In late April, 17 Rice Sport Management students presented their semester-long research projects to the university community in the second-annual Sport Analytics Research Showcase. The poster presentations were the culmination of the work done in the Rice Sport Analytics Seminar (SMGT 490), taught by professor Hua Gong, Ph.D.
The research conducted by the students spanned their interests, including analyzing performance on Major League Baseball’s Coors Field, predicting college football player performance in the NIL and transfer portal era, quantifying the value of coaches in the National Football League, and studying whether sportsbooks overreact to recent athletic performances. Seven of the students focused on baseball research, while other areas of student research included football, swimming, cricket, and NASCAR.
It’s important that students select topics they’re passionate about, as the semester-long research process is methodical and rigorous. “Students grow significantly over the course of the semester as they engage deeply with meaningful research questions,” Gong says. They review literature, refine their research ideas, and develop methodology before moving into the stages of data collection, analysis, writing, and final presentations.
The result is high-quality, professional research not normally seen at an undergraduate level. More likely to be found in doctoral and master’s programs, the students’ research gives them experience with real-world issues in the sports industry and a leg up in their careers after graduation.
“Gaining research experience in college can be extremely valuable for students' careers after graduation,” Gong says. He encourages students to make their research as reproducible as possible, sharing their work on open-access platforms to inspire future researchers and demonstrate their abilities to potential employers.
And, Gong says, it’s important to give students a chance to share their hard work with their peers, too. “A showcase is important because it gives students an opportunity to present their work to a broader audience and demonstrate the depth of what they have learned,” he says. “Not only does it highlight the strength of Rice’s sport analytics program, but it also creates a space for students, faculty, industry professionals, and the wider Rice community to connect around the growing field of sports analytics.”
View the photos from this event on our Facebook page.
Molly (Mohr) Bruni '15 is a proud Rice Sport Management alumna and freelance editor and writer. Find her at mollybruni.com.