By Andrea Taboni
On March 10, 2022, the Center for Data Science Analytics (CDSA) hosted their second PRO Talkfeaturing Brian Hampton, Vice President of Football Administration, and Demitrius Washington, Manager of Football Research and Development from the San Francisco49ers.
During the talk, students and faculty got to hear about how the San Francisco 49ers use data within their organization. At the beginning of the talk, there was a surprise guest, Maurice “Mo” Hurst, the 49er’s newly signed Defensive Tackle. Hurst gave some insight on how he and other players on his team use data to improve their performance on the field.
Once Hurst was done talking, the conversation about data usage was turned over to Hamptonand Washington, who focused on the skills that one needs to be a data science professional in the sports industry. Hamptonstated, “It does not matter how well you are as a data scientist, what matters is how well you can present that information to someone.” This shows how “communication is key” in everything that you do.
Hampton and Washingtonalso mentioned the key skills and practices that an individual needs to get a job in the professional sports industry. When they were asked about one piece of advice that they would give for students looking for a job in professional sports, Demitrius stated, “Sharpen your skills as much as possible, network, and to reach out.” Hampton echoed Washington’s point about networking, stating, Networking is the key word of all of that. A lot of people in this industry get the job from some form of reference.”
The CDSA provides hands-on opportunities for students in data science. To learn more about future PRO Talk speakers, or about the CDSA in general, subscribe to their monthly newsletter at cdsa@houghton.edu. ★
