and logos in order to promote their school or team. CoverSports will continue increasing its Internet visibility and add dynamic e-commerce functionality. That’s just one example of how the company is looking to advance its operations in areas that respond to customers’ needs, while maintaining an innovative approach. Plus, the company will continue looking for the most durable and highestquality fabrics at cost-effective prices, maintaining its position as a high-quality, low-cost provider/manufacturer. For more information, visit

coversports.com.

For more than 30 years, McDavid has been relentless in the pursuit of preventing injuries and enhancing performance. What began as a creative product to help one athlete has evolved and revolutionized the industry. McDavid is also one of the only brands with products that are backed by research, (i.e. the 195 Ankle Brace and McDavid’s Hex technology), which recently out-performed competing brands and are fully supported by the Center for Human Performance (CHP). McDavid will continue its mission to be an essential part of every athlete’s training, motivation, and success. Working in collaboration with the McDavid Athletic Council, a network of athletic trainers and equipment managers from some of the most prestigious institutions in the country, athletes can expect that McDavid will be on the forefront of the newest in technology and innovation. To learn more, visit

mcdavidusa.com.

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The development of Waterboy Sports’ patented Safety Spout was a watershed moment in the company’s 12-year history. The Safety Spout prevents users’ mouths from coming into contact with the dispenser and transferring bacteria to subsequent users. Waterboy Sports is teaming with Environmental Health Technologies (EHT) to introduce a healthcare facility-certified, anti-microbial coating for its Safety Spouts. EHT’s pathogen-reducing coating bonds to the Safety Spout and kills all bacteria on contact, virtually eliminating any possibility of bacterial transfer. For more information about the coating please visit www.eht360.com, or waterboysports.com.

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As part of a family-owned business for more than 25 years, Varsity Scoreboards is proud to continue its tradition of providing highquality scoreboards at factory-direct pricing. Varsity Scoreboards offers scoreboards for all sports with some of the shortest lead times in the industry. And it’s guaranteed that you won’t beat the company’s prices. Varsity Scoreboards continues to change the way scoreboards are purchased by eliminating the middleman and passing the savings on to consumers. With thousands of scoreboards in use across the U.S., Varsity Scoreboards has become a go-to manufacturer for the high school and college athletic markets. For more information, visit varsityscoreboards.com

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The GymWipes product line ranges from full-spectrum protection to cost-effective solutions that offer the best value for the best price. The wipes are unsurpassed in usability, convenience, and are effective against 99.999 percent of microscopic germs and pathogens in hightraffic areas. They are also EPA-Registered, and there are attractive accessories available. Being a recognized leader, 2XL Corporation will continue to bring effective solutions to the rigors of hygienic maintenance for all surfaces related to fitness, rehabilitation, and recreational equipment and their associated environments. New, more efficient dispensers continue to evolve along with an expanding wipes line. To learn more, visit 2xlcorp.com.

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Circle No. 503 Abacus’s greatest milestone is completing the track for Usain Bolt

and the Jamaican Olympic Team. This track allowed the team to stay injury-free and dominate the Olympic Games. Abacus has developed a new, environmentally friendly, resilient flooring system—Padenpor— installed in fieldhouses across the country. Abacus puts athletes first. The company’s goal is to continue to support athletes by giving them surfaces to train on that promote well-being, strength, and injury-free status. The top athletes need to be able to train on the best surfaces in order to perform the best. Abacus will continue to develop its surfaces as athletes develop their skills. See more at

abacussports.com.

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In just two short years, The Athletic Edge has become one of the leading suppliers of equipment for athletic trainers supporting various markets. With cutting edge technology and a revolutionary new product line, The Athletic Edge is quickly becoming the preferred choice for your athletic training room needs. The Athletic Edge’s goal is to establish itself as a leading provider of equipment and supplies supporting teams’ locker room, athletic training room, storage, and transportation needs. With continued product development, The Athletic Edge will boast one of the industry’s most extensive and innovative product lines, supported by industry experts providing hands-on education and training. For more information, visit

perform BeTTER offers its customers the confidence built through 25 years of continuous growth as a supplier of quality, highly-respected functional training equipment that is used by coaches, athletic and personal trainers nationwide. Perform Better backs this up with a knowledgeable service staff and a commitment to get it to a specified location on time.

Perform Better is committed to providing a concise, clearly defined, and easy-to-follow Web site with online ordering capability and specials throughout the year that will be meaningful to budgetconscious coaches, athletic directors, and athletic trainers. To find out more, visit performbetter.com.

pivotalhealthsolutions.com.

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Cramer Products takes pride in being recognized as a

Shockbox® was developed based on experience with military

worldwide leader in sports medicine products for 95 years. Throughout all of these years, Cramer has addressed the needs of the athletic trainer, coach, and athlete by providing products that are of the highestquality, reasonably priced, and built for the prevention and treatment of sports-related injuries.

helmet sensors for the U.S. Marines and Army to combat roadside bomb head injuries. Today Shockbox is a unique, simple, wireless impact sensor to alert athletic trainers when a hit is too hard and when to examine players.

Cramer Product’s initiatives during the next 25 years are to continue to provide sports medicine products that help any competitive or recreational athlete perform at their highest level. As sports training and the needs of the athletic trainer, coach, or athlete change in the future, so will Cramer’s commitment to offering products that will enhance performance while treating and preventing sports injuries. For more information, visit

Shockbox technology is creating a standard for impact alert devices that will be a feature on new contact sports helmets for decades to come. This technology will help keep coaches and athletic trainers informed. To learn more, visit theshockbox.com.

cramersportsmed.com.

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Power Lift®’s milestones over the past 25 years are centered around being the equipment provider to various high-performance facilities around the world including the U.S. Olympic Training Center, University of Iowa, University of Alabama, Iowa State University, Hoover High School, the NSCA facility, and numerous professional organizations.

HydroWorx has remained a leader in aquatic therapy equipment

Power Lift will continue soliciting feedback from strength and conditioning professionals and will examine how equipment is being used in the athletic market in an attempt to make the equipment more efficient. This may focus around the design of an item, more storage, or the inclusion of technology into the strength training equipment. To learn more, visit power-lift.com.

for more than 15 years. The company believes that aquatic therapy can be a life-changing rehabilitation tool. HydroWorx is proud to touch more than 15,000 lives a day. Last September, in its first ever Underwater Marathon, HydroWorx raised enough money to give at least 60 Special Ops Warriors the opportunity to receive world-class rehabilitation through a program called the Eagle Fund. HydroWorx is focused on providing the latest technology in aquatic therapy for all athletes. HydroWorx is also proud to be one of the only hydrotherapy and conditioning-pool companies in the world that makes research a top priority. By continually striving to provide research and training protocols concerning water therapy and exercise, HydroWorx is ensuring you’re always at the top of your game. To learn more, visit

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Wilson Case’s biggest accomplishments over the last 25 years

are the relationships the company has built. These relationships are vital in gaining knowledge, earning trust, and creating a product that meets the customers’ needs. They also challenge Wilson Case to be progressive in its custom athletic case design to simplify its customers’ lives on the road. The company will continue to evolve its athletic cases to meet the growing challenges of athletic professionals. Wilson Case will steadily add new models to its stock as well as design custom athletic cases that are geared toward specific requirements. The company loves it when it hears, “your cases make me look good.” To find out more, visit

wilsoncase.com.

Circle No. 559 New York Barbells is a one-stop shop for all your weightlift-

ing, powerlifting, and strength needs. The company has more than 35 years of experience in the manufacturing and distribution of equipment for professional sports organizations, colleges, and high schools. This experience has made it a leader in producing quality equipment at affordable prices. New York Barbells can fill your needs—from a single piece of equipment to a fully-equipped weight training facility. The company manufactures and distributes more than 900 weightlifting products to meet all of its customers’ needs. Visit newyorkbarbells.com for more information.

Life Fitness began more than 40 years ago with an idea, and a vision— to create a different kind of fitness equipment. Out of this vision was born one of the world’s first electronic pieces of fitness equipment, the LifeCycle Exercise Bike. Recognizing a fellow innovator, Life Fitness purchased Hammer Strength, a revolutionary manufacturer of performance strength equipment.

The Iso-Lateral technology found in Hammer Strength’s Plate-Loaded, Ground Base, and MTS equipment replicates real sports action in three ways: the body’s natural movements; the converging and diverging motions provide extra challenge where necessary; and the independent arms allow athletes to move both limbs at the same time, independently, alternately, or with different weights for each. The company strives to provide athletic departments the right choice of equipment—featuring the options needed to support each athlete’s unique training program. To learn more, visit lifefitness.com.

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Since 1976, Samson has designed, manufactured, and sold heavyduty weight training equipment that is built for strength. This equipment is used by top professional teams, colleges, and high schools as well as government agencies, health clubs, and homes all over the world. Being a factory-direct manufacturer, Samson is able to make any product a custom order. Many of its unique product designs stemmed directly from end-users themselves. No other weight training manufacturer on the market today performs as much custom work as Samson Equipment. In addition, Samson Equipment uses some of the best materials on the market. Each order is not only built for strength, but also built just for the customer. The company offers a full line of free weight equipment, selectorized and plate-loaded machines, athletic training equipment, and even football lockers. To learn more, visit samsonequipment.com.

Circle No. 573 Sports Laundry Systems™ is dedicated to providing unrivaled laun-

dry solutions for the athletic market. Its focus, first and foremost, is to provide unique laundry solutions engineered to thwart the spread of infection among athletes. Sports Laundry Systems™ designs laundry solutions for high school, college, and professional athletic facilities interested in improving laundry production and efficiency, while lowering and eliminating infections among athletes. Sports Laundry Systems™ helps eliminate the spread of viruses, super-bugs, and bacteria in the wash—helping to keep athletes healthy. The Sports Laundry Systems™ brand offers a laundry solution that properly cleans and disinfects athletic items in the wash. Delivering superior productivity, programmability, and efficiency, Sports Laundry Systems™ clean and disinfect practice gear, towels, loops, and game-day uniforms—helping to prevent the spread of infectious bacteria, viruses, and super-bugs, including MRSA. To learn more, visit sportslaundrysystems.com.

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Circle No. 574 Wenger is extremely proud of launching its GearBoss® product line

to the athletic market in 2005: team lockers and specialized storage and transport solutions. Athletic directors, coaches and equipment managers from all levels—secondary, university and professional— helped develop these products and continue to give us valuable ideas and feedback. Innovation is the lifeblood of any company or athletic program. Wenger will continue to listen to its customers and to develop the products and solutions they’re asking for, as it’s done successfully since 1946. GearBoss athletic products will remain cutting-edge, delivering durability and good-looking performance while improving inventory management, sanitation, and security. For more information, visit

wengercorp.com.

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Fitness Flooring Best of Both Worlds

The 1.25-inch-thick Infinity iTurf is the perfect companion for the Infinity Max tiles. Both have the same thickness, which allows you to have the best of both worlds in your weight room in a flush installation. The Infinity iTurf is perfect for running, jumping, and agility drills. This product does not have rubber infill. It is available in 16 colors, with an option of customizing with your layouts and logos.

Infinity Performance, Inc. • 888-479-1017 www.infinityflooring.com

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Enhanced Slip Resistance

CoverSports has expanded the GymGuard® gym floor cover product line to include GymGuard Plus. GymGuard Plus has a unique raised pattern that provides enhanced slip resistance and costs no more than standard GymGuard. GymGuard Plus offers an advanced level of safety and durability for ultimate gym floor protection. GymGuard Plus is available in 27- and 32-ounce weights and gray and tan colors. Contact CoverSports for test results or GymGuard samples. CoverSports • 800-445-6680 www.coversports.com

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Resilient Flooring

Protect Floors & Equipment Linear Rubber PowerPads absorb the impact of free weights and exercise equipment. These 5/8-inch-thick non-porous, nylon-reinforced genuine rubber mats are huge. They come in lengths up to 16 feet and widths up to six feet. The PowerPads are over-sized, yet they install easily over any surface with minimal seams, lay flat, and resist curling or shifting. Easily maintained, PowerPads have a secure-footing traction surface. Linear Rubber Products offers a complete selection of flooring, at all price points, for health clubs, gyms, and sports complexes. Linear Rubber Products • 800-558-4040 www.rubbermats.com

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Stands Up to Abuse

Infinity Max 1.25-inch-thick tile stands up to the constant abuse of heavy weights being dropped directly on the weight room floor without denting, tearing, or splitting. This tile is backed by the company’s exclusive 10-year warranty—and you can even use the floor itself as an Olympic Lifting Platform. The tile is available in 10 standard colors and an unlimited number of custom colors, with custom logos also available. This product contains up to 95 percent recycled content and may qualify for up to eight LEED Points. Infinity Performance, Inc. • 888-479-1017 www.infinityflooring.com

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Safe Cover Handling System

Abacus Sports Installations is a leader in sports surfacing. From gym, weight, and locker rooms to running tracks and tennis courts, Abacus has the surface to help your athletes play their best. Aktiv weight room flooring can smoothly transition over platforms for heavy weights. Padenpor is a seamless floor synthetic system with resilience for your athlete for great aerobic exercise with fewer injuries. Find out more online.

COVERMATE II ™ represents a breakthrough in gymnasium safety by way of retractable outriggers that reduce the risk of tipping. Also, yellow collars on each roller end prevent fingers from getting pinched, while each roller is held captive with special safety bolts. Six casters, two of which are offset, reduce the floor point load by 33 percent, while foot-operated locks anchor the system to the floor during operation. For a brochure and DVD, contact Covermaster.

Abacus Sports • 800-821-4557 www.abacussports.com

Covermaster • 800-387-5808 www.covermaster.com

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Smooth & Solid

Locked In

PuzzleLock tiles stand up to the punishment of fitness and workout areas, protecting existing floors and equipment from damage. Installation is simple and quick, and the seams virtually disappear when the flooring is installed. If you need to change a tile, it can be done quickly and easily. PuzzleLock is ideal for use in weightrooms, cardio areas, home gyms, and performance training facilities. It is available in seven colors and comes with a five-year warranty.

Matéflex offers a unique interlocking modular surface for your flooring needs. ProGym features a solid-top design for indoor sports applications. It has a smooth, solid surface for player safety and excellent traction. It is available in 16 standard colors for good court definition. Made from a specially formulated high-impact polypropylene, ProGym provides outstanding resiliency and durability. It is manufactured by the oldest American maker of modular sports tiles and comes with a 10-year warranty.

Infinity Performance, Inc. • 888-479-1017 www.infinityflooring.com

Matéflex • 800-926-3539 www.mateflex.com

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FINANCE SOLUTIONS TERMS UP TO 7 YEARS RATES AS LOW AS 0%

fabric structures

LIMITED TIME OFFER. SUBJECT TO APPROVAL.

A superior environment for training, competing and recreational sports. Low in cost per square foot. Natural daytime lighting. Easy to relocate. Expandable.

Call one of our ClearSpan specialists today at 1.866.643.1010 or visit www.ClearSpan.com/ADAM2. Circle No. 145

Fitness Facilities Faster Rehab, Less Pain

HydroWorx has combined the healing properties of water with its powerful therapy jets, underwater treadmills, and massage systems to enhance post-surgery recovery and improve performance. Research shows that athletes utilizing HydroWorx therapy have faster rehab outcomes with less pain. Each of the company’s pools—HydroWorx 2000, 3500, 750, 500, InstaFit, ThermalPlunge, and PolarPlunge—offer unique features such as adjustable flooring, underwater treadmill, resistance jets, massage capabilities, and more.

Design-Build Solutions

HydroWorx • 800-753-9633 www.hydroworx.com

ClearSpan • 866-643-1010 www.clearspan.com/adam

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Resources and More

Vented Space

American Sports Builders Association • 866-501-2722 www.sportsbuilders.org Circle No. 518

Salsbury Industries • 800-LOCKERS www.lockers.com

The American Sports Builders Association (ASBA) is a national organization for builders, designers, and suppliers of materials for tennis courts, running tracks, synthetic and natural turf fields, and indoor and outdoor synthetic sports surfaces. ASBA publishes Buyer’s Guides with information on the process of selecting a site, choosing a contractor, identifying a surface, and more. Visit the ASBA’s Web site for a searchable database of members.

ClearSpan Fabric Structures provides design-build solutions for athletic and recreational structure needs. ClearSpan buildings feature abundant natural light and spacious interiors without support posts. With minimal foundation requirements, the structures can be permanent or temporary, and are easy to relocate. Visit ClearSpan’s Web site for building profiles, customer success stories, and recent projects—or to request more information.

Salsbury believes its standard lockers were too small for some football, baseball, and softball teams. But Salsbury Industries’ Open Access Lockers provide large vented space for clothing, uniforms and many other applications—and they include a coat rod, a lockable upper shelf, and foot-locker for secure equipment storage. Salsbury Industries’ trained and knowledgeable staff will get you what you need on time and on budget. For a free catalog or additional information, contact Salsbury Industries. Circle No. 517

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Fitness Facilities

Strength & Cardio

Powerful Motivation

View Power and Velocity

Athletic record boards from Austin Plastics are a great way to motivate your athletes to do their very best. The company’s boards are easy to install, made of durable plastic, and available in your school colors. Track record boards are available in three standard sizes and can be customized to fit your needs. Record plates can be engraved, or you can print your own using Austin Plastics’ printing program and perforated card stock. Custom and standard boards are available for all sports. Austin Plastics & Supply, Inc. • 800-290-1025 www.athleticrecordboards.com Circle No. 571

Cost-Effective Solutions

The GymWipes product line offers fullspectrum protection through cost-effective solutions to safely clean and sanitize all fitness equipment surfaces. Bactericidal, virucidal, and fungicidal, the EPA-Registered disinfecting/sanitizing formulas protect against more than 50 dangerous pathogens. Containing no alcohol, phenol, or bleach, the line is tested and approved by leading manufacturers. These wipes come in 700 to 1,200 counts, and attractive dispensers/stands are also available.

2XL Corporation • 888-977-3726 www.gymwipes.com Circle No. 519

Superior Performance

Harnessing the power of Creapure® creatine, Certified Creatine™ works like a battery charger in your muscles by regenerating ATP and igniting superior performance. Featuring a proprietary combination of Creapure® creatine in combination with Vitamin D3, CoffeeBerry®, and patented FruiteX-B® Boron, Certified Creatine™ is NSF Certified for Sport and available exclusively from 1800ATHLETE. com. Certified Creatine™ supports muscle strength and size, endurance in training, and fast recovery as well as healthy brain function. Purity Products • 800-ATHLETE 1800ATHLETE.com Circle No. 515 66 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

The Laser Rack is one of the first bar-measuring units that calculates peak power and velocity using patented no-touch infrared sensing technology. The Laser Rack allows users to view their peak power in horsepower or watts. Users’ peak velocity can be measured in either feet-per-second or meters-per-second. Power Lift® • 800-872-1543 www.power-lift.com

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Specially Designed

These kettlebells with wide handles are specially designed with large openings to prevent bruising of the back of the hand and wrist. The company offers kettlebells in five-pound increments from 10 to 100 pounds, and monster bells in 25-pound increments from 125 to 200 pounds. You can make your purchase in either a three-, four-, seven-, or nine-piece set to save money. Kettlebell hand covers are also available. New York Barbells of Elmira, Inc. • 800-446-1833 www.newyorkbarbells.com

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Multiple Options

Looking for plyoboxes that will not hurt shins or knees? Perform Better’s new First Place Economy Foam PlyoBoxes are a great solution. These high-density foam boxes are encased with a heavy-duty vinyl and have a textured top for extra grip. You can stack the boxes together or use them alone to achieve different training heights. Each box has Velcro flaps along the edges to keep the boxes in place when stacking and also have side handles to make moving them around easy. Boxes come in six-, 12-, and 18-inch height—or you can get a set of three for multiple training options. Perform Better • 800-556-7464 www.performbetter.com

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A Unique Design

The new Functional Training Rack Series is setting the world of strength and conditioning ablaze. This unique design combines a fully functional Power Rack with two adjustable cable column machines—all within a compact area. With this equipment, an athlete can now perform all the core lifts a rack/platform provides with the multifaceted capability of a fully operational functional trainer. This product is extremely easy to adjust and use quickly, as it gets your athletes in and out of every facet of a workout much more effectively. The new 111FTR Rack Series is only from Samson Equipment. Samson Weight Training Equipment • 800-472-6766 www.samsonequipment.com

Circle No. 563

Anchor Your Weightroom The HD Elite is Hammer Strength’s most durable rack line and is built for extreme training conditions. This modular line—which includes stand-alone racks and combo racks—is available in more than 30 different configurations. You can also choose from more than 38 optional attachments, including pull-up bars, bases and storage, and benches and platforms to meet the needs of your athletes and anchor your weightroom. Life Fitness • 800-634-8637 www.lifefitness.com

Circle No. 568

Strength & Cardio Indoor Cycling Options

The Power Lift ® Indoor Cycling Bike is available in both a chain- and belt-driven version. The belt-driven version allows users to pedal backwards with resistance. Standard features for both bikes include: dual-sided pedals with a clip-less system on one side and toe-cages on the other; adjustable positions for the seat height and forward/back position; and adjustable positions for the handlebar height.

Power Lift® • 800-872-1543 www.power-lift.com

Circle No. 523

Natural Wrist Motion

New York Barbells offers a complete selection of training ropes in 1.5- and two-inch diameter in all lengths up to 100 feet. New York Barbells offers a 1.75-inch braided rope that retains its shape and is more resilient than twisted rope. New York Barbells also offers and installs handles on the ropes for a natural wrist motion. A complete line of exercise chain is also available. Fulfill all of your rope needs for climbing, battling, pulling, and special applications with New York Barbells.

New York Barbells of Elmira, Inc. • 800-446-1833 ATHLETIC MANAGEMENT www.newyorkbarbells.com Circle No. 524 Perform Better’s Agility Bags are perfect Salsbury Industries Functional Training for all speed and agility drills. These

Transport Easily

versatile Agility Bags can be set up in any configuration and are great for teaching knee lifts and for lateral speed drills. Each bag has a strong, vinyl covering and a handle at the end for easy transporting. They come in both six- and 12-inch heights and are sold in sets of three. These Agility Bags can be used both indoors and outdoors and are only available through Perform Better.

One of Hammer Strength’s top-selling products, the Ground Base Jammer, is an ideal training tool for the athletic market. It is a highly versatile piece of equipment, allowing both unilateral and bi-lateral training and is ideal for training explosive power. And having the athlete’s feet remain on the floor during use promotes functional training and increases transfer to the playing field.

Perform Better • 800-556-7464 www.performbetter.com

Life Fitness • 800-634-8637 www.lifefitness.com

Jan/Feb, May/Jun, Sep/Oct

Circle No. 525

Circle No. 569

RUBBER FLOORING Fitness Centers ■ Weight Rooms PRODUCTS INCLUDE: • Metal • Wood • Plastic

Budget-Priced 48" x 72" GYMATTS

Single-Piece POWERPADS up to 6' x 16'

• Vented • Box Style • Extra Wide • Modular • Open Access • Plastic Lockers • Cell Phone Lockers • Storage Lockers • Locker Benches

Low Nationwide Freight Rates! Factory-Direct Prices!

TOP MAT II Rolls, Squares or Interlocking Tiles

Linear Rubber Products 1-800-558-4040 Circle No. 146

rubbermats.com

Circle No. 147 AthleticManagement.com | JUNE/JULY 2013 67

Equipment Storage

Synergy Series Aisle-Saver

GearBoss® Sports Storage System

Aisle-Saver® is a flexible, high-density filing and storage system that can effectively double filing and storage capacities in existing facility space. Borroughs’ products serve the needs of a wide-range of athletic, office, automotive, and industrial applications. A U.S. company founded in 1938, Borroughs has built a reputation for exceptional service along with highquality steel storage, shelving, and mobile storage systems.

Wenger’s GearBoss® and GearBoss II™ storage systems improve inventory management, space utilization, and sanitation. Requiring significantly less space than traditional shelving, these flexible, high-density carts are easily configurable for a variety of equipment. Carts roll along a fixed track, allowing easy access and minimizing wasted space.

Payment Plans Available: No

Maintenance Program Included: No

Maintenance Program Included: Yes Customizable with Accessories After Initial Purchase: Yes Accessories Offered: Shelves. Storage Component Size:

Payment Plans Available: Yes

Customizable with Accessories After Initial Purchase: Yes Accessories Offered: Closure

panels, doors, shelves, garment bars, attic extensions, helmet hangers, and shoulder pad stackers.

Variable, custom

Storage Component Size:

Unit Movement:

GearBoss: 78” L x 79” H. Two widths: 32” and 48” GearBoss II: 72” L x 79” H x 32” W.

Manual and electric Shelves: Yes Drawers: Yes Racks: Yes Doors: Yes Room for Hanging Apparel: Yes

Borroughs Corporation 800-748-0227 www.borroughs.com Circle No. 526

68 JUNE/JULY 2013 | AthleticManagement.com

Unit Movement:

Manual

Shoe/Drawer Upright

The Shoe/Drawer Upright Athletic Equipment Trunk is the ultimate in organization. This athletic equipment case features individual shoe areas and drawers with adjustable dividers to keep your gear in place, organized, and mobile. It has phenolic wheels for easy mobility and fits easily in cargo bays of buses and airplanes. Payment Plans Available: No Maintenance Program Included: No Customizable with Accessories After Initial Purchase: Yes Accessories Offered: Turf

tires, organizer tray assembly tape, and spindle assembly.

Storage Component Size:

Inside dimensions: 23.24” long x 35” deep x 38” high Shoe areas (15): 7-3/8” long x 17.5” deep x 7” high Drawers (three): 22” long x 17” deep x 8” high Drawer: 22” long x 17” deep x 10” high Unit Movement:

Shelves: Yes Drawers:No Racks: Yes Doors: Yes Room for Hanging Apparel Yes

Wenger Corp. • 800-493-6437 (800-4WENGER) www.wengercorp.com/gearboss Circle No. 527

Manual Shelves: Yes Drawers: Yes Racks: Yes Doors: Yes Room for Hanging Apparel: Yes

Wilson Case, Inc. 800-322-5493 www.wilsoncase.com Circle No. 560

Equipment Storage

Sports Medicine Unwinds Consistently

Every roll of Cramer 100-percent cotton porous tape is like the next, which means you can count on it to unwind consistently, conform better, and adhere longer. Cramer 950, constructed with a latex-free adhesive, is perfect for athletic trainers or athletic programs looking for a high-quality, economically priced porous tape alternative. Cramer Products has been an industry leader in sports medicine and athletic training room supplies for more than 85 years. Cramer Products, Inc. • 800-345-2231 www.cramersportsmed.com

Aurora Mobile Athletic Storage System

Aurora provides high-density mobile storage for a variety of athletic programs, including baseball, football, golf, basketball, swimming, and hockey teams. The company’s high-density mobile storage systems are available in mechanical-assist and powered models, with many options and accessories. School color matching is also available. Payment Plans Available: No (Aurora Storage is available on the National IPA contract for non-profit schools or agencies.)

Circle No. 528

Durable Hydration Units Waterboy Sports designs its hydration systems for the athletes, coaches, and athletic trainers. These units are constructed of sturdy aluminum components and have 10” x 3” rubber tires on metal casters to be strong yet lightweight and easily moved. The double-sleeved manifolds are durable and their patented Safety-Spouts protect against bacterial transfer. Vertical or Horizontal, Chiller or Power Model, Waterboy Sports has your athletic team’s hydration needs covered. Waterboy Sports • 407-869-9881 www.waterboysports.com

Circle No. 529

Maintenance Program Included: Optional Customizable with Accessories After Initial Purchase: Yes Accessories Offered: Doors,

drawers, bins, reference shelves, equipment racks

Storage Component Size:

Carriages: 3’ to 51’ Shelving segments: Widths: 24”, 36”, 42”, 48” Depths: 9”, 10”, 12”, 13”, 15”, 16”, 18” 20”, 24”, 26”, 30”, 32”, 36” Heights: 76” to 121”

Sensor Alerts on Hard Impacts

The Shockbox ® Impact Alert Sensor, developed by Impakt Protective, provides an immediate visual alert, via wireless transmission to a smartphone, when a player has experienced a hit that may result in concussion. Studies show that many concussions go undetected and that multiple impacts can lead to serious lifelong health issues. Shockbox also allows coaches and athletic trainers to keep a history of impact data for players, assisting them in making more-informed decisions for player safety. Shockbox • 855-872-0100 www.theshockbox.com

Circle No. 530

Unit Movement:

Manual or electric Shelves: Yes Drawers: Yes Racks: Yes Doors: Yes Room for Hanging Apparel: Yes

Aurora Storage 800-277-1699 www.aurorastorage.com Circle No. 566

Unrestricted Movement

The ESS Ankle Compression Sleeve’s patented articulated ankle joint allows for unrestricted movement while providing mild compression and support to the joint. Compression provides a performance-enhancement benefit as well as mild muscular support. The unique knitted design allows for lightweight fit and exceptional stretch and comfort. Cramer Products, Inc. • 800-345-2231 www.cramersportsmed.com

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2013 BigSigns.com 800-790-7611 www.bigsigns.com NACDA Booth No. 130

BigSigns.com is a national leader in stadium graphics, event signage, and retail POP. Leveraging innovative product lines with dynamic design capability, BigSigns.com connects branding to the event experience. Stop by the company’s booth to learn about new high-impact products and pick up some samples. Circle No. 532 ____________________

aEMA/NACDA Conventions’ spotlight

Go4theGoal Foundation www.Go4theGoal.org NACDA Booth No. 714

Go4theGoal is a 501(c)3 Pediatric Cancer Foundation dedicated to providing the necessary resources that patients and families need to battle a child’s cancer. Go4theGoal offers financial assistance, grants special wishes, gives high-end electronics to children in treatment, and funds hospital-based support programs. Since its inception in 2006, Go4theGoal has also granted over $500,000 to innovative researchers looking for cures. Through its two national campaigns, National Dress 4 Pediatric Cancer Day and Lace Up 4 Pediatric Cancer, Go4theGoal strives to bring communities together to raise awareness and support for local children battling cancer. Circle No. 567

Concussion Vital Signs-Pearson 800-627-7271 www.concussionvitalsigns.com

____________________

NACDA Booth No. 236

____________________

NACDA Booth No. 421

For more than 30 years, Musco Sports Lighting has specialized in the design and manufacture of athletic field lighting. Using the company’s revolutionary system approach, all product components are engineered to work together, providing solutions for lighting, electrical, and structural needs. Musco’s newest innovation, Light-Structure Green™, cuts operating costs in half and eliminates 100-percent maintenance costs for 25 years with the Constant 25™ product assurance and warranty program. Green Generation Lighting™ also reduces off-site spill light by 50 percent over prior industryleading technology. Musco guarantees performance for indoor or outdoor, permanent or temporary lighting needs. For your next project, call Musco or go visit the company online. Circle No. 575

Visit wtih company representatives to learn more about Concussion Vital Signs, an online neurocognitive test for your student-athletes. Circle No. 562

Musco Sports Lighting 800-825-6030 www.musco.com

____________________

MetroMedia Technologies 800-999-4668 www.mmt.com NACDA Booth No. 823

Daktronics 800-325-8766 www.daktronics.com NACDA Booth No. 515

Daktronics will be showcasing various displays at the upcoming NACDA Convention. There will be four-millimeter video displays and 10-millimeter ProTables in the hotel foyer area displaying messages to the attendees. Dakronics will have a 20’ x 40’ booth in the exhibit hall, and will also be the sponsor of the Wounded Warrior Concert on Friday, June 14. Daktronics is proud of its long-standing commitment to College Athletics and to the NACDA Organization. Circle No. 533

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With MMT’s heritage in the static signage market and nationwide reach, the company has expanded the availability of digital signage solutions to its customer base of sports and event industry buyers. MMT’s outdoor and indoor graphics transform static displays into memorable event advertising and media opportunities, creating increased revenue and value for sponsors. MMT Digital Visual Displays for schools, colleges, and universities feature a full LED backlight technology that is optimized for ultra-low power consumption. Using the Control Center, MMT can provide 24-hour live monitoring to ensure the system is always up and running. And with MMT’s Sign Software, you can control the content from anywhere in the world. At NACDA, the company is very excited to unveil a new range of Outdoor LCD Displays. Circle No. 534

Porta Phone 800-233-1113 www.portaphone.com AEMA Booth No. 402

Comstar is a revolutionary “All In One” wireless headset that features a miniaturized transceiver built right into the earcups. This breakthrough system is more affordable than traditional wireless systems because it operates without complicated belt-worn radios. Comstar wireless headsets operate in full duplex mode, which means that coaches communicate simultaneously and without pushing buttons. The system will accommodate the needs of high school and college football staffs with up to 23 coaches. Circle No. 564

aEMA/NACDA Conventions’ spotlight

Registry for Excellence 800-395-3551 www.reg4ex.com AEMA Booth No. 717 NACDA Booth No. 705

Hundreds of schools across the country use Registry for Excellence’s customized pewter plates for awards and other mementoes. They are designed specifically for your event, and can be built to include meaningful achievement medallions or custom engraving. All awards are made in the U.S. and are sold directly from the factory. Registry for Excellence plates are great for championship teams, MVP awards, scholar-athletes, donor recognition, and much more. Circle No. 556 ____________________

Sound & Video Creations 615-460-7330 www.clickeffects.com NACDA Booth No. 701

Click Effects systems—Click Effects, CrossFire, BLAZE, FlashBack, and Pro Audio—set new benchmarks in providing video and audio content control and delivery for live sports and entertainment events in stadiums and arenas. With a simple point and click, these display systems deliver scheduled and live impulse video clips, audio tracks, graphics, instant replays, animation, and sponsor ads that not only entertain audiences but also provide powerful revenue-generating opportunities. Circle No. 565

Southern Bleacher Company 800-433-0912 www.southernbleacher.com NACDA Booth No. 413

Representatives from Southern Bleacher will be present to visit with you about your upcoming seating project. With nearly seven decades of experience, the company’s expertise and dedication to excellence in bleacher and grandstand construction is a rock-solid investment. Circle No. 535 ____________________

Universal Fabric Structures, Inc. 800-634-8368 www.ufsinc.com NACDA Booth No. 632

Universal Fabric Structures is an industry leader in the manufacturing of high-quality, engineered, and costeffective fabric building systems. With 30 years experience, UFS is more than a building manufacturer—it is a resource. Through the company’s expertise, UFS helps you navigate the challenges of creating an indoor sporting facility. UFS offers solutions, and is ISO 9001-2008 certified. Circle No. 572

Sports Laundry Systems™ 920-230-8550 www.sportslaundrysystems.com

____________________

AEMA Booth No. 410

Sports Laundry Systems™ offers athletic operations what other laundry solutions can’t—the ability to disinfect and clean athletic laundry, including uniforms, towels, loops, and practice gear. At the Athletic Equipment Managers / Association Convention, booth visitors will experience how Sports Laundry Systems™ combines highspeed washers with high-performance dryers and ozone injection for unrivaled results. Unique in the athletic industry, Sports Laundry Systems™ delivers disinfection combined with performance, productivity, efficiency, and high-quality results. Sports Laundry Systems™ is the only system proven to eliminate 99.9 percent of all superbugs—including MRSA, hepatitis, and HIV—in the wash, helping to eliminate the spread of infection among athletes. Circle No. 536

Athletic Equipment Managers Association (AEMA) Convention • June 4-6, Las Vegas, NV National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) Conference • June 13-15, Orlando, FL

2013

Wenger Corporation 800-4-WENGER www.wengercorp.com AEMA Booth No. 307, 406 NACDA Booth No. 100

Wenger will be exhibiting innovative GearBoss solutions for athletic facilities and equipment. Team room lockers are available in more than 1,000 configurations with different sizes, features, and accessories, with either wood or metal construction. A variety of color/finish choices are available—from school colors to wood-grain laminates. Wood lockers are constructed of a durable, easy-toclean wood laminate incorporating antimicrobial nanosilver technology. Other GearBoss solutions include highdensity storage systems, shelving, multifunction carts, merchandise kiosks for fundraising, and a full complement of accessories. GearBoss solutions tackle the challenges athletic departments face every day, while helping to reinforce and build program pride. Circle No. 537

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