at the NFL Combine
When: Friday and Saturday, February 26th and 27th, 2010
Where: Hyatt Regency, Downtown Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
After registering you can book your room at the Hyatt at our discounted rate.
Who: Anyone 18 years or older
How: Click Here to Register!
Registration Fees:
General Public -$300
Students - $225,
Teams Employees - $100
Groups: Several University Sports Management programs do attend. If you are interested in bringing your school, please contact workshop@smww.com and we will provide group discounts.
Sports Management Worldwide would like to invite you to join us at our Annual SMWW Career Workshop in downtown Indianapolis at the NFL Combine. This seminar provides an invaluable opportunity to learn about numerous careers in sports and network with professionals currently working at the highest level of sports. Head coaches, GMs, Directors of Player Personnel and Scouting, ESPN writers, experienced sports agents, former professional athletes and many others will be in attendance.
For anyone that is looking to work in sports, you can't miss this opportunity to meet and learn from sports executives and the SMWW staff, all in the atmosphere of the 2009 NFL Combine! Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about the behind the scenes of the upcoming NFL draft; create relationships with key individuals in the sports business community and advance their knowledge of the business of sports. If you have never been in Indianapolis around the NFL combine, you are missing an opportunity to be apart of NFL personnel's biggest events of the year.
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More than 2,500 coaches, team owners and advertisers and more than 220 national journalists from across the country come to Indianapolis for seven days to meet and work out the athletes who hope to be drafted by NFL teams. Right in the heart of the action, this educational experience is an exclusive opportunity to break into the field of sports management. Don't miss it!
Tentative Agenda:
(Speakers will be added and times will change. Due to schedules still being arranged, and teams finalizing who on their staff will be attending, this schedule is tentative.) Please keep checking back to this webpage for updates and changes. A final schedule will be sent to registered attendees one week prior to event.
Friday, February 26th:
| 11:00am |
Registration opens. |
| 1:00pm |
Opening Remarks - Dr. Lynn Lashbrook, SMWW President
John Wooten, former NFL Legend and NFL Executive |
| 1:30pm |
Breaking into Sports with Mark Washo, Washington Freedom GM and Sports Management Worldwide Faculty |
| 2:15pm |
Sales and Marketing in Sports Panel
Mary Lee Gilliland - Learfield Sports, National Account Manager
Chris Cordero, Miami Heat Account Executive & SMWW Alumni
Kristopher Kovatovic, Indiana Pacers Inside Sales & Fever Sales & Service Director
Greg Hylton, Indianapolis Colts,Vice President Premium Seating & Ticket Sales
Ryan Latham, Tacoma Rainiers and formerly Boston Red Sox and SMWW Alumni
|
| 3:30pm |
Break |
| 4:00pm - 6:00pm |
Fritz Pollard Alliance Reception
(Each NFL team has a table for their staff, additional tables are for SMWW attendees.)
Opening Remarks - Harry Carson, NFL Legend & Fritz Pollard Alliance Executive Director
AFC Scout of the Year -
Presenter: Mike Reinfeldt, Titans Executive Vice President & General Manager
Recipient: C.O. Brocato, Tennessee Titans National Supervisor of College Scouting
NFC Scout of the Year -
Presenter: Reggie McKenzie, Green Bay Packers Director of Football Operations
Recipient: Alonzo Highsmith – Green Bay Packer College Scout (Southwest)
FPA Game Ball Award:
Presenter: Craig Richardson, Fritz Pollard Alliance
Recipient: Ray Anderson, NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations
Presenter: Cyrus Mehri, Fritz Pollard Alliance
Recipient: Dutch Baughman, Executive Director of the Athletic Directors’ Association
Paul “Tank” Young Award:
Presenter: Bob Wallace, former St Louis Rams Executive Vice President
Recipient: William Bidwill, Arizona Cardinals Owner
Team of the Year Award:
Presenter: John Wooten, 40 Year NFL Executive & SMWW Faculty, and Fritz Pollard Alliance Chairman
|
| 7:00pm |
Enjoy the hub of activity in downtown Indy. |
Saturday, February 27th:
| 8:00am |
Registration opens. |
| 8:30am |
Opening Remarks - Dr. Lynn Lashbrook, SMWW President
|
| 8:45am |
Agent Panel-
Jack Mills - NFL Agent
Jim Solano - NFL Agent
Kristen Kuliga - NFL Agent
Jack Bechta - NFL Agent
|
| 10:00am |
Break |
| 10:30am |
Q and A with Arizona Cardinals GM Rod Graves
|
| 11:15am |
Behind the Scenes of the NFL Coach
Daron Roberts, Detroit Lions Asst. Secondary Coach |
| 12:00 noon |
Lunch Break (on your own) |
| 1:30pm |
Football Scouting Panel:
Russ Lande - a NFL Scout and Draft Expert for Sporting News' War Room and SMWW Faculty
Wes Bunting, National Football Post’s Director of College Scouting and SMWW Alumni
Aaron Schatz - Football Outsiders & Pro Football Prospectus
Chad Reuter - Senior Analyst for
NFLDraftScout.com partnering with CBSSports.com
Daniel Kelly, Former NY Jets Pro Scout and Current College Scout for GM Jr. Scouting
|
| 2:45pm |
Break |
| 3:15pm |
Business of Football:
Salary Cap and Collective Bargaining Agreement
Jimmy Halsell, former Salary Cap Analyst for the Washingtion Redskins
Will Carroll, Football Outsiders
Adam Schefter, ESPN |
| 4:15pm |
New Agent Success Stories-
"The secret to getting ahead, is getting started!"
Joe Aloisi- represents Matt Moore, Carolina Panthers QB
Al Thomas - represents Akeem Jordan, Philly Eagles LB
Marcus Williams- represents Olaniyi Sobomehin, New Orleans Saints FB
Joe Bonahoom, SMWW Agency Director of Baseball
|
| |
|
| 5:15pm |
Closing Remarks - Dr. Lynn Lashbrook |
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2010 Speaker List including Fritz Pollard Alliance Awards Reciepients and Speakers
- Dr. Lynn Lashbrook- President and Founder Sports Management Worldwide
- Rod Graves, Arizona Cardinals GM
- John Wooten- NFL Legend & NFL Executive
- Harry Carson, NFL Legend & Fritz Pollard Alliance Executive Director
- Adam Schefter, ESPN
- Daniel Kelly, Former NY Jets Pro Scout & Current College Scout for GM Jr. Scouting
- Aaron Schatz - Football Outsiders & Pro Football Prospectus
- Chad Reuter - Senior Analyst for NFLDraftScout.com partnering with CBSSports.com
- Wes Bunting, National Football Post’s Director of College Scouting and SMWW Alumni
- Jimmy Halsell, former Salary Cap Analyst for the Washingtion Redskins
- Steve Nash, Integrity Sports Broadcasting & SMWW Faculty
- Kristen Kuliga-NFL Agent, Doug Flutie & more
- Mary Lee Gilliland, Learfield Sports, National Account Manager
- Mike Reinfeldt, Titans Executive Vice President & General Manager
- C.O. Brocato, Tennessee Titans National Supervisor of College Scouting
- Reggie McKenzie, Green Bay Packers Director of Football Operations
- Alonzo Highsmith – Green Bay Packer College Scout (Southwest)
- Craig Richardson, Fritz Pollard Alliance
- Ray Anderson, NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations
- Cyrus Mehri, Fritz Pollard Alliance
- Dutch Baughman, Executive Director of the Athletic Directors’ Association
- Bob Wallace, former St Louis Rams Executive Vice President
- Billy Bidwill, Arizona Cardinals Owner
- Will Carroll- Football Outsiders & SI.com
- Rick Horrow- Fox Sports & CNN Sports (invited)
- Mark Washo- Washington Freedom GM & SMWW Faculty
- Jack Mills- NFL Agent, 30 Year NFL Agent, clients include Eric Dickerson & many others
- Jim Solano- NFL Agent (having represent over 600 clients in 30 years)
- Jack Bechta, NFL Agent
- Daron Roberts, Detroit Lions Asst. Secondary Coach
- NFL Draft Prospects
- Kris Kovatovic- Indiana Pacers Inside Sales & Fever Sales/Service Director
- Greg Hylton- Indianapolis Colts, Vice President Premium Seating & Ticket Sales
- Russ Lande- NFL Scout/Sporting News.com and SMWW Faculty
- Chris Codero, Miami Heat Account Executive & SMWW Alumni
- Ryan Latham- Tacoma Rainiers and formerly Boston Red Sox and SMWW Alumni
- CJ Lovett, NFL Draft Prospect
- Dr. Chuck Patterson- The Ohio State University
- Joe Bonahoom- Director of Baseball, SMWW
- Dr. Gary Sailes- Indiana University Sports
- Marcus Williams- Director of Football, SMWW Agency
- Chase Sbicca- SMWW Director of Student Services
- Ben Kopca- SMWW Sports Career Advisor
- TK Kee, SMWW Director of Football Research & Scouting
Entrance Includes:
- Friday Conference & Workshop sessions starting at approximately 1pm February 26th, 2010
- Fritz Pollard Alliiance Awards Reception
- Saturday Conference & Workshop sessions (February 27th)
Questions about the workshop can be directed to workshop@smww.com
Note: This conference does not inlcude enterance to the NFL Combine which is closed to the public. For more information, visit the NFL Scouting Combine website.
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Location:
Hyatt Regency Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Downtown Indianapolis — State Capitol
One South Capitol Ave., Indianapolis, IN 46204
1.888.591.1234 (US, Canada, Caribbean) Local: 317.632.1234
Group Reservation Cut–Off Date — January 31, 2010
Discounted Hotel Rooms for SMWW!
Call today to reserve your room and reference the SMWW Career Conference to receive the discounted SMWW room rate.
FAQ:
- Who Should Attend?
The Sports Career Conference is designed for individuals with an interest in a sports business career. Via the workshop, discussion groups and keynote speakers you will be introduced and learn in-depth about the job responsibilities of professions in the NFL, MLB, NHL, MLS, NBA, NASCAR, WNBA, and minor league sports. Attendees include business professionals wishing to break into new markets, to college students wanting to get their foot in the door to sports agents making a start! A variety of topics covering scouting, management at different levels, agents, player personnel, athletic director, sports administrator, sports marketing, endorsement deals, draft analysis, salary caps, promotions and the inner workings of behind the scenes in almost every sports business career.
- What's the Format?
You will have time to ask questions after the individual presentations or panel discussions. There will be social events and other opportunities to meet speakers, fellow attendees, and sports executives. Friday and Saturday are jam packed with speakers and opportunities to network. The Sports Career Conference is held in the headquarter hotel in the middle of all the NFL Combine action near Lucas Oil Stadium. Due to the NFL Combine schedule we are juggling speaking engagements and panels up to the last minute! Each year we have surprise visits from NFL personnel. They literally walk by our meeting rooms all day and we try to squeeze them onto panels between their meetings at the combine.
- When should I arrive?
Registration starts Friday monring and the agenda is still being organized but the first workshop tentatively will start at 12noon. Friday and Saturday conference and workshop sessions are approximately every hour. We pack the day full of fabulous speakers so that you can glean as much from the short weekend as possible. You don't want you to miss a single opportunity! However, we do keep the event affordable so that those of you flying in and flying out can come late or leave early. Most conferences like this are in the middle of the week. We choose to offer this workshop on the weekend so that those of you working full time can attend. The format is fun, fast and enlightening. Our attendees come from all 50 states, Canada, England, and we have even had some attend from Africa and China.
- What should I wear?
Dress is business casual.
- What do Sports people say about the event:
"What a wonderful weekend I had at your Sports Career Conference! The conference was informative, enlightening, inspirational, and very educational. It was a classy event with some heavy hitters of the sports industry used as guest panelists. I cannot begin to share with you the great experience I had. Thank you is not enough, but it is well deserved. Most impressive was the number of young people who traveled from all over the country and from abroad to attend the conference. It speaks volumes about the reputation and quality of your organization."
Reggie Williams
VP, Community Relations, Memphis Redbirds (AAA) & Former MLB player
"This is the ’must attend‘ event of the year for those involved in sports management programs who truly care about experiential education, establishing networking contacts with senior level executives, and exposing students to visionary thinkers in the field of Sports Management. Few people in the world can attract this level of talent and put them in one room to share their experiences. The SMWW Career Conference is the kind of student-focused activity that will raise retention rates, career placement rates, and student satisfaction rates."
Ted Bouras
Northcentral University
"As an Assistant Professor and Program Coordinator of the Sports Management Program, I found the SMWW conference to be informative and a great way to keep a pulse on what is going on in the sports industries, from professional sports to youth sports, from marketing to sports agency and athletic advising. The information gained and networking opportunities were endless."
Janice E. Wardle
Assistant Professor,
Sports Management & Internship Coordinator
Wilmington University
"Thank you and cheers to the entire SMWW team! The wealth of expertise you gathered across sports industries for all attendees in both panel and networking settings was truly amazing and exciting. I look forward to shaking and baking with the many sports leaders I met at the conference. I am already looking forward to the 2009 conference!"
Paul Martino
Global 500 corporate Director and ESPN Sports Ticker Gameday Statistician
"The Sports Management Worldwide Career Conference is an great event for anyone interested in exploring the world of professional sports. They cover every aspect of professional sports including Motorsports and the importance of the technology used today. Centered in the heart of the amateur sports capitol of America and during the NFL Scouting Combine, Indianapolis is an ideal location at an ideal time for this conference."
Jared Slinde
North Dakota State University
M.S. Sport Management
"This past fall the executive committee of the undergraduate sport management club came to me with the idea that they wanted to attend the SMWW Sports Career conference. To be honest it was not the choice I would have made as their faculty advisor. To my surprise and delight, the SMWW staff provided our students with a wonderful package so that they could afford registration, meals, and lodging in downtown Indianapolis.
Over 41 students from the West Virginia University Sports Management Club attended. It was awesome! Students shared with me their excitement of meeting top level executives in the Sports field at the conference. They were overwhelmed that the conference speakers stayed around after their sessions to meet the students. Students collected many business cards and passed out their resumes to perspective employers. The word of mouth got back to WVU before we did! Students that were not able to attend were disappointed. Students are already planning to attend next year.
From my perspective it is a win-win situation. Students can only learn so much in the classroom. The value of spending three days in the same room with some of the top sport and athletic administrators in the United States is extremely valuable to these undergraduates. As one student said: "It (the conference) was worth every penny!"
D. Floyd Jones, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Sport Management Program
West Virginia University
2009 Conference Recap
Download 2009 Schedule and Speaker List (pdf)
2008 Conference Recap
Download 2008 Schedule and Speaker List (pdf)
2007 Conference Recap
2006 Conference Recap
2005 Conference Recap
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