"Game Plan has been a tremendous asset to our communication with current and potential commercial sponsors. By offering them an opportunity to have access to our student-athletes through this program, we are able to engage in more productive negotiations for long-term relationships."
Assistant Commissioner at the Big South Conference
Before the Big South Conference partnered with Game Plan, they had identified a need to provide student-athletes with professional training, financial literacy education, and access to job opportunities. All of the existing programs at their member schools were primarily focused on athletic or academic achievement - not on life after sport.
The Big South Conference wanted to offer professional training and financial literacy education to student-athletes at their member schools without having to cobble together multiple programs across several platforms. They also wanted to unify their member schools with a single platform in order to offer potential sponsors the opportunity to recruit student-athletes for internships and full-time jobs.
Member schools in the Big South Conference - who were once resource-constrained and unable to afford student-athlete development programs and resources - now have access to Game Plan's eLearning course curriculums and online career services. These curriculums cover topics like financial literacy and sexual violence prevention. At the conference level, leadership has found the partnership with Game Plan to be a useful asset when negotiating long-term relationships with potential sponsors since they can now offer them the opportunity to recruit student-athletes through Game Plan's online career services.
The Big South Department is made up of 10 member colleges in the southeast. The conference as a whole places a great deal of importance on supporting student-athletes at its member colleges as they make the transition from sport to the professional world.