SMBA 22 works NCAA March Madness Tournament at Viejas Arena
SMBA '22 on Day 1 of March Madness at Viejas Arena
San Diego State’s Viejas Arena hosted the First and Second Rounds of the Men’s March Madness Tournament last week. Each year, the start of the Men’s and Women’s NCAA championships are celebrated as the “Official Sports MBA Holiday,” with classes canceled for the first round to allow students and faculty to enjoy the games. This year, however, with games for the men’s event hosted on campus at Viejas Arena, SMBA ‘22 students worked games onsite in a variety of roles inside and outside the stadium. A number of SMBA ‘22 students were tasked with overseeing team, spirit, and dance transportation, ensuring that participating athletes and supporting students arrived safely and on time to Viejas Arena. Students were scheduled throughout the arena in a number of logistical roles in support of this large scale event.
Sam Galaif (SMBA ‘22) started his internship with the Operations and Events Department within SDSU Athletics in October, with the majority of his work and efforts focused on the preparation and execution of hosting the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament First and Second Round games. Galaif’s preparation for the event included compiling the event’s catering budget, preparing and updating the team tournament manual, and creating a comprehensive calendar of all events scheduled at Viejas Arena during the weekend of the games. During the event, Galaif served as a team liaison and assisted in all team-related operations before, during, and after the games. Galaif’s primary responsibility was communication with team staff to ensure their satisfaction with facilities, as well as their compliance with NCAA regulations as it related to media availability, practice timing, and transportation to and from the event. When asked about his experience, Galaif said, “This event was a great way to learn about the execution of large scale NCAA basketball events, as well as the many levels of communication needed across different stakeholders to ensure success and satisfaction of all those involved.”
Arizona vs TCU at Viejas Arena
Tureen Piromari (SMBA ‘22) worked as a Ticket Resolutions Specialist, which involved assisting fans with all ticketing needs and troubleshooting any issues quickly and efficiently. Piromari worked alongside each participating university’s ticket representatives as well as an outside vendor, On Location, to assist fans with any mobile ticketing issues.
Astrid Enciso (SMBA ‘22) and Shavaye Brown (SMBA ‘22) were both Production Runners for CBS Sports/Turner Sports for the Men’s Tournament. They worked alongside the Production Manager and assisted the production team with a variety of tasks throughout the week. In their roles, they had the opportunity to learn about the behind-the-scenes of broadcast operations for producing a weekend of March Madness games. On her experience working with CBS Sports, Brown said, “This was my first time working in production,so I had a great experience working alongside the CBS Sports Production Team to get a behind the scenes view of how a game is presented for broadcast.”
SMBA '22 students Jim Wilkie, Sierra Garcia, and Mark Olson preparing for game time
Jim Wilkie (SMBA ‘22), as one of the media relations volunteers for the first- and second-round games at Viejas Arena, worked in the interview room as a microphone handler. After the games ended and the teams had some time to cool off, it was "showtime" for the postgame news conferences where coaches and players shared their joy and disappointment. Wilkie moved around the room, trying to stay out of the camera view, to make sure members of the media were able to direct their questions to the podium. Sierra Garcia (SMBA ‘22) also worked in Media Relations for the event under Michael Abbott and Mike May from SDSU Media Relations. Garcia was a locker room steward and her responsibilities at March Madness were escorting the players and head coach to press conference interviews on the days prior to the games and immediately after each game.
Annika Meurer (SMBA ‘22) worked under the SDSU’s Facilities and Operations staff executing the food and beverage logistics for the entire event including practice and game days. This team was responsible for each team’s catering and drinks, media personnel, band and spirit squads, referees, NCAA personnel, and event volunteers. Each locker room and event space was set up in accordance with NCAA rules and sponsorships to ensure every attendee was given the same experience and hospitality. Meurer, when asked about her experience at the event, said, “I loved being behind the scenes of another event and providing exceptional experience to people from around the country who visited San Diego State University for the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament.”
SMBA ‘22 had an exceptional experience last week with the opportunity to see their home arena transformed to host the first round of the men’s tournament. The participating students wish to thank SDSU Athletics staff for the opportunity to witness the process of hosting nationally televised NCAA Tournament games, and are very grateful for the opportunity to take part in making the event happen.
SMBA '22 on the court at Viejas Arena
SMBA '22 at NCAA March Madness Tournament
Brown and Enciso working with CBS Sports
