For the last 11 years, the University of Tennessee at Martin has been represented at the Super Bowl, the championship game of the National Football League, and this year will mark No. 12, when students continue the tradition at the game Feb. 9 in New Orleans.
Dr. Dexter Davis, professor of sport management, coordinates working trips for UT Martin students majoring in sport business or a related field to the sport industry.
Twelve UT Martin students will be working in several areas during the week leading up to Super Bowl LIX, including assisting with “Super Bowl Opening Night,” the media party, and the Athletes in Action Super Bowl Breakfast. This is all leading up to game day, where the students will be providing support for On Location, the NFL’s premier hospitality provider.
Davis serves as co-chair of the Super Bowl Student Network Event, an informal gathering of students from the other colleges and universities involved in the Super Bowl events. This event provides an opportunity for students to network with sport industry professionals and other students who work Super Bowl events.
There is also a panel discussion and a short key address, each designed to provide students with insight into what it takes to succeed in the competitive sport industry.
Davis is also responsible for a new initiative, a student recognition program where faculty members from the more than 50 programs involved in Super Bowl activities are invited to nominate one of their students to be awarded one of 10 “Super Bowl Student MVP” awards.
These awards are made possible through the support of MoonShot, the NFL’s customer service training partner.
Working at the Super Bowl this year from UT Martin – with their majors and hometowns – are Aaron Bartholomew, accounting, Parsons; Toby Bolkcom, finance, Millington; Nic Edwards, sport business, Clarksville; Parker Ferrell, accounting, Dresden; Hannah Haislip, MBA, Gates; Paris Hodge, sport business, Jackson; Jaden Knott, sport business, South Fulton; Dylan Mott, MBA, Hendersonville; Jon Powers, sport business, Union City; Cheyenne Stewart, management, Centerville; David Stukey, sport business, London, Ohio; and BryLeigh Travis, sport business, Troy.
Students who have worked at other professional venues with Davis before are Edwards, Haislip, Knott and Mott, who all worked at Super Bowl LVIII; Knott and Stewart, who worked at two NFL games in London last October; Mott, who worked at Super Bowl LVII; and Hodge and Travis, who worked at Major League Baseball spring training games in March 2024.
“I always try to take a few returners. They know the ropes and can help guide the new students through some of the nuances of the week,” Davis said.
As a result of the good work these students did in London, a small group of UTM students will have extra duty on Super Bowl Sunday assisting an NFL contractor from the London games.
“That is a real testament to the value UTM students bring to the experience,” Davis said.
Davis picks the students to work at professional venues through an interview process meant to be similar to what they will encounter in the field. He encourages them to do research on the place they will be visiting and to be prepared to answer highly specific questions regarding the potential activities they will be involved in during Super Bowl week.
“They have to send me a cover letter and a resume, just like they were applying for a job, because it is a job. For that week, it’s a job,” Davis said.
He analyzes students by their resumes and by the things they do on campus, how involved they are and how ready they are to put in the work.
Davis encourages students to network, and he practices that skill, too. His first trip to the Super Bowl was possible because of connections and friendships he had been building across different events.
“The sport industry is relatively small, and people move around in the industry,” Davis said. “There will be people who work in baseball who make their way into football or soccer or basketball, and vice versa.
“You never know when one of the people you encounter at an event like the Super Bowl will be your colleague or supervisor. Understanding that is one of the major lessons of the experience.”
PHOTO: Representing UT Martin at Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans on Feb. 9 are (l-r) Hannah Haislip, Jaden Knott, Aaron Bartholomew, BryLeigh Travis, Nic Edwards, Cheyenne Stewart, Dr. Dexter Davis, Toby Bolkcom, Paris Hodge, Dylan Mott, David Stukey, Jon Powers and Parker Ferrell. This is the 12th straight year for a student staff from UT Martin to work at the Super Bowl.
