NFL Combine

     The NFL Scouting Combine started in 1982. The purpose was to learn more about the health and fitness of the top draft picks. This four-day event allows the nations top college prospects to show off their skills in front of all 32 teams. The NFL Combine is invite only and can accommodate up to 335 players. This means not everyone that is drafted is invited to the NFL Combine.  Those individuals that are invited get the chance to not only show off their skills, but in addition they gain a lot of media exposure. The NFL Combine has got to the point where it is too big in my opinion. This post is going to show you just how big the NFL Combine has become.

Former NFL Players Sue the NFL and Riddell

          More than 125 former NFL players are suing the league and Riddell. Riddell has been the official helmet brand of the NFL since 1989. The players are suing because they feel that the league and Riddell concealed the dangerous effects of concussions from them. The players claim that the NFL knew about these harmful risks since the 1920s. This case is important because many former players are suffering from the effects of the concussions. The former players don’t want the current players to end up in the same situation. This blog post is going to tell you the facts behind this case between the NFL, Riddell and the former NFL players.

"Who Dat!"

           This week I had the chance to learn about intellectual property. Intellectual property has four major areas including copyrights, trademarks, patents and trade secrets. Trademark infringement is an issue in the sports industry. One incident that occurred last year involved the New Orleans Saints. The NFL sent out cease and desist orders to tee shirt shops in New Orleans for printing “Who Dat” on tee shirts. This is all because the NFL felt that these local tee shirt companies had taken the New Orleans Saints phrase “Who Dat” without permission.

Operations Manager

          

          I had the opportunity to interview Robert (Marshall) Palmer. Robert started his career at the Amway Arena and was promoted twice which led him to his current position as Operations Manager. He is responsible for the new Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. The venue is home to Orlando Magic, the Orlando Predators and next year there will be a hockey team added to the venue. The Amway Center also holds concerts and ice shows. The venue was opened in 2010 to replace the old Amway Arena. The new Amway Center is 875,000 feet and features one of the largest high definition scoreboards in a NBA facility.

Cam Newton's Social Media Presence

Cam Newton as most of you know is one of the most successful rookie quarterbacks. He steps up every week and works hard. This week I had the chance to look at Cam Newton’s social media presence. The video below will give you some more insight into Cam Newton’s career and it will also show you my analysis on his social media presence. 

Creative Techniques to Attract Fans

           The current economy in the United States is affecting all Americans. The most recent recession according to the National Bureau of Economic Research started on December 1, 2007 and ended in June 2009. The recession is said to have ended because economic activity increased for two quarters. Even though this is true Americans are still suffering and are unable to spend money like before. This is affecting the sports industry. Some teams have had to shut down while others have to get creative to make sales. I am going to first discuss the current situation for many sports teams, then I will discuss some methods used by teams to increase sales, and finally I will give you my thoughts on what I would do to increase productivity during these tough times.

Fantasy Football

Over the last decade fantasy football has become a growing source of entertainment. Fantasy football allows users to become general managers of their own team. Each owner is able to manage and coach games based around NFL players. Fantasy football started in 1962 and since then has grown to 32 million people in the United States and Canada. Fantasy football has evolved to become one of the most well known fantasy sports over the last decade. In this post I will discuss when and how fantasy football started, current fantasy football information and why this is important.

Bill Winkenbach started a fantasy golf league in the 1950s. Golf was the first sport to have a fantasy league. Owners in this league would draft a team of professional golfers. At the end of the week the owner with the lowest score would win. This was before computers so all fantasy owners would sit down with paper and a pen and keep track of the league. You may be asking what does this have to do with football well it was the golf fantasy league that led Bill Winkenbach, Scott Stirling and Bill Tunnell to create the first fantasy football league in 1962. Bill Winkenbach was the part owner of the Oakland Raiders. He saw the potential for a league that involved football. He teamed up with Scott Stirling the Oakland Tribune columnist and Bill Tunnell public relations for the Oakland Raiders. The first fantasy team they created was called the GOPPL. This was an acronym for the Greater Oakland Professional Pigskin Prognostics League. They were able to get others involved. Drafts were held throughout the Oakland area as people continued to keep track of leagues independently.