Signing up for Sports and Strategic Communication, I didn’t know what I was walking into. I’m a sports fan with no specific team. I lean into California or Mexico teams whenever they’re playing or the home team whenever I’m attending a game but not any particular team I’m diehard for. I don’t watch sports on tv and see athletes as part of pop culture more than their feats on the court, track, or field. I love the communications field, so I felt I would understand a part of the class, but I was ready to take it all in.

The Sports pen pal was initially daunting, but once I found a person, it was great to talk to him about his job. I’m glad I connected with Mike Lindskog from the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, a Dodgers Affiliate team because it was a connection to my hometown in a job field I have worked in before. (Cough Cough, I used to be a radio DJ in Italy and had a tiny sports podcast where the other host assigned me sports movies I should watch, and I came back and gave him my reaction) That was small scale to everything Mike does for the Quakes. I learned from Mike that there were opportunities at every level of sports, and it’s up to the person to look for opportunities to show more of their skills. He’s very passionate about what he does.

The Name, Image, and Likeness semester-long project was a fantastic experience to work together as a class. It was challenging to work with people who had different schedules. Still, we all worked hard and put together a comprehensive report and presentation that helps current ODU student-athletes and sets an excellent base to continue research and additions to the report. We didn’t have many students show up to the presentation. Still, we shouldn’t take it to heart as these student-athletes manage rigorous class schedules, homework, athletic training, and personal lives. Once they read our report, I predict there will be more participation if it is held again next semester. My takeaway from this is that we were able to put together a lot of information for students and learn about the process along the way. As sports management and strategic communication students, we learned how to help an athlete with branding and brokering deals.

This semester, we were lucky enough to have Gianina Thompson, ODU alumna & Springhill Media Company Senior Director of Communications, as our co-professor. Each week she brought in outstanding well-known sports communicators as guests. They all brought in their perspective on the field, how they got to their position, and the skills they’ve learned along the way. While it is impressive to hear of their connection to professional athletes, hearing how interconnected they are to each other is even more special. While they all knew Gianina from working on something or other together, they all knew each other. It was necessary for their jobs and positions to interact with each other and work with each other. They leveraged these connections for the best interests of their athlete and/or organization, and they also leveraged them for their professional careers. I took this lesson to heart and felt like I needed to develop more relationships now as I’m preparing to enter the job market after graduation in May.

I’m putting this takeaway into action now. Beginning with reaching out to Mike Lindskog, I found his email and sent him a message asking him to connect, and it worked! There have been less successful connection attempts like Scott Tomlin, Dallas Mavericks’ Vice President of Basketball Communications, but he’s a busy man, so I can’t be too hurt about it. I’ve also really brought my most talkative and personable self to PRSA ICON in Dallas. I wanted to meet as many people as possible and gain friendships, mentors, and job opportunities. As I move on to the next semester and then on to my career, I will continue to build relationships and work on my Rolodex, just like Gianina has.