Sports Analytics
Available as a concentration
Every professional sports team in the country has made a significant commitment to studying sports analytics. With our concentration, you can prepare to join this fast-growing field and delve into the world of big data.
Curriculum & Courses
Sample Course Offerings
SPMT 190: Intro to Sport Management
CPSC 370: Data Mining
ROA 216: Stat Crew Management
Learn By Doing
Real-World Data & Statistics Learning
“Roanoke's Stat Crew is a one-of-a-kind thing. No one has anything quite the same that is hands-on like Stat Crew ... really getting the feel for what to look for in a game and what matters and what doesn't, numerically and strategically.”
Jake Beardsley '22
Careers & Outcomes
Turning Research Into Action
Megan Wheeler '21, who played on the women’s basketball team at Roanoke, took her study of the game to the next level through statistical research. As a sophomore, Megan created an “expected points” formula for shots given distance, angle, defensive pressure and other variables. Then as a senior, she used that formula to relate the number of dribbles and shooting efficiency. Not only did she present at conferences, but she also helped Roanoke’s basketball coaches adjust their game plans based on her work.
“Because we have such a great ratio of professors to students, I was able to get more experience than I would have at a bigger school,” Wheeler said.
Wheeler is looking to join the Peace Corps after graduation and hopes to use her double majors in sport management and Spanish to help young people from the Dominican Republic pursue their athletic dreams in the United States.
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Andrew Forrest ‘06 is the general manager for El Paso’s professional soccer team where he will oversee all business operations for the team. After graduating from RC, Forrest went on to earn a masters in Kinesiology and Sport Leadership from James Madison University. Before the job in El Paso, he was employed as the General Manager for Learfield Sports, and also worked for the San Antonio Scorpions, as well as soccer teams in Baltimore and Dallas.
Faculty
Professor's book brings "Moneyball" to golf
Dr. Roland Minton, professor emerita of mathematics and statistics at Roanoke College, has written "Golf by the Numbers," an analysis of golf statistics that brings the spirit of the popular movie "Moneyball" to the analysis of golf. Minton's work is based on data collected by the PGA for every shot in the tour — data that allowed him to create a rating system for golf covering both overall performance and specific game elements, such as drives and putts. Dr. Minton was featured on NPR speaking about his book.
News
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Join us in a behind-the-scenes look at some of Roanoke College's in-depth May Term courses.
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James Rowe, Selam Mekonnen and Cyrus Pace, all seniors at Roanoke College, competed as a team in the game analytics portion of the championship.
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Mike Pugh ’18 handles inside ticket sales for the Washington Nationals.
Our program prioritizes the type of hands-on experience that can help get your resume to the top of the pile in job searches. Students can join our Stat Crew — a program that is rare at the Division III level — and work alongside fellow students to track and analyze data for Maroon sports teams.
Studying sports analytics can help you pursue a wide range of jobs, even outside of athletics. The interdisciplinary skillset translates to any number of career paths.
We offer a concentration in Sports Analytics.