Ever been curious about what goes into hosting a university sports game? From advertising to bleacher set-up, there’s a lot that happens beyond the field. Read on for insight into how each athletics department prepares for game day at UW.
Game operations
As its name suggests, the game operations department is directly involved in running sports games here at Waterloo. Many of the department’s responsibilities occur while games are in progress – things like scorekeeping, tracking stats, running the clock, and making announcements. Megan Muir, communications and game day coordinator, explained that the department works directly with referees and coaches to make sure that scores are kept properly. Game operations also controls and maintains web broadcasts, so that people who aren’t on-site can still watch games. Finally, the department works with photos and videos to keep social media updated with content. Muir noted that many students work across the department, and said that “[we] can’t do our job without them.”
Special events
This department works closely with many partners to run events on campus, including varsity games. Lots of these partnerships involve sponsors such as RBC Training Ground, BioSteel, and Domino’s. This sponsorship work extends into game day, as the department is responsible for running giveaways and in-game promotions. “Bringing the crowd up and creating that sports atmosphere is what my team takes care of,” said Emily Ysselstein, marketing coordinator. The team accomplishes this by organizing half-time activities and competitions such as trivia. Special events is also responsible for ticketing, and they coordinate with other campus organizations to increase the scale of sports events.
Marketing & communications
Jenny Mackay, manager of the department, outlined a number of the team’s responsibilities. These include executing sponsorships for games, bringing UW’s cheerleading team and the Warriors mascot onboard, and managing staff for events. Since UW has over 30 varsity teams, there are often multiple games happening at once. The department calculates how many staff members are needed onsite, and they work to hire students if necessary.
Columbia Icefield (CIF) facilities
Located north of campus, CIF contains three gymnasiums, five playing fields, an arena, and more. The facilities team at CIF does the physical work to make sure these spaces are as well-kept as possible for game days. CIF building coordinator Mady McDonald spoke about the many hours that go into maintaining these spaces, and added that CIF has recently received a new turf. This turf will be used a lot during gameplay, which means that both full and part-time staff are needed to maintain and set it up for events. The facilities department aims to have these areas looking brand new before each game.
Physical Activities Complex (PAC) facilities
Much like the CIF facilities team, their counterparts at PAC are responsible for having all on-site spaces running smoothly each day. Rusheid Neil, PAC building coordinator, oversees the facilities team and ensures that spaces and equipment in the gym are ready for games. The department sets up for events by ensuring that items like seats and tables are where they need to be. Decorations, such as game day banners from the special events department, are installed by PAC facilities. The team also assists guests who come to the building for games, and direct staff and students where they need to go.
Facilities: events
This team in the facilities department works specifically on setting up, overseeing, and cleaning up events. The equipment involved in this process differs depending on the game occuring. For basketball games, the bleachers are set up and then torn down. For football games, the field is prepared and sponsorship signs are installed. Rushon Dagelman, events coordinator of the facilities department, explained that the events team also oversees crowd management, such as hiring security and making sure that fans are abiding by rules, especially during high-energy matches like football. If injuries happen, the team makes sure that an ambulance will arrive. “We want to avoid being unprepared for the unknown,” Dagelman said.
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