USC students and faculty got the chance to learn behind-the scenes-information about the top three sporting events in South Carolina during the latest installment of the Dr. Thomas H. Regan lecture series Tuesday evening in the Russell House Theater.
The lecture series began in 2008 with the College of Hospitality, Retail and Sport Management, and a few years later it was funded by NASCAR. This year the lecture was moderated by Duane Parrish, director of the South Carolina Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism. It featured a panel of Bob Moran, tournament director of the Volvo Car Open, Kerry Tharp, president of Darlington Raceway and Steve Wilmot, director of the RBC Heritage golf tournament and the president of the Heritage Classic Foundation.
The panel focused on major aspects of their professions, including the role of economics, politics, volunteerism, engagement, sponsorships and marketing in their areas of expertise.
Even though fourth-year political science student Tanner Norby is not studying sport and entertainment management, he said this panel of professionals still gave him information he can use in his future career.
“They spoke on how politics are involved in a lot of this and how politicians make some of this happen,” Norby said.
The panelists highlighted the role of volunteers in their respective sports. Tharp said college students are the main volunteers at the Darlington events, while Moran also mentioned the importance of volunteers in the Volvo Car Open.
“We definitely couldn’t have the event without them,” Moran said.
Sponsorships were also a main point of discussion. Some students said they found the segment on sponsorships interesting, as Tharp talked about the reality of working with sponsors today and the specifics of sponsorships at NASCAR and Darlington Raceway.
“We’re really blessed, I think at Darlington, for our cup race to have Bojangles.” Tharp said. “Bojangles and Darlington go together like peanut butter and jelly.”
All three guests brought up the importance of maintaining a strong fan base throughout the year beyond their signature events. Citing social media and programming such as concerts and hosting meetings at their respective venues as ways to retain engagement throughout the year, Moran and Tharp know the importance of keeping fans engaged while drawing in new people.
During the event, Wilmot discussed the necessity of finding new ways to keep people engaged, especially the younger generations recently out of college.
“We have wine at nine; we have the craft beer garden now,” Wilmot said. “We have to create things from around the experience, more than just going to a golf tournament.”
Something panelists said worry them is the safety of sporting event spectators. In previous years safety was not a major concern, but times have changed, Tharp said. While he wants everyone to have a great time at the event, safety is the most important, Tharp said.
“They emphasized an increase in security overall and how much they value it now today to even five years ago,” said Andrew Risorto, fourth-year sport and entertainment management student.
Risorto, like many other students who attended this event, found benefits to what they learned during the hour and a half discussion.
“It’s all general information that I think you need to know," said Risorto. "What are the most important needs and what are the things that are changing in the industry that you need to stay a step ahead of? And you learn that from going to seminars like this.”