Academics

Marketing students compete to help Fox Sports beat rival

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Thirty students in John Powell’s Sports Marketing 443 class are working to devise a marketing plan they hope Fox Sports will utilize to help it take on the “Worldwide Leader in Sports.”

Six teams of five students each are brainstorming to create concepts or ideas that would entice college-aged students to tune in to "Fox Sports Live" — Fox’s answer to ESPN’s flagship news and highlight show: "Sports Center."

The winning team from Penn State will compete with winning teams from three other universities selected by Fox (Missouri, Nebraska and Southern Methodist University). The victorious college team will win a trip to the Fox studios in Los Angeles where it will meet with Fox executives.

“All of the projects in this class provide students with hands-on, real-life marketing opportunities,” said Powell, instructor in marketing. “What makes this unique is there is a reward at the end of this one.”

Students were asked to research, watch and become well versed with "Fox Sports Live" as part of the competition, which is a component of Fox Sports University. Armed with that information, students were charged with coming up with a plan to change the viewing habits of millennials, enticing them to switch from "Sports Center" to "Fox Sports Live."

Older sports fans, Powell said, have already become entrenched in their viewing habits. Many punch the number for ESPN into their remote control without even thinking about an alternative.

“The goal of this project is to expose a generation of younger sports viewers to 'Fox Sports Live',” Powell said. “At the very least, the winning concept would help put Fox Sports Live on a more even footing in younger viewers’ minds.”

Each of the six Smeal teams will make presentations April 27, from which Powell will choose three finalists. Then, on April 29, Fox Sports executives will fly in from Los Angeles to watch the presentations and choose the best concept. They will compare the Smeal winner to the first-place finishers from the other three universities to determine an ultimate winner.

Last Updated April 27, 2015

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