Tue,
02/15/2022 – 09:39am | By: Van Arnold
The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) captured a sixth-place finish out of
60 teams participating in Team Speed Selling Competition as part of the National Collegiate
Sports Sales Championship & Conference held earlier this month in Atlanta, Ga.
In the Role-Playing portion of the competition, Jerica Galloway, a senior Sport Management
major from Vancleave, Miss., advanced to the second round where she finished in the
top 32 of 160 students (64 teams) entered.
“We are super proud of our team finishing 6th overall in Team Speed Selling,” said Dr. Chris Croft, Assistant Professor of Sport
Management at USM. “Students competed individually in front of professional and intercollegiate
sports organizations in a 60-90 second conversation. The students were able to compete
up to three times total but with different organizations. The total scores for each
individual member of our team (four total) and our team totals were then calculated.”
Hundreds of students from schools around the country participated in the championship
to make the jump from college to the pros. The NCSSC provided an opportunity to showcase
sports sales skills in a competitive format. Recruiters (typically inside sales managers)
served as buyers in a role-play competition. Students pitch a product to the buyer.
The applicable background information on the product is available in the Study Guide
distributed to students in advance.
A judge scored their performance based on a rubric in the Study Guide. Students advanced
in the bracket and turned the heads of more recruiters. Since the purpose of the competition
was for students to land jobs, there was time throughout the event to interview and
interact with recruiters.
Other USM team members included:
- Chipper Baudry, a senior majoring in Sport Management, from New Orleans, La.
- Enzo F. Ferreira, a senior majoring in Sport Coaching Education, from Blumenau, Brazil
- Sam Stiglmair, a senior majoring in Sport Management, from Karlshuld, Germany
The Sport Management program is housed within the College of Business and Economic
Development at USM. To learn more, call 601.266.4627 or visit: https://www.usm.edu/undergraduate-programs/sport-management.php
