Poster Session
The Coach Prime Effect: A Case Study of the Impact of Deion Sanders on Sports Fan Behavior
Poster Session Arman P. Medina, Sean Pradhan
According to Dwivedi et al. (2014), celebrities can influence consumers to seek out associations as a means to enhance their own self-concepts. Deion Sanders (aka Coach Prime), a former NFL player and Hall of Famer turned college coach has a fanbase unique to any current or past head coach. Upon his arrival as head coach of the University of Colorado’s football program, the team sold out season tickets in April (2023), almost five months prior to the first game, for the first time in 27 years. This was also the earliest that season tickets were sold out (Snyder, 2023). Interestingly, Colorado had only won one game in the prior season (Schrotenboer, 2023). More recently, on September 16, 2023, ESPN had 9.3 million viewers watching Colorado playing their in-state rival Colorado State, establishing it as the most watched late game ever and the fifth most watched regular season college game in ESPN history (ESPN News Services, 2023). The current study will investigate the effect that Deion Sanders (via the “Coach Prime Effect”) has had on the University of Colorado’s football program from a fan behavior lens. We explore this fanbase and how it has influenced attendance and viewership to Colorado’s football games. Furthermore, we examine various consumer behaviors, such as fans’ intentions to watch Colorado games and their willingness to purchase merchandise. This research is based on a survey of college football fans.
Enhancing Athletic Safety and Performance: The Significance of Functional Movement Screening View Digital Media
Poster Session Lindsay Luinstra
Functional Movement Screening (FMS) by Gray Cook has emerged as a pivotal tool in injury prevention for athletes. This study provides a concise overview of its significance in safeguarding the well-being of athletes, encapsulating the essence of FMS and its impact on sports safety. In the realm of athletic performance and injury prevention, FMS stands as a transformative paradigm developed by Gray Cook. FMS is a systematic and comprehensive evaluation technique that assesses an individual's functional movement patterns. It does so by scrutinizing fundamental movements and identifying limitations or imbalances that could predispose an athlete to injuries. The primary objective is to identify and address these issues proactively to mitigate the risk of injuries before they occur. The paramount importance of FMS in the realm of athletics lies in its ability to serve as a potent predictor of potential injury risks. By pinpointing areas of concern, coaches and trainers can tailor their conditioning programs, focusing on corrective exercises and enhancing an athlete's biomechanical foundation. In doing so, FMS empowers athletes to optimize their performance potential while minimizing the risk of debilitating injuries. FMS has fundamentally shifted the injury prevention paradigm in athletics. It promotes the idea that injury prevention is not a reactive process but a proactive one. This paradigm shift is supported by robust evidence demonstrating that athletes who undergo FMS and address identified weaknesses are less prone to injuries, experience improved athletic performance, and enjoy longevity in their careers.
Frequent Flyers: The Influence of Circadian Disruption on Game Outcomes in the Women’s National Basketball Association
Poster Session Sean Pradhan
In various professional sports, teams often face circadian disruption or misalignment due to transmeridian travel. Numerous studies across different sports have shown that circadian disruption due to travel and jet lag can hinder athletic performance. However, the majority of previous investigations have focused these analyses within men’s professional sports, and in general, there is a lack of research that has been conducted in context of women’s sport from various perspectives. The current study investigated the impact of travel on game outcomes for visiting teams in an understudied sports context, that being the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA). We examined performance across four seasons following the introduction of the Las Vegas Aces to the league in 2018. Data from 815 games were analyzed using mixed-effects binomial logistic regression accounting for the season, as well as the home and visiting team’s winning percentage. Results revealed no clear effect of the difference in time zones between the home and visiting teams on game outcomes. However, follow-up contrasts showed that visiting teams won fewer than 50.00% of their games when traveling 1 and 3 time zones westward, within the same time zone, and 2 and 3 time zones eastward. The current study identifies specific instances where athletic performance may be attenuated due to circadian disruption. WNBA teams can consider these findings as they develop travel schedules, training sessions, recovery plans, and game approaches.
Healthy Athletics: The Korean Cuisine’s Contribution View Digital Media
Poster Session Isabelle Bonnici
In a comprehensive exploration of Korean cuisine through dining at 370 different restaurants from 2022 to 2023, the researcher discovered a culinary haven for health-conscious athletes. Despite encountering three food poisoning incidents, the study unveils the nutritional secrets hidden in the alleys of Korean dining. Unlike the researcher's American diet, Korean cuisine showcased a remarkable balance of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Grains like rice form a nutritional foundation, offering complex carbohydrates and essential nutrients crucial for sustained energy and muscle repair. Vegetables, ranging from leafy greens to root vegetables, contribute to a rich array of vitamins and minerals. Lean protein sources such as tofu, poultry, and seafood support optimal muscle health. Superfood ingredients like seaweed, abundant in vitamins and minerals, enhance the nutritional profile of Korean dishes. Additionally, fermented foods like kimchi introduce probiotics that aid digestion and boost immune function. The diverse cooking methods employed in Korean cuisine are highlighted for their ability to retain essential nutrients. The researcher concludes that Korean cuisine, as experienced in restaurants, stands out as a healthy and robust dietary option for athletes, offering a harmonious blend of nutrients necessary for athletic performance and overall well-being.
Improvement in Body Morphology and Physical Performance among Adolescent Boys after a High-Intensity Functional Training Utilizing Bodyweight Resistance Exercises in Physical Education Lessons View Digital Media
Poster Session Dawid Koźlenia, Marek Popowczak, Cristian Alvarez, Jarosław Domaradzki
This study assessed the influence of an 8-week high-intensity functional training (HIFT), based on bodyweight resistance exercises, within physical education classes, on body composition and physical performance in 116 adolescent males aged 15-18. The participants were divided due to calendar age into experimental (EXP) and control (CON) groups. Using the InBody device, measurements of body height, weight, muscle, and fat mass were taken. Body Mass Index (BMI), Fat Mass Index (FMI), and Skeletal Muscle Mass Index (SMI) were calculated. Muscle strength was assessed via hand grip (HG), power through standing broad jump (SBJ), flexibility using the sit-and-reach test (SRT), and endurance via the beep test (BT). The intervention started with two circuits performed in two lessons per week gradually increasing in volume (one circuit added after every two week). The participants performed in every 20 seconds as many reps as possible following exercises: push-ups, abs crunches, squats, lunges, burpees, with a 60-second rest between circuits. The changes after HIFT were analyzed with two-way ANOVA and Bonferroni post-hoc tests. The analysis reveal significant positive changes in all parameters post-HIFT (p<0.05), except for BMI and flexibility. Age category was significant for FMI and HG (p<0.05), and interactions between condition and age category were observed for HG and SBJ (p<0.05). This research showed the effectiveness of introducing HIFT to induce favorable adaptations in body morphology and physical performance among male adolescents. These results provide insights for teachers considering the implementation of bodyweight interventions based on the HIFT concept during physical education classes.
Efficacy of Advanced Metrics in Predicting End-of-Season Award Outcomes in the National Basketball Association
Poster Session Anthony Taylor, Sean Pradhan
Traditional National Basketball Association (NBA) box-score statistics, including points, rebounds, blocks, and assists, offer quantitative measurements for comparing players and assessing their impact on team success. Despite the usefulness of these basic statistics, some analysts argue that they are insufficient in quantifying a player's overall impact on the game's outcome. This has led to the rise of "advanced metrics," which claim to provide more reliable measurements of individual player productivity. Previous research has underscored the value in utilizing advanced metrics for assessing player performance and team composition to determine NBA team success. However, there is a gap in understanding as to whether these metrics, largely utilized by sports analysts, reflect public perceptions of the most skilled players in the NBA. Using data from open-source data repositories, such as Basketball-Reference, FiveThirtyEight and BBall-Index, this study aims to assess the effectiveness of advanced metric statistical categories, including Robust Algorithm (using) Player Tracking (and) On/Off Ratings (RAPTOR) and Luck-adjusted player Estimate using a Box prior Regularized ON-off (LEBRON), in predicting end-of-season award vote shares in the NBA. Given the end-of-season award voting process, where members of the media rank the best players in the league, the share of votes received by a player should be relatively consistent with their statistical production. By correlating these advanced metrics with end-of-season award voting results, we identify which advanced metric categories align with popular perceptions of the best players in a given NBA season.
Violating the Salary Cap: Exploring Performance Gains in the National Basketball Association Using Two-Stage Data Envelopment Analysis
Poster Session Dima Leshchinskii, Sean Pradhan
Salary caps, which act as price ceilings for teams on the cost of players, are commonplace in various North American professional sports leagues. The National Basketball Association (NBA) utilizes a framework known as a “soft” salary cap, whereby the cap can be exceeded by paying a financial penalty (i.e., the “luxury tax”). Therefore, not only can teams optimize their players’ salary allocation within the cap, but they can also strategically decide to exceed the salary cap, if the marginal benefits exceed the cost of the luxury tax. Thus, the purpose of the current study is to investigate whether strategically exceeding the salary cap in the NBA can justify the cost of the luxury tax in terms of efficiency. Salary cap data were collected from Spotrac, an online sports database containing information on team payrolls and player contract information from 2011 to the present. Data from the 2011-12 to 2022-23 NBA seasons were gathered for analysis. Using each team’s estimated luxury tax bill, we categorize teams into either those that violate the cap (violators) or those that do not (non-violators) based on each season. Team performance data were gathered from Basketball-Reference, a publicly available sports database. The efficiency of on-court performance and playoff status (playoff vs. non-playoff team) is studied using two-stage data envelopment analysis (DEA) following the approach of Yang et al. (2014). This previous study also evaluated the wage efficiency of NBA teams, and accounted for whether teams violated the salary cap.
Effect of a Warm-up that Includes a PAPE Stimulus on Jumping and Acceleration Capacity of High Jumper with Different Strength Levels
Poster Session Ignacio García Vázquez
We compare individual responses of a PAPE warm-up on jumping and sprinting capacities in high jumpers with different strength levels. Twenty participants were divided in one group of Strong (SG, n = 10) and another of Weak (WG, n = 10). Participants were asked to complete a warm-up aimed to promote PAPE effects. The intervention consisted of 5 min of aerobic exercises followed by a back squat loaded with a weight that allowed a speed of 0.8 m/s. PAPE effects were analyzed using a countermovement jump test (CMJ) and sprinting test (5-m and 10-m time) before the intervention (CONTROL) and after the intervention at minute 4 (PAPE4). Individualizing activation protocols has the potential to revolutionize the way athletes prepare for performance and training. By optimizing neuromuscular readiness, enhancing training efficiency, and providing greater specificity, these protocols can help athletes achieve their full potential.
