Marshall University Athletics
Marshall and ISP Sports Extend Partnership
3/4/2010 12:00:00 AM | General
March 4, 2010
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Marshall University Director of Athletics Mike Hamrick announced today that Marshall Athletics and ISP Sports, the exclusive multi-media and advertising rights holder for Thundering Herd Athletics, have agreed to extend their partnership through 2021.
ISP develops, produces and markets a variety of sponsorship opportunities at Marshall, including live radio play-by-play and call-in shows, advertising in athletic department publications and on the official department website (www.Herdzone.com) and signage in MU athletics facilities.
"We are excited about our relationship with ISP and the opportunities that this new agreement will bring to our athletics program," Hamrick said. "This long-term partnership is a major increase in the investment ISP has already made with us and it will benefit our athletics program for years to come."
The new 11-year agreement extends a relationship that has been in place since 1998 and includes a $10-million guaranteed increase in revenue for Marshall Athletics, most notably securing $3 million for the addition of two new state-of-the-art video boards and a new sound system for Joan C. Edwards Stadium, new digital signage and lighting upgrades for the Cam Henderson Center, upgrades to scoreboards at Dot Hicks Field and Sam Hood Field and additional signage upgrades at athletic venues.
"This is a positive step forward in our plan to improve not only our facilities, but enhance our fan's game day experience," Hamrick said.
ISP SPORTS is the country's largest and fastest growing collegiate multimedia rights holder, with partnerships involving more than 60 NCAA member institutions, conferences, bowl games and venues. The ISP family of leading universities and conferences reaches into 34 states from the Northeast through the mid-Atlantic and Southeast, while extending across the Southwest and most of the West coast as well.
In addition to Marshall, ISP, which is based in Winston-Salem, N.C., is also the multimedia rights holder for six other Conference USA institutions - East Carolina, Houston, Southern Miss, UAB, UCF and UTEP.
"Marshall and ISP have enjoyed a terrific partnership for more than a decade, and we are delighted to extend our agreement with the University for another 11 years," ISP Chairman and CEO Ben Sutton said. "We know that the future of Thundering Herd Athletics is extremely bright behind the leadership of Mike Hamrick and we look forward to playing a major role in that future and the successes it will bring as the exclusive rights holder for Marshall sports."
