SMT Teams With University of the Pacific to Create Sports Analytics Program

SMT is partnering with University of the Pacific to launch a new specialization to prepare students for careers in sports analytics.  The interdisciplinary program, starting in August in the Eberhardt School of Business, will serve as a sports technology test bed for SMT and will be one of the few of its kind in the nation. Through the partnership with SMT, students will have access to cutting-edge sports analytics technologies.

The global sports analytics market will reach $3.4 billion by 2028, according to Research and Markets, a Dublin-based international research firm.

“This exciting new program responds to a surge in the demand for data-driven decision-making throughout the sports industry,” says Dean Lewis R. Gale. “Graduates from our sports analytics track will be well-positioned to succeed in this market.”

SMT will install tracking hardware, software and a camera array to measure pitches, batted balls and fielding at Klein Family Field, the baseball venue at Pacific’s main campus in Stockton, CA. SMT will use other Pacific athletic venues as beta-testing sites for its current and new technologies.

“SMT’s collaboration with University of the Pacific has led to a novel partnership that will advance concepts in sports technology,” says Gerard J. Hall, founder and CEO, SMT. “We look forward to enjoying the mutual benefits of making SMT’s technology, experience and tools available to the naturally inquisitive minds and talents of the students and faculty of the University of the Pacific.”

SMT and Pacific faculty will work together on creating sports analytics lessons that could then be used as a model by other colleges and universities across the country.

“As an industry leader in sports data collection and visualization, SMT shares University of the Pacific’s interest in expanding access to technology and data,” says Cameron Adams, SMT Implementation Lead, FIELDf/x College Baseball. “The promise of improved decision-making through data lies in the democratization of the field: The more bright, creative people who analyze a problem, the greater chance of a technological breakthrough. In turn, we hope to implement those lessons through similar programs and coursework at other universities to further expand access.”

Students in the sports analytics track will combine rigorous core courses in business, mathematics and computer science to learn how to apply analytical skills to measure and predict individual athlete and team performance. 2 In addition to internships with professional teams, the sports analytics students also will enroll in a practicum, with each student assigned to one of the university’s Division I teams to work on real-time data collection and analysis. Pacific plays most of its 17 sports in the West Coast Conference.

Pacific Athletic Director Janet Lucas said the new Eberhardt School program and the new partnership with SMT will provide the university’s athletic programs “a distinct competitive advantage.”

“This special collaboration between academics and intercollegiate athletics will allow students in the sports analytics track to more fully realize the impact of their efforts, deeper analysis and innovative skillset on the world of competition through the results achieved by the Pacific Tigers,” says Lucas.