The following interview is part of our ongoing Expert Series that asks C-level professionals, team presidents, league executives, athletic directors and other sports influencers about their latest thoughts and insights on new technologies impacting the sports industry.
Name: Bill Battle
Company: University of Alabama
Position: Director of Athletics
Bill Battle is in his fourth year as the Director of Athletics at the University of Alabama. During Battle’s tenure — which started in March 2013 — Alabama has produced three NCAA team national championships (men’s golf in 2013 and 2014; football in 2015) and 10 SEC team championships in five different sports (three in football, two in gymnastics, two in men’s golf, and one in women’s golf, softball and women’s tennis).
A native of Birmingham, Ala., Battle attended Alabama on a football scholarship and was a three-year starter under head coach Paul “Bear” Bryant (1960-62). Battle was a member of Bryant’s first national championship team in 1961. Battle earned a bachelor’s degree in biology (minor in Psychology) from Alabama in 1963 and a Master’s degree in education from the University of Oklahoma in 1964.
1) What utilization of technology in college sports has recently blown you away and why?
While it sounds cliché to say, “social media,” it is the adoption rate of third-party platforms by schools in every division that is surprising to me. The technology itself is not blowing anyone away, but the utilization of it certainly is. The need to engage fans, recruit, broadcast and communicate in such a variety of ways has become overwhelming.
2) As a sports fan, what sports-related service, app, product, etc., could you not live without and why?
Twitter. Near real-time consumption of a broader scope of news, reactions and insights into things that would normally never be on the radar.
3) If money were no object, what technology would you build or buy to help you do your job better?
At the risk of sounding very dull, our goal is to build an extremely robust network, wired and wireless, that uses all social media vehicles to reach all our desired constituents, with messages tailored to each group. There is not one thing we do in the technology space at this point in time that does not utilize a network as a resource. With more and more devices requiring attention from event operations to fan experience enhancements, the need for reliability and uptime has never been greater.
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4) If you had to project 20 years into the future, how will most fans watch their favorite college sports teams?
Twenty years is a long time for tech predictions. I see the options available and a variety of video displays being the big change. We are already putting on glasses and goggles, so what’s next? Most of that is simulating the experience (which is great), but most people want to enhance the experience, not try and re-create an “okay” one. I believe augmented reality is something that is not far from being commonplace in this area. How does the 4th dimension make its way into the college sports broadcast/telecast/live stream? Game consoles have had reactions in their controllers for years, so why can’t a couch vibrate while a packed stadium gets loud on a 3rd down in a tie game late in the 4th quarter?
5) What are some of the ways in which the Alabama athletic department has integrated new forms of technology into Bryant-Denny Stadium to enhance the fan experience?
- Experience App: In-venue seat upgrades, behind-the-scenes tours, ability to run out on the field with the team, etc.
- Cellular DAS: Not exactly new technology, but ubiquitous connectivity is still an art by which (according to my people) all venues are challenged.
- iBeacons: Wireless loyalty/rewards offerings. As a rewards member walks near a beacon, their phone can provide a range of interactions where we issue points for staying until after the game was over or simply walking by a concession stand and getting a coupon for a hot dog.
6) Give us your bold prediction about a form of technology that will be integral to college athletics over the next 12 months and why?
Performance Analytics vs. Artificial Intelligence (AI). Can we accurately predict and prevent some injuries based off of collected data? An algorithmic-based approach is key now, but how does AI and supercomputing begin to play a role in this process? There is nothing new with the analytics here, but having the ability to see reports and make decisions in near real-time can be the game changer.