Seventeen students gain hands-on experience at Super Bowl LVIII
While the Lombardi Trophy was traveling back to Kansas City on the Chiefs team plane, 17 Nichols College students were jetting home to bucolic Dudley, MA having wrapped up their own wildly successful Super Bowl experience.
The group is enrolled in Sports Management 297: Super Bowl Practicum, a hands-on experiential learning opportunity that put them in the center of the Super Bowl action. The course, taught by Christopher Streeter, Ph.D., enables students to study the economic and cultural impacts of the game on the host city, as well as media messaging, advertising and sponsorships. In addition to their week-long stay in Las Vegas, students spend a semester in the classroom, manage the NC Sport Management Instagram page, and complete a final reflection project (30-minute podcast, website, research paper or commercial-grade highlight video).
Nichols has partnered with the NFL Super Bowl Host Committee since 2020. Students attended Super Bowls in Miami (2020) and Glendale, AZ (2023); their 2021 and 2022 trips were canceled due to COVID-19. The Nichols partnership is the only one of its kind among colleges and universities in New England.
While in Las Vegas, students worked the Super Bowl Experience inside the Mandalay Bay Convention Center and were inside Allegiant Stadium during the big game, watching the Chiefs defeat the San Francisco 49ers, 25-22, in overtime. Students performed a variety of roles, such as handing out memorabilia, helping attendees find their way to their seats or attractions, operating and managing lines for meet and greets and other fan experiences, and working alongside athletes and celebrities over the weekend.
Nichols students also attended a sport marketing networking event at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), visited the Las Vegas Golden Knights practice facility with alumna and Golden Knights employee Aisling Dowling ’21, and socialized on set of CBS Sports productions.
“Giving students this immersive opportunity to experience the Super Bowl in partnership with the NFL Super Bowl Committee is integral in spring-boarding their interest in sport management and building their resume toward a fulfilling career,” says Dr. Streeter.
Junior Callie Worthington made her second Super Bowl trip, having traveled to Arizona last year. “Experiencing this last year and then getting to come back is an amazing opportunity for me,” she says. “Last year I made connections and saw so many cool sights, and this year we’re involved in even more. Who gets to say that they’ve worked the Super Bowl twice by the time they graduate college? I’m glad Nichols gives us opportunities to experience things like this as students.”
Nasir Bridgewater, a sophomore, agrees. “You don’t get to experience something as big as working a Super Bowl early in your career, and just being able to say that we did so helps us use this to our advantage as we think about future opportunities.”
To view media pertaining to this experience, please visit below:
View WBZ CBS Boston story with Spencer Berlepsch ’25 and Andrew DiGivoanni ’25 here
View Fox 25 Boston story with Mark Newell ’24 and Nicholas Patterson ’24 here
View WFSB Channel 3 Hartford with Spencer Berlepsch ’25 and Nasir Bridgewater ’25 here
About Nichols College
Nichols College has earned business accreditation from the prestigious Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International), the longest serving global accrediting body for business schools and the largest business education network connecting learners, educators, and businesses worldwide. Founded in 1815, Nichols College transforms today’s students into tomorrow’s leaders through a dynamic, career-focused business and professional education. Nichols offers real-world learning focused on professional depth – combined with vibrant living, competitive athletics, and an unmatched alumni advantage – equipping students to exceed their own expectations. To learn more about Nichols College, visit www.nichols.edu.
Media Contact:
Denise Kelley
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508-213-2219