The NCAA News - News and Features

March 30, 1998

NCAA opens gates to Hoop City

Association administers interactive fan festivals for the first time

It's part entertainment, part education and part promotion, but it's all basketball.

NCAA Hoop City, the Association's first step into interactive fan festivals, is now a reality. On March 26, the NCAA opened the fan festivals at its premier championship events, the men's Final Four in San Antonio and the Women's Final Four in Kansas City, Missouri.

The fan festival itself is not new for the men's Final Four, having previously been conducted under the name "Fan Jam" by the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Last year, the NCAA bought the rights to the event, and this year, the Association is administering the festival under a new name with a different look. This is the first fan festival for the Women's Final Four.

Laurie Bollig, NCAA assistant director of special events and the individual responsible for developing the men's Hoop City in San Antonio (March 26-30), said the Association hopes to realize three benefits from administering the fan festivals:

"First, we hope this will improve the experience for the fans who are attending the games," she said. "The men's and Women's Final Fours are among the top sports events in the world, and Hoop City should only make them better. It's a fun attraction that should appeal to entire families.

"Second, we hope this will provide fans who do not have tickets with an opportunity to participate in the championship experience. Finally, we hope to create an environment that benefits our corporate partners."

The corporate-partner issue involves creating a balance between commercialization and providing the 16 corporate partners with a reasonable return on their investment in the NCAA.

"We think they're going to be very happy with Hoop City," said Alfred B. White, NCAA director of corporate marketing. "It's going to give them a much better opportunity to promote their products and services than they've had in the past."

The partners are expected to provide about $11.5 million in revenue for the Association this year, money that goes into the NCAA's general operating budget. Most of that money, in turn, finds its way back to NCAA colleges and universities. About 68 percent of the $265 million in NCAA operating expenses for 1997-98 will be devoted to distributions to Division I members and to administration of Division I championships; the remainder will go to Divisions II and III, to the administration of various programs, and to maintenance of staff.

In addition to the Hoop City initiative, the corporate partners have greater visibility throughout the Final Four cities than they have had in the past. Billboard signage opportunities have been increased in the championship cities, and the partners may participate in a "seat cushion" promotion in which product samples are left in a "cushion" in every seat in the championship facility.

As for the Hoop Cities, they are major undertakings, both in terms of physical size and in programming.

The men's event consumes about 100,000 square feet of exhibit space in San Antonio's Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, and the women's event, conducted March 26-29, uses a similar amount of space at Bartle Hall in Kansas City.

Bollig projected attendance of about 75,000 at the men's NCAA Hoop City, while Lisa Turner, NCAA assistant director of special events, said that about 50,000 are expected to tour NCAA Hoop City at the Women's Final Four.

The floor plans for the men's and women's Hoop Cities are similar, but not identical. Both are laid out in the motif of city streets, with the corridors named for famous coaches or athletes (for example "James Naismith Boulevard" or "Margaret Wade Way"). The exhibits are lined up along the streets.

Each Hoop City has a "center court" used for entertainment and educational purposes.

The programming is different in San Antonio and Kansas City. At the men's Hoop City, featured acts include Triple Threat Dance Fusion, the Slam-Dunk Daredevils, Players in Progress (ball-handling skills), Dave "Travelin" Davlin (ball-handling) and the Final Four pep bands (four on Saturday and two on Sunday). In addition, the NABC all-stars are scheduled to participate in a shootaround March 26. Also, about eight basketball coaches are expected to participate in Youth Education through Sports (YES) Clinics while another six are to conduct a Coaches vs. Cancer skills clinics or question-and-answer sessions.

The women's Hoop City features Triple Threat Dance Fusion, YES clinics with coaches and student-athletes, a Coaches vs. Cancer basketball clinic, an officials clinic, a hand-balancing act, free-throw expert Bill Chaffin, and Charlie Charles, who claims to ride the world's smallest bicycle.

Local and national broadcasts originate from both Hoop Cities. Programming that originates from the men's Final Four includes the Jim Rome radio show (two shows), the One-on-One Sports Network, the NCAA-Host Radio Network, four or five live segments daily from Fox Sports Network, CNN/SI and the "Final Two Show" March 29 by CBS. The broadcasts from the women's event generally are local.

Activities planned for Hoop City

The RCA Longest Shot -- Half-court and three-quarter court length shots.

Sears Hoop City Mall -- NCAA licensed merchandise.

American Express Information Booth -- Information, plus lost and found.

Compaq NCAA Hall of Champions -- Information on the 81 championships the NCAA conducts in 22 sports, with computers and Internet access.

KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell Three-Point Shot -- Fans get to shoot from the 19-foot, 9-inch mark.

Hershey's Autograph Stage -- Guest coaches and celebrities available for autographs.

Hoop City Studios -- Telecasts originate from here.

CBS You Call the Play -- Sit in the seat of a broadcaster and take away a videotape of your performance.

American Cablevision/ESPN Fantasy SportsCenter You Call the Play -- Sit in the seat of a broadcaster and take away a videotape of your performance.

GTE Hoop City Center Court -- Youth clinics, coaches, student-athletes, Final Four bands and other entertainment.

Youth Education through Sports Clinics -- Youths ages 10 to 18 are eligible.

Oreo O-Zone Slam Dunk Challenge -- Fans get to try their hand at dunking a basketball.

Huffy Last-Second Shot -- Shooting with time running out.

Champion Hoop City Challenge -- A diploma for completing all Hoop City activities.

Hoop City Radio Network -- Local and national broadcasts originate from here.

Ocean Spray Around the World -- Shooting various common shots.

Marriott/Children's Miracle Network Kids Court -- An area specifically for toddlers.

Hoop City Food Court -- Food services.

Phoenix Free Throw Challenge -- Fans can see how many consecutive free throws they can make.

Chevrolet Dribble Master -- Fans can test their footwork through assorted obstacles.

Regal by Buick Dribble Master -- Fans can test their footwork through assorted obstacles.

Men's Hoop City only. Women's Hoop City only.