Sports allow us to feel the rush of a win, the heartbreak of losing in the final moments, the excitement of a new era for our favorite teams or the appreciation of an athlete who decides to hang up the cleats. They teach us about loyalty, defeat, hard work, gratitude, human nature and patience, among many other things that make up the way we as people interact with them. I believe that sports bring out the best in people and unite us in ways that others could never imagine. To quote the Southeastern Conference, sports just mean more.

In a world of ‘Zoom fatigue’ and endless conference calls, we received numerous messages from corporate business leaders within the Quarterback Club membership that this was by far the best virtual experience.

The NCAA’s announcement marks the first time for the NCAA Tournament in Birmingham since 2008 for men’s basketball. It will be the first time ever for the women’s tournament to come to Birmingham.

“Sports combine an expression of human emotions, unclear outcomes, personal narratives and competition into a commodity that has consumed our culture. Sports produce stories and emotions that I want to be a part of telling and cultivating. “

Our team is made up of driven, energetic and focused individuals who are passionate about sports and experiential marketing. If this sounds like something you would be interested in, we’d love to meet you! 

“Sports is still a place where there’s a common shared passion for a team, a player, or an event. It brings back that sense of we do share things in common. Now you could make the argument that ‘is that all we share in common?’ Well, I hope not, but it’s one thing that helps us not forget that we can be a people that share things in common.”

When I first started, I told people jokingly, okay, my first season of baseball was 1993. We had Francona, we had a really fun team, which eventually won the Southern League Championship. My second year was 1994. Infamously obviously, Michael Jordan was here. My third year, we were eliminated on the final day of the season by half a game and lady luck was not on our side.

Data is a means to an end. For our Knight Eady team, it’s easy to answer the why when it comes to putting an emphasis on analytics. We want to drive strategy, support decision-making, ensure profitability, understand the industry, develop a competitive advantage — and that’s just off the top of our head. We use data because it gives us the insights we need to succeed and ensure our clients succeed. That is our objective. 

Today is a particularly special day for our communities. May 5 marks the newly named Giving Tuesday Now. The day was created to bring together nonprofits, communities, small businesses and more to provide a unified day of giving in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. It’s a day to support those on the front lines and give back to essential workers who are ensuring we have what we need.  Giving Tuesday Now represents a global action for giving and unity against COVID-19 and reminds us we are all on the same team working together to flatten the curve and fight this pandemic. 

At Knight Eady, we strive to make a difference through sports. Although we won’t see one buzzer-beater during March Madness this year or hear the roar of the crowds on the 18th green in Augusta, we still believe we can use our brand promise to make a difference and we see this magic taking shape in a new way with many of our clients and partners.

But, as the old adage goes, “you don’t know what you have until it’s gone.” It’s easy to get caught up in the bright lights, the cheering crowd, the buzzer-beaters and the championships. At Knight Eady, our careers revolve around sports, many of us played sports growing up and we are lifelong fans of many teams, so it became easy for some of those privileges to feel as though they were part of normal life. Spoiler alert, they aren’t so normal when life as we know it isn’t normal.

In 2013, Knight Eady was founded as an event operations group in Birmingham. Seven years later, we have evolved into a full-service event, strategy and creative agency, working with clients across the country to bring brands and fans together.

This fall, for the first time in company history, Knight Eady will host a total of four NCAA Men’s Basketball games. Spanning across eight days and two cities, the thread tips off on December 14th with the Mike Slive Invitational, followed by the Chick-fil-A Birmingham Classic on December 18th, and wraps up with the annual Rocket City Classic doubleheader on December 21st.

I remember competing in the Nastia Cup held in Jacksonville, Florida in 2011. I don’t remember much about my routines or scores, but I vividly remember how the competition made me feel. I qualified from my home club’s annual meet.